FROM THE EDITOR MANAGEMENT Dominic De Sousa Chairman Nadeem Hood Group CEO Georgina O’Hara COO - Business and Consumer EDITORIAL Group Director of Editorial Paul Godfrey paul.godfrey@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 440 9105 Editor Rushika Bhatia rushika.bhatia@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 440 9115 ADVERTISING Business Development Executive Adam Barrie Lees adam.lees@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 440 9119 Business Development Executive Mohamed Kerrouchi mohamed.kerrouchi@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 440 9162 Account Executive Freshia Mistry freshia.mistry@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 440 9161 Event Sponsorship Manager Gill Fairclough gill.fairclough@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 440 9120
#RethinkSuccess - but next year already beckons… As you read this issue of SME Advisor, the year’s largest SME event, SME Beyond Borders, is now underway, dedicated to discussing how businesses can leverage the power of disruptive strategies and become empowered with the new technologies at their disposal. Yet it has to be said that even now, the agendas of next year are rapidly emerging and somewhat in need of rational debate. One of the key topics set to confront SMEs is the arrival of compulsory Heath Insurance mandatory for businesses of all sizes to provide to personnel by close of Q2 2016. The debates around what promises to be a major milestone and commitment are surprisingly lacking at present. The panel of preferred providers has been in place for some time, and perhaps the most critical aspect is the requirement that literally all businesses are obliged to deliver on their legal requirements. If some SMEs believe they can subvert the requirements, we will rapidly end up in the same position as the debate around companies retaining employee’s passports – a practice strictly forbidden in law and yet still commonplace. Plenty of food for debate here. Another key debate here is how, when more and more and businesses are setting up as online operations - avoiding heavy up-front costs and getting away from the traditional CAPEX model - there is very little discussion on the tax implications for business’ selling in overseas markets. While online presence is seen (quite rightly, of course) as the means to achieving global outreach, those companies selling internationally with most success are also expert in handling multiple tax submissions. Doesn’t sound very appealing? Indeed, but it’s better to gear up for the requirement now than face such significant demands in two to three years’ time that the business itself might be brought down. Growing online presence has led to the emergence of some relatively successful online funding platforms, and here again we face a raft of regulatory issues and uncertainties. While the ‘back office’ management of the better sites will of course define the contractual obligations between online funder and the fundee, this is very different from their being a specifically-defined legal structure delineating mutual expectations and requirements. Watch this space, as they say, for crucial developments… Enjoy this issue of SME Advisor – and also SME Beyond Borders! #RethinkSuccess
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