Dubai Government's $136 Million SME Push to Help Small Businesses Globalize

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The Dubai government’s $136 million SME push to help small business to globalize will trigger an immediate influx of entrepreneurs and top talents from around the world to either expand or set up new businesses in the emirate, before taking them global, because of the inclusivity of the initiative, experts and industry players said.

The new initiative is also expected to ignite a flurry of expansions and new product launches by existing small and medium businesses and marketplaces by taking advantage of the interest-free loans to gear up for their regional and global plans. 

The move should attract a wide array of talent.  Is this something you should consider for your global small business?

SMBs Level Up with AI

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November 2022 marked a mainstream shift in the release and adoption of various generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools and products. ChatGPT became the buzzword in the world’s boardrooms, on social media and at dinner parties, ushering in an AI divide, where a segment of the population fully embraced this technology, another was wary, and everyone else unsure.

As Sasan Goodarzi, president and CEO of Intuit, puts it, “AI presents the next tectonic shift in technology and will be the greatest driver of innovation since electricity and the internet—and generative AI is transforming the way humans interact with computers.” 

GenAI has democratized access to this information, and by using this technology, small businesses now have a resource that provides them with precise information collected from vast amounts of data that they can use to propel their business forward.

Global small business is the lifeblood of most economies, and as technology evolves, SMB’s need to become more competitive in order to drive growth in a digitally enabled landscape.  AI might just take them there.

Getting Paid Quickly Matters to Global Small Businesses

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Global financial infrastructure platform Stripe and global small business platform Xero recently announced the expansion of their partnership to help small businesses worldwide get paid faster. 

Stripe and Xero are working together to build a far deeper integration of Stripe Connect into Xero’s small business platform that will enable greater convenience for customers and automate accounting for transactions.

Getting paid quickly matters.

How Companies Screw Up Their Global Expansion

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Growing your startup internationally has plenty of benefits and earns you the title of Global CEO or your business defined as a global small business — but getting there is no easy feat.

International expansion can be your key to growth, but the path to taking on the world is long and arduous. There are many roads to success, but failures tend to have a lot in common.

To ensure you don't screw up your global expansion effort, focus on these six key areas.

Setting Your Sight on a Sustainable Future

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According to Xero, building a fast-growing but sustainable business means consciously managing our environmental impact, helping to build thriving communities, and cultivating an engaged workforce.

That’s why Xero introduced an environmental sustainability program called Net Zero @ Xero and since 2019 has been committed to carbon neutrality, offsetting 100% of their global organization’s scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas emissions across owned and operated businesses in Australia and internationally, including New Zealand, the United States, Canada, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Asia.

Learn more how a global small business platform has its sight set on a sustainable future.

The Global Small Business Recovery Story

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Shopify President Harley Finkelstein says that entrepreneurship is now part of the global recovery story.

"Small business is going to lead the charge in bringing our cities and communities back to where we were pre-pandemic,” Finkelstein added.

Read the full interview about how global small business will lead the pandemic recovery in cities the world over.

Digital Transformation Is a Driving Force for Global Small Business

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Global small businesses are now attempting to make a name for themselves in the web-based market, yet few realize the advantages a digital platform truly provides.

How does digital transformation (DT) help global small businesses?  Going digital is rapidly moving away from being a luxury to a necessity.  

Read on to learn the benefits to digital transformation.  Spoiler alert:  DT gives you access to a global market.

CoCreate: Global Small Business

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CoCreate: Small Business is a collaboration between [global] small business owners and the Adobe creative community. Funded by Adobe, it’s an initiative that helps provide creative services to select small businesses while also generating paid opportunities for creatives around the world.

Adobe is hiring carefully vetted creatives with skills that will help small businesses make a big impact — from branding and product photography, to social media templates, and more.

All creators and U.S. small businesses (1-50 employees) are invited to apply. The deadline for applications is April 20, 2021.

To learn more and to apply, creative cloud.adobe.com

Surviving the Global Pandemic: Luck or Hard Work?

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Global small business owners have embraced the chaos and found ways to adapt. They also know plenty of other owners who would have loved to continue on, but simply ran out of money, time, or good health.

Krystle Lockman, co-owner of Axe and Arrow Brewing said:  “This has showed us a lot about who we were as a company. I really just think from a business perspective, you can only plan for so much before you just have to stay nimble and adapt. Even the best planning can have a complete wrench thrown in it. We hit our projections, just in a very different mix of revenues. For us, it was a little luck and a lot of being adaptable.”

Read more on how these four small-business owners – who all made it – reflect on the pandemic a year later.

Laurel Delaney's Cheat Sheet to Growing a Global Business

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If I [Laurel Delaney] had a dollar for every time someone asked me what it takes to go global, I’d be one rich woman. It’s not one thing that propels you to success. Rather, it’s a series of things that must be done well that will get you that much closer to improving your overall growth potential and conducting business with customers the world over.

From choosing the right market to having a payment plan in place, this is your cheat sheet from Laurel Delaney to growing a global business.

The Global Covid Economy

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Welcome to the [global] Covid Economy.  See how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting all areas of our lives, from food to housing, health care to global small business. 

The first focus is on North Carolina, with rapid economic growth — and growing inequality — since the last recession to learn how residents are weathering the economic consequences of this once-in-a-lifetime health crisis.

Take a deep dive here.

