It may seem counter-intuitive to start up a business during a recession but the upsurge will have been fuelled by redundant workers deciding to plunge their redundancy payouts into a new venture and becoming their own boss.

Hewlett Packard came into being in America’s Great Depression and more recently CNN was formed during a deep recession in 1980.

Great ideas and bold spirits will often flourish and the entrepreneurial spirit is still alive and kicking in the recent economic downturn.

Cascade HR has been voted as the outright winner after being shortlisted against SnowdropKCS in the 2009 Software Satisfaction awards.

Now in its fourth year, the prestigious Software Satisfaction Awards are much sought after by software vendors as recognition of their excellence in the business software industry. The award which Cascade have won, the Enterprise award, is the pinnacle in Cascade’s area of expertise, HR and Payroll Solutions.

According to the Government's Chief Medical Officer a second wave of swine flu is on the way, and whilst the impact of the virus on individuals is thankfully mild in the majority of cases, the impact on businesses could be severe if they're not properly prepared.

Organisations are being urged to make contingency plans to cope with the possibility of high absence levels over the coming months. At times like this having the right management systems and processes in place can make a massive difference to your ability to continue effectively. A good HR system could have a significant impact.

Software as a Service (SaaS) is the new method for putting HR and benefits information on the employees desktop. For decades companies have been running software on their own architecture. SaaS is a new delivery model where companies pay not for owning the software itself but for using it.