Archive for August, 2013

Two thirds of people long to be their own boss

Friday, August 16th, 2013
  • More women (66%) than men (60%) want to be an entrepreneur
  • Almost three quarters of women aged 35-44 want to run their own business
  • Entrepreneurial spirit alive and well if we nurture it

London – August 16, 2013 New independent research published today by Pink Plumbers, a national brand delivered locally by qualified female plumbers, shows that almost two out of three people (63%) want to be their own boss. In fact women have more desire to be their own boss (66%) than men (60%).The figure rises to almost three quarters (72%) for women between the ages of 35-44 – some 13% higher than men of the same age (59%).

The research was carried out in May by One Poll and captures responses from 2000 UK adults. It shows that this entrepreneurial desire seems to run throughout all age groups. In fact, the results indicate that 47% of women and 49 % of men between the ages of 18-24 and 70% of women and 61% of men aged over 55 would rather be their own boss.

One in five adults (20%) want to stay in their current job but even fewer (17%) would go and work for someone else. So it’s official, the best boss seems to be yourself.

Helping people realise their dreams
However, starting a business is a daunting prospect in boom times, let alone in the current economic climate and most budding entrepreneurs out there don’t always have the necessary support to get started.

Jo Lawrence, single mum, entrepreneur and successful plumber, is determined to help plumbers – especially women – to set up their own local plumbing business. Having recognised that there is currently a gap between women completing their training in college and actually operating as plumbers, Jo is determined to make it easier for women wanting to go into the trade by providing them with the necessary support and confidence needed to get out there and just do it. As a result she has created a new licence hybrid franchise model which gives entrepreneurs the support they need to get started without the costs usually associated with buying a franchise.

Research show consumers want more female plumbers
When asked if more women should be working as plumbers, a whopping 86% of women think there should be more women working as plumbers. Even though this industry is male dominated, surprisingly 69% of men also think there should be more women working in the trade.

Inspiring plumbers of the future
Apart from setting up her Pink Plumbers franchise, Jo has also been proactive in organising a series of College Roadshows across UK where she has been speaking to young students about her own experiences as a plumber and what to expect when entering the real world of plumbing. Her aim is to inspire students to believe in themselves and believe that becoming their own boss is really possible.

To also help students and plumbers get started, Jo will be publishing a book called ‘Hints and Tips for the Practical Plumber’, a unique and essential guide to help them turn their plumbing skills into a thriving plumbing business. This insightful and practical guide is designed to provide business as well as plumbing tips to help plumbers navigate through the difficulty of setting up on their own. The book will be launched in September and will be available for purchase online at www.amazon.co.uk

Any woman inspired by Jo Lawrence who would like to know more about the opportunities to become a Pink Plumber, can contact her on jo@pinkplumbers.co.uk

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About Pink Plumbers
Pink Plumbers is a national brand delivered locally by qualified female plumbers.  It provides a wide range of professional, affordable and quality plumbing services. Pink Plumbers offers female plumbers the opportunity to establish themselves as licensees and run their independent business under the Pink Plumbers brand with support. Pink Plumbers’ values for honesty, reliability and respect make them leaders in a fast growing network of female plumbers. 

New Software Company Launches Accounting Software Package Built for Today’s Commercial Challenges

Thursday, August 1st, 2013
  • Specifically designed to meet the needs of recession-hit economy
  • Provides the operational insight and financial transparency for profitable decision-making
  • Optimised for small to medium sized companies
  • Available as a standalone package
  • Launch offer makes upgrading from out of date software or manual systems even more affordable
  • Also launching today, the InBusiness Construction Suite

Improving financial control at small to medium sized companies took a leap forward today with the launch of the COMSS InBusiness Accounting Suite. This new software package is a lean financial management system that enables fitter, more profitable businesses. Data entered just once is available to all other parts of the financial management system. And, all the unnecessary functions that clog up other financial software have been removed to deliver a streamlined accounts package that is much easier to use and low cost to run.

The InBusiness Accounting Suite meets the needs of small and medium enterprises in a broad range of sectors. It integrates Sales, Purchasing, Inventory, Distribution and Accounting into a single powerful business management application. As a result, it delivers increased operational and financial visibility for less effort and at less cost. It provides all the financial rigour required to run a profitable business.

It can scale from a single location to support multi-company, multi-location, multi-branch and department businesses. It includes multi-currency functionality and uses streamlined processes to deliver financial management functionality that enables businesses to be more efficient and more productive.

InBusiness has been developed by an Irish software company called COMSS that was formed specifically to deliver new software solutions that are optimised for the post financial-meltdown world of today.

Profitability designed-in
The InBusiness Accounting Suite enables increased competitiveness, lower cost and more efficient operations as well as smarter, more informed decisions. It can be run by fewer staff and requires less time and cost to implement than traditional accounting software. It is optimised to deliver enhanced profitability because it has been built with these goals in mind:

  • Thinking Lean – COMSS removed any feature or function that was not essential to the success of the business and as a result has created streamlined workflows for greater efficiency and effectiveness
  • Eliminating repetition – COMSS enabled all the modules to draw on a common record so that data only has to be entered once – saving users – and the business significant time and money
  • Improving financial and operational visibility – COMSS built in alerts to warn of potential risks and, functions to capture data at key points in a project so that decisions can be taken more quickly and with greater certainty.

Flexible subscription model
The InBusiness Accounting Suite is available immediately. It can be purchased as a perpetual license or on an annual basis. Subscription licensing removes the need for any upfront payment for licenses and a fixed annual license fee eases cash flow.

Additional modules can be added to the license at any time during the subscription period. That means no more software sitting on the shelf unused.

The annual subscription includes the use of COMSS Support Services and entitles you to all major and minor releases that become available during the subscription period.

Launch offer gives early movers even lower subscription cost
Although the InBusiness Accounting Suite is already  priced to be affordable for small and medium sized companies, COMSS is offering a further 20% off subscription pricing for the first two years to the first 20 companies that purchase it before September 30, 2013.

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About COMSS

COMSS Limited was set up in 2010 to provide breakthrough software applications that enable small to medium sized construction companies to run lean businesses in lean times. COMSS knew survival required lower cost, more efficient operations AND smarter, more informed decisions. But when it reviewed what was available, it saw over-engineered, expensive to operate software with the most important functions clogged-up with non-essential features.  As a result COMSS has developed  a suite of applications that not only deliver functional value but can be run by fewer staff and that require less resources, time and cost to implement.

COMSS development centre is based in Longford, Ireland. It is a Microsoft BizSpark company and its Construction Suite is endorsed by the Construction Industry Federation of Ireland. www.comss.org