Originally published in the Canberra Times on Monday, 27 May 2024.
Bruce Billson
Winning a government contract can be life-changing for a small business. As all businesses know, there is no substitute for good…
… May 2024. Bruce Billson Winning a government contract can be life-changing for a small business. As all businesses … are looking for to engage in a complicated, costly and time-consuming process. Dismissing considered and … boost women-owned business opportunities and improve payment times. We found active stewardship is essential to …
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Opinion piece by the Ombudsman Bruce Billson.
Originally published in the Canberra Times.
Small business is the beating heart of our communities and our economy, so it is crucial to check the pulse of such an important sector to measure its…
… and the unseen 'business of running the business' can be physically, mentally and financially exhausting. That's … terms of their spending, preferences and confidence. The time-series for the Pulse covers the past eight years and has … increased, although they remain below pre-pandemic levels. Payment disputes are often an early warning sign of cash flow …
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Originally published in The Canberra Times.
Digital platforms have fundamentally changed the way small businesses connect and sell to their customers. Yet, when there is a problem - such as having your account shut down after being hacked -…
… your account shut down after being hacked - solving it can be a nightmare. Whether it is Facebook, Instagram, Uber, … cases, when there is a problem these platforms require a time and resource-poor small business to navigate the most … turn ads on or off and can remove or update advertising payment information. Have your account/s set up so the …
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Originally published in The Canberra Times
By Bruce Billson
More and more women are creating new businesses to find solutions to everyday problems.
About 35 per cent of small businesses are owned or led by women.
This is double…
… that 68 per cent of self-employed females are working part-time, compared to 47 per cent of female employees in the … the pressures that entrepreneurial women deal with every day. Where is the question about childcare and employee share … told that they needed a male on the application form to be approved. We have taken some strides since the 1950s but …
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15 October 2024
TRANSCRIPT
Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Leon Delaney.
Radio 2CC Canberra
…
… you before, Bruce, but many, many, many years ago, I think 30 years ago, I came up with this idea when recorded phone … McEnroe is. Leon Delaney He was the Nick Kyrgios of his day. Bruce Billson What great documentary about him and his … - they might also tap into a credit card or some other payment facility you have linked to your account that helps …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Leon Delaney.
Radio 2CC Canberra
Leon Delaney
The Australian Small…
… Billson, good afternoon. Bruce Billson Leon, great to be with you and your listeners on this glorious capital day. Leon Delaney It's a beautiful day today, isn't it? It's absolutely a cracker. Now I've got …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Deb Knight.
Money News
Subjects: COSBOA Summit, energising enterprise
…… welcome back to Money News. Bruce Billson Deb, great to be with you and your enterprising audience. Deb Knight Yes, … only 8% of business owners that are under the age of 30. It was nearly twice that in the ‘70s. So, something is … only 8% of business owners that are under the age of 30. It was nearly twice that in the ‘70s. So, something is …
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This week we celebrate National Family Business Day - on Thursday, September 19.
It's a great moment to reflect on the crucial role family-owned businesses play in the economy and throughout our communities.
Think about the many farming,…
… 2024 This week we celebrate National Family Business Day - on Thursday, September 19. It's a great moment to … services businesses in your community and often it will be family-owned and led. Some of our most enduring businesses … added layer of emotion. What if one of the offspring takes time away from the family business to gain experiences that …
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Opinion piece by the Ombudsman Bruce Billson.
Originally published in the Canberra Times.
The public rightly expects any personal information collected and stored by businesses - whether they are large or small - will be protected and only…
… Small businesses can't be held to the same privacy standards 22 July 2024 Opinion … Mark Dreyfus of the special circumstances and limited time and resources of small business, the need for support … with this after they've been running their business all day. Small businesses will need clear guidance on the active …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Nadia Mitsopoulos.
ABC Radio Perth
26 June 2023
Subject: Small Business Matters…
… a hook point, 8% of business owners are under the age of 30. That used to be 17%. So it's quite an interesting picture … Another allied piece of work we've been doing is around payment times - another example where too often small … they deserve from big business customers taking a long time, in some cases, one in four big businesses taking a 120 …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Phil Staley.
