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]]>Sustainability is not just a trend or a nice to have. It is essential and imperative for any SME that wants to stay competitive. Which is why we turned to Alex Hughes from Auxilium Business Consulting – CSR-A certified at the start of our sustainability journey for advice on integrating practices that were both environmentally responsible and strategically aligned with our business goals, and for help with kick-starting our CSR application.
Company Overview
Business Clan, a UK-based company and is a one-stop-shop for business consultancy & professional services. They partner with their clients to achieve their business goals by providing bespoke support.
Each member of their team is an expert in one of the six professional services they offer, ( Business Strategy, Brand and Digital Marketing, Web Design and CRM, Accountancy & Bookkeeping, HR Management and support and Contracts and Compliance) providing collective expertise coupled with depth and breadth of knowledge from diverse sector experience.
They are committed to corporate social responsibility (CSR), and have recently achieved the prestigious Gold CSR Accreditation, the highest level awarded by CSR Accreditation. This independent, global recognition highlights their dedication to sustainability, environmental impact, and community engagement. The company’s efforts in integrating CSR into its core values and operations have earned them this esteemed recognition, marking a key milestone in its long-term sustainability journey.
Challenges
Business Clan has been in operation for 10 years and despite their ongoing commitment to CSR, there were areas where they felt further development could enhance their impact by showcasing what they were doing to the world. The challenge was not just to continue the great work they had been doing, but to find a way to benchmark their efforts against globally recognised standards and make their achievements measurable and transparent.
Action
In pursuit of further strengthening their CSR initiatives, Business Clan decided to apply for CSR Accreditation.
I had met Bernice Choo and Rohit Maini networking, and they were keen to learn from my experience of implementing CSR into my small business and most importantly what they needed to evidence in their CSR application for success. We worked together over several months to collate their evidence in the four pillars and review this to ensure they curated a robust application.
Working together with my advice and support allowed them to evaluate and showcase their commitment across four pillars of CSR: Environment, Workplace, Community, and Philanthropy. We carefully documented their efforts in each area, including environmental sustainability practices, workplace diversity and employee welfare, community outreach, and philanthropic initiatives.
Through this process, Business Clan was able to identify both its strengths and areas where further development was possible knowing that no one is 100% sustainable and this journey is a ‘work in progress’ to continually build upon.. The accreditation process provided a clear framework for aligning their efforts with internationally recognised CSR standards.
Results
Achieving the Gold CSR Accreditation not only validated Business Clan’s ongoing commitment but also brought about tangible, measurable outcomes. The accreditation provided an objective and external endorsement of their actions, bolstering their reputation as a leader in CSR. The process of aligning their operations with the four CSR pillars has given them a competitive advantage and a roadmap for continued progress.
Business Clan’s CSR initiatives have had a profound impact in various areas:
- Environment: Sustainable business practices, waste reduction, and carbon footprint minimization.
- Workplace: Promoting diversity, equality, and a healthy work-life balance.
- Community: Engaging in local community support and collaboration with charitable organizations.
- Philanthropy: Contributing to social causes that align with the company’s values.
With this recognition, Business Clan is now better equipped to help other SMEs to navigate their own CSR journeys and achieve similar accreditations. By sharing their learnings and experience, they can assist other companies in defining their sustainability strategies and developing CSR charters.
“We are thrilled to announce that after seven months of our journey, we have achieved a Gold CSR Accreditation. At Business Clan we take our environmental and social responsibilities seriously. Achieving this accreditation demonstrates how far we have come with our continued commitment to sustainability over the past 10 years.”
Next Steps
Looking ahead, Business Clan plans to continue building on the successes of their CSR initiatives. They aim to expand their impact, both internally and externally, while encouraging other businesses to pursue CSR accreditation. Through this process, they aim to create a lasting legacy that benefits not just their organisation, but the broader community and environment.
Business Clan is now ready to use its expertise and experience to help other businesses achieve CSR accreditation. By leveraging their journey and knowledge, they aim to guide SMEs in developing their sustainability positions and creating impactful CSR strategies.
Having successfully achieved Gold CSRA status in December 2024 we are now partnering with Auxilium to help other SMEs to achieve CSR Accreditation. So if you are ready to take that first step, visit https://lnkd.in/eTDzsbW to find out more.
Conclusion
The Gold CSR Accreditation represents more than just a badge of honour for Business Clan; it is a symbol of their ongoing commitment to sustainability, social responsibility, and community impact. As they continue to progress in their CSR journey, they remain focused on creating a measurable impact for future generations and supporting other businesses in achieving their CSR goals.
“Alex is a champion for sustainability and the best cheerleader for helping you with your application for a CSR accreditation.
With her operations hat on, she helps break things down into bite sizes and manageable chunks.
