OFFICIAL CONGRESS BULLETIN
2017 Congress of Polish Entrepreneurs, 10th November, London
Organiser:
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#BizCongressPL
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4th Congress of Polish Entrepreneurs in the UK It is a great pleasure to take part in the fourth Congress of Polish Entrepreneurs in the UK. I am very happy that the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in London could support today’s proceedings. One of my roles here is to make sure that Polish citizens can take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the country they have chosen to live and work in. A meeting that provides a forum for exchanging views on the challenges and perspectives of conducting business in the UK is the kind of initiative I will always support. I honestly take pleasure in seeing so much entrepreneurial spirit in Polish citizens both in Poland and in the UK. Poles are truly business-minded and business-oriented and I believe this attitude is to a large extent responsible for Poland’s economic success. Today Poland is an example of a robust, stable and fast growing economy. In early September 2017 Moody’s rating agency strongly upgraded Poland’s 2017 GDP forecast to 4.3 percent from an earlier projection of 3.2 percent. The agency said that Poland’s faster-than-expected economic growth and fiscal condition were “credit positive.” At the same time, Moody’s upgraded Poland’s 2018 GDP forecast to 3,5 percent from an earlier projection of 3,1 percent and revised downward its forecast for Poland’s 2018 general government deficit to 2.7 percent of GDP from 2.9 percent projected in May. And on 29 September 2017, the index provider FTSE Russell has announced that as the results of the annual classification of markets Polish market has been upgraded from emerging market to developed market status. At the same time Polish entrepreneurs and their businesses here, have an 2
increasing impact on the British economy and the British institutions. The British business community recognises numerous direct benefits it can gain from business relationships with Polish enterprises in the UK. Successful Polish companies are the ones that don’t just strive to meet the needs of the Polish diaspora in the UK, but who reach out to British customers, thus increasing their chances of a market success. They have demonstrated their entrepreneurial skills and their ability to adapt to new conditions.
Arkady Rzegocki The Ambassador of the Republic of Poland
The Embassy of Poland in the UK actively supports bilateral Polish-British economic relations. It also supports, through various activities of the Trade and Investment Promotion Section, the process of integration and consolidation
of the Polish business community in the UK. We are very happy with our trade relations with the UK. Last year the United Kingdom was Poland’s second largest export market globally with exports from Poland exceeding 12,5 billion Euro. The data up to end of July 2017 shows that the value of Polish exports to the UK in 2017 has grown by more than 5%. It suggests that at the end of this year it will exceed a record ₏13 billion in spite of quite unfavourable GBP exchange rate after the decline of the value of the pound as a result of the Brexit referendum. These days it is difficult to avoid mentioning Brexit at gatherings like this. Regardless of the scale of their business, entrepreneurs from the UK who operate
in Poland and Polish entrepreneurs in the UK will face many changes and they will need to adapt themselves to the reality after Brexit.sure the UK will continue to be one of the most important partners for the EU and bilaterally for Poland, in both political and economic dimensions. The concrete example of these ties is setting up the framework of annual intergovernmental consultations which for the first time were held in November 2016 and this year will be organised in Warsaw. I wish all taking part in this Congress a very fruitful and productive discussion on how to develop and further strengthen your businesses.
With Special thanks to all our partners Congress partners:
Supporters:
Media Partners:
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Tytuł Tekst
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Future Proof Your Business Who would have thought, just ten years ago, that today there’d be thousands of newly set-up small businesses across the UK making money by writing apps for smartphones, engaging on behalf of their clients on social media or delivering all manner of goods bought online? Ten years from now, where will the new businesses be coming from? Will it continue to be technology driven, with virtual- and augmented reality glasses replacing TV screens, blockchain disintermediating giants like Uber and Airbnb as well as government registers? Will there be a new focus on health tech - and will small businesses be able to get involved, or will the R&D expenditure fence off the opportunities for only the largest corporates? Will consumers in the West prefer to spend money on experiences rather than things?
Time for some blue-sky thinking. Time to get away from the day-to-day grind of running your business and think about how your business could look in 2027 in a world of rapidly evolving technologies. Time to think what they will mean for you, your employees and your customers. We need to face up to several grand visions of the future, and consider how likely they are to come true. Your elevator pitch may contain the answers to today’s needs - but what about tomorrow’s needs? These - and many more - questions about business growth, with answers based on real-life experience - will be discussed at 2017 Congress of Polish Entrepreneurs in the UK. I hope you will find plenty of insights and that the networking sessions will lead to valuable introductions of mutual benefit.
