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Asset-Backed Investment Opportunities from Marlborough Securities

Claire James
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Asset-Backed Investment Opportunities from Marlborough Securities

The commercial and residential property markets in the UK have seen demand increasing significantly in recent years. On top of this, tax regimes in the UK have altered, including the introduction of a buy-to-let tax. These two factors have resulted in a more challenging marketplace for investors and yields that are typically not as high as could otherwise be expected. In response to this, Marlborough Securities has formulated a fully asset-backed Bond based on the property sector with fixed returns for investors. This creates a unique opportunity for qualifying investors to ride the current challenges and benefit from market opportunities, both those already in existence and new and emerging opportunities post-pandemic.

Marlborough Securities will be issuing Secured Notes with a nominal value of GBP£1,000, EUR€1,000 or USD$1,000, up to a maximum of GBP£50 million. The experienced Marlborough Advisory Team will be managing all investment monies and will allocate a series of asset-backed loans within the UK through Marlborough Opportunities Limited. The lending will focus on bridging loans for SMEs, development companies and investors, providing seed financing for those in the UK construction industry. As short-term loans, these will be high-interest, over-collateralised loans providing excellent returns and protection for the investor.

The experienced Advisory Team includes Andrew Green, who established Grosvenor Bridging Loans Limited in late 2011. Mr Green, with his 25-year track record of success, has executed and redeemed over £300 million of loans with no defaults to date. Marlborough Securities has done £15 million of lending in the last six months alone, with another £10 million pending on deals – with most deals only out for 18 months.

This opportunity from Marlborough Securities will operate on a five-year investment cycle. The loans offered will not be limited to bridging loans but will take advantage of new opportunities as they arrive throughout the lifespan of the investment portfolio. Through selective investment in what is known to be one of the world’s most lucrative property markets in the south-east of England, Marlborough Securities is able to offer a fixed interest annual income rate of 9.25% GBP. Over the five years of the investment, this represents 46.25% Interest Distribution. Investors in euros or US dollars are guaranteed a fixed annual income rate of 8% and 8.5% respectively. All yields and coupons are paid gross to the investor, meaning no taxes are payable. There is a £100,000 minimum subscription but no maximum cap beyond that of the maximum number of Secured Notes.

Marlborough Securities has already secured several lucrative deals with asset-backed property loans, including both commercial projects and residential housing. Marlborough Securities only markets to sophisticated investors and self-certified high-net-worth individuals. Interest payments begin on the 15th month after investment, to allow time for ensuring legal compliance and to support the initial phase of project start-up. Following the initial payment, subsequent payments are to be made every 12 months until the completion of the investment lifecycle. On the repayment date, any accrued interest will be repayable along with the original investment.

How to Avoid Most Workplace Accidents

Claire James
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How to Avoid Most Workplace Accidents

Injuries and illness place an enormous burden on business in the UK. According to the HSE, around 38 million working days are lost each year due to ‘work-related illness and workplace injury’, at a cost of around £16 billion. What makes the situation more disagreeable is that certain sorts of business bear this burden more than others; on a construction site or an oil rig, an avoidable accident might put a skilled worker out of action for months – or even longer.

It’s critical, therefore, that steps be taken to anticipate and avoid workplace accidents. Let’s take a look at a few of them.

Identify the risks

Risk assessments should form the bedrock of your health and safety policy. Through them, you’ll be able to discover the potential hazards that are specific to your business, rather than applying ‘one size fits all’ rules. Risk assessments can be performed either by an appointed person, or by an external safety auditor.

Educating the Workforce

The human brain is an extremely powerful piece of safety equipment. It’s able to detect potential hazards, and prevent injuries before they occur. But it can only do this if it’s given the right instructions and education. Regular training sessions, particularly for new inductees, are therefore invaluable.

PPE

Personal protective equipment can minimise the damage that occurs when an accident does happen. Hard hats and facemasks might fall into this category, as might gloves, goggles, protective boots, and full-body hazard suits. The right footwear, for example, might offer protection against dropped objects and slippery hazards.

Cultural Shift

Concern over safety can be contagious. If you can persuade a critical mass of employees to adopt good habits, then you make it easier for the remainder to pick them up, too. If nine out of ten employees take the time to tidy the workplace, then the other one will have a significant social incentive to follow suit.

