...................................

Is Your Succession Plan

Viable?

What Employees Want—

The Top 10

How Much Key

Knowledge Is

“Trapped” Inside You

and Your Employees

Heads?

Home Office

Ergonomics

Running Out Of Time To

Register Personal

Property Securities

Client News

Brentnalls SA News

Issue 66 — December 2011 Issue 84 — October 2013

Is Your Succession Plan Viable?

Succession will affect every business at some

point. It is completely inevitable, and yet so many

businesses don't have adequate plans in place. As

our baby boomers reach retirement age and the

mass exodus of skilled young workers continues,

succession will remain an important issue.

Whether you’re planning an exit or not, succession

planning gives you the best chance of being

financially independent at your desired retirement

age, to carefully pass your clients on to a

successor, to prepare for catastrophes and to

realise maximum value in all scenarios. If managed

properly this is your opportunity to create wealth

in your business.

The benefits of succession planning:

Choose when you wish to retire

Minimise disruptions for your clients

Maintain continuity of employment for staff

Maintain suppliers’ credit terms

Retain the confidence of financiers

Manage lease and loan liabilities properly

Reduce the pain of a forced retirement

Avoid conflict with your partners

Maximise the value of your business

Ensure adequate funds for yourself and

your family

Increase the number and quality of

potential successors

A succession plan generally consists of two

important parts: legal agreements and a business

continuity plan.

The business continuity plan should tackle

management and ownership plans to ensure your

business remains a success and continues to

service your clients’ needs. Legal agreements such

as a shareholders agreement and buy and sell

agreements manage the business dealings and

transition of business interests come succession

time.

Insurance can be an important factor. In the event

of sudden death or disablement the remaining

owners may buy the estate out. Insurance can

help fund the purchase upon a forced exit,

avoiding the need for the remaining partners to

use their own capital.

You need to consider the type of insurance and

level of cover you require, also who holds the

responsibility for paying the premiums, how to

deal with shortfalls and surpluses, policy

ownership issues and how you’ll treat the

termination of the policy.

Managing succession: Succession is a

management issue that should be addressed 5—10

years in advance of implementation. Plan for a

number of possible scenarios, to enable the

departure of an owner or partner, whether

through forced and unexpected events or by

retirement. Succession planning is important at

the beginning of a business as life is

unpredictable.

Succession Planning: factors to consider:

What, when and how is the plan going to

be implemented?

What is the selection process for finding a

successor?

What development training does the

successor require?

Who will mentor and coach the successor

going forward?

The process for succession planning needs to

manage both the emotional issues and technical

issues to ensure the happiness of all involved and

the enduring success of the business.

Be proactive, not reactive. Succession planning is

a management necessity and vital to minimise risk

management issues.

Quote:

“No matter what the

level of your ability,

you have more

potential than you

can ever develop in a

lifetime”.

James T. McKay

6. A Future—Discuss the future with

your employees, find out their goals

and help them to achieve them.

7. Remuneration—It won’t come as a

surprise that people want money.

When negotiating, know what others

in your industry are paying and make

sure your people are rewarded fairly.

8. Feedback—Employees appreciate

feedback (both positive and

negative) on their work. Do not wait

for a performance review, give

feedback regularly. When feedback is

negative, ensure it is given in private

and is constructive.

9. Listening Boss—Learn to be an

effective listener. Give employees

your full attention when they are

speaking to you.

10. Recognition—Recognise effort as well

as results. Saying “thank you”, and

meaning it, can make all the

difference. Give public recognition

where appropriate so others can also

acknowledge the achievement.

Not all employees are motivated by the

same things, or rank them in the same order

so the best thing you can do to understand

Happy staff are productive staff but what is

the secret to keeping them happy?

Here’s the top ten of what employees want.

1. Autonomy—Set clear expectations

and then let them get on with it.

Resist the urge to micro-manage.

Allow people to approach things

differently than you might do

yourself as long as the result is

acceptable and timely.

2. A Sense of Purpose—Make sure the

team knows why they are doing what

they are doing and have a sense of

working towards a common goal.

3. A Voice—Give your employees the

opportunity to have input into the

business. If suggestions aren’t

feasible, explain why.

4. Fairness—Treat all employees fairly.

Be open about your decision making

so that perceived unfairness or

favouritism does not arise.

5. Flexibility—Be flexible in work

conditions where possible. Make it

clear to all employees what can and

can’t be negotiated.

What Employees Want—The Top 10

Part of the happy Brentnalls SA Team (from left to right)

Lilia Zhou, Bradley Barnes, Gypsy-Jade Hancl , Stefan Sapio, Lesley Forrest

How Much Key

Knowledge Is “Trapped”

In You and Your

Employees’ Heads?

It is extremely common for vital business

knowledge to be held in the heads of you

and your employees, rather than being

documented and readily available when

required. This can seriously disrupt your

business when key people are unavailable.

Your business needs to continue when a

team member is on leave, tied up with

other work or if they leave the business.

Businesses should be auditing their

knowledge assets and documenting

internal processes in order to:

Minimise risk

Provide consistency between team

members

Improve efficiency on processes for

infrequent tasks

Reduce disruption due to staff

absence or loss

Save time when inducting new

team members

It may seem daunting at first but it will be

manageable if you follow these simple

steps:

Make a list of key areas of your

business

Break down each area into

functions

Break down each function into

specific tasks

Establish who undertakes each

task

Work with each team member to

define how each task is done and

whether it can be done better

Document each process

Review and optimise processes so

they can evolve over time

Depth of knowledge provides stability in a

business. If you do not document internal

processes, you run the risk of knowledge

simply walking out the door.

