1. Should an employer deal with an employee's poor performance through its disciplinary or capability procedure?
2. Can an employer ask a prospective employee to fill in a medical questionnaire?
3. How long must an employer consult with employees for when seeking agreement to change their contracts?
4. If a third party harasses an employee, will the employer be liable for the third party's actions under the Equality Act 2010?
5. My team are asking me about what we are doing this year for our Christmas Party, and I am worried that as usual it will all “kick off” at the party when everyone has had too much to drink! How can I make sure our Christmas party isn’t carnage this year?  
   

Here's what I've learned after 25+ years working with serious businesses: most CEOs are brilliant at creating content, terrible at converting it.

I see this pattern constantly. A CEO posts something on LinkedIn that gets proper traction. Multiple comments from exactly the people they want to work with. Someone even mentions a specific pain point their business solves.

And then... nothing. The conversation dies in the comments. All that effort creating the post, getting the engagement - left sitting there like someone who knits half a jumper and leaves the arms off.

The Gap Between Visibility and Business Outcomes

You're already in the right rooms. You're posting content. You're getting engagement. You're doing all the LinkedIn things.

But here's what you're probably not doing: converting that activity into the calls, partnerships, and opportunities that actually grow your business.

Your expertise deserves better execution than this.

The Moment Most Executives Miss

Here's what typically happens:

Someone comments publicly on your post about a problem your business solves. A genuine pain point. The perfect opening for a conversation.

But you treat it like a social media moment instead of a business development opportunity.

Here's what you should do: reply publicly with something brief - "That's interesting... I'm messaging you" - then move the conversation private. Because that's where the real discussions happen. That's where you build relationships. That's where you book calls.

Instead, the conversation stays public, goes nowhere, and eventually dies. The opportunity sits there unconverted.

Three Things You're Missing (That Are Costing You Real Opportunities)

1. You're Not Following The Trail

You post content. It performs well. People engage. And then you move on to creating the next post.

Meanwhile, the people who engaged with your content - the ones who took time to comment, to share, to react - they're sitting there. Some of them would genuinely love to talk to you about working together.

But you're not following up because you think it would be "pushy."

Here's the truth: reaching out to someone who engaged with your content isn't pushy. It's professional. It's what serious business leaders do when they understand that public posts build visibility, but private conversations build business.

Set aside 15 minutes on a Monday. Connect with new people. Another 15 minutes on Wednesday - go and like one of their posts. Not randomly. Strategically. The people who could be clients, partners, referral sources.

This isn't networking for the sake of it. It's business development with a system behind it.

2. You're Treating LinkedIn Like A Performance, Not A Platform

I see this constantly with the CEOs and MDs who come to me. They nail the content creation. They show up. They share insights.

But when I ask "are you following up with the people who engaged?" - that's where the system has been breaking down.

They've been treating the post as the finish line. Once it goes live and gets engagement, they think the work is done.

But that's actually when the real work starts. That's when you see who's in the room. Who's paying attention. Who's raising their hand by engaging with your content.

Your existing clients would be genuinely impressed by what you're sharing. Potential clients would find it valuable. But if you're not actively connecting that content to conversations, you're leaving those opportunities completely unconverted.

The executives who get this right? They use public content to attract attention, then strategically move qualified conversations to DMs, emails, calls - wherever the real business discussion can happen.

3. You're Missing The 'Why' Behind Everything

Why are you posting on LinkedIn? Why are you connecting with people? Why are you creating content?

If your answer is anything other than "to create relationships that lead to calls, referrals, and business opportunities," then you're doing it wrong.

Every single action should have a business purpose. High-reach content builds your audience. Sales-focused content converts that audience. Outreach and follow-up turns engagement into revenue.

But here's where it gets interesting - most CEOs do one or two of these things brilliantly. Then completely ignore the others.

You can't do one without the other. Otherwise you end up with great content, solid engagement, zero conversion. You're doing half the work and wondering why you're not seeing the business outcomes your expertise warrants.

The Pushback I Hear Most Often

"I just don't want to seem disingenuous."

And I get it. We've all been socialised to think that reaching into the DMs is somehow sleazy.

But here's the thing - we've all had conversations that we didn't enjoy at one time or another. A sales call that was over the top. A pitch that felt pushy. But that doesn't make us stop having conversations.

When someone engages with your professional content about a topic you're expert in, and you follow up professionally to continue that conversation? That's not disingenuous. That's business.