Minimise Overtime

If you’re constantly short-staffed, then you’ll force workers into exhaustion-inducing hours. This will in turn increase the frequency of mistakes, which will lead to more injury. In the long run, this will mean reduced productivity. Excessive work hours can also lead to poorer-quality sleep, which can inflict health penalties entirely outside of physical injury.

Cut out the Corner-Cutting

Where workers take shortcuts, they often invite disaster. By taking efforts to identify and discourage these behaviours, you’ll reduce their frequency, and thereby make your workplace a safer place.

How to Write a Finance Essay: Tips for College Students

Sam Allcock
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How to Write a Finance Essay: Tips for College Students

Along with theoretical and practical assignments, students also have to do creative work. When it comes to writing an essay, this task may cause some difficulties for the student.

An essay is a work of small volume of free composition, which reflects the author’s personal opinion on a particular topic. Simply put, the author expresses his own point of view on this or that issue. This type of prose allows examiners to quickly assess a person’s ability to reason logically, be able to express their own ideas, and think creatively.

Is there a difference?

It would seem that there is no difference between writing a term paper or an essay. But this is far from it. Each type of student work has its peculiarities in structure and content. And to get a high grade, it is important to understand the difference.

The distinction between essays and other genres of prose:

  1. The essay is devoted to the disclosure of only one topic.
  2. The author expresses his own opinion and does not claim to be absolutely right.
  3. Most often, the author’s reflections offer a new vision of the problem, which may differ from the generally accepted opinion.
  4. According to the style of writing the essay can be attributed to philosophical reasoning, journalism, or fiction.
  5. A brief form of presentation. The essay may not exceed the number of pages set by the university.

How to write a good finance essay

Finance essays are common assignments for students studying finance. Finance refers to one of the popular topics for applicants when interviewing as a candidate for a job at a company. You can buy cheap dissertation which helps the employer to understand the breadth of your outlook, how well you navigate financial issues and concepts, as well as your own moods and attitudes towards some event or fact.

Work on the essay implies:

  • reliance on information sources (lectures, notes, textbooks, articles);
  • analysis of approaches, methods, and results of research;
  • the logic of the construction of arguments;
  • the validity of one’s own position.

If you are not ready to write an essay on your own and are looking for a quick and proven way to solve this task, then a custom finance essay writing service is just what you need! The Get finance essay authors have written many educational works on this subject. They are well versed in the subtleties of preparing essays and other tasks.

Essential rules when writing a finance essay

If you decide to write an essay on your own, it is important to follow the essential rules:

  1. The title is mandatory.
  2. The introduction and conclusion emphasize the importance of the question (in the introduction it is asked, in the conclusion-the author makes a conclusion).
  3. The text must contain paragraphs. Each new paragraph should follow logically from the previous one. The author’s thoughts should not be interrupted and jump from one idea to another.
  4. Unlike an article or essay, the nature of the narrative in an essay is more emotional and simple. It uses spoken language. Short, succinct sentences.

An essay can be divided into two types:

  1. Written on behalf of the author and expressing only the opinion of the author
  2. Listing the opinions of authorities in the field and showing the author’s attitude toward those opinions.

Finance essay refers to the second type.

Scheme for writing an essay on finance:

To be successful in your essay writing assignment, follow the following outline:

  1. Choose a relevant financial topic.
  2. Find tutorials on finance, interviews with corporate owners, and the latest economic news related to the topic of the essay.
  3. Give examples of statements made by well-known scientists or large businessmen regarding the chosen topic.
  4. Write down your attitude to each statement. Please specify whether you support this statement. Specify why.
  5. Draw conclusions.
  6. Check the essay for the absence of ambiguous statements, long sentences, too figurative, and verbose descriptions.
  7. At the end of the essay, specify the list of references or Internet sources.

Do not forget that the quality of writing an essay on finance is influenced by the following factors:

  • the source material;
  • the author’s understanding of the problem, the definition of a personal position;
  • correctly selected arguments.

In conclusion

Observing these rules, writing about finance and business won’t be a challenging task. You will be able to get excellent marks and enjoy the work done!