Considered Value Issue 84 – October 2013

This month Brentnalls SA

is supporting Christmas

Party for Special Children

Running Out Of Time To

Register Personal

Property Securities Transitional arrangements under the

Personal Property Securities Act 2009

(PPSA) end on 31 January 2014. These

rules allow protection for security

interests which existed prior to the new

law commencing on 1 February 2012 for

the two-year period.

Security interests covered include

retention of title clauses, bailments,

consignments, leases, fixed and floating

charges and licensing arrangements.

All businesses should review their

registrations prior to 31 January 2014 for

the following:

Check data migrated from previous

registers (eg. ASIC company

charges) and make corrections if

required

Register all interests which existed

before 31 January 2012 that did

not previously require registration

(eg. Retention of title interests)

Ensure all new interests are

registered in accordance with the

timeframes required under the

PPSA.

If you have any queries regarding the

PPSA, please contact your Brentnalls SA

team member.

Home Office Ergonomics

With the advances in technology and the

changes in working arrangements, more

people are choosing to work from home.

However it’s important to remember that

you need to have your office set up in an

ergonomic way to get the best results. It is

recommended that you consider the

following factors when setting up your

work area:

A good, adjustable swivel chair

A desk with enough space and at

the right height

Keeping your computer screen at

the right height—incorrect

positioning of the screen and

source documents can result in

awkward postures. Adjust the

screen and source documents so

that your neck is in a neutral,

relaxed position

Accessible paper files, documents

and accessories

Proper lighting, temperature, air

and noise control

In conjunction with setting up your work

station you also need to consider good

work habits which should include the

following:

Take short 1-2 minute stretch

breaks every 20-30 minutes. After

each hour of work, take a break or

change tasks for at least 5-10

minutes. Always try to get away

from your computer during lunch

breaks

Avoid eye fatigue by resting and

refocusing your eyes periodically.

Look away from the monitor and

focus on something in the distance.

Rest your eyes by covering them

with your palms for 10-15 seconds

Use correct posture when working.

Keep moving as much as possible.

BreConsidered Value Issue 84– October 2013

Brentnalls SA Chartered Accountants

and Advisors

Partners

John Crouch Craig Farrow

Rick Albertini Karen Nyberg

Matthew Holden

Associates

Sharon Lloyd Shali Manolev

Renee Feltrin Aimee Campbell

Gavin Mitchell Sally Storey

Nadine Hill

Brentnalls SA Advisors Pty Ltd

Australian Financial Services Licence Number 264083

Directors

John Crouch Craig Farrow

Rick Albertini Karen Nyberg

Matthew Holden

255 Port Road

PO Box 174

HINDMARSH SA 5007

Tel: 08 8241 8444

Fax: 08 8241 8488

Email: admin@brentnalls-sa.com.au

View Brentnalls SA’s profile

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Disclaimer

The information provided in this

newsletter does not constitute advice. The

information is of a general nature only and

does not take into account your individual

objectives, financial situation or needs. It

should not be used, relied upon, or treated

as a substitute for specific professional

advice. We recommend that you contact

Brentnalls SA before making any decision

to discuss your particular requirements or

circumstances. Brentnalls is not a

partnership or a joint venture. Instead, the

business of Brentnalls SA is independently

owned and operated and it is an

independent member of the Brentnalls

Affiliation of Accounting Firms. Individual

member firms do not accept responsibility

or liability for the actions or inactions

of any other individual member firm.

Client News

Congratulations to Rudy Gomez who

recently signed a major deal with Teck

Cominco for the Carrapateena Project

which has ore resources worth about

$180 Billion.

The project is to develop the largest

underdeveloped copper-gold-uranium-rare

earth-hematite deposit in the world. Its

ore inventory is currently estimated to be

700 million tonnes with the potential to

grow to more than 2 billion tonnes with

further exploration.

The venture is set to provide 2000 jobs

when it goes into production in 3 to 4

years from now.

Carrapateena is located in central South

Australia on the eastern margin of the

Gawler Craton, approximately 130 kms

north from Port Augusta.

This is a great achievement after many

years of hard work by Rudy, who

originally received the exploration licence

in 1989.

Congratulations to Ardrossan Foodland

who were recently awarded the SUPA

IGA/Foodland IGA General Merchandise

Department of the Year Award at the

annual Metcash Food and Grocery Expo

and 2013 National IGA Retailer of the

Year Awards.

Brentnalls SA News

We welcome back Thomas Clift from his

6 month overseas study trip.

We congratulate Lilia Zhou on passing

the Financial Reporting module of the CA

program.

Well done to Dylan Sandercock on

winning the Brentnalls SA 2013 Footy

Tips Competition.

Meet Ben Plail

Hi my name is Ben Plail.

I’ve been an accountant at Brentnalls SA

for over a year having made the move

from Tasmania (my wife is originally

from SA). Prior to this I worked 5 years at

a large Accounting firm in Tasmania with

a strong presence across Eastern

Australia and New Zealand.

I am currently finishing off my CPA

studies while juggling the fun and

responsibilities of a young family, with

Max (2 years) and Bella (2 months).

Religion is also a big part of my life with

time being taken up in study and

organisational roles.

I love getting outdoors to go camping

and fishing. I am also a keen sports fan

of AFL and cricket.