As your business grows, instead of taking on more staff, you may decide to outsource certain services either on a temporary or more permanent basis. There is almost no limit to the type of services that can be outsourced nowadays, from manufacturing and drop shipping, through to IT, marketing, payroll, or finance support, to customer facing roles and sales support. As the world of freelancing has developed, you are not even restricted to finding a provider within these shores. 'While outsourcing key services can offer an efficient way for a business to grow, it is not without risks to your…

Setting up a new business is an exciting time, and there are a thousand things to think about, but if you are launching your new venture with one or more other colleagues it is imperative to decide in advance how you are going to structure it legally.

If you have decided that the time has come to admit a new member to your partnership, then there are a number of important steps that you will need to take in preparation.

Businesses need to be agile to survive and prosper, particularly as we face the duel challenge of having to deal with a global pandemic, while also bracing ourselves for the UK's exit from the EU.

Whilst the economy struggles to recover from the pandemic setting up a share option scheme may be the perfect way to incentivise, motivate and keep your staff feeling valued and performing well - at a very low cost to your business.

A company may choose to restructure its shares and issue different classes of share for a variety of reasons, such as raising capital, reducing debt, attracting investment, incentivising key company executives and launching a new subsidiary or spin-off company.

As your business grows and evolves, you may wish to bring new directors onto the board to reward and secure key members of staff or to bring in new skills and contacts from outside your business. In either case, the appointment of a new director to the board of your company is not as straightforward as it may seem.

Aside from the obvious duties such as filing reports at Companies House, there are numerous other obligations placed upon company directors. If you fail to comply with your duties your position on the board may be under threat, as you can be held liable by the company and in some circumstances by minority shareholders. In the most serious of cases directors may be disqualified or face criminal sanctions.

You and your business partner may have a fantastic business idea and wish to launch your business as soon as possible, but before you do so it is vital that you give adequate thought to what type of partnership will best suit your needs.

A merger occurs when two companies, which are often about the same size, agree to join together to form a new entity. Mergers are friendly, whereas acquisitions tend to be more hostile and occur when a target company realizes that they have no option but to ensure their survival by being bought by the other company.