How to Effectively Prime Your Business for Success in 2021

Sam Allcock
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How to Effectively Prime Your Business for Success in 2021

Even as countries begin to slowly reopen their businesses and operations, many employers around the world have decided to work remotely until further notice. By some estimates, 19 percent of employees will work remotely into 2021 and possibly beyond, compared to around 4 percent prior to the pandemic.

There are challenges. Organisations need to find new ways to measure work progress, success and to identify potential problem areas. Are you planning to bring your employees back to the office? Or will your workforce continue to work remotely into 2021? Keep reading to learn how to effectively and accurately prime your business for success in 2021.

Continue to Align Your Goals

In an office space, there are several ways top management and employees can measure success and identify challenges. Most medium or large companies have a hierarchy. They break down employees into teams that are each held accountable to certain standards of success.

When a member of one of these teams is falling behind or having trouble performing their job, it is the duty of managers to step in and guide them. The management of each team is also responsible for reporting to their own superiors any successes or shortcomings. 

While your teams can’t meet in person, there’s no reason to let go of your previous team, branch or hierarchy system now. Encourage employees at every level to continue communicating daily, even if it is something outside their work-life. Virtual team meetings and check-ins help keep employees accountable for their work. They also help to build loyalty and enforce teamwork in a remote environment.

Another way to encourage teamwork while your employees are working remotely is to hold company-wide virtual events. These events are a great way to remind your staff of your goals and update them on how you’re doing in reaching them.

Utilize Remote Performance Management Software

When they aren’t face-to-face with managers, employees may feel reluctant to report issues. If you don’t have a universal reporting system, it may be difficult to track each team’s work or progress. Aligning various departments of your business becomes much more difficult. Especially when they are all working separately and can no longer communicate face-to-face.

That’s where performance management software comes into play. It helps  to create a virtual office that enables:

  • Better communication between different teams
  • Track progress on goals
  • Manage calendars across the organisation
  • Access and share projects information and tasks in a single location

This helps bring your team together in the same way that a physical office space does. This means that nothing falls through the cracks. You can easily keep track of where every team and employee is at every step of a goal.

Make it less stressful for your employees

Working remotely has taken a toll on employees’ wellbeing at large. With so much stress and uncertainty looming around, a little breather will be appreciated. However, that doesn’t mean giving your employees ease and freedom at the cost of organisational goals. Rather shift your focus from attendance to outcomes. At the end of the day, the amount of work done matters more than the amount of time spent. Also, not putting a clock on their task will enable your employees to think freely and perform better.

Be Flexible in 2021

Around the world, more than 100,000 businesses that were forced to close temporarily due to COVID-19 are expected to shut down permanently. With many countries now enforcing new lockdowns as the virus has struck again, that number is likely to rise. Consumers, many of whom have faced layoffs and furloughs, are spending less. In turn, businesses are seeing fewer profits, which in turn affects B2B operations.

It’s likely that your company won’t quite reach the goals set in previous years. So, be flexible with creating new ones. This pandemic has taught us a lot more in one year than what we have learned during our entire career. First, we shouldn’t take our success for granted. Second, nobody knows what the future holds. To begin with, it is important to manage our expectations and be prepared to tackle the worst.

Even if your business is back to normal sales levels, making the transition to remote work can still be a challenge. It may result in slower work and other delays for a time. Align your teams and supply them with the tools they need to make the transition to remote work easier. As they adapt to the new normal, you will get back to setting and meeting your new goals.

6 Virtual Events Platforms to Host Your Next Event

Sam Allcock
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6 Virtual Events Platforms to Host Your Next Event

The first quarter of 2020 saw COVID-19 turn our world and reality completely upside down. As people struggled to adapt to the new way of life, social gatherings and events suffered a major blow. Many events had to be canceled or postponed. However, this also made room for innovation in the realm of virtual gathering platforms online.

All the businesses quickly hopped on, and that resulted in a different way of working and operating in the day to day life. The same is the case with event companies; from big stadium concerts and beach fiestas, the events moved to online streaming and meeting platforms.

If you plan on hosting a virtual event, the first thing that you’ll have to decide is the platform on which you intend on hosting the event. You can hire the services of virtual event planners to help you host a fun and engaging event.

