News
Quartet of award nominations for R&Co Communications
Collaboration streamlines running of business for Spaghetti Agency
A West Midlands communications agency is celebrating a quartet of award nominations just weeks after taking home its first national prize. R&Co Communications has been shortlisted for the national CIPR (Chartered Institute of Public Relations) Excellence Awards in the Healthcare/Wellbeing Campaign category, for its ongoing work with Anderson Moores Veterinary Specialists (AMVS) around a deadly dog disease known as Alabama Rot. R&Co represents AMVS as part of its work for Mars Petcare-owned Linnaeus, one of the UK’s biggest veterinary groups. In the same week, Leamington Spa and Birmingham-based R&Co was also nominated for the Low Budget Campaign Award, Media Relations Award and Small
Spaghetti Agency’s Co-Director, Todd, described the way the business previously worked, juggling a variety of apps and tools, as being "like holding things together with sticky tape," leading to duplicate data and inefficiencies. Looking for a fix, Spaghetti Agency reached out to Magnetar IT, who recommended Zoho One. The digital makeover started by smoothly connecting Zoho CRM with Outlook 365 and Vonage. This combination captures every client interaction, making their sales process more efficient, said the agency. They also added Zoho Bookings to simplify scheduling and Zoho Flow to link their website forms with CRM, so they can respond faster to client enquiries. The company has streamlined its business operations, creating an integrated system. But it's more than just smooth running. This tech upgrade allows Spaghetti Agency to deliver their "Everywhere Package," ensuring their clients stand out across all platforms, from blogs to social media, and email marketing to video podcasts. Todd, delighted with Zoho's impact, said: "It's saving us thousands; it's paid for itself and more." Fellow Co-Director, Jo Ciriani, recalls the business before Zoho, stating: "Life was way more chaotic!"
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sign of how far we’ve come and where we are heading.” R&Co was established in 1979 and was previously known as Newsline PR. It is a fullservice PR agency with clients in a range of B2B and B2C sectors including veterinary, property, security and logistics.
Surprise 1st birthday party for IT business to mark successful first year
Bosses at an online marketing firm are thrilled with a new collaboration that has helped the business to streamline its processes and truly focus on its clients. Spaghetti Agency, known for its bold spirit and unique approach, is excited to share the significant impact of teaming up with local IT experts Magnetar IT and using Zoho One software. Staff feel the collaboration has hugely boosted Warwick-based Spaghetti Agency's efficiency and organisation.
Consultancy of the Year Award in the Midlands PRCA Dare Awards. The latest string of nominations for the family-run agency follows its first national award, the PR Campaign of the Year, which it collected at the Veterinary Marketing Association Awards in London in March. R&Co Managing Director Peter Robinson said: “The success of our agency in recent years is thanks to a deliberate strategy of appointing outstanding talent to our team. “This is paying off not just in terms of our client growth, but in the recognition we are starting to gain through award successes such as these. “We’re up against some real industry heavyweights in these awards, which is a
An experienced IT consultant who took the plunge to launch his own business in Coventry received a surprise on its 12-month anniversary. René Wheeler, who has 30 years’ experience in the IT and telecoms sector, set-up SolaaS (Solutions As A Service) from an office at the Coventry Transport Museum in the city centre to provide customers with flexible monthly contracts instead of fixed three-to-five-year deals for telephones, retail security and connectivity services, and has grown to achieve a turnover that has surpassed expectations. Within 12 months, the business has secured more than 30 clients throughout
the UK including school and college academies, a leisure and tourism organisation, and commercial and industrial businesses as well as becoming partners with global, awardwinning cloud telecoms company Wildix. René’s wife, Michaela, who is also Operations Manager, decided to throw a surprise birthday party to mark SolaaS’s achievements which have included the business being voted Start-up Business of the Year for the West Midlands at The FSB Celebrating Small Business Awards. René said: “I’ve just been super lucky with recruitment. Every position we’ve recruited we’ve just got the best people. We wouldn’t have achieved what we have had it not been for the people we have. It’s been fundamental. “I’ve had challenges over the year, but I’ve got such a loyal base of people around me that they’ve made it really quite plain sailing.” SolaaS now employs six people including two apprentices to develop the business’s skills for the future and more recruitment is on the horizon.
“We’ve laid the foundations for many more years in business,” he said. “We’re twice the size of what I expected so goal-setting for next year, we’ve got to think much bigger. We’re building a community of customers and that’s how we want to grow the business.” Since launching the business from scratch, René has received mentoring and guidance from Coventry and Warwickshire Growth Hub’s Jim Vithanage. “Jim has proved to be a fantastic mentor with his sound advice and guidance every step of the way,” René added. “He has encouraged me to attend networking events and I’ve joined CW Champions which I’ve found really helpful.” Jim Vithanage, Account Manager at the Coventry and Warwickshire Growth Hub, said: “Grant funding is not always necessary because knowledge and mentoring are equally important, if not more so. The Growth Hub provides this through our experienced Account Managers. “René has been so open to developing, expanding and stepping out of his comfort zone and he wants a business that fits his standards.”
Warwick HR firm partners with global brand to boost local businesses Five years on from establishing Warwick HR, Kathryn Brooks, HR Director, has relocated her business to larger premises for the second time – a necessary move to cope with strong growth and to facilitate face-to-face workshops and training. In addition to offering outsourced HR and recruitment support to firms of all sizes and sectors across the UK, Warwick HR is proud to have become an independent Everything DiSC Authorised Partner in 2024. You may have heard of DiSC assessments being used during the recruitment process, as they give people a quick and intuitive way to understand themselves and others. They enable employers to evaluate applicants for compatibility by identifying them as being one of four basic behavioural styles — Dominance, Influence, Steadiness and Conscientiousness — but as valuable as this application is, there are other great ways to utilise this insight beyond recruitment.
Business owners and management can use DiSC profiling to significantly improve team communication, as strategies can be tailored to match the preferences of each behavioural style, leading to more effective and efficient interactions. Additionally, conflict can be more easily resolved within teams, with managers able to address disagreements by utilising everyone’s DiSC profiles. Members of the Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber can now achieve all this and more with a local independent Everything DiSC Authorised Partner in their midst. Now they’ve settled into their new, larger premises, both existing Warwick HR clients and those new to the company can access this vital insight and benefit from face-toface DiSC training, helping an increasing number of businesses to encourage a more positive and productive culture. This partnership with Everything DiSC will give Warwick HR clients the opportunity to enhance teamwork
and reduce misunderstandings within their teams, and create a more cohesive, understanding and resilient environment – it’s the key to unlocking the full potential of so many local businesses, empowering everyone to work better together. You can now find Warwick HR at Charles Court on Budbrooke Road, or visit warwickhr.com to learn more about the company’s partnership with Everything DiSC.
www.cw-chamber.co.uk