Then, she is the pacer you need when running this mini-marathon of extracting evidence to tell your story.
Thank you Alex for being on this journey, nudging and giving us the final push.
It was a worthwhile journey and we achieved a GOLD CSR-A Accreditation which is such an awesome achievement.
We are sharing this moment with you Alex.”
“Business Clan have demonstrated a proactive and value-driven approach to corporate social responsibility (CSR). From committing to become a CSR Associate member through to achieving a truly impressive Gold CSR Accreditation Business Clan has shown that they are serious about environmental and social responsibility.”
Richard Collins, Co-Founder of CSR
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]]>Company Overview
Chell Web & Design is a website and design service company located in Surrey, serving small and medium-sized businesses with their digital presence. The company provides a range of services aimed at enhancing the online visibility and functionality of its clients’ businesses. Sasha Mitchell, the founder and designer, discovered Auxilium through LinkedIn and mutual connections, as she was at a crossroads and was seeking a solution to manage her rapidly growing business.
Challenges Faced
As Chell Web & Design experienced significant growth, Sasha encountered several challenges:
- Increased Workload: The rapid expansion left her with limited time and mental capacity to organize and plan for the increased workload.
- Team Management: There was a need to develop a plan for growing a team to handle the expanding business needs.
- Legal Setup: Ensuring the correct legal setup, including contracts and insurance, was critical.
- Business Direction: Sasha needed clarity on the future direction and goals of her business.
Solutions Provided by Auxilium
Auxilium provided a comprehensive approach to address these challenges via her deep dive, mini audit session. As a result it covered the following adreas:
- Task Organisation: Auxilium helped Sasha identify daily tasks that could be outsourced or reduced, streamlining her workload.
- Processing Document: With Auxilium’s guidance, Sasha created a processing document that became vital to her business operations.
- Networking: Auxilium connected Sasha with various people and businesses that assisted in organizing, growing, and developing her business.
- Structured Planning: Sasha’s ideas & thoughts were then organised into a structured plan and checklist, facilitating better business management and growth for the future.
Results Achieved
The collaboration with Auxilium yielded significant positive outcomes for Chell Web & Design:
- Workload Management: Sasha now works with two freelancers and a virtual assistant, significantly reducing her workload.
- Focus on Growth: This new setup allowed her to focus on critical tasks for new projects and business growth.
- Client Base Expansion: Sasha has nearly doubled her monthly retained clients, whilst still achieving a better work-life balance.
- Service Quality: The improvements enabled her to provide better service to her clients.
- Security: Sasha was able to take a trip of a lifetime, knowing that the business was running smoothly in her absence, which she never dreamed would happen.
Personal Experience and Recommendation
Sasha Mitchell shared her overall experience with Auxilium:
“Alex has been a huge asset to my business and its development. She helped assess my current situation and future goals, working with me to build a cohesive to-do list and a plan that was not overwhelming. I highly recommend Alex’s services to any business owner going through a transition of any kind.”
Key Takeaways
- Introduction to Auxilium: Through LinkedIn and mutual connections, Sasha found the support she needed with professional guide-wise counsel.
- Problem-Solving Approach: Auxilium’s structured and supportive approach helped streamline operations, manage workload, and plan for growth.
- Significant Results: The partnership resulted in substantial business growth, improved client management, and enhanced work-life balance.
Auxilium likens this case to a child riding a bike with stabilisers. Auxilium helps guide the rider along a path and then ‘hey presto’ the stabilisers can come off and off they go!
This case study highlights the pivotal role Auxilium played in transforming Chell Web & Design’s operational efficiency and business growth.
If any of the above resonates with you and you need my help to transform your business, then please do not hesitate to get in touch and Auxilium will send you off into the world with renewed vigour and no more stabilisers.
W. www.auxiliumconsulting.co.uk/work-with-me/
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]]>I have known Helen Kirby of HK Graphics for several years now and we have attended many networking groups and meetings together where we have learned about each other’s businesses.
Helen has created some amazing graphics for Auxilium in the form of a revised logo, leaflets, and Canva templates so my website is now littered with her amazing work.
Helen is herself passionate about sustainability and was curious to know how this could be incorporated into her business
I spoke to her about the benefits of ‘sowing the seeds of sustainability’ for her small business and how I had helped others. We then booked a121 chat to discuss my sustainability services further.
Some of Helen’s clients are also sustainably conscious and she wanted to make sure that she was showcasing to them and all interested parties what she was doing but had not told anyone about yet.
Helen liked the structured approach of SOW where she could book in her diary time to work on this that suited her and also brainstorm with me all of her efforts thus far.
In a short space of time, we compiled the “Sustainability Statement” for the business and then using all the evidence in the four pillars we compiled the “Roadmap of Actions” for Helen to use internally and externally for HK Graphics marketing purposes.