ABC North Queensland
Subject: Small business natural disasters preparedness and…
… preparedness and resilience Phil Staley It's that time of year where tropical lows often form off our coasts. … good with that stuff. We all know that it's wet this time of year and we usually have strategies. So, here's a … now. Bruce Billson, good morning. Bruce Billson Fab to be with you and your listeners. Phil. Phil Staley That …
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Opinion piece by the Ombudsman Bruce Billson.
Originally published in the Canberra Times.
I fear we are sleepwalking into a "big corporate" economy.
Many small and family businesses are doing it tough right now and the post-COVID…
… electricity, insurance and rent. And there continues to be ongoing shortages of talent and skills with lower rates of … from the Privacy Act. Together, it is taking a toll on time-poor and resource-constrained small business owners. The … workplace obligations to employees, meet tax reporting and payment obligations in a timely way and pay small business …
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SPEECH
Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson.
Speech to COSBOA National Small Business Summit
I particularly want to acknowledge Matthew (Addison), Luke (…
… for whom, self-declared, their business is their full-time endeavour, take home less than average total weekly … for those people. They’re working their tails off every day. The average age of a business owner is 50, not 45 where … our small business owning fraternity are under the age of 30, half what it was in the 1970s. 70% of small businesses …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Tom Elliott.
Radio 3AW
Subject: Insolvency figures, small business conditions…
… across Australia are up 17% in the 12 months to June 30 just gone. In Victoria the figures are even worse. … pressures on businesses. It’s a fairly challenging time anyway. You touched on interest rates, input costs are … I'd like to think it's front of mind. I guess my job every day is to try and make sure that small and family businesses …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Jac Underwood.
Radio 2BS Bathurst
Subject: Small business owners…
… afternoon. Bruce Billson Jac, you're just saying that to be nice, but it is a treat to be with you and your audience. … was about 17% of small and family business owners under 30. Well that's, that's 8% now and that's really quite a … 51 and you have only 7% of your business owners aged under 30. And when you look at the statistics behind that, and we …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Lisa Millar.
ABC News Breakfast
Subject: 14 Steps to energise enterprise, tap-and-go merchant fees, digital platform disputes, small business…
… a group of Australians that need their personal best every day and, in some cases, needing to be world class every day. … bit of breathing space as they tackle a really challenging time. Lisa Millar So, what are you saying, the credit card … got about 8 per cent, Lisa, that are under the age of 30. It was 17 per cent in the ‘70s. So, we really think you …
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Originally published in The Canberra Times
By Bruce Billson
With election talk building and political announcements starting to roll out, there has not been a more important time for small businesses to be seen, heard and supported.
…
… starting to roll out, there has not been a more important time for small businesses to be seen, heard and supported. The Australian Small Business … wait for years and years for supportive action at this time of significant economic and cost of doing business …
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By Bruce Billson.
Published in the Western Advocate.
More needs to be done to support and recognise small businesses.
A RECENT Westpac study found almost half of the people starting their own business are motivated by the dream…
… The obstacles entrepreneurs face 30 September 2024 By Bruce Billson. Published in the Western … big business to small business and ratings for big firms' payment performance. The recent US presidential debate … did not make a profit and three-quarters of full-time self-employed people earned less than the average total …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Luke Grant.
Money News 2GB/3AW/4BC
13 December 2022
…
… Insolvency laws Luke Grant There probably needs to be a change to the system to help business avoid insolvency … lot to the economic vitality of the country, but it costs time and money. And so, this restructuring process was … of the fact that the business owner has invested much time, possibly a lifetime in the business, that the employees …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Rick Hind.
ABC Radio Darwin
Subject: What is ASBFEO and what does it…
… relationships, they might also mess with the attached payment facility that's there and spend our money pimping … money for substations, all the cabling, the equipment, our time. I want to make sure that the developer is good for … if we do things on trade credit, on terms like ‘pay us in 30 days’ we might not get paid. So that's coming up as an …
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The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Bruce Billson, is encouraging small businesses to adopt eInvoicing as a more secure and faster way of getting paid.“There are real opportunities for small business in engaging with…
… what is a vital part of getting paid, replacing what can be a tendinous, mundane and error-prone activity.” Mr Billson … vulnerable to invoice substitution scams – also called payment redirection scams or business email compromise - … people with all the critical information to execute the payment,” he said. Mr Billson welcomed the Australian …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Leon Delaney.