Bartłomiej Kowalczyk Director
Polish Business Link
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Congress Agenda 9:00 – 09:30
REGISTRATION
09:50-12:00
Morning Session
12:00-13.00
Lunch & Break out session with guest speakers
13:00-15.00
Afternoon Session
09:30 Introduction, Michael Dembinski, BPCC 09.35 Official Opening and Welcoming: - Arkady Rzegocki, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland - Nick Howe, Enterprise Manager, London & South East, NatWest Business Banking 09:45 Grow through Collaboration, Bartlomiej Kowalczyk, Polish Business Link 09.50 Future Proof your Business – The leadership Angle, Senior Partner, SBR Consulting 10.20 Making Tax Digital, Clare Sheehan, Deputy Director, HM Revenue & Customs 10:50 Raising Seed and Growth Capital, Dagmara Łącka, Boldmind 11:20 How to avoid breaking the laws governing electronic direct marketing? Chris Corney, Carter Lemon Camerons LLP
13.00 13:30 14:00 14:30
Ransomware can be stopped – how to protect your business from cyber attacks, Jakub Kosiec, FX7 Solutions Ltd Grow your business through High Performance Live Face-to-Face Marketing, Lee Ali & John Blaskey, Expo Stars Interactive How to take your business to the next level? Strategies for growth Sanjiv Dodhia, ActionCoach Entrepreneurs Success Story: How to take control of your business and your life, James Circus
15:00 – 15:30 Break out session with experts & afternoon networking 15.30 - 16.15 DISCUSSION PANEL moderated by Kasia Madera, BBC World News Presenter - Lee Ali, Expo Stars Interactive - Pawel Mes, One Money Mail Ltd t/a Sami Swoi - Andrew Poradzisz, Archdesk - Dagmara Łącka, Boldmind - Tim Hillier, SBR Consulting - Sanjiv Dodhia, ActionCoach - James Circus - Jakub Kosiec, FX7 Solutions Ltd 16:15 Closing Remarks, Natalia Glabik-Stankiewicz, One Money Mail Ltd t/a Sami Swoi 16:30 Close 17:00 – 20:00 Informal Business Networking
18:00 – 18:30 18:45 – 19:15
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Construction Networking Retail & Service Sector Networking
Close
How will Brexit affect your business? With the clock ticking on the Brexit negotiations, there’s still very little certainty offered to Polish entrepreneurs in the UK as to their future. Nearly eight months on since Article 50 was triggered, and we still have today - as we had back in March - three scenarios. One is hard Brexit, with WTO tariffs on UK imports from and exports to the EU. The second is a soft Brexit with a finite transition period during which a future trading relationship with the EU is negotiated. And then there is no Brexit, whereby the UK realises that a hard Brexit would be economically damaging whilst a soft Brexit - paying for single market access without having any say in shaping its rules - makes little sense. The UK economy’s is not doing well. Although unemployment is historically low, wage levels in real terms are falling as inflation rises to 3.0%, raising fears that interest rates - which have never been lower - will rise, hitting millions of mortgage-paying families. In the second quarter, the UK economy grew by 1.7% year-on-year, while the eurozone overtook it (2.2%) and Poland got back into high gear (4.4% - all Eurozone stats). The High Street is feeling the pinch with retail sales growth down to 1.5% year-onyear (compared to 5.5% in mid-2016). Poland is beginning to notice business moving in from the UK (at present mainly foreign capital), but as a ‚no-deal’ scenario looms ever larger, more companies using the UK as a base for EU operations will be inclined to relocate - and Poland is a very attractive location in terms of people and costs.
Author: Michael Dembinski Chief Adviser
British Polish Chamber of Commerce @policies4poland Yet there are grounds for optimism in terms of the UK’s place in the global economy post-Brexit. While sectors such as food, automotive, building materials, furniture - where Poland has traditionally been a strong exporter to the UK - will no doubt suffer, IT is looking good. Many Polish tech start-ups still see the UK as a natural springboard to global markets. The UK has the right ecosystem to help tech start-ups scale up quickly (in particular access to capital), and the ‚made in the UK’ label on software remains a powerful marketing tool. We see more and more Polish tech 7
businesses adopting the model ‚front office UK/back office Poland’. Given that you cannot put tariffs on zeros and ones, digital businesses from Poland that have global ambitions are not worried about Brexit.
Also Polish entrepreneurs who view the UK market of nearly 66 million wealthy consumers as an attractive market in its own right are not put off by what might happen. The UK might want to limit the inflow of unskilled EU migrants, but historically it has never restricted entrepreneurs wanting to come over to set up businesses here. If the profitability of your UK business depends on access to cheap Polish labour, or on access to large numbers of Polish consumers (or indeed both), then Brexit may be a heavy blow. But if you are agile with a realistic cost base, if you have your sights set on a more diverse market than just fellow Poles living in Britain, and you’re on the look-out for new opportunities - you may yet survive and thrive!
Contact us: UK Polish Business Link
PL British Polish Chamber of Commerce
@pb_link www.pblink.co.uk
Michael Dembinski Chief Adviser Michael.dembinski@bpcc.org.pl Twitter: @policies4poland
Congress 2017: www.pblink.co.uk/congress2017 Membership and Event Coordinators in the UK
Bartłomiej Kowalczyk, London and South England, bart.k@pblink.co.uk
Ewa Jasinska-Davidson, North & Central England, Wales, ewa@pblink.co.uk Anna Drogon, Scotland, North Ireland, anna.d@pblink.co.uk events@pblink.co.uk Please Note This event will be filmed and photographed by professionals, for marketing and PR purpose. In addition, members of the local and national media may be present. If you do not wish to be filmed or photographed, please make yourself known to a Polish Business Link staff member and we will comply with your wishes as best we can.
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Official Congress Website: www.pblink.co.uk/congress2017 Congress Venue Information: NatWest 280 Bishopsgate EC2M 4RB London United Kingdom Printed by BC Printing
Digital copy available on www.issuu.com/pblink
Polish Business Link
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Congress Partners Whether you are just starting out or you are looking to expand NatWest and its team of experienced business managers can work with you to identify what support there is available - whether from the bank or via a whole host of other business support organisations - to help get you to where you want to be.