The finished statement is an external document that can be used to inform people of your intentions and actions that have been taken and can be sent to clients, added to a website, attached to a tender or preferred supplier list, or added to an employee induction pack.
The roadmap is an internal document that outlines all the efforts under environment, workplace, community & philanthropy that have been done, are planned, can be improved, and in some cases considered but cannot be done ( e.g. solar panels on the roof of your rented office ) This is a “work in progress” map of all the things you have done and are planning and can be used by everyone on the business to monitor progress and impacts.
“Doing Good is Good for Business” – Richard Branson.
Just as a reminder the 4 pillars used in this work are based on those from CSR-A and are
1. Environment 2. Workplace, 3. Community and 4. Philanthropy.
You can find out more about them on my sustainability page and by downloading my checklist to get you started on your brainstorming.
The documents that SOW compiled have given Helen the confidence to talk about her sustainability efforts and to encourage others to do the same. If asked to evidence her work she now has all the information to hand. She has also compiled some infographics to showcase and visually represent what she does. Take a look at these on her website from her sustainability page
This is what Helen had to say after the SOW programme was complete.
“I found going through the SOW Programme with Alex so straightforward. I was nervous it was going to take up a lot of time, but with Alex’s guidance and regular meetings, it was really easy to keep on top of the tasks.
It’s great to have a sustainability statement for use on my website and I’m really pleased to have a roadmap to keep me on the right track going forward.
This programme is a great first step into really demonstrating sustainability to my clients and stakeholders.
Thank you Alex for your brilliant guidance through the process.”
I have since followed up with Helen about her sustainability journey and the additional impacts she has incorporated into her business after this work. This is all helping her to increase her impacts, share the work she is doing, and attract like-minded clients, suppliers, and stakeholders.
If you are reading this and are interested in finding out more about how sustainability can benefit your business, then do get in touch.
If you are another graphic designer, financial advisor, software developer, research consultant, social media expert, solicitor, accountant, bookkeeper, marketing or consultant, then DO get in touch as I have already helped SMEs in these industries.
Take a look at my testimonials under the sustainability section to read more about what others had to say.
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]]>
In 2023 I spoke to many people about the benefits of ‘sowing the seeds of sustainability’ for a small business, and everyone employed and connected to them.
I met Viral Patel of Custodia at a networking group online and we had several chats to get to know each other, and then Viral took action and booked a 121 chat to discuss my sustainability services.
WHY
- This was a subject dear to his heart and he wanted to understand more about how this could work for his small business.
- He had heard me talk about “sustainability” and all that I was doing towards my efforts for my small consultancy and how I was passionate about helping others.
- He had heard that I had received a CSR-A accreditation and wanted to know more.
- He knew he was making some impacts but wasn’t really sure how to start to evidence this.
- He had the belief that CSR was really for larger corporations and so what did that mean for an SME.
- He thought the process would be too expensive.
- He wanted to stand out from his competitors and fellow business owners.
- He wanted to show his employees that Custodia cared about the planet and them.
- He wanted to highlight more areas where he could make a difference and focus on plans to implement changes.
- He wanted to tell the world what Custodia stood for and why.
- He wanted to see where he could save money on his operating costs and reduce his carbon footprint.
- He wanted to see how his efforts can help influence others in his industry.
- He wanted to see if this influences clients to stay and ultimately attract new clients as a result.
So many reasons in fact and I am sure there are many more.
During the 121 chat, I explained to Viral what my SOW service consisted of, the benefits to SMEs, and how it would all work.
He liked the structured approach as a busy CEO and that this would allow him to think about and brainstorm with me all of his efforts thus far. This would then be used to compile the “Sustainability Statement” for the business and then using all the evidence in the four pillars we would then collate a “Roadmap of Actions”
This was all planned with Viral answering a questionnaire and two further meetings to brainstorm and review documents. This was all completed in less than a month. “Fabulous and made so easy” Viral said.
Our work together answered all of his above questions and concerns and now he is best placed to hare with the world the impacts he and his business is making and stand out from others in his industry and build on the good work he has done.
“Doing Good is Good for Business” – Richard Branson.
Just as a reminder the 4 pillars used by CSR-A are
1. Environment 2. Workplace, 3. Community and 4. Philanthropy.
You can find out more about them on my sustainability page and by downloading my checklist to get you started on your brainstorming.
Your finished statement is an external document that can be used to inform people of your intentions and actions that have been taken and can be sent to clients, added to a website, attached to a tender or preferred supplier list, or added to an employee induction pack.
The roadmap is your internal document that outlines all the efforts under environment, workplace, community & philanthropy that have been done, are planned, can be improved, and in some cases considered but cannot be done ( e.g. solar panels on the roof of your rented office ) This is a “work in progress” map of all the things you have done and are planning and can be used by everyone on the business to monitor progress and impacts.