Radio 2CC Canberra
Subjects: How small business can prepare for a…
… you a couple of bucks back, which is the equivalent of a day or two of what you pay to access our communications … had a direct loss. It's the same with banking services. Payment platforms went out late last week for a lot of the … and we touched on that in the report. If you're a time-poor small business owner, you don't really want someone …
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Opinion piece by the Ombudsman Bruce Billson.
Originally published in the Canberra Times.
Small, family and farming businesses should urgently make sure they are not caught out by the 3G switch-off which is now scheduled to take place on 28…
… is an awful lot of technology and equipment used every day that's actually enabled by 3G. Quite understandably, … thinking about what the piece of kit actually does and the time-saving or technology-enhancing way it allows us to get … bookings and payroll, could stop working. At risk may be security systems and cameras, tablets, telephones in …
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Originally published in The Canberra Times
By Bruce Billson
Over the past five years there have been 13 declared natural disaster catastrophes.
The devastation caused to our communities by these terrible floods, storms, cyclones and…
… fearsomeness so early in the season ... Businesses can be directly damaged or wiped-out, or they become an indirect … businesses have a current business continuity plan. It is time for small business to be prepared for natural disasters. … owner or leader out of the business for a period of time. An inquiry I conducted into the impact of natural …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Leon Delaney on Radio 2CC Canberra.
Subject: Franchising Code of Conduct Review
Leon DelaneyThe Small Business and…
… the phone now. Good afternoon. Bruce Billson Leon, fab to be with you and your listeners, sir. Leon Delaney Thanks … are well-known, and those brands have proven the test of time. There are other systems that might have just been, … and spending a quarter of a million bucks to get your day in court? That's an area where we think more work needs …
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Radio 6PR Perth
Subject: internet domain name changes
Oliver Peterson
You’re being warned if you're a small business owner and for that matter, if you go to a website,…
… Ombudsman. Good afternoon. Bruce Billson Oli, great to be with you and 6PR listeners. Oliver Peterson It's great to … be a genius to know that change is happening. And for some time I've been urging the non-government regulator that … the thing I'm trying to surface. There is a window of time that runs out around the 20th of September. For …
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The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson has urged consumers to consciously spend with small and family businesses this weekend, amid predictions of a bumper Easter.
“Small and family businesses stand ready…
… Easter holiday season,” Mr Billson says. “For the first time in two years, there is freedom of movement and no … rush, Mr Billson says it’s never been more important to be a kindly customer. “Business owners are doing their … Easter holiday season,” Mr Billson says. “For the first time in two years, there is freedom of movement and no …
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Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Thomas Oriti.
ABC News Radio
Subject: Small business problems with digital…
… Ombudsman. Bruce, good morning. Thank you for your time. Bruce Billson Thomas, fab to be with you and your listeners. Thomas Oriti How bad is this … customer relationships where there's valuable data about payment arrangements and the like. It might be that they've …
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Originally published in The Daily Telegraph
By Bruce Billson
The new Optus leadership needs to demonstrate it truly understands the economic pain the recent outage has inflicted on some small and family businesses.
Our…
… This must be the last time Optus cuts off small business 21 November … Comments by the company that the loss was only $2 a day shows it does not understand its customers. This is what … Comments by the company that the loss was only $2 a day shows it does not understand its customers. This is what …
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Stephen Cenatiempo There are some changes coming to the way business domain names will operate in Australia. My understanding is that soon you'll be able to, if you have a website that's .com.au or .net.au you'll be able to just drop…
… Steve, happy to be with you and the listeners on a great day in the capital. Stephen Cenatiempo It is a beautiful day … Cenatiempo So, the reality is, for the sake of 20 or 30 bucks a year, which is roughly what it costs to register a … an asset - they need to protect their interests. Now's the time before others have an opportunity to grab hold of that …
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