Contents
- Latest on business start-up
- Topics in depth
- Advice and reports
- Webinars
- eBooks
- Business press
- Articles and books in the ICAEW Library collection
- External resources - GOV.UK
- External resources - Small business organisations
- External resources - Other sources of information
- External resources - Reports
- External resources - Business guides
Latest on business start-up
Read our latest features and articles on starting a business.
Industrial Strategy shines spotlight on professional services
- Article
- 16 Oct 2024
The government’s Industrial Strategy identifies the sector as having high growth potential, as Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds pledges to give business the confidence to plan for the long term.
Government seeks firms’ views on high-growth global markets
- Article
- 09 Oct 2024
The Department for Business and Trade wants input from businesses in the professional services sector on how to drive growth in international markets.
How should the UK foster a climate for smarter regulation?
- Article
- 30 Sep 2024
With global economic challenges mounting, ICAEW’s roundtable event brought together expert views on how the regulatory landscape should adapt to promote sustainable growth.
Counting the cost. How operational consolidation helps DB schemes achieve better outcomes.
- Article
- 03 Sep 2024
Keeping control of pension scheme running costs can be challenging for trustees and employers. The amount a defined benefit (DB) scheme pays will vary depending on its design and complexity – with some costs more obvious than others – so understanding what you are paying is the first step in keeping costs down. Trustees and their advisers, working together, can enable the schemes in their care to achieve better outcomes at lower costs.
The CFO Agenda: Unlocking growth without compromise
- Article
- 14 Aug 2024
Finance professionals must strike a delicate balance between maintaining a competitive edge and implementing cost-saving measures that don't negatively impact customer satisfaction or service quality. So, how can they help their businesses tackle these complex demands? Read the recent report by Payhawk and Raconteur to learn more.
What’s next for LEPs and growth hubs?
- Article
- 05 Aug 2024
Local enterprise partnerships’ functions were transferred to local authorities in April 2024. What role will they play now?
FRC points to improved standards to drive UK growth
- Article
- 25 Jul 2024
The FRC’s Annual Report focuses on continued progress in the improvement of the standards of audit, financial and corporate reporting as an enabler of corporate growth.
National Wealth Fund to unlock green and growth investment
- Article
- 15 Jul 2024
Fund will bring together UK Infrastructure Bank and the British Business Bank to unlock billions of pounds of investment in the UK’s green and growth industries, government says.
Topics in depth
Business names
Our latest features, books, articles and guides on all aspects of choosing a company name.
Advice and reports
ICAEW BAS
ICAEW’s Business Advice Service puts small and medium business owners in touch with both ICAEW members or regulated ICAEW member firms who can provide a free initial consultation, without obligation, to discuss any business issues the owners are facing.
Exclusive
Special report - Growing your business
This report is primarily aimed at smaller businesses seeking to grow and develop and to achieve their full potential through practical guidance and advice.
Starting your business
You’ve taken the plunge and decided to start trading. The first few months spent getting the business up and running are likely to be very hectic. So before getting the business off the ground, it pays to get all the necessary administrative chores out the way.
Webinars
Why are female-led startups so underfunded?
- Podcast
- 02 Aug 2024
In this episode of Behind the Numbers, we discuss gender inequality in investment.
Getting SME investment back on track
- Podcast
- 28 Apr 2023
In this Insights In Focus episode, we discuss the obstacles and incentives to SME investment.
Exclusive
Risk management considerations for SMEs in challenging market conditions
- Webinar
- 14 Oct 2022
ICAEW Small and Micro Business Community webinar providing an in-depth overview of the SME market, the current economic conditions and challenges being faced and the specific risks SMEs are facing when starting up.
Exclusive
Top tips on growing a business
- Webinar
- 21 Sep 2022
Hear from our speakers about the different financing options available as you grow, what investors look for in a business and what should be included in your pitch deck. A ICAEW Small and Micro Business Community webinar.
Disruptors, innovators, start-ups - exploring roles for accountants
- Webinar
- 22 Mar 2021
Considering making a move from a practice or established corporate world into a start-up, or exploring expanding your portfolio into this space? Hear insights and experience from our panel of speakers.
eBooks
The ICAEW Library & Information Service provides full text access to a selection of key business and reference eBooks from leading publishers. eBooks are available to logged-in ICAEW members, ACA students and other entitled users. If you are unable to access an eBook, please see our Help and support advice or contact library@icaew.com.
