Month: June 2019
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) – Remote / Offshore
Outsourcing some or many of your organisation’s business functions is a modern-day, tech-era business solution to help fulfil your business goals and achieve greater productivity output. Not only domestic remote staffing but also offshore staffing are options for outsourcing your business processes. What steps lead to constructive and fruitful virtual working relationships via Business Process Outsourcing (BPO)?First, you’ll need to investigate which outsourcing service provider can best assist you in creating a successful virtual employee team. There are many such service providers and you’ll want one that is not only reliable but also capable of retaining staff for consistency with your Australian operation. Do take the time over the selection process. Do consider recommendations from others within your industry who already use accomplished and trusted virtual employees.
Once you know the ‘who and where’ of your virtual employee team, you’ll want to develop protocols for delegating business processes and you’ll need to define tasks to be undertaken by the remote staff. It’s important that your Australian employees are able to clearly communicate with the remote staff and vice versa, so protocols could include respecting time zone differences, dictating email etiquette and regulating communication channels. In addition, providing internet capabilities that can relay effectual audio and/or visual conferencing is essential.
Communication software is a key component of BPO, enabling screen sharing between remote staff and equivalent local employees. A major benefit of a screen sharing application is collaboration between users, enabling all users to view the same data and in real time. This technology also allows your organisation to engage in training with ease – instructing and demonstrating business processes to remote staff. Furthermore, a virtual offshore team can coordinate smoothly via instant interconnection and file updates.
With the most suitable and adaptable virtual employee team working remotely to support your business, the benefits will become apparent:
- Targeted execution of business processes, leading to more precise management of productivity
- Lower in-house costs by outsourcing and lower labour costs offshore for similar level performance
- Dedicated remote staff trained to suit just what needs to be done
- Specific skilled-work requirements performed by experts on a needs basis
- Renewed focus on investing in developing your business with savings made on labour costs
- Flexible productivity due to time zoning, enabling growth 24/7 and continuity of customer service/s
- Global expansion through continuity and consistency of customer service/s in line with your Australian operation
Source an experienced outsourcing service provider, lay down the parameters for best business process practices, empower your virtual employee team by equipping them with appropriate technological infrastructure and watch your business productivity take off as your organisation benefits from an effective relationship with your remote staff.
How can YML help?
Talk to our YML Innovation Team today to see how YML Group can assist you with setting up your BPO. Contact us on (02) 8383 4400 or by visiting the Contact Us page on our website.
Does your SMSF have an investment strategy?
You’re responsible for a Self-Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF) and your members deserve to know how you will undertake investing their funds for best returns. Or you are a member of a SMSF and you want to understand your SMSF’s direction and methods for investing your contributions.Under Australian law (Superannuation Industry (Superannuation) Act 1993) a SMSF is required “to formulate, review regularly and give effect to an investment strategy”.
Formulate an Investment Strategy
Preparing an investment strategy means you will want to consider:
- the purpose of the SMSF;
- the members’ individual circumstances;
- the life phases of members (accumulation vs retirement and so on);
- the risks associated with various and diversified investment approaches;
- the pros and cons of asset classes (shares vs property vs cash and so on);
- the investment period/s for different investments;
- the benefits to members of insurance/s;
- the costs associated with investments; and
- how and when your members will receive payment of their returns and/or pensions
Regularly Review an Investment Strategy
Once an investment strategy is in existence, over time the strategy will need to be reviewed due to changing – legal, management, member and/or investment – circumstances. Some circumstances might be:
- Fund purpose changes direction (for example, retirement goals of members);
- New member/s join;
- Management team employment changes;
- Structure and performance of investments change;
- Liquidity levels require variation;
- Government legislation updates or reforms must be reflected;
- Market fluctuations warrant growth strategy modification
Insurance within an Investment Strategy
Part of reviewing a SMSF’s investment strategy is considering whether insurance is appropriate for its members and the suitability of any insurance – life, total and permanent disability (TPD), income protection - cover taken.
It is not mandatory to provide insurance but it is obligatory under law to consider insurance and show via supporting documentation the reasons for your decision to insure or not to insure a SMSF’s members. Such consideration and documentation are gauged to ideally protect a SMSF should liabilities be incurred.
