TAXATION Be aware of the changes that affect your 2016 income tax filing and beyond. As you gather your 2016 tax data together for your CPA, take a few moments to read about the following changes and assess the impact they may have on you and your family’s filing for 2016 and after. Principal Residence […]

TECHNOLOGY Consider taking a few extra accessories when working offsite. Working while on the road, whether at nearby job sites or when travelling to distant locations, usually means taking a smartphone, laptop or tablet. The ability to work almost anywhere in the world is marvellous; however, when we are working at a hotel, jobsite, vendor […]

MANAGEMENT Being motivated and inspiring motivation are the keys to success. Motivation, according to Business dictionary.com is the “Internal and external factors that stimulate desire and energy in people to be continuously interested and committed to a job, role or subject or to make an effort to achieve a goal. Motivation results from the interaction […]

MANAGEMENT Social media have their place, but do not forget to talk to each other face to face. Social media are reducing the number of face-to-face conversations. “In person” encounters allow a person to speak while another responds spontaneously without resorting to the more formal structure of the written word. Why do we seem to […]

TAXATION Operating an automobile for business and personal use has tax consequences. Purchasing or leasing an automobile in the company name and allowing employees to drive the automobile has tax consequences that may require owner-managers to add a taxable benefit to the employee’s T4. CRA Definition of Automobile For there to be a taxable benefit, […]

TECHNOLOGY The way you store your data is about to change. For the last 60 years, increasingly vast amounts of data have been stored primarily on magnetic hard disk drives (HDDs). Hard drives are capable of storing a huge amount of information, but they are mechanical devices and can be more delicate and a lot […]

MONEYSAVER Playing Scrooge is not just for Christmas any more. Even though penny-pinching is harder to do today without any pennies, the concept remains valid and is especially applicable to the expenses incurred by small businesses. Here are a few ideas to improve the bottom line. Outsource Employees require salaries and benefits as well as […]

MANAGEMENT An insurance plan today can support your business and family tomorrow. No one, with the possible exception of a professional gambler, expects to build a reserve of funds by gambling. Nevertheless, purchasing or not purchasing life insurance is a gamble in itself. If you buy life insurance, you only win if you die early […]

MONEYSAVER Look beyond revenue for profit growth. Businesses are already looking toward 2017 and considering what has to be done to keep profits growing. The Canadian economy is expected to grow at only 1.5% according to a prediction by the Conference Board of Canada, which claims that “…there are plenty of headwinds for Canada’s economic […]

TECHNOLOGY Innovative software relieves the burden of looking after elderly parents. Many owner-managers in their thirties and forties or even older not only have to run their businesses but also have to look after growing children as well as aging parents. These owner-managers are part of the so-called “sandwich generation,” trying to be successful business […]