One Money Mail Ltd T/As Sami Swoi is the biggest Polish money transfer network in the UK. Over 13-years’ experience in the market is the best guarantee of the quality of services offered to over 300 000 satisfied customers. Sami Swoi provides complete security, a competitive GBP exchange rate, simplicity of access to services and a variety of options to send money to Poland. Bank transfer ‘STANDARD’ into Polish Zloty bank accounts is one of the most popular transfers in Sami Swoi. Funds are delivered within 2 working days. If time is important, Sami Swoi offers you a bank transfer ‘EXPRESS’ and money will be sent to an account within one working day without high transfer fees. What if you forget about someone’s birthday? Sami Swoi recommends transfer ‘LIVE’ with 10 minutes delivery time. If a recipient does not have a bank account, there is an option available to send money to the beneficiary’s hands by choosing transfer to the Polish Post Offices. With Sami Swoi, transfers can be made through the branches in the UK, via our phone line service +44 (0) 207 099 2441, via the website www.przekazypieniezne.com or via Mobile Application – you can transfer money faster and easier than ever before.
Carter Lemon Camerons LLP is a law firm situated in the heart of City of London. We are committed to delivering the highest level of legal services. Our comprehensive expertise in range of specialist areas includes: corporate, commercial, property, employment, litigation, wealth management and tax and immigration. We are known for approachability, pragmatism and effectiveness. We dedicate ourselves to working with our clients to achieve the outcomes they are looking for. We enjoy close and long-term relations with our clients in sectors including: hospitality and leisure, social housing, healthcare, charities, banking and lending, property development and investment, transport companies, private clients. 10
Congress Supporters We supply a range of frozen fruit & vegetables to the retail, manufacturing & foodservice sectors throughout Europe from our award winning BRC accredited IQF production facilities in Poland. Our technical specialists continually monitor and advise our contracted farmers in order to make sure that we supply only the best quality products to our manufacturing sites in Poland, or to one of our global manufacturing partners strictly in accordance with all UK & European Food Safety Standards, resulting in increasing our customer’s reliability to their customers. Our expertise in sourcing, manufacturing, packaging and logistic management, have allowed us to further tailor-make our products according to our customer’s specific requirements whether that be for retail, manufacture or foodservice. Archdesk is a cloud-based all-in-one management software for the construction & production companies. Improve your business operations and save money by digitizing all business processes in your company.
Buildeo is a premium quality construction and building company based in the heart of London. With over 150 years of combined experience, we offer A-to-Z construction services from design through premium refurbishment to shop fitting solutions. We service both commercial as well as residential clients, making their high-end needs our priority number one. Ever since we started our first project we have been committed to high quality, forward thinking, and innovative ideas, because – at the end of the day – this is what makes us stand out. BC Printing is printing and signmaking company based in Glasgow but trading nationwide. With many in-house facilities BC Printing is able to print quick-turnaround jobs - stationery, flyers, business cards, posters, banners, stickers, booklets, car signage, shop signage etc. Thanks to the Internet, your business has the potential to reach everyone. The same is true for everyone else, however, so it’s easy to become invisible in a sea of limitless possibilities. With our help, you can always be visible. Neadoo is a company built on solid foundations – knowledge, enthusiasm, and integrity. Each member of our team brings in something unique – it’s by capitalising on that diversity that we can keep providing our clients with the best results. What do we do? We specialise in SEO (search engine optimisation) and PPC (pay-per-click) services. Through positioning, we ensure our client’s website reaches the highest possible position in Google search results. As a Google Partner, we have valuable experience in creating effective PPC campaigns. We also offer SMM, marketing consultancy, and various other services that will help boost your online presence. No website? No problem – we can create a website for your company from scratch, thanks to our experienced team of graphic and web designers. Contact us today and find out how much we can help your company: www.neadoo.digital
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YOUR EVERYDAY BUSINESS SOFTWARE
SOLUTION
Archdesk is a modern cloud-based management software for your company. Improve your day to day operations with the help of Archdesk powerful workflow.
www.archdesk.com 1. Every employee involved. 2. Greater cost control. 3. Time control. 4. Less mistakes. 5. Greater revenue.
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Guest Speakers Michael Dembinski, BPCC, Congress Moderator
Michael Dembinski was born in London in 1957. He studied at Warwick University and The City University, and worked at the Confederation of British Industry - for nine years as editor of CBI News - the monthly magazine of the employers’ organisation. Michael moved to Poland with his family in 1997 to take up the job of communications director of Polska Telewizja Kablowa - now part of UPC Polska, then worked as managing director of Trader.Com Polska - now a part of Agora SA. He has worked with the British Polish Chamber of Commerce since 2002.
Nick Howe, NatWest Business Banking
Nick has worked for NatWest Business in various roles for the last 20 years having been inspired by the very first business customer that he met. As Enterprise manager Nick’s work sees him travelling across London & South East and working in partnership with numerous business support organisations and educational establishments who are all focussing on the area of enterprise.