 With so many options available, it can be difficult to determine which platform would work best for your particular event. In this article, we are going to list down the top 6 best virtual events platforms to consider for your next event!

1.     Zoom

Zoom instantly became the most popular virtual platform in 2020 when schools, businesses, and workplaces went entirely online. Zoom is a user-friendly and convenient video conferencing platform, which offers multiple features that create the space for hosting an excellent event. That is why Zoom is one of the best options available today.

Zoom has all the solutions for hosting a fun and engaging event, including video, chat, and screen sharing. You can access it on your phone, computer, tablet, or a room system. It offers features such as high quality and HD video, transcripts, recordings, calendars, chat, and in-built collaboration tools that allow you to host a successful virtual event.

Moreover, zoom’s simultaneous screen sharing allows you to stream a video collectively and even have the option of mouse and keyboard control. It also offers breakout rooms for small, informal sessions in the middle.

Zoom offers free and paid services depending on the number of people you want to host and the length of your event. With the free version, you can host up to 100 participants for 40 minutes over a video call that includes all the features offered by the platform.

However, if you want to host a larger event, then you can subscribe to its paid service, which can accommodate up to 1,000 video participants with HD quality.  

2.     Google Meet

Soon after Zoom’s popularity, Google quickly made Google Meet, its video conferencing service, free for all. Just like Google’s other services, Google Meet offers high-tech features and tools that make it an excellent platform choice for your event.

You can access Google Meet if you have a Gmail account. It is extremely easy to use with user-friendly features. You can use it on your phone, laptop, or other electronic devices. The platform offers HD video conferencing with one-click presenting functionality.

You can host a virtual event with up to 250 video participants. Moreover, Google Meet is highly encrypted with excellent privacy options, so you can host your virtual events in a safe and secure environment.  

It’s very quick and easy to arrange an online gathering with hundreds of people on Google Meet. If you’re a Gmail user, then it integrates Google Calendar to schedule your meetings and send meeting invitations as well.  

3.     Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams is another great choice of platform for hosting your virtual event. It offers interactive tools that make your virtual events collaborative and fun. On Microsoft Teams, you have access to features like videoconferencing, group chat, one on one chat, and document sharing and collaborative editing options. These features facilitate teamwork and enhance interaction and engagement.

Virtual event planners find Microsoft Teams highly convenient and collaborative for hosting their events. Initially, you might think that this platform is only for remote work and business meetings, but it is equally supportive of events.

On Teams, you can host up to 10,000 people on a single video call and have the option of instant chat and file sharing. So, you can host a very interactive event with a large number of participants. Therefore, this platform is ideal for both small internal meetings and large events hosting thousands of people.

It’s also very simple to join an event on Teams; participants can tune in with the help of a link. The video quality of the platform is HD. You can also record and screen share. Moreover, the platform also allows third-party app integration.  

4.     hubseven

hubseven is a great virtual events platform that offers an authentic event experience to the participants. It has interactive features that allow you to host a successful event. It offers high-quality video with easily navigable event options.

You can create custom experiences with a hubseven event to make the event more personalized. Moreover, it also offers the option of showcasing products and sponsorships. Read more about this groundbreaking new platform here!

5.     GoToWebinar

GoToWebinar is another excellent choice for virtual event planners who want to host large-scale events. This platform offers the option of both live and pre-recorded events. Due to its name, you might think it’s only a fit for webinars. However, the features and tools it offers are conducive for hosting virtual events.

GoToWebinar offers special features such as automated email reminders, custom invitations, presenter tools, and analytics. All these features allow you to host an engaging event that offers a quality experience to all participants.

6.     AirMeet

AirMeet is a platform specially created for hosting events. It offers all the solutions for hosting an event. It is specifically designed for hosting large events with a high number of participants. AirMeet is very easy to use and allows the participants to join instantly.

You can host hundreds of participants at a time with your AirMeet virtual event. AirMeet also offers a “Social lounge,” which is a space to interact with people who have similar interests. Moreover, it also has a “stage” and “Backstage” feature that gives a real-life feeling of the participants of the event.  

photo credit https://studyclerk.com/

How to Turn Your Love for Parties Into a Career

Sam Allcock
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How to Turn Your Love for Parties Into a Career

Nothing beats a good party. A well-planned party can be unforgettable for all the right reasons. If you love trying to throw the perfect party, becoming a party planner could be the career you never realized you always wanted. Party planning is a job that is accessible to almost anyone interested in pursuing it.

