Riding Pals was an idea I had in June 2020. The main concept being, to make it easier to find people to mountain bike with. In June, I naively thought that the UK, and world, would be free from the COVID-19 restrictions within a few months.

For National Stress Awareness Month, Benenden Health’s Head Matron, Cheryl Lythgoe provides insight into how employers can effectively manage employee stress amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thursday 22nd April 2021 marks the 51st anniversary of Earth Day, a day that celebrates our planet and aims to raise awareness about the importance of protecting it. Before the pandemic, events would take place all around the world on this day and in the lead-up for individuals and businesses to get involved in.

One of the most useful things any startup business owner can do is to attend as many relevant networking events as possible. Events allow industry movers and shakers to meet, mingle and explore new business connections, innovations and opportunities - which is of enormous value.

As CEO and Co-founder of the UK’s biggest free sharing app OLIO, it’s fair to say Tessa Clarke knows a thing or two about what it takes to start and grow a successful business. She has rounded up her biggest business do’s and don’ts for other ambitious entrepreneurs looking to build a successful new venture.

For many businesses, acquiring new customers during the pandemic will have become much harder as a result of having to manage remote sales teams, customers tightening their spend and future economic uncertainty.

If you own an up-and-coming startup, you need to find reliable, skilled workers - and freelancers usually fit the bill, especially because they come with flexible payment schedules. These employees can help your business navigate the initial stages to achieve success. That said, you should note that freelance workforces can be tough to manage.

Long COVID could have a big impact for employers for many months to come. It is a relatively new illness that is not yet fully understood and may keep employees from returning to work for indeterminate amounts of time.

The year 2020 stands out as what you would call the banner year for remote work. While a good number of people worked remotely before that, the outbreak of the pandemic forced a major shift to remote work. People and companies that hadn’t embraced remote working had it rough trying to adjust to the circumstances.

Networking. Some people love it, some people hate it. But everyone knows it’s essential if you’re setting up a new business. Or is it? Tell anyone that you’re setting up a business without any industry contacts, and they’ll raise their eyebrows at you. Wouldn’t it be better to get to know the industry first, they’ll ask? Shouldn’t you build up your network before diving in?

The last year has shone a spotlight on the long-term future of the UK’s business sector, its reliance on people and the need for business resilience. It was crucial to protect the financial security of consumers so that they could continue to conduct business with each other, and that was understandably Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak’s priority, with the unprecedented introduction of Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and furlough schemes.

Oil major, BP recently announced that 25,000 members of staff must Work From Home (WFH) two days per week post pandemic. As more firms transition to long-term remote working, evaluating and improving home office set ups will be critical to success. Here Kristian Torode, Director and Co-founder of business unified communications provider, Crystaline, looks at what companies should provide for their workers.

When you are building a plane in the sky - startup speak for tricky innovation in a tough environment - things slip. In the case of fast-growing businesses, important people priorities and processes fall down the agenda. Diversity and inclusion is one of them. It can be deprioritised by default, in a race to stay afloat, pay your teams and spend time on what will get you where you need to go, quickly.

Founded by childhood friends, Lucy Cohen and Sophie Hughes, Mazuma is a UK-based provider of online accounting services for small and micro businesses. As qualified accountants, the pair spotted a gap in the market in 2006 for low cost and stress-free accountancy which specifically serviced SMEs and the self-employed. Fast forward to today and the company is celebrating its 15th anniversary.

As we enter the ‘roadmap’ to recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses are reassessing their people operations. Some have adopted a ‘hybrid’ working model, allowing employees to split their time between working from home and from the office, and others have even given up their office spaces entirely.

The PR industry continues to go from strength to strength with a steady 5% growth in 2020 and the five years previous to that. This demonstrates that organisations recognise the value that communications play in their overall business strategy. Consumer research has shown that 48% see journalism and earned media to be the most credible source of information.   

With the vaccine rollout continuing across the world and a potential end in sight to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have looked at three of the top payment trends businesses should get to know as life gets back to some normality and the hospitality, travel and other sectors start to open once again.

Virtual reality is no longer a novelty, but VR events are an innovation in the event industry and marketing. A virtual event is a potent tool for promoting your brand or for organising conferences and concerts. This is an entirely new project that allows you to hold an event while staying at home, despite emergencies, such as the 2020 quarantine or other events.

With a number of people using eCommerce for the first time and employees working at home, the costs of cybercrime exceeded $1tn in 2020, up 50% from 2018.

COVID-19 has given rise to a mass adoption of technology. Many organisations have switched the office and physical meetings for Zoom calls, digitised their offline practices and undergone rapid digital transformation.