The documents compiled gave Viral the confidence to talk about his sustainability efforts and to encourage others. He rents a space in a Business Centre who have made huge impacts on the environment in their office setup, processes, and procedures. So this work has enabled him to match his efforts and stand out from the crowd.
Viral is proud of what he has achieved and knows where he needs to focus more sustainable efforts going forward using his roadmap and with my ongoing support. I will ensure that his sustainability efforts are reviewed regularly and updated.
Remember no one is fully sustainable and there are always improvements we can make. So you must view this as a “work in progress” but confidently tell the world as Viral does ” Custodia provides “sustainable investments, services and solutions, today and for the future.”
If you are reading this and are interested in finding out more about how sustainability can benefit your business then do get in touch.
If you are another financial advisor, or a graphic designer, software developer, research consultant, solicitor, accountant, bookkeeper, marketing or consultant, then DO get in touch as I have already helped SMEs in these industries.
Take a look at my testimonials under the sustainability section to read more about what others had to say.
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]]>The post Is your SME in need of sustainability support? appeared first on Auxilium Consulting.
]]>The businesses I have helped so far are.
Solicitors, Accountants, Marketing experts, several Graphic Designers, Software developers, Researchers, and a Wealth Management advisor.
I also have many people very interested in the fields of networking, removals, coaches& consultants, website developers and SEO.
There have been various reasons why they sought my services, and they are from various industry backgrounds, sizes, and locations.
Some have lost work because they were not able to evidence their impacts in tenders and preferred suppliers lists ( now anywhere between 10-20% of an application ), or they have met me listened and realised that this should be a higher priority and they wanted to act and raise their profiles with a statement and roadmap so that they stood out against their competitors and within their industr
Just to recap on the SOW programme I work with clients who see sustainability as the steppingstone to creating a business that acts responsibly, by weaving core sustainable strategies throughout their operations.
I support them to create clear targets to ensure they and the business are making a difference in everything they do. It is also something that resonates deeply with me and my business and working together we can then ensure that every decision that is made, makes an impact.
Following my attendance on a CSR-A course in 2021, my eyes were opened to all the environmental, community, workplace, and philanthropic areas that I was already incorporating into my day-to-day operations and even more so, what else I could add to this. This made me very aware of the best practices that I was abiding by and the clear benefits of doing so.
Having operated on this path, I was keen to be recognised and so I am very proud that Auxilium Business Consulting Ltd was awarded a Silver CSR Accreditation for its activities which is an independent recognition of my sustainable journey so far. Of course, it is a work in progress, and I will be adding to this all the time.
I work with clients to start them on their journey using my SOW programme. The outcome of this is to provide a sustainability statement and roadmap for them that they can evidence to interested parties externally and use internally. This helps to audit their impacts and ensure they are woven into the strategy and core of the business and always supported by all the management and employees.
- Are you curious about sustainability and want to get started by sowing the seeds of sustainability for your business?
- Do you want to learn from someone who has the same sustainability passion and has gone through this process?
- Have you already begun your sustainability journey and are overwhelmed, do not know where to start, and need some support?
If the answer to any of the above was YES, then your journey can start now with a free 45-minute discovery call and then further discussions about how we can work together on this vital project.
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]]>The post Case Study – Why small business owners are focusing on sustainability and the impacts they are making. appeared first on Auxilium Consulting.
]]>- Seeing other businesses talk about this and who have already started their journey and are standing out.
- They have had to complete a tender or preferred suppliers list and were unable to evidence effectively what they had been doing.
- An employee, client, or supplier has asked them about what actions they are taking or what policies they have in place.
- They are aware of cost savings to be had by implementing sustainable choices and procurements for their business and need to find out more.
- They want to stand out from their competitors and are willing to embrace changes by highlighting practices and policies that affect this.
- They want to demonstrate commitment and gain trust from like-minded clients, suppliers, and stakeholders which will enhance their brand reputation.
- Ensuring that they future-proof the business by being ahead of any future regulations and sustainable practices that provide stability and long-term viability for the business.
- Ensuring that they mitigate any risks by diversifying supply chains and including local or UK sources and investing in renewable energy.
- Embracing sustainability to drive innovation and finding new ways to reduce waste, improve efficiencies, and develop new products and services.
My SOW programme uses CSR-A’s 4 pillars to take a look at what you are already doing, and plan to do.
These 4 pillars are
- The environment focuses on eco-issues such as climate change but the areas that your business depends on. This can range from electricity, heating and lighting, water, supply chains, recycling, office procurement and deliveries and recycling, reducing, and reusing products and services where you can.