One of the great things about party planning is that unlike many other jobs that most people can do, there is a very high opportunity to turn this job into a rewarding career that you’ll love. Depending on how comfortable you feel in your abilities when starting out, the financial situation you are in, and the opportunities available to you, you can either start working for a party planning company or start a company that is all your own.

Practice Makes Perfect

There are many options for how you can dip your feet into the water of event planning to see if it is right for you. One great option that you can do on your own schedule as you work around other obligations that you may have, is to practice throwing parties for your friends and family. When you have a free weekend, plan a party but view it like you would if you were being paid to throw it.

It doesn’t matter what kind of party you are planning. It can be a dinner party, a game night, or a rager. Generally, all of these parties can be thrown with careful planning or slapped together.

However, you will want to take the carefully planned approach when practicing to become a party planner. Carefully think out the menu and focus on the presentation. Send out invitations even if everyone already knows they are invited. Make sure that activities are planned in a way that makes the party roll smoothly from one portion of the evening to another. Create a theme for your party and decorate accordingly.

Remember to consider the type of party you are planning. How rigidly or loosely you will want to structure the evening will depend on the vibe you are trying to cultivate. You can even have your friends fill out comment cards to rate the evening and provide you with constructive criticism.

Volunteer

Volunteering can be another great way to get the practice you need. You can volunteer to throw an event yourself or volunteer to help with an organization. Your friends and family will likely be very grateful to have someone throw their kids birthday parties, so they don’t have to worry about it. Many organizations accept voluntary help for events. Festivals are often looking for volunteers, and you usually get to enjoy the festival for free when not working.

Take a Course

You can also take a more structured approach, to learn how to plan an event by signing up for party planning classes. There is a wide range of classes available, from single-session crash courses to long in-depth study and training. These classes can help anyone looking to get into party planning, whether you are hoping to plan festivals, weddings, corporate events, or bachelor/bachelorette parties.

Some in-depth classes will take you beyond the pure planning of events to the business side of things. They will go over things like how to deal with the billing of clients, how to negotiate with vendors, and the necessity of things like wedding insurance.

Figure Out What Type of Events Are Right for You

While it is possible to be in the business of all-purpose event planning, unless your company is quite large, you will most likely want to focus on a specific type of event as you build your personal brand. If you are starting your own business, you may take any sort of party that people are willing to hire you for at first. However, the earlier you can start focusing on a specific party type, the better.

By developing expertise in a specific area, you can start focusing your advertising in that direction and become one of the top choices for that event type in your area. Being an all-purpose event planner as a small company is going to leave you far down the list for any specific event. However, by focusing on one event type, you can be one of the top choices in the field.

When determining what to specialize in, you will want to primarily look at two things.

The first thing is the types of events you are best suited to throw. This is a combination of your personal skillset and what types of events you enjoy. If you are more structure-oriented, then corporate events might be your thing. If you are more fluid and flexible, you might be more suited to birthday parties.

The other thing is to figure out where there is a hole in the market. You don’t want to try to squeeze into an area that is already overserviced in your area. You want to find where the supply is not meeting the demand and focus your attention there.

Create a Website

If you are building your own event planning business, one of the most important things you can do to increase your chances of success is to create a professional-looking, well-functioning website. Word of mouth can really help a party planning company get work and grow. However, if potential customers are unable to find you online, they are likely to turn to another provider of party planning services.

Your Guide to Mastering All Things Horse Racing

Sam Allcock
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Your Guide to Mastering All Things Horse Racing

Horse racing has so much more to it than the standard preconconception of ‘fastest horse to the finish line wins’ notion that many brand it as. The sport offers so much more than such a basic categorisation like that. Many struggle to get into it or simply don’t understand all the intricacies of the sport and are put off by this. The sport has some crucial technicalities, not least of which are related to the huge betting market which symbiotically exists with horse racing. This ancient sport has traditionally always been a part of human civilisation and it’s here to stay, so why not get yourself clued up and get stuck into all the entertainment from betting to photo finishes that this wonderful sport has to offer, not to mention keeping up to date with the big events, especially Cheltenham Festival news as it is just around the corner.

