Business Leader Magazine: Issue 8

Issue 8: May - June 2019

Meet one of the most influential women in tech BLM finds out more about the career of Marta Krupinska

Which sector is Amazon looking to disrupt next?

Page 14 Why is the UK so far behind when it comes to ‘Smart Cities’?

Page 34 Marco Pierre White on why he is just a romantic idealist

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THE UK’S LEADING TECH AWARDS

The Go:Tech Awards are now open for entry and businesses from across the UK – operating in every sector – are encouraged to enter.

VISIT WWW.GOTECHAWARDS.CO.UK TO FIND OUT MORE

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FROM THE EDITOR

18 26 52 35 BUSINESS LEADER COLUMNISTS:

CHARLIE MULLINS OBE CEO, PIMLICO PLUMBERS

LATEST NEWS

Breaking business news from around the world and UK. Featuring news on Purplebricks, Loungers & Superdry

SPECIAL REPORT MARK PEARSON FOUNDER, FUEL VENTURES

GREG LE TOCQ FOUNDER, CLOUD SAVINGS COMPANY, WHICH OWNS VOUCHERCLOUD

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

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What does the future hold for Amazon? What sectors will they disrupt?

BLM FAST TRACK

ASSET BASED LENDING

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TRADE

42

How to launch your business in India

REGIONAL

FOCUS

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Marta Krupinska talks diversity in business and what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur

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Is asset-based lending the right lever to fund growth in your business?

Business Leader profiles the fastest growing companies in the UK. This edition is Oxford Summer Courses

INTERNATIONAL

SAM SMITH CHIEF EXECUTIVE, FINNCAP

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COVER STORY

LEADERSHIP

SERIES

28

How should you respond to a major crisis in your business?

SMART CITIES

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BLM looks at what a Smart City is and investigates why UK cities are so far behind their global counterparts

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What challenges are facing the Bristol City Region?

MARCO-PIERRE

WHITE

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The legendary chef gives a no holds barred interview

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LATEST NEWS

Ascot Group founder headlines at ‘Scale Up Summit’

EDITORIAL Oli Ballard - Editor E: editor@businessleader.co.uk Barney Cotton - Assistant Editor E: barney.cotton@businessleader.co.uk Joanna Jones - Assistant Editor E: joanna.jones@businessleader.co.uk DESIGN/PRODUCTION Adam Whittaker - Senior Designer E: adam.whittaker@businessleader.co.uk Melissa Larkin - Website Development E: melissa.larkin@businessleader.co.uk Kirstie Wood - Digital Communications E: kirstie.wood@businessleader.co.uk SALES Sam Clark - Business Development Manager E: sam.clark@businessleader.co.uk OPERATIONS Lucy Dennis - Operations Manger E: lucy.dennis@businessleader.co.uk CIRCULATION Adrian Warburton - Circulation Manager E: adrian.warburton@businessleader.co.uk ACCOUNTS Jo Meredith - Finance Manager E: joanne.meredith@businessleader.co.uk Ashley Cartman - Finance Director E: ashley.cartman@businessleader.co.uk MANAGING DIRECTOR Andrew Scott - Managing Director E: andrew@businessleader.co.uk

CIRCULATION/SUBSCRIPTION Business Leader Magazine is a UK-wide publication and is published six times a year. Subscription costs £90 (one year), £160 (two years) and £240 (three years). Business Leader, 502 Worle Parkway, Weston-super-Mare, BS22 6WA. No part of Business Leader Magazine may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the editor.

Business Leader magazine will make every effort to return picture material, but this is at the owner’s risk. Due to the nature of the print process, images can be subject to colour variation of up to 15%, therefore Business Leader Magazine cannot be held responsible for such variations.

If you would like to get involved or have any news you would like to share, please contact us on 020 3096 0020 or email: editor@businessleader.co.uk.

Ascot Group founder Andrew Scott was one of the main speakers at the recent ‘Scale Up Summit’ held in Bristol.

