Hi,

Happy New Year to you! Welcome to our first newsletter of 2022, covering all the latest from Farillio

• New Features: We’ve added more data fields to the beta version of our data tracking tool, (first showcased in November’s newsletter). This tool is rapidly developing into an invaluable quick reference HR management solution for small businesses – and there’s a lot more in store. PLUS, our workflow tools will go fully collaborative this Spring (you know them as Objectives). And finally, there’s a spoiler alert this month on our new resources landing pages that make it even easier to find (and discover what else) you need to achieve business success in 2022.

• Updated content: as Covid/Omicron continues to cause substantial employee sickness absence rates across the country, the Government’s emergency statutory sick pay relief scheme, which was re-introduced this month, may assist your business. Not every employee is eligible for sick pay. You can find out more below – don’t miss those deadlines if you’ve not already claimed. Also updated are the Brexit-related sections of our import and export guides, as the government’s transitional customs and VAT reliefs came to an end on 31 December 2021. There’s more on what this means for business below in our news section. And we’ve highlighted some of the key tax changes that also come into effect later this Spring; you’ll find them updated across Farillio’s platform too.

• New content: Well & Truly’s Sarah Phillips tackles advice to managers feeling anxious when asking team members about their mental or physical wellbeing; as well as other timely topics, such as how to spot the key signs that someone is struggling with their mental wellbeing. Don’t miss the handy infographic supporting this highly accessible FAQ series.

• Expert corner: Podcasts have been one of the marketing successes of 2021. So, this month, Chris Taylor from the hugely successful Podcasterists, shares his expert podcast advice, from how to set one up easily (including what equipment you really need), to how to maximise its reach and impact. Meanwhile, Adam Wilson Katsibas’ how to achieve procurement success videos are now live (we mentioned these were coming in our last newsletter and hope you enjoy them).

• In the News: As we head into 2022, we’ve listed our top picks for essential small business news to start the year. This month’s edition covers:

  • the late payments crisis putting an estimated 444,000 small businesses at risk
  • customs, tax, importing and exporting changes likely to impact your business right now – or imminently
  • new powers granted to the Insolvency Service to penalise former directors who deliberately dissolved their companies to avoid paying their liabilities (including paying back Covid-related loans from the government)
  • details on a new plastic packaging tax coming into force in April this year and affecting businesses using or importing large amounts of plastic packaging that lacks sufficient recycled content
  • a warning shot for online businesses making it too inconvenient for site visitors to reject the cookies on their sites
  • how the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations may affect pub, bar and club licensing hours this coming June.

• Research results: We teased readers with the findings from our latest SME research study last time. This month, we’ve included a helpful infographic summarising some of those findings.

• New eBook: First editions of our new ebook, ‘Futureproofing you and your business’, will be distributed through select Farillio channel partners. We’re delighted that Birkbeck University will be first of our partners to make this invaluable resource available to their entrepreneur and business students.

If you’d like to distribute copies too, please register your interest by emailing: giga@farill.io

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