The cost of not doing it? You're leaving your own opportunities unconverted. You're making it harder to hit your revenue targets. You're working twice as hard because you're not following through on the visibility work you've already done.

What Changes When You Get This Right

The fix is simpler than you think:

• Diarise 15-minute slots for LinkedIn activity (not content creation - follow-up and outreach)
• Create a lead bucket in Sales Navigator for people worth connecting with
• Set a goal: one meaningful business conversation per week from LinkedIn activity
• Stop treating engagement as the end goal and start treating it as the beginning

When CEOs implement this properly, they start booking consultations from people who'd previously engaged with their content. Qualified prospects. Conversations that would never have happened if they'd kept treating LinkedIn like a performance rather than a platform for business development.

Your LinkedIn Activity Should Be Working As Hard As You Are

You're already in the right rooms. You're already creating content. You're already getting engagement.

The question isn't whether you have the expertise or the opportunities. It's whether you're systematically converting them into the business outcomes your expertise deserves.

You're doing the hard work of building visibility. Now it's time to build the conversion system that turns that visibility into actual business results.

That's not a visibility problem. It's an execution problem. And execution problems have systematic solutions.

Ready to ensure your visibility translates to business outcomes?

After 25+ years developing strategic communication for global brands like L'Oréal, Colgate, Volkswagen, and Ryanair, I've learned that successful leaders aren't just excellent at creating visibility - they're excellent at converting it into business results. My Strategic Visibility for Ambitious Leaders service helps established CEOs, MDs, NEDs, and senior consultants build systematic approaches to ensuring their expertise generates the recognition and opportunities it deserves. This isn't about building a personal brand - it's about creating the infrastructure that converts your existing visibility into tangible business outcomes. Book a strategic consultation to discuss how systematic conversion processes can transform your LinkedIn presence from activity to revenue.

Photo Credit: Elaine Walsh-McGrath

Annual Accounts ≠ Strategy: Why Your Year-End Figures Won’t Fuel Your Growth

If you’re a small business owner or founder, you’ve likely been told to “speak to your accountant” when reviewing your year-end accounts. But here’s the truth:

Your annual accounts tell you what happened. Your strategy tells you what to do next.

And confusing the two? That’s a dangerous trap, one that could stall your growth, delay key decisions, and ultimately cost you more than just tax.

🧾 What Annual Accounts Are (and Aren’t)

Annual accounts are a compliance tool. They summarise your business activity for the previous year, packaged for HMRC and Companies House. They tell the story of what already happened.

But they do not:

• Show you where money was wasted
• Predict when cash will run dry
• Identify profitable services or clients
• Help you plan for investment or exit

That’s not a flaw, it’s just not their job.

🧠 Strategy Is About Looking Forward

A strong finance strategy goes beyond historical reporting. It helps you ask (and answer):

• Where is the business leaking profit?
• When should we invest vs. hold cash?
• What does ‘ready for funding’ really look like?
• Can we afford to hire? Or expand?

Without this lens, you’re running your business through the rearview mirror.

🚨 5 Signs You’re Relying Too Heavily on Annual Accounts

1. You only speak to your accountant once a year
2. Your forecast is a copied spreadsheet with guesswork
3. You don’t know your breakeven point
4. You’re unsure if VAT registration helps or hurts
5. You’re not planning for tax, just reacting to it

Sound familiar? You’re not alone. Most early-stage and growth business owners start here — but the ones who scale up? They move on from it.

🎯 Strategic Finance in Action

Imagine this instead:

• You meet quarterly with a finance partner who stress-tests your decisions
• You receive forward-looking insights that guide pricing, hiring, and investments
• You track KPIs aligned to your goals
• You make tax-planning decisions before the deadline

This isn’t about spreadsheets. It’s about visibility, control, and purposeful growth.

📅 When Should You Shift from Compliance to Strategy?

If you’re:

• Making over £100k in revenue
• Hiring or outsourcing
• Seeking funding or thinking of selling
• Launching a new product or service

…then you’ve outgrown “just annual accounts.”

You need someone who’ll look forward with you, not just backward at what’s already filed.

🛠️ How Hawkhurst Accounting Helps

At Hawkhurst Accounting, we offer:

• Annual compliance filing done right (no missed deadlines or surprises)
• Quarterly strategic finance check-ins
• Forecasting and budgeting resources tailored to growing SMEs
• Delivered with a clear, direct approach that cuts through complexity

Whether you’re a founder in Woburn Sands, an SME in Milton Keynes, or a business on the path to investment, we’re here to help you run smarter, not just stay compliant.