Execution of an Investment Strategy
How or whether you act upon an investment strategy is important. You will need to put in to action an investment strategy not only to satisfy the existence of a SMSF, but to fulfil the purpose of a SMSF and meet its members’ retirement needs. This can only be achieved with a plan, regular reviews, consideration of insurance and making decisions in line with the methods of investment detailed within the investment strategy.
The ATO will use a SMSF’s investment strategy to ascertain the viability of a SMSF and may suggest specific alterations in its annual audit of a SMSF.
Engaging the services of a financial adviser to execute on a SMSF’s investment and insurance strategies could help reassure its members, enabling them to get on with their lives knowing that their superannuation funds are appropriately invested and that their insurance policies are in place.
As financial advisers specialising in SMSF advice we at YML Group strongly encourage SMSF members to contact us to discuss their retirement financial objectives and how we can assist with achieving them.
How can YML help?
Talk to our YML Super Solutions Team today to see how YML Group can assist you with your SMSF investment strategy. Contact us on (02) 8383 4400, or by visiting the Contact Us page on our website.
Happy NEW Financial Year – ATO Changes Update
TPAR – Taxable Payments Annual ReportThe Australian Government’s effort to garner taxes from people working outside the tax regulation system has meant you’ll need to report payments you’ve made to any and all contractual workers where labour/service costs have been included in their invoices to you during the financial year. The ATO uses the information you provide to ensure those contractors are meeting their tax obligation.
If your business provides building and construction services, then you will already be filing a TPAR, however from 1 July 2018, if your business provides cleaning services and/or courier services, then you will also need to lodge a TPAR this year by 28 August 2019.
From 1 July 2019 if your business provides road freight services, information technology (IT) services or security, investigation or surveillance services, then you will need to lodge a TPAR next year by 28 August 2020.
YML Group can guide you in fulfilling your ATO tax payment reporting obligation and assist you with your TPAR lodgement.
PAYGW – Pay As You Go Withholding
From 1 July 2019 you will no longer be allowed to claim a tax deduction for PAYGW expenses if you do not meet your ATO reporting obligations. If you failed to withhold PAYG tax from a payment OR if you withheld PAYG tax from a payment without informing the ATO, then you may not claim a deduction for those payments.
Voluntarily disclosing these errors to the ATO prior to the ATO commencing an audit will enable you to make a claim.
Remember to consider all PAYGW obligations for salaries, wages, commissions/bonuses, allowances, director fees, labour hire and/or payments made to contractual workers including those without an ABN.
STP – Single Touch Payroll
STP was introduced by the ATO to streamline reporting of salaries, wages, PAYG withholding taxes and superannuation contributions. From 1 July 2019 all small businesses must comply by submitting a single – digital – report after every pay day via a cloud-based payroll system using STP-enabled software from a STP software provider.
You can access STP solutions via the ATO’s website and/or an internet search, but we suggest you might like to call YML Group on 02-8383 4400 – if you do not currently use cloud accounting software, ask for Sarp from our Innovation division – to provide you a quote for our services to assist you with becoming ‘STP-compliant’.
Be aware that STP is a compulsory ATO requirement and non-compliance may result in ATO penalties.
SBE – Small Business Entity Concessions (Instant Asset Write-off)
From 2 April 2019 small- and medium-sized businesses may claim – until 30 June 2020 – an ‘instant asset write-off’ deduction of up to $30,000 for each asset purchased, installed and/or in use as at 2 April 2019.
To be eligible for this SBE concession, your business must have an annual turnover of up to $50 million.
Note that the threshold of $30,000 is the entire asset cost including GST (if you’re not registered for GST), but is the asset cost excluding GST (if you are registered for GST).
Medical Expenses (Tax Offset)
Financial year 2018-2019 was the last year – under special circumstances, namely disability aids, attendant or aged care – to claim the net medical expenses tax offset. This tax offset has now been phased out and is not an option from financial year 2019-2020 onwards.
Proposed CGT Exemption for Foreign Residents with Main Residence
A recent proposed Bill by the Australian Government in relation to the removal of the CGT main residence exemption for foreign residents has lapsed, therefore will no longer take effect.
How can YML help?
Talk to our Accountants today to see how YML Chartered Accountants can assist you with your ATO obligations. Contact us on (02) 8383 4400 or by visiting the Contact Us page on our website.
