Sponsorship Absurdity

Is it just me or was anybody else’s rugby was ruined on Saturday by the ever present logo of the 6 Nations Championship Sponsor – RBS (the Royal Bank of Scotland) on everything you could see  – it wasn’t helped by an exceptionally dull game from England and my own team, Wales.

I sat and watched in amazement as the RBS logo cropped up on the pitch, the side boards the shirts and undoubtedly on the players unmentionables!

Isn’t this the same bank that last week posted massive losses and previously offered its CEO a multi-million bonus, albeit declined after considerable public pressure? I’d personally be happier if they gave it to Sport Relief!

I am a marketeer and fully understand the need to keep your brand in the mind of customers and potential customers but does a loss-making, publicly owned entity like RBS have to flaunt their financial abuses in the face of the public. There are many small businesses beholden to the Banks that would beg for a decimal percentage of the RBS sponsorship pot to promote their own product or service, increase sales, employ staff and reflate the UK economy. Shame on you RBS!

Gareth, APA

Latest PAs of excellence

The APA accredited PA Diploma programme is now running somewhere in the UK every week and new people complete the process at a variety of city centre locations around the country.

This week saw the completion of the Diploma for Vicky Fryer and Shelley Hulka after a challenging, yet hopefully enjoyable, series of assignments, the attended training days and the Diploma Test.

Vicky and Shelley, both experienced and clearly outstanding PAs, tackled the course with great enthusiasm and challenged the tools and techniques taught by APA’s Gareth Osborne; the former CEO of numerous large and small businesses, to the maximum to ensure they left with knowledge they could implement for the benefit of their own businesses. They will receive their results in due course and a period of three months mentoring support.

The Diploma is fast becoming the must-have qualification for PAs looking to secure high level (and often high-paid) roles as a PA and over 500 PAs are targeted to complete the course in 2012. To start the process; which can cost as little as £400, PAs should contact training@paprofessional.com or call 0800 103 1070.

APA    Pictured (L-R): Vicky Fryer and Shelley Hulka

Motorists face workplace parking charges

Under moves being made by a number of Local Councils thousands of drivers could face being charged a pound a day to park at their offices and factories. This comes as a second major city has drawn up plans for a workplace parking levy.

A number of councils across the country have floated the idea of workplace parking levies as a way of easing town centre congestion. Bristol is set to join Nottingham in imposing a pay as you park tax, with councillors ready to consider proposals in the spring.

Bristol has included proposals for the parking levy in its bid for Government backing for a £194 million “rapid bus transit” scheme. While the Government will pick up the majority of the bill, Bristol estimates that it needs to raise £27 million from local businesses on top of the £15 million the council is able to find itself. Businesses have been told this money could either be found by a business rate, which would require a referendum, or the parking levy.

APA has made it clear to Ministers that it believes that working motorists (its Members) would oppose the plans vehemently. “Drivers are already trying to cope with near record fuel prices and employers that pass on any workplace parking charge may find they are helping support the last straw.”

APA

The PAs of the future

APA has today joined CIPD in warning that recent headlines, which associate voluntary unpaid work experience with slave labour, are in danger of discouraging employers from offering placements and denying young people a route into permanent employment.

APA asserts that good quality work experience provides an invaluable way for young people to build key skills and gain a foothold in the labour market. It is also a way for young people to develop and display the right attitude and work ethic that will help them to secure permanent employment.

However, employers also have a responsibility to offer high quality work experience schemes that provide real opportunities for young people to increase their employability. To this ends, CIPD with Jobcentre Plus published guidance in 2011, Work Experience Placements that Work, to help employers develop effective work experience schemes for 18 to 24 year olds that benefit both the young person and the employer.

Gareth Osborne said: “With ful time jobs for young people at a premium it is even more important than ever before that we enable good work experience opportunities to fuel their ambition, passion and understanding of what employers want when they go head-to-head with others for vacancies.”

APA encourages all of its Members to challenge their employer’s policies and practices and make sure they offer great experiences to young people.

APA

Weekend courses all the rage

Recent research from a UK Think Tank has revealed a considerable appetite amongst yadults (young adults) for weekend training and networking sessions.

Never slow to react to changing circumstances, APA has launched, for a trial period initially, an option whereby its Diploma (DipPA) Module 2 programme is spread over a working weekend from Friday pm to Sunday pm.

Delegates arrive for a late Friday afternoon training session followed by a course dinner and scenario-based exercise. On Saturday they can take a swim or gentle spa relation before getting stuck into the main course of PA psychology, leadership skills, time and project management before completing the Diploma Test on Sunday morning.