Exclusive
Art of business valuation: accurately valuing a small business
- eBook
- 2020
- Gregory R. Caruso
- Wiley
This book examines a range of questions you may encounter in a valuation process. The book will supply helpful solutions to common issues that arise when a small business is valued.
Exclusive
Business start up bundle for dummies
- eBook
- 2020
- Colin Barrow
- John Wiley & Sons
A one stop shop to all your business start-up needs! Covers everything budding entrepreneurs need to know to get their business up and running. Whether readers are just starting out, planning a new venture, setting up at home or extending a current business online, this book is all they need to succeed.
Exclusive
Exploring strategy
- eBook
- 2017
- Gerry Johnson, Richard Whittington, Patrick Regnér, Kevan Scholes, and Duncan Angwin
- Pearson Education Limited
This book has long been the essential strategy text for managers of today and tomorrow. From entrepreneurial start-ups to multinationals, charities to government agencies, this book raises the big questions about organisations- how they grow, how they innovate and how they change.
Exclusive
Financial Times guide to business start up 2017/18
- eBook
- 2016
- Sara Williams
- FT Publishing International
Startup guide for entrepreneurs and small business owners.
Exclusive
Starting a successful business
- eBook
- 2011
- M. J. Morris
- Kogan Page
Step-by-step guide to starting and running a small business.
Exclusive
Consultant's quick start guide: an action plan for your first year in business, The
- eBook
- 2009
- Elaine Blech
- Pfeiffer
A guide to working as a consultant from a US perspective.
Exclusive
Born global firms
- eBook
- 2009
- S. Tamer Cavusgil, Gary Knight
- Business Expert Press
Helps managers and scholars understand companies which are part of the born-global phenomenon.
Exclusive
Essential business finance: a complete guide to starting, expanding and selling your business
- eBook
- 2009
- Paul Barrow
- Kogan Page
An introduction to finance aimed at the average business manager.
Terms of use
You are permitted to access, download, copy, or print out content from eBooks for your own research or study only, subject to the terms of use set by our suppliers and any restrictions imposed by individual publishers. Please see individual supplier pages for full terms of use.
Business press
The ICAEW Library & Information Service provides access to leading business, finance and management journals. These journals are available to logged-in ICAEW members, ACA students and other entitled users subject to suppliers' terms of use.
Exclusive
Unattended retail options pegged as a secure saviour for small businesses, survey reveals
- Article
- 01 Nov 2023
Vending machines and unmanned retail services are growing in popularity with UK consumers, giving small businesses a lifeline to much needed ancillary revenue, according to the results of a newly released survey. For the consumer, it’s clear that convenience and availability are the primary drivers of unattended retail usage, with consumers increasingly relying on these services to meet out-of-hour or unplanned needs - and also to avoid social interactions.
Exclusive
Who learns fastest, wins: Lean Startup and Discovery Driven Growth
- Article
- 01 Oct 2023
- Rita Gunther McGrath
Most entrepreneurial ventures and startups fail. Against this backdrop, Lean Startup and Discovery-Driven Growth (DDG) are methods that emphasize rapid learning, resource parsimony, and focus on validating assumptions as ways of reducing the cost and risk of failure. Rita Gunther McGrath looks at the benefits of both methods, suggesting that they are a major advance over traditional planning processes because they both emphasize rapid learning. She also provides a 'flops file' of massive corporate failures and analyses the mistakes made.
Exclusive
Developing an entrepreneurial small business strategic plan
- Article
- 01 Mar 2023
- Hakan Butuner
Feature explaining how to use shortened Systematic Strategic Planning (SSP), a tool particularly suitable for developing strategic plans for SMEs. The article uses a case study of an entrepreneurial new business to demonstrate how the first four steps of a shortened SSP strategic plan can be applied.
Exclusive
When best to scale up
- Article
- 01 Mar 2023
- Hamdi Ulukaya
A new study sheds light on the debate into how fast a high-growth company should scale up. From examining job postings from 38,000 start-ups, the researchers found those start-ups that had scaled up in the first year were 20-40% more likely than others to have failed. They also found that using A/B testing software significantly raised a start-up's odds of success.
Exclusive
Feature: the pros of the Hybrid Start-Up
- Article
- 01 Mar 2023
- Nathan Furr, Kate O'Keeffe
How established companies can create a 'Hybrid Start-Up' - a new model that combines the best of people, processes, and resources from both inside and outside the company. Evidence suggests that it is two or three times as likely as an independent start-up to succeed.