Whilst the ground, conditions, types of horses and ability of jockeys varies from country to country and race to race there are a few things which remain the same. Firstly, horse racing is typically split into two main racing types: flat races and jump racing (national hunt/steeplechase). Flat races see competitors battle it out in a race of speed, whilst steeplechase races require the need for stamina and endurance. Within these racing types certain horses can only compete in certain events with thoroughbred, arabian and quarter-horse being preferred on the flat and jockeys inclined to use thoroughbreds alongside AQPS horses in jump races. Alongside the logistics of the sport, there are also a lot of intricacies when it comes to other areas of horse racing, notably the betting side of the sport.

Horse racing and betting are synonymous. The two are intertwined in culture and have a long history together. Gambling is a massive part of the horse racing sport and the markets and bookies offers reflect that. Punters frequent bookies to place wagers on horse racing events around the world. Betting on horses is not like many other sports though. The unpredictable nature of the sport means you really should know what you are doing before wagering any great deal of money on the races.  It’s all well and good having a lucky punt on a horse you fancy but knowing what to bet and how to bet well on horses is another story entirely. Doing your research and knowing what you are betting on is so important. And understanding the racecards or how to accurately assess horses in the parade ring can be difficult without practice and adequate knowledge. By informing yourself on form, outside factors such as conditions and race magnitude or body language of the horse you are much more likely to pick a winner than randomly looking at which odds are the best on any given horse. It’s about knowing the sport and reaping the rewards from that, there’s only so far luck will take you in horse race betting.

The Gartner Magic Quadrant and Field Service

Sam Allcock
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The Gartner Magic Quadrant and Field Service

According to research company Gartner, a Magic Quadrant is “a graphical competitive positioning of four types of technology providers, in markets where growth is high and provider differentiation is distinct: Leaders execute well against their current vision and are well positioned for tomorrow.”

The tool helps leadership make strategic decisions about future investment. For Field Service Management (FSM) organizations, the Gartner Magic Quadrant is a great way to assess their strengths and weaknesses against competitors in order to make decisions that increase their market share.

The current Covid-19 pandemic has created a crossroads for the field service industry. Companies are beginning to understand that in order to remain sustainable in the new normal the pandemic will create, they must invest in technology that automates their processes, embrace data analytics, and incorporate real-time analysis to increase customer satisfaction and accuracy, among other benefits.

By 2025, Gartner reports that over 50 percent of field service management deployments will include mobile augmented-reality collaboration and knowledge-sharing tools, up from less than 10 percent in 2019. 

By the same year, over 50 percent of equipment manufacturers will offer outcome-based service contracts that rely on access to digital twin data, up from less than 20 percent in 2019. 

Additionally, algorithms and bots will schedule over two-thirds of field service work for field service providers dependent on automated schedule optimization, up from less than 25 percent in 2019. 

The investments that FSM operators can make in this new normal is in technology that operates across multiple communication channels. This way, dashboards, mobile devices, workplace and vendor management software, supply chain solutions, chatbots, and more can speak the same language among each other so that work performed becomes more accurate, timely, and predictive. 

Indeed, this synergy can help field service operators solve problems for customers before breakdowns take place, which protects the uptime of their customers and builds loyalty with the vendor at the same time. This added value to the full service that field service operators provide will help distinguish them from competitors. The companies that emerge successfully from the pandemic will be those that invested in devices, software, and systems that are enabled to solve problems before and after they take place.

How to Take Care of Your Mental Health During the Lockdown

Sam Allcock
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How to Take Care of Your Mental Health During the Lockdown

From wildfires to a pandemic and everything in-between: 2020 has been a tough year, and that’s a wild understatement too. Everyone’s mental health took a bit of a knock (some more than others) with the pandemic and subsequent lockdown. Things don’t seem to be letting up soon, however, so it’s time to start focusing on self-care.

1. Create a routine

Most people have probably heard this advice before – but that’s because it’s good advice! People are creatures of habit, and having a routine helps create a structure that the human brain seems to enjoy. Purposeful routines also help instill good, healthy habits and can be greatly helpful for breaking bad ones. They also help diminish the type of stress that comes from not getting important things done.

