Top Reasons Why You're Struggling To Scale Your Business

Business growth is essential to remain relevant and profitable, and according to some business experts, a business should grow between 15% and 45% year-on-year. While there are exceptions depending on the industry, there are certain parameters that are shared across the board, in terms of what makes a business successful. If you’re not achieving your goals, you may want to consider a review of the various sections in the business to determine where there are inefficiencies.  

Inefficient Workflow Practices 

There are a number of things that can slow down business growth. At the top of the list is the time it takes for service or product delivery.  Workflow automation can have a positive impact on the business as well as creating proper, more efficient processes. Start with the first point of contact with the customer, and work through each touchpoint in the business to find out where the delays take place, or whether there are smarter or faster ways to do things. For instance, manual forms and processes could be replaced with software that helps speed up the process.  

Your Personal Position Is Affecting Growth

Cash flow is an important part of growth for a business, and this means keeping drawings as low as possible. When a business owner’s needs expand beyond what is available in the business, it can drain the cash reserves of the business. According to experts atMicrocredit Summit Campaign, one option is to look at consolidation loans. Simplifying personal finances in order to take some of the pressure of the business can have a positive effect on the cash flow. It’s also important for business owners to take care of their personal financial position and keep it squeaky clean, as financial institutions and investors often do their due diligence on the owners and the business. They want to know that the people behind the business won’t drain the finances to better their personal position or repeat personal financial mistakes in the business. In order for your business to grow, you need to grow along with it.  

Your Business Isn’t An Obvious First Choice 

While it might sting to know this, your customers might prefer your competitor over you. Whether you’re the best-priced, offer the best after-sales service, or even just have a better-looking product, it’s time to take an honest look at your offering. 

• If you’re not the best in the market, why would consumers choose you over the best in the market? 

• If you’re the cheapest in the market, can your product compete? 

• If you’re not the best nor the cheapest, but somewhere in the middle, why are you still an option? 

You need to start looking for reasons why you would be a first choice, which includes all the important markers for good sales, including convenience, price point, and total sales experience. 

Business growth is not only a nice-to-have, but it’s also essential to ensure the longevity of the business. Certain factors directly affect the growth of a business, such as unidentifiable product or service offering, personal position, and inefficient workflow.

Beard Straightener: Little Known Grooming Tips for Awesome-Looking Beards

At last, you have the beards. You have worked hard to grow them. Congratulations. You are joining the beard elite group. It’s a milestone. You have waited for all this time. But wait. Did you know that grooming can make or break your beards? It’s a fact. So, don’t ignore to groom your beards. If you want an awesome look, follow the following beards grooming tips.

Use Beard Oil

It’s always an incredible idea to maintain your awesome look through proper beard grooming. It’s like owning a really classic car. Once you’ve purchased it, do you neglect its condition through poor maintenance?  Or do you forget to clean it for months? Of course, you don’t.

So, why not get yourself some beard oil? This type of oil helps your beard to stay hydrated. Washing regularly removes dirt, but it also strips away some of the beard’s natural oil. And that’s exactly why beard oil was developed to act as a leave-in conditioning product for balancing the natural oils in your beard and those on your skin.

But be careful not to purchase beard oils containing silicones, parabens, or sulfates. Silicones aren’t inherently harmful, but the coat your beard hairs, preventing them from receiving the nutrients they need.

Go For Utility Balm

Beard care is constantly evolving. More advanced products are appearing which have never been seen before, and these include beard balm. Though it’s still pretty new, this product is already being used by many. It’s a perfect option for conditioning and styling your facial hair.

Comb Your Beard with a Beard Straightener

Perhaps every man knows how to comb their beard. After all, it doesn’t involve employing specific techniques to get the most out of your grooming experience. Just make sure that your comb features both wide as well as narrow teeth arrangements.

For your beard, use the wide teeth and for your mustache to utilize the narrow teeth. Start by holding your beard comb in such a way that the teeth are pointed upward. To maintain the needed amount of control while combing, consider using a relaxed grip- just like you normally use your toothbrush. Next, comb it out with an upward motion to “fuzz” it away from your face. Make sure that the hairs are fully separated so that you can effectively get rid of the bed-beard look. Use a heated beard comb to straighten your beards.

Just a heads up – you’re more likely to run into some snags during the combing process. Essentially, snags occur as a result of individual hair strands growing in opposite directions and crossing over each other. When you get into a snag, don’t try forcing it out. Instead, gently pull it out using your comb. Once you’re doing that, comb your hair back down into the desired shape.

The Bottom-Line

It’s time to take your beard grooming to the next level. And the best way to go about it is to use the above top beard grooming tips. From using beard oil to combing your beards—these grooming tips are from experts and are bound to make your beards even better.

Technology to Rely on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Future

By 2023, over 40 per cent of technology will rely on Artificial Intelligence (AI) by 2023 which is a 5 per cent increase from today. “Privacy laws, such as General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), presented a compelling business case for privacy compliance and inspired many other jurisdictions worldwide to follow,” said Bart Willemsen, research vice president at Gartner.“More than 60 jurisdictions around the world have proposed or are drafting postmodern privacy and data protection laws as a result. Canada, for example, is looking to modernize their Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), in part to maintain the adequacy standing with the EU post-GDPR.”