Sanjiv Dodhia, Action Coach
Award-winning Business Growth Specialist with ActionCoach, Sanjiv Dodhia brings 30+ years’ experience developing businesses at every stage of growth, having built a successful London property business, which now operates without him. His first business, where he joined as a graduate trainee and left 8 years later as a General Manager, grew from £250K to £20m. His last role was a Business Development Director in a global firm now employing 190,000 people. Sanjiv is also a leading practitioner with Engage & Grow, the world’s leading Employee Engagement movement helping hundreds of organisations create highly engaged workforces to improve productivity and profitability. Sanjiv helps businesses get breakthrough results by helping owners of both emerging and established businesses to work ON the business and not just in the daily fire-fighting IN their business. This he does by working with the owners on their mindset, vision, plans and mastery of all elements of the business from financial management to sales and marketing through to systemisation, team building and structuring to scale. His mission is to help good businesses to become great businesses, aligned to ActionCoach’s vision of creating world abundance through business re-education. 13
Guest Speakers Dagmara Łącka, Boldmind
Dagmara passionately exploits new technologies to increase sales and drive growth. In a decade of work across online and offline media in the UK and overseas markets, Dagmara has gained extensive expertise in digital brand strategy, product positioning and delivery. She built and delivered digital strategies for start- ups and blue-chip companies with emphasis on running internal and external innovation teams. At Boldmind she oversees development of AI-based solutions for Smart Cities, with emphasis on retail environment. The flagship product Flow.City - the first surge marketing platform, has last year earned recognition as Bloomberg Innovator 2016. The platform currently accesses 53% of all screens in around London, including shopping malls, airports and office buildings. Boldmind live footfall engine is used in flow.city to intelligently distribute content and can be viewed in real-time on the flow.city website.ww.flow.city
Chris Corney, Carter Lemon Camerons LLP
Chris is a commercial litigation partner at Carter Lemon Camerons LLP. He advises a diverse range of enterprises, public authorities and individual clients on their investments and protection of their assets. Chris’s special areas of expertise are commercial disputes, fraud and SMEs as well as cross-jurisdictional matters. Chris’s work included acting for group of property investors who obtained judgment against fraudsters involved in mis-selling luxury homes in Spain and successful application to Privy Council for reinstatement of appeal relating to frozen bank accounts in Bahamas. Chris also has significant experience in data protection matters. He regularly advises clients on disputes with Information Commissioner’s Office and represents local public authorities who have been a victim of procurement fraud, tenancy fraud and breach of property rights. Chris also advises private clients on a variety of other matters, including acting for separating spouses in tracing and securing matrimonial assets, divorce, separation and division of matrimonial assets, including multi-jurisdictional assets. 14
Guest Speakers Jakub Kosiec, FX7 Solutions Ltd
With over 15 years’ experience in IT industry, Jakub is bringing a lot of knowledge and solutions to business owners on how to streamline the technology in their business. FX7 Solutions Ltd, the company that Jakub founded in 2008, is acting as an outsourced IT support department for small and medium businesses in West London and Middlesex area. Jakub has been always keen on improving the operations of his clients’ businesses. “Computers in business are not only about daily tasks that computers allow you to do, but it is also about getting your operations improved by implementing new solutions and technologies to improve profitability, efficiency and security” he says. Due to the fact that all staff at FX7 Solutions Ltd speaks Polish, they are able to provide their services more efficiently to the Polish community in the UK.
Stuart Lotherington, Senior Partner, SBR Consulting
Stuart’s twenty years in sales and ten in sales consultancy has seen him build sales teams of 250+ from scratch in both America and the UK. He has trained over 3,500 people in sales and sales leadership, of which many have gone to be great sales leaders or to run their own businesses and still refer to Stuart’s training and tips. He trains consultants and advises giants in industry such as Google, Dropbox and Expedia as well as helping smaller companies and start-ups, for example, to grow from £1m to £16m in two years. Stuart is the second most experienced consultant on the SBR Consulting team of 120 which is a $15m specialist sales consultancy with offices in London, Nashville, Singapore and Prague. Stuart has trained and delivered in most of the thirty-six countries that SBR has worked in, which includes regions such as the Far East, the Middle East, Africa, South and North America as well as all over Europe. His early career focused on developing knowledge in all aspects of sales, client retention and account development. He is currently studying a degree in psychology, is a certified psychometric evaluator, NLP practitioner and a fellow of the Institute of Sales and Marketing Management.
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Guest Speakers John Blaskey, Expo Stars Interactive Ltd
John is Business Speaker & Exhibiting Maverick. John’s unique insight – and forty years’ experience – challenge the typical habits of face to face marketing to release accelerated growth for any organisation. John inspires and persuades any growth hungry organisation to create sustainable live marketing strategies, differentiate themselves, and measure every aspect of their performance.
Lee Ali, Expo Stars Interactive Ltd
Lee is the Founder & Managing Director of Expo Stars Interactive, a global face-to-face engagement company based in Manchester. A Sales & Marketing specialist with over 25 years field experience and with a deep interest in Business Psychology, Lee has worked extensively in the Communications sector including Telecoms, Mobile, Broadcasting, Online and Live Marketing. For the past 8 years, Lee has supported over 400 international exhibitors across the world, to improve visitor engagement at trade shows and achieve measurable results.
James Circus
Six Years ago Multi Award Winning Entrepreneur James Circus decided that working for others was not going to give him the future he had mapped out for himself. He persuaded his wife they should sell their family home and put the proceeds in to starting their first business. Fast Forward six years James has now sold the first business to Chinese Investors and is the owner of three other businesses, one of which is currently being primed for his next sale. James was awarded the title of Essex Business Person of the year in 2015 and the UK Business Excellence Forum CEO of the Year in 2014 and is now a part time Business Coach with the worlds number 1 Business Coaching Company ActionCOACH where he helps other Entrepreneurs climb the ladder to success. Clare Sheehan, Deputy Director, HM Revenue & Customs Clare leads the Customer Readiness and External Stakeholder team for HMRC’s Making Tax Digital for Business programme. She started her career in the private sector but has spent the last ten years in various roles in HMRC, HM Treasury and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. 16
Discussion Panel attendees Lee Ali Expo Stars Interactive
Pawel Mes One Money Mail Ltd t/a Sami Swoi
Andrew Poradzisz Archdesk
Dagmara Łącka Boldmind
Tim Hillier SBR Consulting
Sanjiv Dodhia ActionCoach
James Circus
Jakub Kosiec FX7 Solutions Ltd
Discussion Panel moderated by:
Kasia Madera, BBC World News Presenter
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How to ensure your Electronic Direct Marketing stays compliant Electronic Direct Marketing
Electronic Direct Marketing (EDM) can be a cost-effective and targeted way of getting your firm’s message straight to the people who are most likely to purchase your goods or services. It could include marketing your services through telephone calls, automated calling, mailshots, email, SMS or messaging services, amongst others. These can be highly effective strategies that can help you obtain the best possible return from your marketing spend and can play an important part in maintaining your relationships with important customers and clients. However, failing to comply with the rules which govern EDM can lead to regulatory issues and reputational damage that far outweigh any benefit it delivers. That is why it is critical to ensure that you are familiar with the full range of rules and regulations that dictate what you can and cannot do. The Data Protection Act It is important to bear in mind that the DPA makes clear that all personal information must be: 1. fairly and lawfully processed; 2. processed for limited purposes; 3. adequate, relevant and not excessive; 4. not kept for longer than is necessary; 5. accurate and up-to- date; 6. processed in line with the data subjects’ rights; 7. must be secure; and 8. not transferred to other countries without adequate protection.