📩 Ready to Upgrade Your Financial Strategy?

Don’t wait for your next set of accounts to tell you what already happened.
Let’s build a plan for what happens next. 

👉 Book a strategy call now

*Image Credit ChatGPT

Working On Your Business vs. In Your Business 

The Crucial Difference 

As the festive season rolls in, many business owners pull out the company card to treat their teams and thank loyal clients. But here’s the thing: HMRC doesn’t see generosity the same way you do. Without a plan, your well-meant gifts can end up blowing up your tax bill.

At Hawkhurst Accounting, we strip the fluff out of finance. Here’s the no-nonsense guide to corporate gifting so you can reward your people, impress your clients, and still keep HMRC happy.

The Rules in Plain English

Trivial Benefits – What Counts and What Doesn’t

A trivial benefit is HMRC’s way of saying “small, non-cash perks that don’t need to be taxed.” But there are rules:

• The cost must be £50 or less per person.
• This limit is measured including VAT if you can’t reclaim it.
• It can’t be cash or a voucher that can be swapped for cash.
• It can’t be provided in recognition of work done or as part of a contract.
• Think bottles of wine, flowers, birthday cakes, or staff lunches.

Employees vs Directors:

• Employees: No overall annual limit. As long as each gift meets the £50 test, you’re good.
• Directors of close companies (typically SMEs where five or fewer shareholders control the business): Capped at £300 per tax year total trivial benefits per director (and family members).

Staff Parties and Socials

• HMRC allows £150 per head per year for staff parties.
• Go over it, even by £1, and the whole amount becomes taxable.
• The exemption covers employees and their guests (e.g. partners). The cost is calculated on a per-head basis so a staff member and their partner together count as two people with two allowances (£300 combined).
• VAT on staff entertaining is reclaimable, but only for employees. If clients or suppliers attend, their share must be stripped out.

PSA (PAYE Settlement Agreement)

Sometimes you want to give perks or gifts that don’t fit neatly into the trivial benefit or staff entertaining exemptions. A PSA allows the business to settle the tax and NI on behalf of employees.

• It covers things like bigger gifts, one-off treats, or mixed events that don’t qualify for other reliefs.
• Good for morale, but remember: it costs the company extra, since you’re grossing up the tax.
• Use it strategically, not as a blanket solution.

Clients and Suppliers

• Branded promotional gifts under £50 (pens, mugs, diaries) are deductible for corporation tax, and VAT is reclaimable if they’re genuine promotional giveaways.
• Unbranded gifts, alcohol, hampers, or entertainment? No tax deduction, no VAT reclaim.
• Rule of thumb: only branded, low-value promotional items pass both the tax and VAT test.

Vouchers and Gift Cards

• HMRC is crystal clear: cash or cash-redeemable vouchers never qualify as trivial benefits.
• Broad-use cards (like Visa prepaid or Amazon vouchers) are treated as cash so fully taxable.
• A restricted-use voucher (e.g. only usable at a single retailer) might qualify if it’s under £50 and ticks the trivial benefit rules.
• There is no government scheme that overrides this. Vouchers are always a grey area, so proceed with caution.

Where Businesses Go Wrong

• Mixing up trivial benefits with taxable ones — e.g. assuming all gift cards are fine.
• Forgetting the director cap — leaving small companies with surprise tax bills.
• Over-spending on parties — losing the whole exemption.
• Not accounting for partners at parties — miscalculating the total cost per head.
• Trying to reclaim VAT on client entertainment — which HMRC blocks.

How to Play It Smart

• Plan ahead: budget gifts with tax rules in mind.
• Stick to £50 trivial benefits for employees; track director totals.
• Use the £150 per head allowance carefully, including partners, and watch the totals.
• Consider a PSA for awkward or higher-value perks.
• Keep client gifting simple: branded, under £50, and promotional.
• Don’t assume vouchers are trivial. Always check first.

The Bottom Line

Generosity is good business. It boosts morale, strengthens relationships, and shows appreciation. But without tax-savvy planning, it can turn into an expensive mistake.

At Hawkhurst Accounting, we help SMEs gift wisely, save tax, and stay compliant. No jargon, no dull seminars, just clear advice that saves money.

Final Word

Before you splash out this season, ask yourself:
Is this gift tax-smart, or just another donation to HMRC?

*Image credit ChatGPT