Across Australia, businesses of all shapes and sizes are turning to information communication technology to automate repetitive tasks, reduce overheads and increase sales and profits. So is the insurance sector. Eighty percent of local insurers are using Insurtech – tools and technologies designed to make the insurance industry more efficient – according to the results [...]

If you’re the director of a company and you have not registered for a director ID, you could risk a penalty of up to $1.1 million. So, if you’re among the many directors who have not yet registered for their ID, now’s the time. The Australian Taxation Office has said penalties won’t affect anyone who applied for their director [...]

What is the cyber risk to small and medium business? Over the 2020–21 financial year, over 67,500 cybercrime incidents were reported to the Australia Centre for Cyber Security (ACSC). This is an increase of nearly 13 per cent from the previous financial year, and equates to one cyber attack every 8 minutes compared to one [...]

Starting a business in a sector or industry where work is plentiful and skills are scarce can make it easier to secure a profitable customer base. The National Skills Commission’s Skills Priority List released in October 2022 showed technicians and trades workers were in scant supply, as were professionals and community and personal service workers. That could [...]

If you’re facing cash-flow challenges and are worried about how you’re going to pay for your insurance, premium funding may be able to help. It works by having a funding company pay the full premium of your policy on your behalf to the insurer while you repay the funder in monthly repayments. This can help [...]

For 25 years, Stella Pruscino has forged a path for other female entrepreneurs to follow. This is her story Stella Pruscino’s career in the insurance industry started at the reception desk of a small, suburban brokerage. She didn’t last long. “After a couple of weeks of not being able to transfer the calls correctly, they [...]

The rising inflation we're experiencing now is affecting insurance in a number of ways.  Materials commonly used to replace damaged properties, such as building items and even labour, are in short supply, driving up replacement costs. Steadfast Broker Technical Manager Michael White says in these times, it's important for small businesses to make sure the [...]

As a business, your domain name could be considered to be one of your most important assets. And now shorter domain names are available to the public. Since March 24 last year, Australian businesses have been able to apply for a direct .au name, one that doesn’t require the suffixes .com, .org, .net, .edu or [...]

The possibility of having cyber criminals make your personal details public is worrying enough, but did you know that criminals can also use this information to damage your business? “When a company’s security is compromised criminals often put the data they steal up for sale on the dark web, or what is called personal information [...]

The purpose of the Labor party’s first Budget since gaining office in May is to address cost-of-living pressures and support the transition to clean energy. But how can this help the cost of living and the Australian economy long-term after a difficult few years? And how is it likely to affect Australian small businesses? What are [...]