COVID-19's Effect on Jobs at Global Small Businesses

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Here's the deal.  Thirty million small-business jobs are vulnerable, and firms with fewer than 100 employees are the hardest hit during the COVID-19 crisis.  One of the challenges for policy makers and executives is figuring out how to get these employees back to work.

Discover McKinsey & Company's findings as of May, 2020.

Will Your Global Small Business Outlast This Crisis?

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USA Today says:

"Congress will decide whether your small business lives or dies. That’s not an exaggeration. What Congress does now, in the stimulus bill agreed on by the Senate and White House (but not yet passed by the House) to combat the coronavirus outbreak, determines whether millions of small businesses, including yours, will outlast this crisis."

Business Insider says:

"What to know about the $300 billion-plus for small businesses in the stimulus bill, and how founders will be able to apply for emergency funds."

Forbes says:

"A deal was reached in the Senate early this morning to inject approximately $2 trillion dollars into the U.S. economy, after days of negotiations and two failed votes.  The third and final economic stimulus package includes funds for direct payments to individuals and financial assistance to businesses.

The provisions for small businesses total $350 billion dollars, short of the $500 billion that Speaker Nancy Pelosi detailed in the House’s version of the stimulus package yesterday.  The bill will now move to the House for approval."

The New York Times reports:

"The largest economic stimulus measure in modern history would authorize direct payments to taxpayers and loans to small businesses, and create a $500 billion corporate bailout fund."

Today in Global Small Business: The Powerful Flywheel Concept by Jim Collins

©2019 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Why do some companies build relentless momentum and others don't?  Only Jim Collins has an answer through his latest publication, "Turning the Flywheel:  A Monograph to Accompany Good to Great."  We are especially honored to receive an autographed copy of the publication from Jim along with a personal letter highlighting the powerful flywheel principle, which can transcend to global.   
• Quote of the week: “Chase the vision, not the money; the money will end up following you.”— Tony Hsieh, Zappos CEO 
• The American Express Blue Business Cash Card for small businesses.  What's in it for you?
• The podcast companies behind some of the biggest chart-topping hits of the last three years are ready for their next challenge: taking a story listeners know and love like “Dr. Death” and giving it an international makeover.  But what does it look like?
• A U.S. government agency working closely with Ivanka Trump has invested in a new financial product intended to extend credit to women entrepreneurs in emerging markets.
• How businesses should prepare for global Internet access:  another 3 billion people online.

Today in Global Small Business: Let's Build a Global Currency for the Internet!

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Now is our chance to build a global currency for the Internet.  That's according to Jack Dorsey.
• Quote of the week: “It doesn't make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do.  We hire smart people so they can tell us what to do." – Steve Jobs
• How new legislation in Latin America benefits U.S. entrepreneurs.
• Barriers female business owners encounter when trying to grow their sales beyond Canada’s borders - a new study is being worked on.
• It's time for global businesses to accept local responsibility.
• Is America losing its small businesses?

Grow Global with Google

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Google has always offered tips and tools on how to build an online presence.  But in this case, listen in on Google's President of Global Customer Solutions, Mary Ellen Coe, who shares specific tips to help your small business grow.

Grow your global small business with Google.

How to Future Proof Your Global Small Business on Technology

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Around half of small business owners find today’s biggest tech trends – such as cloud computing, AI and data analytics – complicated. But there are actionable steps you can take to better understand your options and position your business to take on the changes on the horizon.

Read more about how to future proof your global small business on technology.

Today in Global Small Business: Scaling Up SME Financial Inclusion

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How tariffs impact a small business owner.
• Quote of the week:  “The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.” – Ludwig Wittgenstein
• 5 ways to increase trust in e-commerce.
• Do you need a credit card to grow your global small business?
• Create a strong natural deodorant brand with worldwide appeal; wegginar® 4/10/19; free.
• Scaling up SME financial inclusion in the Middle East and Central Asia.

The Global Small Business Insurance Market 2018

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The Global Small Business Insurance Market 2018 report studies the global small business insurance market size, industry status and forecast, competition landscape and growth opportunity.

What else?  Wait, there's more!

• Study and forecast the market size of Small Business Insurance in global market.
• Analyze the global key players, SWOT analysis, value and global market share for top players.
• Define, describe and forecast the market by type, end use and region.
• Analyze and compare the market status and forecast between China and major regions, namely, United States, Europe, China, Japan, Southeast Asia, India and Rest of World.
• Analyze the global key regions market potential and advantage, opportunity and challenge, restraints and risks.
• Identify significant trends and factors driving or inhibiting the market growth.
• Analyze the opportunities in the market for stakeholders by identifying the high growth segments.
• Strategically analyze each submarket with respect to individual growth trend and their contribution to the market.
• Analyze competitive developments such as expansions, agreements, new product launches, and acquisitions in the market.
• Strategically profile the key players and comprehensively analyze their growth strategies.

Learn more about the global top players, key stakeholders, the market segmented by regions, and the report's objectives.

Connectivity is Changing the Face of Global Small Business

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Karen Reddington, regional president for Asia Pacific at FedEx Express, talks with Enterprise Innovation on how rapid advancement of technology is boosting global connectivity and impacting the logistics sector in Asia.  She also addresses what key trends -- e.g., small businesses will flourish in the online marketplace -- in logistics are crucial for Asian businesses to succeed in the world marketplace.

Read the interview about how connectivity is disrupting the logistics in Asia.