7 minute read
Opinion
OPINION When do we get involved?
OPINION PIECE BY ROBERT FESTENSTEIN
Traditionally we have been keen to maintain a low profile, only raising our communal heads where we are directly affected. Typically this has meant kashrut and brit milah, as well as scanning the recently deceased in order to avoid a post mortem. More recently as has been covered in this column there have been issues over education and in particular the apparent failure by some religious schools to provide a decent secular education.
There are some Jewish groups who have got involved with wider ranging matters, such as climate change and refugees. Anyone who has any interest in women’s rights will have seen that these are increasingly under attack, particularly from many activists.
Last year Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust told staff to use terms like ‘birthing parents’ and ‘human milk’ rather than referring to ‘mothers’ milk’.
If there has been Jewish input on these issues, they have not been reported on widely. In addition, where Jewish commentary also appears to be missing is in relation to gender change, or gender reassignment as it is more often described.
So why should either of these be of any concern to us? It is to be hoped that the answer is self-evident. I am sure that shuls are going to be reluctant to re-name the ladies toilets, though this is perhaps the least of the problems arising from this issue. What is of significant concern is the apparent ease with which children (by which I mean those under 18) can start the process to change gender.
The NHS guidance on gender dysphoria (those with issues over their gender identity) makes reference to a number of matters, including the phrase: ‘From the age of 16, teenagers who’ve been on hormone blockers for at least 12 months may be given cross-gender hormones, also known as gender-affirming hormones’. It is clear from this that a child of 15 can take drugs to enhance this effect.
This literally life changing treatment is available to a child who meets the criteria. What is of concern is that the Jewish community appears to be taking no interest in this. Children can obtain treatment to ultimately have a gender-change in their late teens or early twenties. I am no psychologist though it is well known that an individual goes through many phases as they grow, into their teens and twenties, and often a view held by someone at 16 can develop into a completely opposite one by 18 or 21.
In other words, society is allowing life changing decisions to be made by people who are not only vulnerable, but arguably not really able to take that decision. Where is the protection for these children? We have reached this position by stealth, so that the status of women is now under challenge and vulnerable children are making decisions which perhaps they should not be making. Whilst these are not specifically Jewish issues, they are manifestly issues which face everyone and that includes us. I am not suggesting that gender reassignment should be stopped, just that there should be greater scrutiny of what is being done in the name of health, particularly where our children are concerned. Similarly, where women’s rights are being infringed, we need to be getting involved. These issues are far too important for us to think they are not relevant to our community.
Robert Festenstein is a practising solicitor and has been the principal of his Salford based firm for over 20 years. He has fought BDS motions to the Court of Appeal and is President of the Zionist Central Council in Manchester which serves to protect and defend the democratic State of Israel.
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Strategies that work from Kolleno. Part 2
BY URI DEBSON
Today we continue to talk about how SMEs’ owners can protect themselves from the negative consequences of stagflation- a period of low output, rising unemployment and high inflation. The relatively rare economic phenomenon is mainly triggered by supply shocks or sudden rises in commodity prices. While the whole world will feel the effect of rising fossil fuel prices, the UK economy will experience it more than other developed nations in the G7. As the result, IMF predicts the growth to half to 1.2% in 2023, from the previously expected 2.3% and the inflation can go as high as 9%. All these macroeconomic conditions undoubtedly will have an impact on regular businesses. Mainly due to the slow-down in investments, higher cost to produce and an increase in late payments by their b2b clients. The key to not just surviving, but striving during an economic downturn like this is to increase productivity and see where the processes can be improved. This way your business might get out stronger after the crisis than it was before.
Kolleno, as a London-based startup is specialising in automating cash collections and digitising the accounts receivable management for companies of all sizes and is fit for all industries. Kolleno is continuing to share tips on how to make your business stagflation-proof.
STRATEGIES TO PROTECT YOUR BUSINESS
Don’t Give Free Credit to Your Customers
During the recession, the b2b clients will want to pay their suppliers as late as possible between 30 and 60 days after the invoice has been issued. In other words, it can be regarded as informal sales on credit by the supplier, but they are not. At the beginning of the year, 58% of SMEs were owed money. This figure can go over 90% for larger businesses. Don’t let your business fall into that trap.
Chasing invoices is time-consuming - UK businesses spend 56.4m hours yearly going after late payments. Diverting your resources to credit control also may not be the best thing right now. The good news is, that the technology is already capable of performing these tasks, so you might want to look into solutions that will help get your invoices paid on time.
PUT AN END TO MANUAL TASKS
The current stagflation is not usual. Even though the unemployment rates are rising there are more vacancies available than there are unemployed writes Bloomberg. This can be connected to the “great resignation” and the fact that the younger generations (Millenials and Gen Z) are favouring mental health and well-being over careers that involve long working hours. For businesses it comes at a cost- to recruit a quality workforce is now becoming more expensive or the job should be more rewarding.
To become a lucrative employer the businesses have to think about how they can decrease dull and repetitive tasks. Employees being bored is the number one reason (34%) why employees quit according to the Korn Ferry poll of nearly 5,000 professionals.
Manually chasing the invoices is not the most rewarding task to perform, so it is another reason to delegate it to digital tools. Additionally, your employees worked hard to make that sale and they might feel uncomfortable reaching out to their clients with payment reminders.
PUT YOUR CASH COLLECTION ON AUTO-PILOT
At Kolleno we believe that the businesses shouldn’t struggle to get cash on their bank account and are entitled to get paid on time after making their hard-earned sales.
Connect Kolleno accounts receivable integration to your accounting software (Xero, QuickBooks), ERP (NetSuite, Clio), and many other business tools, and put your credit control and cash collection on the auto-pilot. The smart algorithm will identify what actions need to be done today to speed up collections, suggest your tone of voice, and even messaging. You can tailor the collection strategy and put it on auto-pilot.
No more lost or forgotten invoices, no more going through excel sheets and trying to find words when you reach out to clients. Kolleno is capable of doing all of it on your behalf.
Kolleno clients are benefiting from an improvement in their cash flow as quickly as three months after subscribing. Take, for example, NES Security, a client of Kolleno providing high-quality Security solutions in London ranging from Alarms, and CCTV to home automation services. In the past 3 months, the company has achieved this results: • 40% reduction in overall overdue balance • 46% reduction in 91+ overdue balance • 83 days decrease in median days late • 103 less of overdue invoices
To learn more go to www.kolleno.com or email: Uri.Debson@kolleno.com
*Stagflation - stagnated economy + inflation