Consent Marketing communications to individuals and some partnerships require consent, which is knowingly and freely given, clear and specific. Companies must be able to demonstrate that the consent was given and keep the relevant records. Otherwise, they may be subject to enforcement action. Extreme caution is necessary when relying on consent that was originally provided to a third party, such as where you have purchased data for use in a marketing campaign. In these cases you need to check that the consent is valid according to the definitions set out above. You also need to ensure that it is valid for both your organisation and the method of delivery that you intend to use. This means that the description given to the intended recipient when they indicated consent should accurately describe your organisation, while not being so generic that it could relate to any organisation. Additionally, consent should entail a positive action by the customer. It will not be sufficient to rely on implied consent through the use of provisions in a privacy policy. Good practice includes the use of ‘optins’. An opt-in might take the form of: “Tick if you would like to receive information about our products and any special offers by post, by email, by telephone, by text message, by recorded call.” By contrast, an ‘opt-out’ could take the format of: “By submitting this registration form, you indicate your consent to receive email marketing message from us. If you do not want to receive such message, tick here.” 19
However, because the use of an optout means that you would be deeming someone to have given their consent without having taken positive action, it would be more difficult to actually demonstrate that they had given meaningful consent. As such, opt outs are to be avoided.Similarly, it is not a good idea to use pre-ticked opt-in boxes as it is more difficult to demonstrate that the consent has been meaningfully given. There is also the possibility of using a ‘soft opt-in’ for existing customers and clients in a commercial transaction where you are also marketing your own similar products and services and the client has had an opportunity to refuse or opt-out. However, this option is not available if you are a charity, political party or a notfor-profit body. If you are marketing to other businesses, you do not require consent as you would when marketing to private individuals, but you must identify yourself and provide contact details. Cookies The requirement to disclose the use of cookies is something that has become very visible since PECR came into force. Many websites, when you visit for the first time, will display a cookies message and ask you to agree to store a cookie on your device. A cookie is a small computer file that enables a website to recognise a user each time they visit a website. If your website uses cookies – and most do – you will need to make sure that it displays such a warning and obtains consent, meeting all the conditions already discussed, from the user to store cookies on their device. Beyond this, there are a number of other practical steps to ensure that you remain compliant in your marketing activities. These include providing clear and comprehensive privacy notices, keeping evidence of compliance in the form of records and consents, keeping databases 20
under review and separate from each other and including opportunities for opt-in and opt-outs as appropriate.
General Data Protection Regulations A further reason why it is worthwhile to ensure that you go beyond the standards of practice that are required by current legislation is the imminent implementation of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). The GDPR enacts new EU regulations and will come into force in the UK on 25 May
2018, despite the Brexit vote. Importantly, the GDPR specifically states that EDM is a legitimate use of personal data. However, it contains stringent requirements when it comes to obtaining consent for the use of data. In particular, it outlaws the use of pre-ticked opt-in boxes and requires that consent must be “unambiguous and involve a clear affirmative action”, according to the ICO. Guidance from the ICO, which has been published in draft form, advises that, to be compliant with requirements of the GDPR, consent should be: •• Separate from other agreements and other terms and conditions; •• Actively given; •• ‘granular’, meaning that separate consent is obtained for different types of data processing; •• ‘named’ – critically this means that your organisation will need to have been named at the time consent was granted; •• ‘documented’ – you will need to maintain records that enable you to show exactly what an individual has consented to, when they consented and how they did so; •• ‘withdrawable’ – it must be made clear to people how they can withdraw their consent at any time for the use of their data, including for marketing purposes; •• There must not be an imbalance in the relationship – this is something that is most likely to affect employers dealing with employees or public authorities dealing with members of the public. You may wonder what all this means for the existing consent you have already obtained for the use of personal data before the GDPR comes into force. According to the ICO;
“Recital 171 of the GDPR makes clear you can continue to rely on any existing consent that was given in line with the GDPR requirements, and there’s no need to seek fresh consent. However, you will need to be confident that your consent requests already met the GDPR standard and that consents are properly documented. You will also need to put in place compliant mechanisms for individuals to withdraw their consent easily.” This means that if the consents you hold already meet all of the requirements of the GDPR, you will be able to continue to rely on them. However, if you hold consents, but they do not meet all of the requirements, you will need to obtain new consent. One area where you could find this particularly problematic is where you have purchased data from a third party to use for your EDM. In these instances, unless that third party has specifically named you when it obtained consent, that consent will cease to be valid after the GDPR comes into force, even if a specific description of your organisation was provided at the time. It is especially important to ensure that you comply with the requirements of the GDPR, as the potential penalties are even greater than those associated with breaches of the DPA. An organisation in breach of GDPR could be fined the greater of €20 million or four per cent of worldwide annual turnover. You should also be aware that the DPA and PECR will both remain in force with the arrival of the GDPR and so your EDM will need to comply with all three and any voluntary codes you have signed up to. Carter Lemon Camerons @CLC_Solicitor
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Raising Seed and Growth Capital Seed stage is a great moment to consider grants as long as you are clear about the work over the next 12 - 18 months. If you need an expert to help you develop a product and test the market an active angel investor may be the best bet.
who at the seed stage we thought will be our target market. Turns out they went to their tenants - retailers, to ask if they would pay for it. We quickly realised that it is the shops (and not only in shopping malls) that are our clients and shopping malls will be merely stakeholders. Finally how big is the market?