Not for the faint hearted, this action-packed weekend almost certainly has to be squeezed in by busy PAs between two working weeks but, in its usual style, APA strive to make it fun, relaxed and professionally challenging.

For more details about PA training weekends contact training@paprofessional.com

APA

Pictured: Helen Goodman, Lauren Anderson, Tas Holt, Emma Wright-Thomas and Beverley Bonerton. Missing are: Jane Wilson and April McMaster.

The Living Dead of the UK economy

Zombie companies’ making little or no profit could be the reason for the prolonged economic stagnation, says an insolvency specialist.

As government insolvency statistics for the fourth quarter of 2011 revealed liquidations and administrations are up by 7.2% on the same period in 2010, one solicitor has voiced a belief that these negative figures are masking the real problem, the ‘zombie company’, which he says is threatening to drag the UK’s weak growth back down into recession. ‘Rather than pull the plug on these businesses, the banks artificially prolong the life of these companies that would otherwise have failed, by varying the terms of their banking facilities. ‘They limp on using capital and skills that would arguably be better placed in a growing business.’

The same solicitor adds that the zombie company remain in a perpetual ‘closing down’ state, dropping prices to attract customers, and potentially harming other more profitable competitors.

Gareth Osborne of APA says: “I don’t normally listen to the advice of lawyers, when it comes to business strategy, entrepreneurialism or innovation but this one seems to make a good point about not hanging-on too long. Sometimes it’s better to admit reality (usually to yourself), speak to your creditors and do the ‘right thing’.

“I desperately disagree with his assertion that this could be masking the double dip recession. I think he should start looking at the over-priced burdens suffered by business; funded through business rates, corporation tax and national insurance – cut some of those and you really could make a difference.”

APA

APA PA Training Booms

APA has started the year with an extensive range of its PA training and qualification courses running across the UK and Northern Europe.

Gareth Osborne, APA DG, said: “We are already well booked throughout Spring; with some courses nearing saturation, but we try hard to accommodate everyone with extra days (mainly in London) added where necessary. We are expanding our range of UK locations this year and will be looking to create a permanent London training venue over the next few months. We have just added the excellent facilities of the Melia White House  Hotel in Euston to our list of existing London hotels.”

The most popular course remains the ‘PA Professional’ programme for PA rising-stars looking for career enhancing tools and techniques or more experienced PAs looking to refresh or update their skill set. This course can lead to the award of the designatory letters CertPA after your name or act as Module 1 or the two taught Modules of the highly acclaimed Diploma in Personal Assistance; leading to DipPA.

All APA courses are accredited and are recognised by employers and recruitment agencies alike.

For more details go to: http://www.paprofessional.com/apa-training-and-qualifications-open-access.html/ or contact training@paprofessional.com

APA

Sat Nav Rage (anagram: a vast anger)

Confusing Sat Navs have caused more than £200 million worth of damage to cars in the past 12 months, it was revealed today. As many as 83% of Sat Nav users have been misled by their system, a survey, appropriately, by Confused.com found.

Of those led astray, 52% ended up screaming at their devices, while 68% have ended up doing longer journeys and clocking up unnecessary miles.

The poll of 2,000 drivers also revealed that women were more likely than men to get angry with their Sat Nav.Drivers in the East Midlands exhibit the most rage whilst those happiest with their Sat Navs were from Northern Ireland. Scots appeared to be the people most misled by their devices. The worst spot for Sat Nav anger was the Welsh city of Aberystwyth, where 75% of drivers admitted to regularly losing their temper with their device.

Confused.com, said: 'Our research has shown that the Sat Nav is not always the blessing it was once hailed to be and, increasingly, motorists appear to be citing the device as a source of frustration and danger.'

Gareth said: “Well at least it gives us someone else in the car to blame!”

Shelley, APA

Unemployment rises again

UK unemployment rose by 48,000 to 2.67 million in the three months to December, official figures have shown, the smallest rise in almost a year.

More alarmingly for the PA profession is that women made up two-thirds of that increase and there was a new record in the number of people working part-time who want full-time jobs.

The unemployment rate edged up to 8.4%, said the Office for National Statistics, which the highest for 16 years. There was also a new record for the number of jobless young people with an increase of number 22,000 to 1.04m 16 to 24-year-olds without a job. This figure includes young people in full-time education who are also looking for work.

