While the Christmas season is traditionally one of the busiest times for businesses, January by contrast, can be the slowest. Instead of riding the slow wave, take control of January by using the time to plan and train yourself and your staff. There are a number of great resources that can help January become a period of up-skilling and planning for growth for the year ahead.
Catch up on training
To begin, visit our Employing people topic to assess your training needs. Here you can also find training information for your state and territory, as well as a list of providers. There are also a range of funding and incentive programs available, especially for employers of apprentices.
It's also important to begin investigating training events that can help you and your employees up-skill for the new year. You can search for business events and workshops around Australia using our Events calendar.
Expand your business knowledge
business.gov.au provides a range of business information, tools and news items to help you develop your business knowledge. Download our Growing your business checklist to help your business grow and succeed in the new year. The checklist includes important information on expanding your business online, franchising, environmental management, exporting and grants to help your business grow.
The Queensland Department of Business Development provides a range of tools online for training, including online diagnostic tools to test knowledge. Their Smart Skills Online resource provides free online courses on planning, selling, negotiation, networking and business planning.
Revisit your business and marketing plans
Business planning should be an ongoing process to ensure a business' success. business.gov.au has created a best-practice Business plan template (Word, 0.61MB) to help you develop or expand an existing plan. The Plan was developed with input from Business Enterprise Australia, Enterprise Connect and a leading Australian financial institution.
January is also an excellent time to review your marketing plan, and decide what direction your business will take in 2010. See our page on Marketing plan guides for a range of state resources to help your business shine.
Open up new opportunities with exporting
2010 could also be the year your business goes global or seeks to explore export opportunities. There are a range of things to consider, as well as advice, support and online guides to help you along the way. See our page on Export plan guides and tools for a comprehensive list.