2. Stick to Work Hours & Take Breaks

When working from home, it can start to feel like work and home life begin to blend into one non-stop cycle. Working extra (often unpaid) hours suddenly becomes normal, and it can even feel like it’s not enough.

Going to the office creates a way to separate work and life. Being around co-workers and in the work environment also helps people fall into a natural pace alongside everyone else. So it’s harder to fall into negative feelings of inadequacy or like not enough is being accomplished throughout the day.

To combat these feelings, try to stick to a set number of work hours. These don’t have to coincide with a regular 9-5 if it isn’t necessary for the job but don’t make overtime a habit. Remember to take breaks throughout the day too. Not only is it better for mental health, but stretching those legs has a lot of physical health benefits.

3. Eliminate potential stress points where possible

This is a hard one because what counts as a stress point will be different for everyone. Of course, it’s also not always possible to take steps to prevent things that cause stress. However, some things can be planned for, in a way, to avoid any potential issues.

For example, this year hasn’t just been challenging on people’s lifestyles, income, and mental health. It’s also been a nightmare in virtual terms – with cyberattacks, especially phishing attacks, increasing exponentially. Cybercriminals have taken advantage of the pandemic, and people weren’t prepared for these attacks on top of everything else.

A way to avoid that potential outcome and deal with a stolen identity or compromised accounts is to use cybersecurity basics. That is especially true while working from home. These can include using a VPN online, making sure not to reuse passwords, and adding two-factor authentication for added protection.

4. Come to terms with stress and things that can’t be controlled

Since some things just can’t be changed and certain causes of stress can’t be avoided, it’s best to accept them. That’s much easier said than done, of course, especially for any significant triggers that impact one’s life.

Working through trauma and stress is good. Continuously worrying or ruminating about circumstances that cannot be changed isn’t helpful, though. It’s a process that can quickly start deteriorating someone’s mental well-being. So try to direct that energy into something more positive, where possible, and take action to change things that can be changed instead. Those small wins add up in a big way in the end.

5. Limit social media time

Social media is a significant source of anxiety for many people and can exacerbate symptoms of depression. Of course, it depends on how someone uses their social accounts and what they expose themselves to. But it’s all too easy to fall into several downward-spiraling traps.

Anyone who’s ever gotten into a fight with a stranger online (which is probably everyone) has seen the futility of the endeavor. Yet it’s a pattern that’s easy to fall into because there are so many conflicting opinions – regularly backed up with some hateful words – online.

It’s important to remember that it’s highly unlikely that engaging with someone will change their mind. It doesn’t mean the urge to tell them they’re wrong isn’t valid, but it’s better to pick those battles. At least for the sake of personal mental health.

6. Focus on Physical Health Too

A lot of people may be cut off from their conventional means of exercise right now. Yet, there’s still no excuse for not getting in a bit of a workout because it’s beneficial for improving mental health. This has been scientifically proven over and over. Also, try to avoid junk food as much as possible and focus on getting enough sleep.

Conclusion

With a pandemic and lockdown affecting people’s health and jobs, more physical isolation, and political issues ramping up, it’s no wonder everyone’s mental health is suffering. All of these additional stresses can have a severely damaging effect on people’s mental well-being. Make sure to set some time aside to self-reflect and implement any changes that can help foster better personal wellness.

7 Ways AI Software Is Helping Businesses Manage Their Contracts (2021)

Sam Allcock
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7 Ways AI Software Is Helping Businesses Manage Their Contracts (2021)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has revolutionized the way businesses manage contracts. AI contract review helps companies manage agreements in more efficient and better ways. This is important as companies have hundreds of contracts stored in different locations and files.

Manually managing these contracts becomes exceedingly tricky because a lot of time and effort is spent finding and collating information. Moreover, inadequate contract management systems can cause companies to lose money.

The use of computers and AI software can help reduce the time and labor wasted in manual systems so that more time can be spent on productive work.

With that said, let’s find out how AI software is changing contract management methods.

