Wouldn’t it be nice if you could have a Universal Problem Solving Technique which could help you solve any problem?

Yes, we think so too.

So at Proactive Towers in 2005, we set about building a Universal Problem Solving Technique (UPST). It’s a constantly evolving set of documents and we realise that our version of the UPST is not the same one that everybody needs. It’s simply the UPST that works best for us.

There are probably as many UPSTs as there are businesses on the planet. That shouldn’t stop you from building and using your own. It improves efficiency and it helps speed up your processes. That leads to increased profits.

Here are a few insights into ours to help you get started.

The Universal Problem Solving Technique starts with a set of approximately 10 flowcharts, and is backed up by a knowledge base which runs to over 500 articles. It didn’t all happen in one day!

Decades later, various bits of this massive edifice are tweaked on a regular basis. The world changes, life changes, and our UPST changes. Regular work does not require a check of the core UPST. The core is used when some delicate matter needs attention. It’s the lubricant which reduces friction when dealing with customers, suppliers, staff and assets.

• How do we respond to (our customer) Fred?
• How do we respond to (our supplier) Wilma?
• How do we handle (our employee) Barney?
• How do we handle the failure of (our equipment) Betty’s laptop?

Imagine that you own an old second hand car. At some point you’re going to dispose of it, because the repeated cost of maintenance and repairs outweighs the utility of keeping it. The UPST addresses that. It’s both an art and a science, and we’re trying to build a systematic and useful tool which minimises wasted time and money. Is that something that interests you?

A  sample of the flowcharts was presented at the DDD North conference in 2022. It starts with a “Pioneer” flowchart which determines the route to be taken through the UPST. That quickly leads to a further flowchart related directly to the problem at hand. The “business” flowchart is illustrated below. This particular flowchart is the one which applies when you are the proprietor of the business. There are different flowcharts when the business in question is not your own.

In business, having the right information to hand helps with decision making. Hence this flowchart starts by referring you to a 1988 advert by a company called Informix. In the days before the web (and back when scanners were low quality) we saw this in a newspaper and kept a copy. It shows a black and white street map of central London, with half of the road names missing, and boldly proclaims:

Incomplete information will get you precisely nowhere

In order to even start addressing your problem you may need to ask your counterpart to provide more information. We sometimes end up having to do a bit of forensic accounting, and we sometimes dismiss a client. It all depends on how much information we can gather.

It’s also important to discuss the perennial “why” question. The sort of thing that the average 3 year old will repeatedly ask. All the staff at Proactive Towers are familiar with this story.

Assuming that you now have adequate information, do you still need to use the UPST? If you do, then it guides you to your solution. Here is the promised extract of the “business” flowchart. It’s been drafted to help with our internal business affairs, and also to help our coaching clients run their businesses. That explains why some bits have interesting questions, and why some bits are redacted. Note also that all clients are graded from A to D.

Occasionally, you may start with the “Pioneer”, follow a route through one or more additional flowcharts, consult the knowledge base, and learn that there is no ready made solution to help you. You end up at the opposite end of the UPST to the “Pioneer” flowchart and find yourself at the aptly named “Solutioneer” flowchart. Yes, you’ve guessed it! It’s a process that tells you how to build a new process and to either add it to the knowledge base, or modify the flowchart(s), or both.

That’s why the UPST is a constantly evolving set of documents!

Paul is also a business coach. Would your business like a helping hand?

A dividend voucher is a document given to shareholders of a business when the company declares a dividend to be paid out. They serve as evidence of payment and are also important for those completing self-assessment tax returns.

example dividend voucher – the appearance can vary

How does it work?

Officially a shareholders’ resolution is needed “to declare” a dividend, and a directors’ meeting is needed to establish when “to pay” a dividend. The shareholder and directors meetings can be one and the same meeting and the resolutions and decisions are recorded in the minutes of the meeting.

When a company declares a dividend, and it’s been formalised by the board, dividend vouchers can be prepared and sent to all those who will receive a payment.

The voucher normally includes the trading year it relates to, and is dated (at the top right) with the date it was paid. It states the share class it was declared on and, most importantly, the amount that was paid. The dividend may include a tax credit or a notional tax credit. Whether is does depends on tax law, and that can change from year to year.

This voucher is a shareholder’s evidence of a dividend payment, and they should retain it in their own records. This is particularly important for people who complete a self-assessment tax return, as they would need to declare dividend income on their return. Having a dividend voucher is an easy way of recalling the payment information. If there is an HMRC enquiry dividend vouchers are used to provide evidence of dividend income. Bank statements provide HMRC with evidence of the payment dates.

Companies are obliged to provided dividend vouchers to their shareholders if they are declared. If they do not do so, HMRC could deem payments out of the business accounts to be salary, and Tax/National Insurance would be due. It is the responsibility of the Company Secretary to produce these documents. If your company has no Company Secretary, and has not appointed a company secretarial bureau to do the work, then it is the responsibility of the Company Director(s) to prepare vouchers.

What should I do next?

Most companies declare dividends on a semi-regular basis (for example, once a month or once a quarter) or on an annual basis. You should decide which of these is best for your business, bearing in mind that dividends may only be declared from distributable profits.

Then, once the dividend has been declared and formalised, you should produce vouchers for each shareholder receiving a dividend payment and have this signed by a director and passed to the shareholders directly. It is recommended that companies also keep a copy of the dividend vouchers on file in case a shareholder needs a replacement copy.

If you have declared dividends in the past and have not produced vouchers, you may want to consider preparing some.

Footnote

A company’s Articles of Association typically set out the process for declaring dividends. The directors are responsible for ensuring that dividend payments are made at the right time. The text below shows Article 30 of the UK’s model articles of association for private companies limited by shares.

The Companies Act 2006 refers to “dividends” using the more expressive term “distributions”. We can treat those words as being  interchangeable. For a full guide please see s.829 – s.853 of The Companies Act 2006.

30. Procedure for declaring dividends 

(1) The company may by ordinary resolution declare dividends, and the directors may decide to pay interim dividends.

(2) A dividend must not be declared unless the directors have made a recommendation as to its amount. Such a dividend must not exceed the amount recommended by the directors.

(3) No dividend may be declared or paid unless it is in accordance with shareholders’ respective rights.

(4) Unless the shareholders’ resolution to declare or directors’ decision to pay a dividend, or the terms on which shares are issued, specify otherwise, it must be paid by reference to each shareholder’s holding of shares on the date of the resolution or decision to declare or pay it.

(5) If the company’s share capital is divided into different classes, no interim dividend may be paid on shares carrying deferred or non-preferred rights if, at the time of payment, any preferential dividend is in arrear.

(6) The directors may pay at intervals any dividend payable at a fixed rate if it appears to them that the profits available for distribution justify the payment.

(7) If the directors act in good faith, they do not incur any liability to the holders of shares conferring preferred rights for any loss they may suffer by the lawful payment of an interim dividend on shares with deferred or non-preferred rights.