Abi is here to stay!
Our number 1 Brit just got an extension on her visa and is well on her way to becoming a citizen. We will soon get to keep her forever. The Rostie Group is delighted to celebrate with Abigail!
Rise N’ Shine – It’s Pancake Time!
The weather is beautiful and we feel that it is time for another networking event. This time we will host a fun breakfast that will allow you to network with our clients. Please be sure to join us for our Pancake Networking Breakfast on June 24, 2014 from 8:00-10:00 AM.
Now Available: A New Home for Your Office Team
Here at the Rostie Group we pride ourselves in being able to provide quality and affordable office and team space for rent.
Move In Today!
An excellent space that can be used for projects, team space for up to 30 employees, or whatever your business need may be.
Features include:
- Fully furnished and available at any notice.
- Spectacular city views
- Situated in the thriving downtown South Core, steps away from Union station and just a stone throws away from the lake.
- Flexible and customizable office configuration to meet your company’s unique needs
- Currently configured for 10 stations but large enough for many more options.
- Excellent as a day office for brainstorming sessions, focus groups, and project work
- Committed specialist support available from any of our teams (catering, in house IT support etc).
- Rostie Group meeting rooms, voice over IP, videoconferencing, full service kitchen and business lounge all available at or for preferred rates.
We look forward to offering you a unique office solution that meets your company’s needs.
Feel free to contact us for further information or to book a tour: 416-214-1840 or visit www.RostieGroup.com
Starting a new business can be scary
From our experience over the years serving startups and running our own startup we are always interested in what it takes to help young companies survive the early stages.
A clear business plan, a tight well-balanced team and the right attitude are among the things that go a long way to making it as a startup business.
According to writer, Murray Newlands’ one should be able to “anticipate failure.”
Fail well i.e. have the ability to fail and learn from your mistakes quickly in order to succeed.
Team Space Now Available at The Rostie Group
The Rostie Group is pleased to announce that one of our team rooms has just become available. It has beautiful views and can accommodate up to 30 employees. We look forward to discussing your company’s needs and offering you a suitable office solution.
Getting the right employees for your business is crucial to success
Getting the ‘right people on the bus’ is crucial to the success of any business but how do you ensure you are recruiting the right people with the right skills? Here’s a list that can help:
1. Re-examine your job listings. Is it just a canned description of the company with a list of required skills? Mike Ganiere, manager of talent acquisition, North America for Johnson Controls, says, “You can’t just post a position with a list of duties and expect to connect to the perfect match. People today need to know how their job fits into the organization and what impact it will have—they want to do work that matters.” Including short- and long-term expectations allows a potential candidate to see what his or her value is to the company…
101 Secrets to Running a Successful Home-Based Business in Toronto
Originally posted by Sara Wilson
According to the Small Business Administration, more than 50 percent of small businesses are home-based. Home-based businesses offer low overhead, helpful tax incentives, and the opportunity to work in your pajamas, among other benefits. But before you get started, there are some things — 101, to be precise — that you should know about running a company from home. Here is our list of top tips, lessons, pitfalls, and more to get you on your way.
Getting Started
We asked home-based business owners to share their best tips and advice. Here’s what they had to say about organizing a home office, skillfully operating a business from home, and more.
1. Create a work environment you feel good in. And that includes investing in professional office equipment and furniture. “Everyone is vulnerable to repetitive stress injuries from using office equipment,” says Paul Robert Edwards, coauthor of Working From Home as well as a Small Business Development Center consultant. “So take care to get things that fit you ergonomically. Particularly important are your chair and your keyboard.”
2. Keep your overhead to a minimum. “It’s not about how much money you make, it’s about how much you keep, so overhead is key,” says Craig Wolfe, founder of CelebriDucks, a company that creates celebrity rubber ducks. “It’s great that you’re working from home, but you can still bankrupt yourself through ill-conceived overspending, especially in technology.”
3. Create a strong team. “Work with experts on parts of your business where you are not an expert,” says Cathi Brese Doebler, a home-based business owner for 10 years and author of Ditch the Joneses, Discover Your Family. “For example, if you are not good with computer hardware, hire someone to help you set up your computer network. Or, if you are not an expert on taxes, find a good tax advisor. Focus your business on your areas of expertise and strength, and hire experts to help you with your areas of weakness.”
4. Work where you’re most productive, even if it’s outside of your home. “Sometimes home is not the right place and work is not the right place — even when 
they are the same place,” says Stephanie Staples, a personal coach and motivational speaker. “I need a third location. For example, a donut shop, library — somewhere that even though other things are going on, I don’t have to pay attention or care about it. It is the power of the third location; I think differently, work differently, act differently there, and it really helps me.”