- A workplace that looks at activities including the procedures and policies that improve products and services for employees, clients, & customers. This can range from flexible working, cloud document storage, online meetings, reduced paper usage, unsubscribing from emails and not attaching documents to emails, reductions in travel, green investments, and working with sustainable clients and supply chains.
- The community which focuses on the way your business operates with other organisations to improve the quality of life of the people in the local community. How, where, and why do you operate and the areas you support in your local networks and forums, buying and supporting local businesses, mentoring, networking & memberships.
- Philanthropy focuses on the donations of time and money to good causes and supporting charities through volunteering, donation, or sponsorship. This can also mean pro bono work, donations of money and products, giving back, and free or discounted advice.
I help small business owners to take a look at what they were doing, want to do, and could do to start implementing sustainability into their small businesses. They are generally aware of some impacts they were making but want to review this and brainstorm further in order to create a sustainability statement to evidence what they were doing and had pledged and also a roadmap of actions for their business to hold them accountable. This enables them to get their sustainability off the starting blocks.
You can download your own 4 Pillars checklist here to get started.
The SOW programme takes about 1 month to complete based on the amount of time the SME has set aside. This is the optimum amount of time and we work together finally producing documents that are tailored to the business and used by the business as they see fit now and for the future.
- Sustainability Statement which is a 1-page document that can be used externally on a website or sent to clients, suppliers and stakeholders and used as evidence of your current status.
- A Roadmap of Actions that is a work-in-progress document laying out what you have done already and what you plan to do in each of the four pillars. This can be used to update internally at management meetings and can evidence the details and status of a project.
The process for the SME’s involvement to create the above includes a discovery call, a questionnaire, and two 1 hours Zoom discussion calls.
I then collate all of the information discussed and produce draft documents and add any changes to produce the final documents to complete this work.
Here are what two recent clients had to say.
So far I have helped a Solicitors / Accountants / Online Marketing Specialist / 3 x Graphic Designers / Software Developers / Education Researcher / Wealth Management Advisor
Remember there are many benefits to making sustainable impacts for your business.
- Winning new business from like-minded clients.
- Enhancing relationships with your stakeholders
- Attracting and retaining talented employees.
- Raising your profile within your industry and generally to others.
- Access to funding opportunities.
- Standing out from the crowd.
- Reducing long-term costs for your business.
- Increasing customer retention.
- Reach new audiences.
- Collaborations with like-minded people.
- Make a difference and help future generations.
There are also many reasons why you will reap rewards by weaving sustainability into the core of your business, and every business will have a different focus.
However, there are huge advantages to investing the time and focus on sustainability to gain recognition for your business – here are some reasons why;
- Sustainability provides your business with positive publicity. People’s ears prick up and they take notice of you and what your business is doing especially when sharing stories.
- Having a sustainability journey woven into your business builds your competitive advantage, especially in a tender process. These tender processes can be lengthy and complex and include a scoring process which is where your sustainability efforts and accreditations will score well.
- Your environmental impacts will save money on areas such as energy, reduce waste, and will make a difference in all your procurement choices.
- Being sustainable will attract investment opportunities, and suppliers and also help retain and gain new clients and employees Your sustainability journey will expose your commitment, processes, causes & values.
- Being focussed on sustainability will enhance and develop relationships with existing and new contacts and improve your business reputation.
- Investing time and energy in sustainable projects and goals will reap rewards many times over in the long run.
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]]>I went through a similar process when training with CSR-A and ultimately gained a silver accreditation from CSR-A for Auxilium using the 4 pillars to build a framework to collate this information.
These 4 pillars are
The environment focuses on eco-issues such as climate change but the areas that your business depends on. This can range from electricity, heating and lighting, water, supply chains, recycling, office procurement and deliveries, and recycling, reducing, and reusing products and services where you can.
A workplace that looks at activities including the procedures and policies that improve products and services for employees, clients, & customers. This can range from flexible working, cloud document storage, online meetings, reduced paper usage, unsubscribing from emails and not attaching documents to emails, reductions in travel, green investments, and working with sustainable clients and supply chains.
The community which focuses on the way your business operates with other organisations to improve the quality of life of the people in the local community. How, where, and why do you operate and the areas you support in your local networks and forums, buying and supporting local businesses, mentoring, networking & memberships.
Philanthropy focuses on the donations of time and money to good causes and supporting charities through volunteering, donation, or sponsorship. This can also mean pro bono work, donations of money and products, giving back, and free or discounted advice.
Auxilium’s SOW programme uses these 4 pillars and I now work with my clients to review and to brainstorm these and you can download your own checklist here to get started.
The three small businesses were in different industry areas, Solicitors, Accountants, and an Online marketing services consultant. All of them were curious and sustainability was on their radar, but they had never taken the time to look closely at this for their business. They may have considered areas for their home and personal life but not yet considered ways to implement this for their business or recognise and appreciate what they were already doing without realising.
