SBDC e-news – June 2017

From the Commissioner [Small Business Development Corporation]

Now is a busy time for small business as we head towards the end of the financial year, but the release of a landmark report from the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre last week was a welcome addition.  I say landmark because the research was centred on Western Australian small business and its significant contribution to the State’s economy. We hope there will be more research of this kind in the future. I’d encourage you to take advantage of this very credible, well researched information. You may also wish to hear my recent interview on the ABC Mornings Program, about the challenges faced by small businesses today.

I’m also very pleased to see tangible reactions to the national call for small businesses to be paid on time, as mentioned in our May e-news. The Victorian government has announced a voluntary payment code, and the Business Council of Australia followed with an new ‘Australian Supplier Payment Code’. In WA, a group of major companies have committed to improving payment terms with their smaller business suppliers. I hope more will follow.

It’s important to remember that cash flow is critical to small business and being paid on time should be the norm, not the exception. That Australian businesses lag so far behind our global neighbours in paying their accounts, is astonishing particularly in a country where we pride ourselves on giving everyone a ‘fair go’.

We hope you find this month’s e-news informative and useful.  If you’d like more information on any of the topics covered, please don’t hesitate to contact my office on 13 12 49.

David Eaton
Small Business Commissioner