Leaders are under pressure to make sure that all personnel data processed is brought in scope and under control which is a difficult and expensive task to manage without the aid of technology. This is where the use of AI powered applications comes in to reduce administrative burdens and manual workloads. In Gartner’s 2019 Security and Risk Survey, many organizations are incapable of delivering precise answers to the SRRs they receive. Often a manual job, the average costs of these workflows are roughly $1400 dollars that accumulate over time.

“The speed and consistency by which AI-powered tools can help address large volumes of SRRs not only saves an organization excessive spend, but also repairs customer trust,” said Mr. Willemsen. “With the loss of customers serving as privacy leaders’ second highest concern, such tools will ensure that their privacy demands are met.”

Eight Startups for AFRL Next Academy Commercialization: By Griffiss Institute

Griffiss Institute declared the next group involved in the AFRL Commercialization Academy with the top eight startup teams. The AFRL Commercialization Academy is a curriculum of entrepreneurial education by the Griffiss Institute, funded by the Directorate of Information for the Air Force Research Laboratory. These eight startups will focus particularly on fields like health, big data analytics, information systems, and the industry of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). All these eight teams are selected from a pool of submissions from the applicants.

The teams will be "incubated and trained" as they develop their businesses around the United States.  “The spring 2020 cohort is an impassioned group of startups with many creative ideas that can positively impact Central New York and the entire country,” Dan Fayette, AFRL Commercialization Academy program manager, said.

The startups will commence their work at the Commercialization Academy this month. These startups will be continuously engaging in weekly online classes and the remaining handpicked teams will batter their tech businesses to a panel of judges for a $300,000 piece of IDEA NY prize seed funding at a June Demo Day event. After Demo Day, qualifying teams will participate in the IDEA NY accelerator program that will "encourage the development and growth of promising entrepreneurs"

Nisha Narayanan: From RJ to Business leader of the Year

Chief Operating Officer and Director, Red FM and Magic FM, Nisha Narayanan has recently been honored with the “Business Leader of the Year” award. In view of her vast experience and fascinating work in the entertainment and media industry, she received the award in the entertainment category at the Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival.

The award ceremony which honors the top talent of creators, artists, and filmmakers in the movie industry, took place in the presence of Bhagat Singh Koshyari, Governor of Maharashtra as the chief guest. Starting as a radio jockey at All India Radio, Narayanan also got experienced in news anchoring and documentary filmmaking. In her career span, she has also hosted many chat shows and debates, apart from covering live events and national issues. Other awards Narayanan has won include, Impact – 50 most influential women award 2016, India’s Greatest COO – India’s greatest brands and Leaders 2017-18, The most enterprising leader of Asia 2018 – WCRC, and Don Rowland’s prize for Excellence.

Red FM today has a presence of 69 stations across the country and has successfully expanded to other business verticals as well. The reason Red FM connects well with listeners at a personal level is because of her strong belief in the power of regional language and content. She also pointed towards the success of the radio industry, despite the intense competition from the digital on-demand streaming platforms.

Indian Scientists Oppose Scheme to Study Benefits of Cow Dung, Urine and Milk

Hundreds of scientists have asked the Indian government to withdraw the call for research proposals on the uniqueness of indigenous cows and the curative properties of cow urine, dung and milk for potential cancer treatments. In an open letter from the researchers, they say that the call is ‘unscientific’ and a misdirection of public money at a time when India is already facing a financial crunch.

In their letter, scientists note that the call presumes “special physiological status to select breeds of only one species,” adding that “to begin a project with such presumptions is prima facie unscientific.” Money under the scheme could be “wasted to ‘investigate’ imaginary qualities derived from religious scriptures,” they said.

The call for proposals issued 14^th February, 2020, is a part of a funding program of the Department of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, Sowa Rigpa and homeopathy. The proposal invites for projects on 5 research themes including ‘cowpathy’, the use of cow derived products for medicine and health.  A major aim is the “scientific investigation of uniqueness of pure Indigenous Indian cows.”

This is not the first time that the government has promoted researches on cows or made scientific claims for unproven traditional beliefs.

Malaysia: Worst plastic polluters in Asia

In a report published by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Malaysians top the list of plastic polluters in Asia. The survey covers countries such as China, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam - around 60 percent of plastic debris entering the world’s oceans comes from these countries.

Interestingly, the GDP per capita in Malaysia is also the highest among the five other countries. The WWF has linked this connection by pointing out that the increase in the use of plastic is mainly due to the rapid economic growth of the country. During recent years, Malaysia has also returned almost 4,000 tons of unrecyclable plastic to the countries that had shipped it to them. Other countries such as the Philippines and Indonesia have also complained about the growing trade in unrecyclable trash. While Asia has seen incredible growth in terms of economy, and technology, it hasn’t been able to keep pace with the recycling of plastic waste. In the EU region, around 40 percent of plastic packaging waste is recycled. According to WWF, 93 percent of waste is dumped in the environment in low-income countries, while only 4 percent of waste is dumped in industrialized countries.

Malaysians are the biggest per capita users of plastic packaging, with the average Malaysian consuming 16.78kg of plastic packaging each year.