With the number of job vacancies rising to 476,000 in the three months to January, economists suggested the worsening employment outlook had eased. Amidst hopes that the economy will return to modest growth in the first quarter and avoid recession..

Gareth Osborne of APA said: "The labour market remains bad and whilst it isn't signalling a return to recession it has a long way to go to support some of the more optimistic pundits.”

The figures came as the Bank of England published its quarterly report on inflation. It said the UK economy would "zigzag" this year, dipping in and out of growth, but avoid going back into recession.

APA

The vicious circle remains

Inflation fell modestly in January as the artificial impact of last year's VAT rise was no longer shown in the figures.

The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) measure of inflation fell to 3.6% in January, down from 4.2% in December, according to the Office for National Statistics. Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation - including mortgage interest payments - fell to 3.9% from 4.8%.

The drop brings CPI inflation to a 14-month low. However, the rate remains well above the Bank of England's 2% target. The prime minister welcomed the drop in the rate.

Gareth Osborne of APA said: “Inflation remains too far ahead of pay increases; with over 60% of our members reporting no increase in their salary over the past 12 months. With interest rates near rock-bottom savings are not yielding an adequate return and this is seen in the amount people have available to spend on nothing other than necessities. This is a vicious circle that will not be broken for sometime.”

APA encourages the Government to stimulate the economy by ensuring the Banks invest in small businesses; the only sector with the ability to create jobs, wealth and spending, or do it with hard cask themselves.

APA

Small businesses still fail to plan

One in five small business loan applications were rejected last year, according to services and software provider Sage UK, research finds. APA believes it is much higher and suggests it might be closer to three in five.

The findings, which draw on more than 1,000 responses, also reveal that seven in ten small firms make use of their business plans to measure the performance of their company, but that only one in ten use their business plans to secure finance or funding.

Unsurprisingly, the research also identifies that under half of all firms (42 per cent) do not have a business plan at all.

Gareth Osborne of APA says: “Access to finance remains one of the greatest challenges facing small businesses today. However, there are a number of vital things owners can do to help themselves, such as ensuring they have a fully robust and up-to-date business plan in place. Their PAs can be a great asset in this area, we can train them to develop and assemble a great business plan from your ambitions and desires. Business planning is included in our Diploma programme and in other courses.”

APA

Technology nightmare

British small businesses place less of an emphasis on technology than their European counterparts, research finds. Only 51% of UK SMEs say that IT is an integral part of their drive for business growth, increased innovation and productivity, according to new research, making it one of the poorest technology performers in the 27 Member States of the EU.

In France and Germany, 76% consider IT integral to growth, with 73% in Spain and 68% in Italy agreeing.

However, the very smallest UK businesses like to use the latest technology, with the average age of most of the technology in use being around 2.2 years, compared to an average of 2.5 across European countries. Some 70% of British SMEs say that they replace IT equipment every two years, recognising the importance of staying up to date.

More hopefully, over half (57%) of British businesses say modern IT is vital for staff productivity, with 27% believing it helps attract and retain staff, and only 2% thinking it is an unnecessary expense.

APA

Winter chill hits training

APA got a cold reception in Helsinki when the latest batch of diploma candidates met for their final training and test. The weather had plummeted to -18ºC but it was bright and bracing and, so they told us, typically Finnish..

Finland and its neighbouring Scandinavian countries are proving to be a valuable training ground for APA and PAs are keen to attend accredited courses with the potential to move on afterwards to degree level qualifications. The latest course, again delivered in Espoo, attracted an experienced group of PAs who scored the course content as; excellent (75%) and very good (25%) and the joint delivery by Gareth Osborne and Anders Magnusson as excellent.

Diploma course are already running in the UK with others to follow imminently in other northern European locations. Gareth said: “We hope to anchor our operation with the launch of APA Scandinavia in the coming months and from there, address some of the other northern EU countries. We currently have interest from Spain, France and Italy and hope to become more engaged there too.”

APA courses will be running in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark throughout the year and can be booked by contacting training@paprofessional.com .

Pictured (L-R) are: Aamu Nurmi, Henna Rothovius, Naema Ikola, Maija Eneberg, Kaisa Lundback and Roosa Javinen.

APA

FREE PA Degree taster day - 10th May 2012

Middlesex University has generously offered to host a free one day taster for all Members (and PA friends) who have expressed an interest in enrolling for the PA Degree – either the BA or MA programmes for PAs.