Boldmind investment deck will serve as a background for a story about successful fundraising - From Seed to Growth Capital to Profitability. I will discuss best moments to raise capital, and how to avoid pitfalls of raising too early - which we did on numerous occasions. Also, how important is it is to focus on building successful, sustainable business which doesn’t rely on constant external capital. I will spend time on how good teams are formed and how to balance skills. Investors are also a team, so choosing one is crucial. I will talk about an investor which we turned down because of the lack of cultural fit.
All of the above will determine your valuation and how much capital you may require. Seed funds are usually raised to build a simple version of your product, test the market and prove the theory. Make sure you have money left to test marketing because for the growth capital you will need to know how much it costs you to acquire new client, how much are they spending and ultimately how much is each client or product user worth to the company. Those are crucial metrics and therefore if you are planning to raise growth you need a CMO.
By far the most important thing in fundraising is formulating the Problem. How well you can describe the problem will often indicate the stage you are in as a product. If the problem is universal across continents it indicates global potential of your business. Here I will ask 2 - 3 delegates to describe the problem their product is solving and ask the rest to judge how long they have been working on their product or business. The second most important point is how will your product solve the problem and how will you make money as a result. There are many problems which need solving but often businesses or consumers are unwilling to pay for them. Who pays for the solution is crucial. Here I will talk about our solution for shopping malls,
Dagmara Łącka Boldmind @DagmaraLacka
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How to take your business to the next level? Strategies for growth In these uncertain times standing still is not an option. Businesses need to take control of the factors driving their growth to improve their resilience and be able to achieve growth in any market condition. In this session, the speaker Sanjiv Dodhia, a Business Growth Specialist, will share with you a tried and tested model for driving consistent, profitable growth and discuss effective strategies for growing the business and generating new customers through: ••
Better lead generation – do you know your most effective marketing strategies?
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Improved sales conversion – what % of enquiries do you convert to purchases and how to improve the conversion rate?
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More repeat sales – how often do your customers buy from you and how do you increase this?
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Higher transaction value – how much do your customers spend with you and how can you get them to spend more?
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Increasing profit margins – are you aware what your most profitable products, services and customers are and are you keeping a close eye on your costs?
Learn through this session how to take control of your business growth through a structured, systemised approach to maximise and grow your customers, sales and profits.
Sanjiv Dodhia ActionCoach @sanjivbizcoach
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Future Proof your Business – The leadership Angle Building scalable systems is a no brainer for most businesses that want to grow but do you have them with your people? Having a common language, focus and direction is often deemed by many entrepreneurs as essential reasons for their success along with leadership processes that drive your business no matter what the future may hold. Stuart Lotherington, Senior Partner at SBR Consulting (one of the world’s leading sales performance consultancies as part of the Southwestern Consulting) was one of the Polish Business Links most popular speakers from last year’s conference and returns this year to share some top leadership tips that are immediately employable into your business. Though Stuart’s background stretches back some 30 years specifically in sales. The tools he will share are valuable everywhere in your organisation to help you identify your ‘real’ top performers and how to keep them and identify the future blight in any organisation that may undermine all the hard work you do to build your business. You will get introduced to a simple leadership tool that is missing from so many organisations and has already transformed business from hotels to construction. This speech is specifically designed to pack an instant punch and is one not to be missed if you; have a team of people in your business want them to continue to grow and flourish Stuart Lotherngton Senior Partner at SBR Consulting @stuartlothering 25
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Grow your business through High Performance Live Face-to-Face Marketing Grow your business using the power of live face-to-face marketing at conferences, congresses and exhibitions. In this fast-paced digital marketing era, face-to-face live marketing is still king when it comes to engaging new sales prospects and creating long lasting business relationships.
Experts John Blaskey and Lee Ali will explain how you can gain more clients, enhance your brand, and engage in high performance B2B live marketing through effective engagement strategies, ROI measurement and choosing the right people. John Blaskey & Lee Ali Expo Stars Interactive Ltd @expostars
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Foreign exchange volatility - is the pound doomed to loss? The currency market is constantly volatile. Exchange rates are always fluctuating. There are several reasons for this which include many elements such as the economic situation of a country, the strength of the economy, the prospects of monetary policy and finally, the political conditions. The political conditions are the most interesting element from the perspective of people living in the UK. At the end of November 2015 one pound was worth just over 6 zlotys. Since then the GBPPLN rate has steadily declined. In January 2016, it was still worth about 5.90. At the end of December of that same year it was just under 5.10. Later on, it was even worse. According to many analysts, the pound devaluation is the result of not only the Brexit referendum of June 2016, but also the buildup to Brexit which generated fears among investors during the speculation.