  1. Organizing, Classifying, and Extracting Information

AI systems can be used in various ways such as to:

  • Classify documents – They can identify similar types of documents and group them, making it easier to search for a particular contract type. This reduces time in searching for documents of a specific type. AI systems can use natural language processing (NLP) to extract clauses, notes, dates, comments, and metadata from contracts.
  • Classify contracts by type – Businesses can group contracts by their type and implement templates for these. For example, they could group all of their MSAs and set up a Master Services Agreement template to automate the specific terms in these contracts. The same could be achieved for lease agreements, statements of work (SOWs) and Non-disclosure Agreements (NDAs), etc. This can help decision-makers select required contracts for modification, renewal, renegotiation, or draft new contracts.
  • Classify by clause – By scanning different contracts, important clauses can be picked up and placed in groups. The clauses can then be studied and modified or improved for future agreements. In some AI systems, the software can pick out relevant clauses for a new contract that a human can review.

This classification of stored information helps companies make informed decisions and better contracts. Computers can do this classification in a fraction of the time it will take an army of humans to do the same task, making AI systems indispensable.

  1. Better Contract Lifecycle Management

One of the ways companies lose money is by missing important renewal dates, expiry dates, key performance indicators (KPIs), and follow-up dates. AI can step in to stem these problems and help companies keep track of important milestones in the contract lifecycle. For example, AI can help with:

  • Diagnostic and Analytical Searches – These can pick up important information like expiry or renewal dates to keep compliance on track and save the company a lot of time, effort, and money. Never miss a renewal deadline with AI systems to keep track of expiry and renewal information.
  • Predictive and Cognitive Support – Using AI systems’ predictive intelligence, it is possible to find out where existing contracts are failing or falling short. This is so corrective action can be taken for future contracts. It is also possible for AI systems to point out differences in clauses and contracts, making it possible for a company to standardize its contracts and clauses.
  1. Smart and Dynamic Contracts

AI systems can understand and pick up similar clauses from stored contracts using machine learning (ML) and NLP. The similarities and differences in clauses from different contracts can be presented for human review to draft better contracts.

Some AI systems can do this on their own, subject to a legal team’s final review, enabling faster drafting of better and accurate smart contracts.

  1. Smaller Teams

One of the issues with manual systems has been the need for huge teams to spend hours and days poring over documents attempting to manage and keep track of contracts. Most of the tasks involving managing contracts are repetitive.

Such tasks are very suitable for computers that can work non-stop. Therefore, computers using AI to complete the job much faster enable companies to have smaller, leaner human teams with the computers doing the hard, monotonous, repetitive work.

  1. Managing Quality Contracts

The use of AI systems can improve contracts’ quality because they can compare and analyze clauses in different contracts. This can enable the legal team to draft contracts with similar clauses or enhanced clauses.

  1. Optimizing Time Spent in Reviewing Contracts

Using AI systems’ ability to pick, understand, and highlight differences in clauses, different versions of contracts can be reviewed in shorter periods, enabling faster turnarounds times.

  1. AI in Contract Risk Management

AI systems can provide risk assessment information. This enables officials to visualize the potential risks and take corrective action, thus saving the company from losing money due to faulty contracts.

The ability to assess and predict risks allows contract managers to make informed and effective management decisions in much shorter times.

Some Challenges in the Use of AI Systems in Contract Management

One of the biggest challenges in AI systems is the “training” of the “intelligence.” To train the system, it has to be given many existing contracts in a similar format. First, all contracts in an organization need to be converted into a standard format that can be fed into the system.

This means they first have to locate all the contracts stored at different locations in different formats. Once contracts are located, they need to be stored in a standard format.

This is a complete exercise involving finding all existing contracts, scanning and digitizing them, and storing them in a similar format. This enables optical character recognition (OCR) to convert them into usable text and arranging them in a way that allows a machine to “learn.”

The system has to be trained to make sense of the data it has been given. Only after the system learns and understands the documents can it provide useful contract management inputs.

Conclusion

The benefits of using computers and AI has grown in recent times. The advantages and benefits of using AI systems include creating and managing standard contracts and keeping track of important dates and deadlines.

However, these are just a few reasons why AI software is the future of contract management.

As we understand the systems better, they are sure to improve and provide even better facilities in the foreseeable future. However, we need to realize that there is a lot of initial work that has to be done to ‘train’ the AI system before it can produce results.

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