Over a few months, we looked at the 4 pillars and brainstormed each one to enable them to document and collate evidence for each area. This information was then added to their bespoke roadmaps so that they had a list of actions that they could prioritise and evidence in-house and to clients, suppliers, and third parties if necessary. The information was also used to compile a bespoke statement based on their ethos, values, plans, activities, and pledges. These two documents have enabled these three clients to start their sustainability journey for their small business and in all three cases, they have gone on to actively action impacts widen their sustainability activities, and let the whole world know what they are doing to be bold and brave in their actions to build a greener planet.
These three clients have felt confident enough to continue their journey after working with me and I am thrilled to see them go off into the distance with confidence and pride. I liken this to a parent helping a child to ride a bike. You hold onto them whilst they have their stabilisers on and then after a while the stabilisers come off and they ride off into the distance and don’t look back. I the thrilled parent then smile with pride watching them.
Take a look at my webpage to read more about my services and what these clients had to say.
Remember there are many benefits to making sustainable impacts for your business.
- Winning new business from like-minded clients.
- Enhancing relationships with your stakeholders
- Attracting and retaining talented employees.
- Raising your profile within your industry and generally to others.
- Access to funding opportunities.
- Standing out from the crowd.
- Reducing long-term costs for your business.
- Increasing customer retention.
- Reach new audiences.
- Collaborations with like-minded people.
- Make a difference and help future generations.
There are also many reasons why you will reap rewards weaving sustainability into the core of your business and every business will have a different focus, but there are huge advantages for investing the time and focus on sustainability to gain recognition for your business – here are some reasons why;
- Sustainability provides your business with positive publicity. People’s ears prick up and they take notice of you and what your business is doing especially when sharing stories.
- Having a sustainability journey woven into your business builds your competitive advantage, especially in a tender process. These tender processes can be lengthy and complex and include a scoring process which is where your sustainability efforts and accreditations will score well.
- Your environmental impacts will save money on areas such as energy, reduce waste, and will make a difference in all your procurement choices.
- Being sustainable will attract investment opportunities, and suppliers and also help retain and gain new clients and employees Your sustainability journey will expose your commitment, processes, causes & values.
- Being focused on sustainability will enhance and develop relationships with existing and new contacts and improve your business reputation.
- Investing time and energy in sustainable projects and goals will reap rewards many times over in the long run.
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]]>Care Concern Homecare Ltd was established in 1993 by Clare Drewell and they provide bespoke, personal home care services for the elderly in Chiswick and Ealing. The Care Concern team consists of Clare Drewell, the Owner and Director; Laura Drewell, Operations Manager; four members of the management team; and also currently 22 Carers who collectively have a wealth of experience in supporting their clients to live safely in their home environments.
They are driven by their five core values of ‘Compassion, Dependability, Expertise, Individuality, and Respect.’ These are the foundations of how they work with their clients and also how all the staff and management at Care Concern work together.
Laura & Clare Drewell of Care Concern Homecare Ltd were referred to Auxilium Business Consulting Ltd to discuss and explore the Company’s administrative procedures and processes for the business and specifically concerning Laura’s role as the Operations Manager.
Following a few discussions, we met to ‘deep dive’ into various areas of the business, and Auxilium was tasked with providing a comprehensive Audit covering all aspects of the business outlining priorities and actions for each area. These priorities provided Care Concern with suggested solutions to see where they could save time and money and make streamlined changes, reviews, and or investments needed to make the business more effective and to enhance their growth going forwards.
Services provided by Auxilium Business Consulting
When I met Laura she had taken over many tasks as the Operations Manager many of which I felt could be streamlined into an Administrative role. We took a close look at her duties and tasks over several weeks and I was able to list all the areas that she could relinquish, explaining why and how this could be done. These tasks were compiled into a Job Description and sent off to a local Recruitment Agency, which successfully helped Care Concern employ a suitable candidate. This person has now been employed, the duties in the role taken over and Laura can now focus on more strategic tasks to grow the business.
Another area that was highlighted as a key area was to streamline procedures and processes starting with the compilation of Standard Operating Procedures.
Care Concern Client benefits.
Working on all the above tasks has enabled Care Concern to review the Operations Manager role, streamline tasks, and employ a new member of staff in an administrative role. Tasks that were previously shared across the management team have now been streamlined into one role allowing Clare and Laura to focus on strategic management tasks and business growth.
Clare, Laura, and I regularly caught up to discuss the Audit in detail including their priorities and how and when to implement them. It was an absolute pleasure to work with Clare & Laura and to have supported them on their growth journey so far and made a difference. I will continue with any support they need in the future.
With a recent CQC rating of “Outstanding” for the third time, I know they will continue to go from strength to strength.
Here is what Laura had to say.