Currently, it is unknown how the United Kingdom’s relationship with the European Union will evolve after the UK departs the Union. Many people believe that due to the fluctuations currency rates would require some action in the future (for example leaving the EU). The value of the country’s currency can fluctuate depending on investor speculation on a multitude of topics. As a result of this speculation the pound began to lose more value than six months before the referendum and the value of the pound is still falling despite the fact that we do not know yet the real economic consequences that will occur after the Brexit process. The uncertain situation of a country, for whatever reasons, makes the financial market appear unwilling to hold deposits in the currency of this country. The chart below clearly shows that the GBPPLN market is in a long-term, strong downward trend.
GBPPLN chart. Weekly scale. Source: MT4. 29
This current trend negatively affects people who earn pound sterling and need to convert into Polish currency. It raises the question of how to manage in this time when pound is becoming weaker and weaker. Where would be the best place to look for saving money on transfers and what are the best financial conditions to send or sell pound sterling for instance to Poland? First and foremost, you should choose a proven and experienced partner. Sami Swoi Premium is the leader in money transfers between Great Britain and Poland. The company was founded in 2004 and we have been providing money transfer services to retail and business customers for almost fourteen years now. We employ over 70 people with specialist know-how in the field of
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automated payments to Poland and serve over 300,000 retail and business customers. Our combined experience and professional know-how enables us to develop a secure and timely money transfer system for both retail and business customers. As part of your Sami Swoi Premium account, you will be provided with the care of a dedicated specialist who is always at your service and can offer you support. By entrusting our experts to take care of the money transfers, our customers can focus more on running their own business. Also, our personally selected pricing programme offers our customers the best possible exchange rate. Sami Swoi Premium Business Team @samiswoipremium
Ransomware can be stopped – how to protect your business from cyber attacks? Recent ransomware outbreaks have affected many businesses and individuals. Only WannaCry ransomware affected 200,000 people in 150 countries in 2017. The talk will cover basics of malicious software that is in the wilderness of internet (and not only internet). You will learn about differences between basic viruses and spyware and more disrupting ransomware and why this matters to the small business owner. Jakub will show you what are the ways that ransomware is spreading and how to minimise the possibility that it can hit your business. You will learn about prevention methods, both technical and nontechnical, and also what to do if computers and networks would be infected. This will cover not only how to manage the IT systems in case of emergency, but also how to proceed to minimise business operations disruption. 72 percent of infected businesses lost access to data for two days or more. But if you are aware how the ransomware works and use the correct security measures, software and practices, you can take it down to less than 1 hour. Interested? Jakub Kosiec FX7 Solutions Ltd @fx7solutions 31
Expanding your business presence abroad Representing your business on a range of different platforms is essential, yet many businesses fail to recognise the opportunity that a physical presence can bring. Whilst online channels take precedence today, this should not detract from one of your core marketing tools — yourself. Trade shows are a great way to access your direct target market and create an awareness of your business offering. Ensuring that an event is the right one for you and your business is a crucial first stage when planning to exhibit at a trade show. Thinking about your expected outcome and the type of visitor that might suit your business will help to inform your research. Whether your aim is to build brand awareness or to catch leads, it is important to identify your target market. Preparation Being prepared before a trade show increases your chance of success. Things to consider before your trade show: •• Marketing materials to represent your business such as leaflets, promotional videos and business cards can bring your business to the forefront of your visitors’ mind — especially as a takeaway document. If you are exhibiting abroad i.e. in Poland or Spain, which languages should be used for the brochures? It might be worthwhile translating them into the respective language. •• What do other companies that exhibit bring to a trade show - is there anything that would make your business stand out from the crowd? •• How will you advertise your event? •• Will you need to bring anyone to 32
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help represent you during the trade show? Are there any cultural differences when exhibiting in a foreign country? Will you be able to organise a oneto-one meeting with potential customers beforehand?
Advertising your trade show Once you have decided which trade show suits you and done all the relevant preparation, make sure to advertise on the relevant networks. LinkedIn is a great way to put your event out there and capture leads before even exhibiting. You may want to use some paid social advertising to get your event in front of more targeted leads. Location As with choosing a location for a physical store or office for your business, considering the location of your stand is very important. Will your stand location gain much footfall? High traffic areas such as near the entrance, at the end of an aisle, close to food services are all very desirable and likely to maximise lead generation. Be sure to choose your booth as soon as the selection is open. Communication strategy Your style of communication will suit your business and visitor type. It is important to think about opening lines and a few interesting facts about your business that may be engaging for visitors. It is worthwhile to check if the attendees speak your language or you may need someone to assist with the communication.