Exclusive
The key to a successful business scale-up
- Article
- 01 Jan 2023
- Martin Kupp, Jeffrey F.Rayport, Davide Sola
How to master the “extrapolation” stage, when business start-ups begin to focus on profitability, not just growth. The authors share their advice, based on their experience teaching business school courses on scaling up enterprises and their analysis of dozens of rapidly growing start-ups.
Articles and books in the ICAEW Library collection
The collection of the ICAEW Library & Information Service includes a range of articles, books and reports on starting a business. Use the links below to see what we have available to request in our Library catalogue (Libcat).
Small business tax saving tactics: tax planning for sole traders and partnerships, 11th ed.
- Library book
- 2023
- C. Bayley, N. Braun
- Taxcafe UK
A practical guide to tax saving techniques that can help self-employed business owners (sole traders and partnerships) to pay less tax on their profits. Includes numerous easy-to-follow examples.
Growing by numbers: how to scale up your small business with confidence
- Library book
- 2020
- D. Hudson
- SRA Books
This authoritative, motivating and highly practical guide will take you step-by-step through everything you need to think about, know and do to get your business into the best possible shape for growth.
Incorporating and disincorporating a business, 3rd ed.
- Library book
- 2019
- M. McLaughlin, J. Anderson
- Bloomsbury Professional
A guide to the tax issues and pitfalls one may encounter when incorporating a sole trader or partnership business. Includes numerous worked examples to illustrate complex points.
Financial management for technology start-ups: a handbook for growth
- Library book
- 2017
- A.Bhimani
- Kogan Page
A book to help you with the specific know-how required to successfully manage costs, track profit opportunities and monetize your tech start-up.
External resources - GOV.UK
Get help and support for your business
- GOV.UK
The Business Support Helpline telephone numbers for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and information on getting advice and financial help for your business.
Growing your business
- GOV.UK
This guide can help you think about how to grow your business. It covers getting extra funding, increasing sales to existing customers, attracting new customers, improving your products and services, developing new products and services, hiring and training staff and working with a mentor.
Help to Grow
- GOV.UK
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT)'s new Help to Grow website aims to support the UK’s 5.5 million businesses in upskilling, business growth, and boosting profits. It provides guidance and support to take businesses from start-ups, to scaling-up and then exporting their goods and services globally. The website is targeted at helping businesses of all sizes but especially SMEs.
HMRC Customer Forums
- GOV.UK
HMRC Forums where you can ask questions and get top tips on a range of business tax topics, including starting and growing your business.
Setting up
- GOV.UK
Comprehensive guidance from the government on starting and growing a new business. There are many links and resources, including Company registration and filing information.
Terms of use
ICAEW accepts no responsibility for the content on any site to which a hypertext link from this site exists. The links are provided 'as is' with no warranty, express or implied, for the information provided within them. Please see the full copyright and disclaimer notice.
External resources - Small business organisations
British Chambers of Commerce
- British Chambers of Commerce
The website of the network of Chambers of Commerce across the UK provides information on their activities and a tool to find your local Chamber of Commerce.
European Commission: Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs
- European Commission
Portal for EC information and resources for SMEs, with business-related links and guides to EU legislation and financing programmes.
Family Business UK
- Family Business UK
A growing body of family businesses working to support the UK family-owned business sector (formerly named the Institute for Family Business, IFB). The organisation will work to promote the role of the family business model in the UK economy, and also support and advise family businesses to invest, grow and sustain for the long-term.
Family Business United
- Family Business United
Resources and useful features for family-run businesses, including upcoming events for the sector and The Family Business Top 100, a list showcasing some of the best family businesses across the UK.
Federation of Small Businesses
- Federation of Small Businesses
The FSB publish the quarterly Voice of Small Business Index which provides a picture of the UK economy from the point of view of the small business owner. The index looks at employment, revenues and the confidence of small firms and provides information on regional businesses with a breakdown by sector across the UK.
Forum of private business
- Forum of Private Business
Not-for-profit membership organisation which provides guidance and support for SMEs and aims to 'represent small businesses views and be their voice in government'.
Terms of use
ICAEW accepts no responsibility for the content on any site to which a hypertext link from this site exists. The links are provided 'as is' with no warranty, express or implied, for the information provided within them. Please see the full copyright and disclaimer notice.