Course Leader, Dr. Paul Griseri, (pictured right) will outline elements from the course to help explain how flexible a distance and work-based programme is and how it can seamlessly fit into you working life. Paul will be teaching a key element of the course; against which you will accrue CPD points and potential credits towards your future degree registration.

This is one day that could shape your careerpath; can you afford to miss this valuable opportunity? Please book early. To register interest and receive more information contact APA 080 107 1030 or email knowledge@paprofessional.com

APA

Remember, completion of APA’s Diploma programme supported by your work experience already counts towards your PA Degree (120 points towards a 360-point BA in Business Administration for PAs). A PA Degree could be easier than you think.

Its UK Duvet Day

‘National Sickie Day’ will cost UK businesses more than £34 million, ELAS the employment law expert predicts. The combination of wintry weather, commuting to and from work in the dark, Christmas credit card bills and a long wait until the next holiday makes Monday, 6 February the day Britons are most likely to call in sick.

However, the number of days workers award themselves for a bout of fake illness is falling as the economy falters, with most staff now only daring to spend one day away from the office.

ELAS says, ’We have been keeping a close eye on absenteeism for years, and there has always been a sizeable number of skivers who, having phoned in sick once, award themselves a second day to make their illness look more believable. 'But in the past 12 months, a combination of the stuttering economy and managers finally grasping the nettle over absenteeism has seen that particular trend end.'

While the number of people suspected of throwing ‘sickies’ continues to grow steadily, the length of time they’re off work is falling fast. Based on its monitoring of absenteeism nationwide, the company estimates that as many as 400,000 UK workers will ‘throw a sickie' on Monday.

APA

Threat from new Virus

The press today warns of a new cyber attack: The new attack can infect PCs even if people DON'T open email attachments - leaving even savvy web users vulnerable.

The user will not even be warned this is happening - the only message that appears is 'loading'.  The email automatically downloads malicious software into your computer from elsewhere the moment a user clicks to open it.  The mails themselves are not infected - and thus will not 'set off' many web-security defence packages.

Security experts say that the development is 'particularly dangerous'. 'This sort of spam also affects cautious users which would never open an unknown attachment or link,' say security experts Eleven Research Team.

The new emails - dubbed 'drive-by emails' - have been detected 'in the wild' by computer researchers Eleven Research Team: “This drive-by spam automatically downloads malware when the e-mail is opened in the e-mail client. Previous malware e-mails required the user to click on a link or open an attachment for the PC to be infected.”

The new attack loads malicious software from remote websites into your PC as soon as you open an email. The current wave of emails arrives with the title 'Banking Security Update.'

APA says: To stay safe, the security company advises switching all security settings in email software to maximum, and updating your browser to the latest version so it's protected against malicious software.

APA

Its all hearts and chocolate

You've had fruit for breakfast and a salad for lunch, but before you congratulate yourself, perhaps you should add to the tally those three chocolate biscuits and a muffin you had in the office.

The average female office worker consumes a third of her daily calorie allowance – around 650 calories, on snacks such as chocolate a survey’ by MyVoucherCodes.co.uk, based on the opinions of 1,947 women who have a full-time job in an office environment, has revealed.

Research shows the most popular snack food among women at work was chocolate, followed by fruit and then crisps. Nine out of ten female office workers confessed to snacking at their desks. The total number of calories consumed was then added up and 50% of the women said they ate between 650 and 750 calories a day, this is around a third of the Government's recommendations of 2,000 calories-a-day for women.

Almost two thirds of the women who took part in the study said that they snack more whilst in the office than they do when they are at home.

Shelley Young, APA

Flushed with success

Have you ever been out and wondered where the nearest toilet is? Well you might not have to wonder for much longer. A new Smartphone app which shows you where the closest lavatory is by using government information has won the top prize in a new competition. A group of students won an award for the app which made use of free government information.

Developed by three students from the University of Amsterdam “hoge nood” which means ' desperate need' is able to tell the difference between public and semi-public toilets.

A public toilet is a stand-alone facility that is available to everyone and a semi-public is a place that is generally open to the public such as a department store or a pub. The app is currently only available in the Netherlands but it is hoped it will soon be rolled out to other Western countries and will no doubt prove popular with tourists.

The new Smartphone app shows you exactly how far you need to go before you reach a public toilet

The competition was set up to design apps using free information provided by the government. Maxime Verhagen, Holland’s economic affairs minister, said he hoped this would encourage people in the country to make as much use of free government information as possible.[Ed comments - And public toilets presumably!]

Shelley Young, APA