Alex carried out a business audit for us in May 2021. She was energised, detailed, and thorough throughout the whole process asking insightful questions and showing a genuine interest in how we work and the systems and processes we have in place.
She listened to us and responded with sensible and realistic suggestions and ideas about how we could change things to better suit our needs going forward. She was professional throughout and the final report she put together is now the stepping stone for change in our company as we look to the future.
Since completing all of the above-mentioned tasks and putting in place changes Laura now feels more in control and can visualise the business components clearly. Taking the time to step back from the business and review it has given both Laura and Clare space in their thinking and planning for his business for the future, safe in the knowledge it now has the key components efficiently mapped out and operation.
When business owners get to an X-roads it is so beneficial to stand back and take a ‘helicopter view’, ‘unravel their spaghetti brain’, and ‘avoid those big red bus moments’. Carrying out a business audit does just that and provides a clear plan of action and path ahead.
If you need an Audit of your business to see a clearer path ahead or need to outsource business strategic projects and administrative tasks and can see the benefits of a Virtual Business Consultant / Manager, then please do not hesitate to get in touch so that we can discuss how I can support you in a similar way.
Auxilium Business Consulting Ltd ~ ‘A lifeboat in a crisis and then a lighthouse showing you the way on your administration journey!’
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]]>Permutable constantly strives to push the boundaries of technology so that it looks to the future, penetrating new areas on a constant basis. By integrating AI Permutable can deliver solutions to businesses making them technology power-houses.
Projects undertaken are Industry research, real-time and custom-built AI, real-time reporting and production-ready systems.
Permutable has been named as a Company to watch in a list of European start-ups in AI.
Services provided by Auxilium Business Consulting
When I met Wilson Chan in 2018 he was working alone and wearing all the hats that a young start up wears. He knew he needed help and had been concerned about the quality of support someone could give him. After meeting him and talking about my financial background in the City for 15 years as well as my Administration management career for 17 years he knew I understood his marketplace which was a big hurdle.
He was not sure how many hours things would take to complete and indeed what the quality of my output would be. I assured him and we started on a block of 5 hours. As this was completed he saw the quality of the work and swift professional turnaround and increased the no of hours significantly straight away. My services are flexible and hence some months the number of hours is less and sometimes they are more but he keeps me up to date with the workload he wants to pass on and I update him on the status of the current work so we both know where we are in progress.
At the start, we discussed all the tasks that he needed at that point and prioritised them alongside me accessing securely all the software that I needed to utilise for his business. At this stage, there are always a few hours of onboarding and explanation, but this is soon made up once procedures and processes are known.
Some of the early tasks that I completed were;
- Google Drive Organisation.
- Research in various Industry Sectors.
- Job descriptions, adverts, screen calls & interviews.
- Insurance Quotations
- HRM Contracts compilation
- Visa and Immigration research
These tasks saved Wilson so much time as he needed to focus on some AI projects tenders to grow his business. As a consequence, he won some contracts in this time and was then able to then take on new employees to support him with these going forwards.
After this initial work Wilson decided he needed more support from me, increased my hours and I went on to add the following tasks to support him;
- Twitter Posts
- University Job advert uploads to various Universities
- Research and document compilation for Seed Enterprise Investment Schemes
- Companies House name change process and documents.
- Trademark registration
- Consultancy processes & contracts
- Share Schemes
- Office Signage for new Office
- Liaising with Accountants & Bookkeeper
- Diary Management
- Internal Messaging & Communications
- Events & set up & attendees
- Grants
- Conference Research
- Invoice Chasing
- Client Project documentation
- Various research projects
I have supported Permutable as their Virtual Business Manager in their early days of business on a regular basis taking on whatever tasks were needed and supporting the whole team.
Permutable Client benefits.
Working on all the above tasks has enabled Permutable to employ 4 further staff, gain more investment and grow the business.
When people start to outsource tasks they do it on a small scale and quickly realise that they can outsource more and more on a constant basis to save time, reduce costs and their to-do lists and focus on what they do best to grow and forge the business into new territory that they could not have done alone.
Wilson and I regularly caught up to discuss what was happening in the business so that I could proactively support him. We started to work together in May 2018, before Covid19 and so we have met in person several times and during this time trust was built for me to work remotely, keeping him in the loop with the status of tasks, either via, Zoom, slack, what’s app or phone calls, providing ideas and solutions to things that were coming up
It was an absolute pleasure to work with Wilson and to have supported his growth journey so far in all areas of his business. He has now taken on more staff and the business is going from strength to strength.
Here is what Wilson had to say.
“Great support from the start, I could not have asked for more!”
Since completing all of the above mentioned tasks and putting in place changes Wilson feels more in control and can visualise his business components clearly. Taking the time to step back from his business and review it has given him space in his thinking and planning for his business for the future, safe in the knowledge it now has the key components efficiently mapped out and operational.