External resources - Other sources of information
A guide to government support for small businesses
- The Pitch
A quick guide to government support for SMEs from The Pitch, an independent pitching competition for startups. It covers what support is available to SMEs - at a national and local level - and how and where to access it.
British Library Business & IP Centre
- British Library
The British Library's Business and Intellectual Property (IP) Centre incorporates services and information aimed at entrepreneurs and small business owners, including expert advisers to talk through your ideas and a wide range of essential information to help you research your market and start your own business.
Business Growth Fund
- BGF
BGF is an investment partner for growing companies in every sector of the economy, providing tools businesses need to grow, from funding to expertise.
Cobweb
- Cobweb
Cobweb is an independent publisher of practical and easy to understand information for business start-ups and small business owners, and for the advisers, professionals, and organisations that guide and support them.
Growth Business UK
- Bonhill Group plc
Practical tips and resources for established businesses undergoing rapid expansion.
Quick Books Resource Centre
- Intuit Inc
Comprehensive collection of guides and tips hosted by Intuit QuickBooks on starting and running a small business. A UK-based version of the portal is also available.
Startups.
- Startups.
Online resource for those starting or running a small business. The website includes start-up guides for over 50 different business sectors, business start-up news, success stories and advice on finding finance and recruiting and managing staff.
Terms of use
ICAEW accepts no responsibility for the content on any site to which a hypertext link from this site exists. The links are provided 'as is' with no warranty, express or implied, for the information provided within them. Please see the full copyright and disclaimer notice.
External resources - Reports
Equitable equity: Increasing and diversifying finance for high-growth SMEs in the UK's regions
- 2017
- Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR)
High-growth businesses often struggle to access finance - particularly from investors or crowdfunding. This report investigates how the UK can open up access to all sources of finance for successful SMEs across the country.
The ambitious entrepreneur: Tackling your barriers to growth
- 2021
- BDO
A study exploring the various barriers to growth that ambitious businesses in the UK face as they look to build, grow and scale their business. An accompanying hub of articles and resources to support high growth businesses is available.
Understanding the characteristics of high growth companies using non-traditional data sources
- 2019
- Data Science Campus
Report exploring how non-traditional data sources and data science methods can be combined with more conventional business data, to help understand the characteristics and behaviours of high growth companies. A follow-up update explores whether firms engaging in certain management practices were more likely to be classed as high-growth.
Terms of use
ICAEW accepts no responsibility for the content on any site to which a hypertext link from this site exists. The links are provided 'as is' with no warranty, express or implied, for the information provided within them. Please see the full copyright and disclaimer notice.
External resources - Business guides
Creating a valuable business
- Atom Content Marketing
A LawDonut guide to making strategic decisions that can help create and maintain a valuable business. Running a business often involves reacting to circumstances, making minor decisions that have a limited, short-term impact. In contrast, creating a valuable business is about taking strategic decisions that have a lasting effect.
Essential guide to financing your start-up business
- Atom Content Marketing
The right start-up financing gives your new business a solid financial base. It makes sure you have the funding to cover your short-term needs and to make the most of opportunities to grow.
Essential guide to valuing a business
- Atom Content Marketing
Understanding how much a business is worth - and how it can be made more valuable - is of vital importance to anyone buying, selling or simply running a business.
Increasing productivity
- Atom Content Marketing
Building long-term profitability allows you to grow your business and your own personal rewards from it. Creating and increasing profitability depends on doing many little things better than the competition.
Role of the company secretary
- Atom Content Marketing
An outline of the role and responsibilities of the company secretary from the Law Donut
Source green suppliers and equipment
- Atom Content Marketing
Opportunities to source your business supplies, raw materials or finished goods from environmentally-friendly suppliers are increasing. Benefits can include getting the edge on the competition, cost savings and tax breaks, better prospects with lenders and investors, and a boost to your firm’s marketing.
Strategic acquisitions
- Atom Content Marketing
An acquisition could increase the size and profitability of your business overnight. But an acquisition can also bring problems, draining financial and management resources from your original business.
Your money and your business
- Atom Content Marketing
As the owner-manager of a small or medium enterprise, your own financial affairs are likely to be closely entwined with the way you run your business.
Terms of use
ICAEW accepts no responsibility for the content on any site to which a hypertext link from this site exists. The links are provided 'as is' with no warranty, express or implied, for the information provided within them. Please see the full copyright and disclaimer notice.
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