The Alberta Business Awards of Distinction recognize businesses/organizations that have demonstrated outstanding achievement and contribution to their community while having developed business acumen & management practices to ensure long term sustainability. To date, over 200 companies have been named Alberta Business Award of Distinction recipients.
The Spruce Grove & District Chamber of Commerce is excited to announce that 2 of our members are among the 42 finalists named for the 2017 Alberta Business Awards of Distinction. These businesses demonstrate the strength and importance of small business in our region and we're thrilled to have them represent our community.
It is our honor to congratulate the following:
The 2017 Awards will be held on February 24, 2017 and will feature 11 categories designed to recognize the best practices in numerous aspects of business operations. The highest honor of the evening will be the presentation of the Premier's Award of Distinction which recognizes the highest level of business achievement and leadership.
For a full list of finalists and award categories, please view the Alberta Business Awards of Distinction website here.
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Review Your Business Plan to
Prepare for a Successful 2017
Bridget Weston Pollack - December 2, 2016
December is usually consumed by the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, but did you know it's also National Write a Business Plan Month?
While writing a business plan is important for new entrepreneurs, existing business owners can use this month to review their plans too.
Your business plan is a living document, which means your plans aren't set in stone. If you see your business starting to drift off from the original plan you set for it, you can make choices to put your plan back on course or to forge a new path.
So this month, I challenge you to take time away from holiday preparations, decorating or running the sales floor to revisit your business plan. Maybe it'll only take you an hour, or maybe you can set aside a whole afternoon.
In one aspect, this is a review exercise. You'll go over what you've achieved, and you can of course congratulate yourself as you observe how far you've come. But your business plan can also serve as a planning tool for the coming year.
As you read through your plan, consider the following:
What are my overarching goals for 2017?
Does my original business plan set out to meet the same goals, or do I need to adjust?
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NEWS WE ARE FOLLOWING
Jan 2, 2017
by Emma Graney, Edmonton Journal
Here's how Alberta's carbon tax works and how it will affect your wallet
The carbon tax kicked in on Jan 1 at $20 per tonne. Here's what you'll see this year.
What you'll pay
At the pump, the per-litre carbon tax on gasoline is 4.49 cents. It's 5.35 cents on diesel and 3.08 cents for propane. Natural GAS is increasing by $1.011 per gigajoule. Marked farm fuels (purple gas) are exempt. The rate is based on the amount of carbon pollution released by the fuel when it's combusted, not on the mass of fuel itself.
The government estimates the cost of the tax, based on typical fuel use and before rebates, to be $191 for a single adult, $259 for a couple and $338 for a couple with two children per year.
There's no levy on electricity.
The government pegs the indirect costs for higher prices on goods and services at around $50 to $70 per household this year. Already some companies have alerted clients of higher prices due to the carbon tax.
Rebates
Around 60 per cent of households will get a rebate. Full rebates will be provided to single Albertans, who earn $47,500 or less, and couples and families who earn $95,000 or less.
Approximately six per cent of households will get a partial rebate. The income levels for a partial rebate are up to $51,250 for a single person, $100,000 for a couple, and between $100,750 and $103,000 for a couple with children.
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Stress in the Workplace
American Psychological Association
In today's economic upheavals, downsizing, layoff, merger and bankruptcies have cost hundreds of thousands of workers their jobs. Millions more have been shifted to unfamiliar tasks within their companies and wonder how much longer they will be employed. Adding to the pressures that workers face are new bosses, computer surveillance of production, fewer health and retirement benefits, and the feeling they have to work longer and harder just to maintain their current economic status. Workers at every level are experiencing increased tension and uncertainty, and are updating their resumes.
The loss of a job can be devastating, putting unemployed workers at risk for physical illness, marital strain, anxiety, depression and even suicide. Loss of a job affects every part of life, from what time you get up in the morning, to whom you see and what you can afford to do. Until the transition is made to a new position, stress is chronic.
A sense of powerlessness
A feeling of powerlessness is a universal cause of job stress. When you feel powerless, you're prey to depression's traveling companions, helplessness and hopelessness. You don't alter or avoid the situation because you feel nothing can be done.
Secretaries, waitresses, middle managers, police officers, editors and medical interns are among those with the most highly stressed occupations marked by the need to respond to others' demands and timetables, with little control over events. Common to this job situation are complaints of too much responsibility and too little authority, unfair labor practices and inadequate job descriptions. Employees can counteract these pressures through workers' unions or other organizations, grievance or personnel offices or, more commonly, by direct negotiations with their immediate supervisors.
Your job description
Every employee should have a specific, written job description. Simply negotiating one does more to dispel a sense of powerlessness than anything else we know. It is a contract that you help write...
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Della Saunders,
Marketing Coordinator
Spr
uce Grove Chamber of Commerce
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