5. Work on your business, not in your business. “There’s a big difference between working in your business and working on your business,” says Jeannel King, a visual facilitator and coach, and founder of her own home-based business, Big Picture Solutions. “A home-based business typically translates into being a small operation of one: you! In that situation, it’s easy to focus only on product or service delivery. However, it’s essential to make time to work on our business, and that means focusing on the finances, the marketing plans, the vision and strategy, the systems and processes that provide the infrastructure for our businesses to be not just successful, but thriving and sustainable.”
6. Have the attitude that you work from home, not at home, says Edwards.
7. Don’t hide it, flaunt it! “Don’t try to shy away from the fact that you run your business at home,” says Maria Rapetskaya, cofounder of Undefined Creative, a home-based design and animation studio. “Give your potential clients the rundown of why it benefits them — like low overhead.”
Keep your office space in Toronto organized with these 25 tips
25 Tips to keep your office organized and running smoothly by Janet Taylor
1) Clean out each desk drawer, to free up even more valuable storage space.
2) Clear off the top of your desk, then wipe off the surface of the desktop.
3) Keep essential items on your desktop (computer, phone, fax, card file).
4) If you work with more than one person create an in box for each person.
5) Have a master to-do list for each day at your desk.
6) Pre-Sort the mail. To-File, To-Read, To-Contact(write or call).
7) Use a variety of containers to organize office supplies, paper clips and pens.
8) Use a variety of desktop organizers or trays to organize papers that come across your desk.
9) Create a separate drawer for personal paperwork, items, etc.
10) Use storage boxes to store dated files.
11) Purchase Magazine boxes to store booklets, magazines, catalogs you want to keep.
12) Create a file for magazine articles or scan them into your computer.
13) Filing system should be simple easy and manageable.
14) Color-coding your files makes it faster to find information.
15) Do not over stuff folders. It may be time to toss some of the information in the folder .
16) Never overload filing drawer. It will make it difficult to retrieve information in the drawers.
17) Sub-divide larger files with interior file folders.
18) Tab hanging file folders in the front.
19) Return calls in batches. Leave specific messages and the time you called if the person you’re trying to reach isn’t available.
20) Empty workspace of everything but the project you’re working on to cut down on distractions.
21) Keep an assortment of all-occasion cards and stamps in your desk.
22) Keep takeout menus from favorite restaurants so you can order ahead and pick up dinner on your way home.
23) When using more than one checking account, color coded checks are an easy way to identify each account.
24) At the end of each project or event, organize paperwork and file or store it.
25) Straighten desk at the end of the day and especially at the end of the week so that you can start each morning with a clear desk
Tips every startup can use
FAST GROWTH IS A GOOD PROBLEM, BUT WITHOUT GUIDELINES AND STRUCTURE, CAN BE A DETRIMENT TO YOUR NEW STARTUP. HERE’S HOW ONE FOUNDER GREW HIS COMPANY, AND WHAT HE LEARNED IN THE PROCESS.
BY MATT EHRLICHMAN
Over the past eight months our company has tripled in size, expanding from 25 employees to 125. During this time we transitioned from working in the basement of my home to a 17,000-square-foot office in Seattle, outgrowing two other temporary spaces in the process.
Growing so rapidly in a short of period time isn’t easy, especially for a young startup, but it was a great experience and learning process. Here are six things we learned during this time of fast growth:
1. YOU ARE PROBABLY OVERLOOKING PARTS OF YOUR BUDGET
It’s crucial to sweat the details and have a very clear understanding of the cash flow curve for your new office. Without a plan, spending can quickly get out of hand.
Take into account both the “people” and the “property” costs surrounding a big move. You must have a clear employee target number and growth timeline. Factor in the costs required to get newcomers hired and up to speed as well.
5 non-digital tips for business growth
5 NON-DIGITAL TIPS FOR BUSINESS GROWTH
SMEs are constantly searching for the next technological advancement but digital isn’t the sole driver of business success.
Here are five non-digital tips for growing your business.
1. Stay true to your values
Clients and consumers want to do business with companies whose values they can respect and share in. Work out early what your company’s values are and make sure they underpin everything you do. This includes being prepared to turn business away if you are not 100 per cent certain you can deliver the deal.
Refusing business may seem like madness for a growing company but why compromise your values for the sake of a quick buck? Repeat business and recommendations are real drivers of growth but they come through staying true to your values and remembering that you are only as good as your last deal.
2. Reinvent sectors with a poor reputation
Identifying new areas of growth can be tricky, however, existing sectors such as estate agencies and payday loans are crying out for a fresh approach. Introducing a radically different business model that delivers what customers want is key. We launched Astus in 2003 when media barter had a “dodgy” image because the way it was done left many advertisers out of pocket. We changed the business model to deliver the advertiser’s side of the deal before taking payment. This removed the risk for them and so persuaded some to give our approach a chance. Changing perceptions of a sector involves rebuilding trust one deal at a time but it is possible to do.