For me it has been an absolute pleasure to have met and worked with Wilson and the Permutable team. He is so passionate about what he does and wants to make a difference in the AI world in everything he does.
If you need to outsource business administration tasks and can see the benefits of a virtual Business Manager please do not hesitate to get in touch so that we can discuss how I can support you in a similar way.
Auxilium Business Consulting Ltd ~ ‘A lifeboat in a crisis and then a lighthouse showing you the way on your administration journey!’
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]]>Cookify was established in 2007 by James Berrie and he sells bespoke kitchenware gifts, with a vintage style. They are affordable, imaginative, tailored gifts for special occasions i.e., Birthdays, Christmas, Valentines and Weddings and can be personalised for adults and children. The range of products currently includes aprons, t-shirts, mugs & chef hats.
James started Cookify from home and has sourced all the textiles and equipment to manufacture and print himself. He spent a lot of time listening to others and found that the vintage style that has now evolved, gave his designs the edge and appeal for this market.
Cookify is always researching the market to ensure that they create and supply distinctive designs and pride themselves on sourcing UK textiles that are also printed in-house ensuring fast delivery and the ability to fulfil the smallest of orders.
Cookify sells Vintage cookware online via Amazon, Etsy, Ebay and directly from the newly revampd website www.cookify.co.uk
Services provided by Auxilium Admin
James Berrie, the owner of Cookify was referred to me by a Business Coach in early 2020 (before Covid-19 struck) as someone who needed a complete review of the processes and procedures in his business. He needed a clearer picture of all the components of his business and how they all worked together, where he could streamline, eradicate and introduce new ways of working and combining areas.
James and I discussed all that was bothering him and holding him back in his business. I was delighted that he wanted me to support him and so far, all our work together has been remote, and I have kept him accountable to tasks and we have worked together on areas and had regular meetings on ‘Zoom’.
I completed a full Audit of his business which consisted of two, 2-hour ‘deep dive’ sessions going through every aspect of his business including finance, marketing & branding, sales, website & SEO & software usages as a start. The report from the audit covered all of these areas and more and provided priorities and actions for each so that James could see how the suggested solutions would work for his business and also save time and money going forwards. Some suggestions were ‘quick wins’ and could be done by James and others by myself or a specialist in their field over a longer period of time, with investment in time and money Cookify was able to enhance its services and stimulate growth.
Examples of these changes were
- a revamp of the website with an SEO review,
- updated copy for the website,
- touch-ups to images of products by an Amazon specialist,
- standard operating procedures compilation for fulfilment companies,
- server tree of files,
- brand imagery revamp and new product images
- getting online with finances
- & a review of software packages used.
This was just the start and there are many more areas that Cookify can review and we will be continuing to work together.
Here is what James had to say.
“Great support from the start, I could not have asked for more! Thank you Alex you unravelled all that I had in my brain about the business and now it is all clear and streamlined.”
Cookify Client benefits.
When I started working with James in February 2020, he worked on his own but also had ad hoc support from a couple of people dispatching and printing some of the products that he sold. He had also started engaging the services of various fulfilment houses so that his online products would be dispatching efficiently and that he was notified of sales. He was overwhelmed with all the areas of his business that needed managing and needed his input, or so he thought.
Artwork by James Berrie – Insta @james_berrie008
You will have noticed the image that accompanies this Case study and wonder what the connection is. Well, it is actually one of James’s pieces artwork ( he is a talented chap ) and it caught my eye as it resonated with me as to how he viewed his business when we met. James saw lots of people, businesses and touchpoints that were all connected and intertwined. He had a great understanding of these components but needed to unravel then to clearly see what they were, why they were there when they should be used, where he could improve aspects and how this would all fit together to make a more efficient, seamlessly run business that could thrive and grow.
I am sure you can see how this image revealed to me a visual of what James saw at the time.
Since putting in place the above-mentioned changes (and believe me there are more for us to work on together) James feels more in control and can visualise his business components clearly. Taking the time to step back from his business and review it as we have together in this audit has given him space in his thinking and planning for his business for the future, safe in the knowledge it now has the key components efficiently mapped out and operation.
For me, it has been an absolute pleasure to have met and worked with James. He is so passionate about what he does and wants to get back to the design side of his business knowing that everything is running smoothly in the background. To provide ‘lightbulb’ and ‘aha’ moments is so rewarding for me and I would urge you to take a look at his new website www.cookify.co.uk
If you need to review your business with an audit or need any bespoke business administration support, please do not hesitate to get in touch so that we can discuss how I can support you in a similar way.
Auxilium Administration Service Ltd ~ ‘A lifeboat in a crisis and then a lighthouse showing you the way on your administration journey!’
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