Category Archives: Small Business Tips

Is Your Franchise Tech-Forward (Enough)?

March 30, 2022 | 1,594 views

Is Your Franchise Tech-Forward (Enough)?
Is Your Franchise Tech-Forward (Enough)?

Many of our customers are franchisees. With that comes a slew of pre-programmed benefits from the franchisor:  brand recognition, training, regional and national marketing among them. Yet, we see our franchise owners competing just like any other small business—they seek advantages and ways to secure larger market share in their areas while efficiently delivering a branded product or service.

As a SaaS company executive, I see the initiative and tough choices that small businesses of all types make. It is helpful to have the franchisor’s technology solutions, of course, but there are additional tech-forward options to propel franchisees toward success.

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Restaurant Automation for Improved Operations

March 23, 2022 | 1,143 views

Restaurant Automation for Improved Operations
Restaurant Automation for Improved Operations

Foodservice businesses have writhed in pain for the past couple of years. The pandemic accentuated the usually dismal long-term success rates for restaurants. Approximately one-third of restaurants will fail each year, yet small restaurants are the most common type of new business. How can you help ensure that yours survives? One valuable way is to streamline your restaurant operation with automation.

Improve Ordering Speed

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Five Management Skills for Hybrid Environments

March 16, 2022 | 997 views

Five Management Skills for Hybrid Environments
Five Management Skills for Hybrid Environments

It is a challenging hiring market these days. We’ve dedicated more hours to each job candidate than ever, and the expectations of prospective employees have changed significantly over the last months and years. Organizations that offer hybrid environments are desirable to many workers because it allows more options and flexibility.

On the flip side of the hybrid employees are the managers who have to manage a hybrid operation. They require different skills to control the operation and employees effectively. Some employees are at home while others are in the workplace, and flexible managers adapt quickly to remote meetings and fewer in-person engagements. Here are five management skills to and systems needed to remain highly functional in an organization with hybrid schedules.

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Should You Hire a Boomerang Employee?

February 23, 2022 | 1,195 views

Should You Hire a Boomerang Employee?
Should You Hire a Boomerang Employee?

Hiring and training new employees are expensive and time-consuming. And these days, finding help is more difficult than ever as workers have more choices in where they work. It is a labor market that favors workers, not businesses.

In years past, it was unusual to hire back a boomerang (i.e., returning) employee because that person could easily choose to leave again. However, if you are shorthanded, rehiring an experienced employee who left seems less risky and less costly than finding a new person who needs training.

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Combatting the Great Resignation

February 16, 2022 | 761 views

Combatting the Great Resignation
Combatting the Great Resignation

The last two years seem to have dragged on forever. We’ve tired of masks and political rhetoric around health concerns, and our clients have endured hardship and loss while fighting the economic effects of a pandemic. And now, it is difficult to retain the employees we fought to keep employed.  

Wasn’t it just yesterday that employee retention was as simple as free lunches and ping pong tables? Ha—I’ve promoted those ideas, too. They can be helpful in many ways still, but today’s battlefield of employee retention is brutally unforgiving and expensive, especially for our smaller business clients.

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6 Staff Management Tips for Small Business

February 9, 2022 | 732 views

6 Staff Management Tips for Small Business
6 Staff Management Tips for Small Business

Effectively managing employees is not easy. And these days, it’s already difficult for most small businesses to find employees at all. Keeping them happy and useful for your business needs is a skill to develop. Even our smallest clients could benefit from these six tips for managing their staff.

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  1. Be consistent. As you would expect, if you treat one employee differently than another, your staff will be disgruntled. If you are lucky, they will tell you. If you are unlucky, they will find ways to satisfy themselves at your expense. Avoid this with solid company policies. New employees will understand the rules of the game from the get-go, and everyone will understand your consistent expectations for behavior.
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What Schedule Flexibility Looks Like in 2022

January 26, 2022 | 742 views

What Schedule Flexibility Looks Like in 2022
What Schedule Flexibility Looks Like in 2022

Wouldn’t it be great to have set shifts for every employee so that your operation remains constant and unchanging? No one would ever be sick or take a vacation day. Ever. Obviously, this idea isn’t realistic. Instead, more than ever, employee scheduling options are at the forefront of management tasks and employee demands. 2022 will be no different as the new year promises still greater demand for scheduling flexibility.

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6 Ways Cross-Training Improves Your Small Business

January 19, 2022 | 759 views

6 Ways Cross-Training Improves Your Small Business
6 Ways Cross-Training Improves Your Small Business

Cross-training employees provide benefits to both employers and employees. Instead of each employee performing only limited, specified functions, a cross-trained employee can fulfill another employee’s responsibilities if needed. But it is more than finding a worthy “fill-in” for a sick employee. Cross-training builds skills across the company and improves the value of all employees.

Employees become more valuable as they grow professionally and broaden their skill sets. As employees learn and understand others’ roles, they will be more collaborative. Stronger workplace relationships help build a stronger team of colleagues who work well together.

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SaaS Solutions for Every Small Business

January 5, 2022 | 400 views

SaaS Solutions for Every Small Business
SaaS Solutions for Every Small Business

Even with the pandemic, 2021 brought nearly a million more small businesses to the US. From small retail to franchise locations, we see economic output growing despite some of last year’s initial predictions. As business opportunities grow rapidly, Software-as-a-Service (SaaA) applications have become go-to technology sources.

We provide one such service here at ScheduleBase for employee scheduling. As an online subscription service, we know we provide a simple and easy option for business leaders. Since every good leader must also be a technology leader, we believe SaaS fulfills valuable functions for small businesses.

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Reduce Your Labor Costs for Greater Profit

December 22, 2021 | 526 views

Reduce Your Labor Costs for Greater Profit
Reduce Your Labor Costs for Greater Profit

It’s no secret that wage and labor costs are the largest expense for businesses. Depending on the industry, labor costs can be as high as 50% of all a business’s expenses. You should know the average in your industry so that you can meet and beat the number. If you find yourself on the high end of the industry’s labor costs, you must find ways to reduce them.

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