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Welcome to Gordon Mendes Accounting & Business Services newsletters. In this issue: Website Launch Can you really protect your business from risk? Update your details for the governments cash payments Kokoda Challenge 2009 Website Launch We are proud to bring you the Gordon Mendes Accounting & Business Services newsletters that will keep you up to date with the latest news and information that affects you and your business. In the newsletters you receive from us, we will keep you fully informed on our full range of products and services to enhance your company’s business operations and share some success stories and other amusing tales with you as well. We will also give you tips on simple new ways you can get the most out of our brand-new interactive website . For example, you can now make appointments with staff members or you can learn how to send or receive valuable information quickly, easily, and securely and much, much more! And of course, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us .  We'd be happy to assist you! Can you really protect your business from risk? 2009 is lining up to be a very unusual year. Major corrections across the global economy in the second half of 2008 are creating an environment that very few business owners have ever experienced. Even those who were in business during the 1987 stock market crash would say that current events are far more extreme. Despite the efforts of governments around the globe to stimulate capital markets, we are still seeing significant downturns in business activity. 2009 is likely to have: Falling interest rates; Rising unemployment; Increasing level of business failures; Large corporates reporting profit downgrades; Reduced resource sector activity as a result of China's slow down; Contraction in capital and funding available to business; Banks much tougher in their lending criteria; and Business projects and new activity defferred or cancelled. All of this will flow through to the small and medium sized business sector during the year. This, together with reduced consumer confidence, will place pressure on many businesses. How can you risk protect your business? It sounds simple but protecting your business from risk starts with identifying what the risks are. This is more complex than it sounds and for every business the risks are likely to be different as each business has its own complexities. Without question, risk management is high on the agenda for any serious business owner. Protecting the downside is important. This will be particularly the case for more mature businesses where value has already been created in the business and there is a real risk of loss of value. For this market, business reviews or health checks are a necessary part of a risk management strategy. A business review or health check is a high level review of the key areas of the business to identify if it is risk exposed, to what extent, and what can be done to mitigate the risk. This type of information can be invaluable to management to identify and quantify the problems (or potential problems) facing their business. The problems faced by most businesses are predictable and can be identified well in advance of them becoming serious or terminal. Many businesses often fail to identify them because the operational requirements of the business are so consuming. A business review cuts through the business and looks at its sustainability. It does this by focussing on: Profitability Liquidity & solvency Business risks Operational risks Opportunities These are the headline areas that will be important in 2009. A systematic review of these areas will not only identify the sustainability of the business it will identify the risks present and the hierarchy that management should address with them. At the end of the review process, the managers inside the business have access to a report that is a concise and factual representation of the business that sets out what the review found, what it means, problems to be aware of, and recommendations for how to protect the business. Every business operator should consider undertaking a business review. At the very least it will be a valuable insight into your business and at most it will help stave off a potentially unforeseen threat or problem that could diminish the value of what you have worked long and hard to build. Contact us today to talk through whether your business is suited to a review.   Update your details for the governments cash payments If you are expecting to receive the $900 cash bonus payment from the government please ensure that the address details we have for you are correct. Please be aware that payments are only being made to those tax payers that have lodged their 2008 Income Tax Return. If you have not as yet lodged your return please contact our office to arrange preparation and lodgement to ensure you receive any bonus due. Kokoda Challenge 2009 This year Gordon Mendes Accounting is taking part in the Kokoda Challenge. The Kokoda Challenge is a cross-country bushwalking team event where teams of 4 people trek a 96km course through the Gold Coast Hinterland within a 39 hour time limit. Funds raised contribute to the Kokoda Challenge Youth Program (KCYP). The KCYP is program that has been developed to help young Australians who are at a crossroad and require an opportunity to realise their full potential. Anyone who is interested in knowing more about the Kokoda Challenge or would like to sponsor our team please click on the below link to view our team profile  Gordon Mendes Team Profile

Issue 1, March 2009 Key Dates 21 March 09 Activity Statements 31 March 09 Income Tax Quote of the Month "Money is not the only answer, but it makes a difference." -Barack Obama Principals: Angie & Vanessa