Capturing useful information A successful trade show is based upon being able to follow up with leads after the event. Therefore, being prepared with a tool to capture information is imperative. Companies like Eventbrite or trade shows organisers will enable you to issue a barcode which you can then scan using a capture tool. There are many options for your capture tool, for example an app called iLeads is available for free and will let you scan your delegates barcodes and dictate names to convert to text. If an attendee hadn’t preregistered to your event, you could offer something for free in exchange for registering their details. Follow up It is sometimes difficult to know when and how to follow up after an event. This will be subject to your business; however, you can base this on the conversation that you had with each visitor. For this reason, it is important to make notes whenever you can - to remember details, for example what interested the delegate and how can you optimise on that in your follow up strategy. A good place to start your follow up would be LinkedIn,
especially for business to business interaction. Otherwise, you may want to reach out via email or if your conversation was advanced, a phone call. What does the future bring? As a business interpreter, I have attended various trade shows abroad and I strongly believe this is a worthwhile business investment. Being able to speak to delegates face to face is beneficial, advancing a business relationship. Social media is a must-do for businesses, however this must not neglect the importance of communication in person. As technological advances continue to make business interaction more accessible, the traditional marketing mix must integrate into your overall marketing strategy. Ewa Jasinska-Davidson A head for business, a voice for languages Business and Conference Interpreter & Translator (Polish, English and Spanish) www.ewajasinska.com
Polagra Tech, September 2017
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Polish Business Link Members Ampersand London
London
www.ampersand-london.co.uk
Archdesk
London
www.archdesk.co.uk
Ardens Solicitors
London
www.ardenslaw.com
Arthur & Simon Landscapes Ltd
Edinburgh
www.arthurandsimon.co.uk
ATD Structures Ltd
London
www.atdscaffoldingltd.co.uk
BC Printing Ltd
Glasgow
www.bcprinting.co.uk
Best Foods Ltd
London
www.bestfoods.eu
Buildeo Limited
London
www.buildeo.co.uk
Capital Business Links Ltd
London
www.cblfinance.com
Carter Lemon Camerons LLP
London
www.cartercamerons.com
CEW Holdings
London
www.cewgroup.co.uk
City & Country Financial Services Ltd
London
www.cityandcountryfs.com
Claire Watson Photography
Edinburgh
www.clairewatson.co.uk
Delta Accounting Ltd
Leeds
www.deltaacc.co.uk
Drogon Marketing Ltd
Edinburgh
www.drogonmarketing.com
Eevolution
Wroclaw
www.eevolution.pl
Emito.net
Edinburgh
www.emito.net
England.pl Ltd
London
www.england.pl
Enterprise Europe Network
London
www.enterprise-europe.co.uk
Eprenumerata
London
www.eprenumerata.co.uk
eskom IT Ltd
London
www.eskom.eu
Eurotarget
Edinburgh
www.eurotarget.co.uk
Eurotext Translation
London
www.eurotext.uk
Ewa Jasinska Ltd
Leeds
www.ewajasinska.com
Expo Stars Interactive Ltd
Manchester
www.expostars.com
Financial Brokers Ltd
Manchester
www.financialbrokers.co.uk
FX7 Solutions Ltd
London
www.fx7.co.uk
Gillespie Macandrew LLP
Edinburgh
www.gillespiemacandrew.co.uk
Golden Horseman Theatre
London
Golden Houses Developments Ltd
London
www.goldenhouses.co.uk
Goniec Polski
London
www.goniec.com
Mixer Media Group Ltd
London
www.mixerradio.co.uk
GottaBe!
Southampton
www.gottabemarketing.co.uk
Hetman Construction Ltd
London
www.hetmanconstruction.co.uk
IMD Solicitors LLP
England
www.imd.co.uk
Insolve Plus Ltd
London
www.insolveplus.com
Integris Communications Ltd
Edinburgh
www.integriscomms.co.uk
JP Project Management Ltd
London
www.joannagroup.com
JS Deco
Wakefield
www.jsdeco.co.uk
Just In a Word
London
www.justinaword.com
Justycja Ltd
Glasgow
www.justycja.co.uk
Kotrak Ltd
London
www.kotrak.co.uk
Lady Business Club
Warsaw
www.ladybusinessclub.com
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Langoa Translations
London
www.langoa.eu
LCL UK Ltd
London
www.lcluk.com
Life Networker
Manchester
www.lifenetworker.com
Limaks Pilling
London
www.limaks.co.uk
London Business Acacemy
London
www.lonba.co.uk
Londynek.net
London
www.londynek.net
MagazynPL
Southampton
www.magazynpl.co.uk
Malgorzata Litwin
London
Merseyside Polonia
Liverpool
www.merseysidepolonia.com
Nabas International Lawyers
London
www.nabaslegal.com
NatWest Business
London
www.business.natwest.com
Neadoo Digital Ltd
London
www.neadoo.com
OazaSnu.pl
Poland
www.oazasnu.pl
One Money Mail Ltd T/A Sami Swoi
London
www.przekazypieniezne.com
Perfect Blinds UK
Barnsley
www.perfectblindsuk.co.uk
Picklemedia Consultancy Ltd
Edinburgh
www.picklemedia.com
Poland Medical
London
www.polskaprzychodnia.co.uk
Polbuilt ltd
Glasgow
www.polbuilt.co.uk
Polish Family Support Centre
Edinburgh
www.pcpr.org.uk
Polish Taste
Glasgow
www.polishtaste.co.uk
Polska Grupa Medialna
London
www.elondyn.co.uk
PractiPol Health & Safety
London
www.practipol.com
Prestige Financial Advisers Ltd
Barnet
www.pfadvisors.co.uk
Regency Resorts
Tenerife
www.regencyresorts.com
Removal Experts LTD
London
www.removalexperts.co.uk
RocketRyder Ltd
London
Rozdale Ltd
London
www.rozdale.com
RS Machinery Ltd
London
www.rsmachinery.eu
Sanders Geeson Chartered Accountants
Wakefield
www.sandersgeeson.co.uk
Schneider Group
London
www.schneider-group.com
Sescom Ltd
London
www.sescom.eu
Simpkins & Co Solicitors
London
www.simpkinsand.co.uk
SLT Media
Coventry
www.sltmedia.com
Strathesk Resolutions
London
www.strathesk.co.uk
Szybka Paczka
London
www.szybkapaczka.co.uk
Team@One Ltd
London
www.teamatone.co.uk
Turpin Barker Armstrong
London
www.turpinbainsolvency.co.uk
Urban REC
London
www.urbanrec.eu
WAT Venture Sp. z o.o.
Krakow
www.watventure.pl
Werb.pl - Strony internetowe
Poland
www.werb.pl
Wilkins Kennedy LLP
London
www.wilkinskennedy.com
Witold Wisniewski
Edinburgh
www.witoldwisniewski.org
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