At the event the message was clear: scale-ups are integral to the UK economy and bring vital innovation, yet many owners of would-be scale-ups are unaware of the support available.

Josh Robson, Head of External Affairs for the ScaleUp Institute, said that scaleups account for £1.3tn of £1.9tn total UK annual turnover, yet 40% of scaleups do not feel they have access to the finance they need.

He said: “Easier access to public sector finance is crucial. The ecosystem is not about pumping money into something, it’s about creating something selfsustaining.”

The British Business Bank and Viper Innovations also attended alongside Andrew Scott, founder and CEO of Ascot Group, who listed three top tips for ambitious entrepreneurs.

Rule 1: Talk to customers “A lot of scale-ups work on strategy and team building and talk to their investors but forget their customers,” Andrew said. “Talk to your customers every day.

Pick up the phone. In five minutes, you’ll get more insight about your business

Award-Winning Legal Advisers to Regional Businesses 2

than you will from talking to anyone else.”

Rule 2: Focus on the numbers For Andrew, that means revenue, costs, daily customer acquisition targets – the works.

He warned: “Sometimes you get so involved in your business you, start losing track, and then in a few months it all comes home to roost.”

Rule 3: Be relentless “Be a machine,” Andrew told the crowd.

“Go after it like your life depends on it.

You can never take your foot off the gas if you’re going to build a sustainable, high-growth business.”

This 100% commitment trickles down through organisations.

“Your team will take your lead,” Andrew added. “If you are relentless, your team will go to hell and back with you.”

Despite concerns surrounding the looming end to EU funding, the speakers of Scale Up Summit were optimistic for aspiring UK scale-ups. From a wealth of untapped private and public sector funds to the many lively forums for vital advice available, as Andrew Scott said: “There’s never been a better time in history to start a business.”

0117 925 2020 vwv.co.uk Issue 8: May - June 2019

LATEST NEWS

Shares drop as Purplebricks founder steps down Purplebricks has seen its shares drop more than 8% after its founder and CEO Michael Bruce resigned with immediate effect.

Previous Chief Operating Officer Vic Darvey will replace Bruce as CEO. Darvey joined Purplebricks in January 2019 having previously worked as Managing Director of Moneysupermarket.com Group plc. The online estate agency also announced its withdrawal from the Australian market and a planned review of its business in the US. A statement to Purplebricks investors expressed confidence in the company’s operations in Canada and the UK. Paul Pindar, Non Executive Chairman said: “With hindsight, our rate of geographic expansion was too rapid and as a result, the quality of execution has suffered. We will learn from these errors and will not make them again.”

FOR SALE

Loungers PLC floats on London Stock Exchange Loungers PLC recently floated on the London Stock Exchange after raising £83m ahead of its initial public offer (IPO).

Loungers began trading on Monday at 200 pence per share, giving the company a market capitalisation of £185m at listing price. This falls short of the £250m some analysts predicted.

Loungers owns 146 bars under the Lounge and Cosy Club brands. It announced

its listing plans in April and received £42.5m funding from Santander.

Shareholder Lion Capital still holds a 39% stake and founders Alex Reilley and Jake Bishop and other senior managers together continue to hold 16% of the firm.

Last financial year, Loungers PLC reported adjusted EBITDA of £16.6m with a revenue of £121.1m.

You could be eligible for R&D Tax Credits You might be surprised by what can qualify as R&D (it’s not always about white coats and hadron colliders).

We’ve helped numerous businesses claim back significant sums of money in all sorts of sectors.

Here’s one bit of research you needn’t spend any more time on.

Ask us about your own tax affairs today.

Find out more: rdtc@burton-sweet.co.uk | 01934 620011 @burtonsweet | www.burton-sweet.co.uk Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

tax advisers

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LATEST NEWS

Superdry cofounder returns as CEO following row with board

ADVERTORIAL:

CASTLE BUSINESS FINANCE GETS VANGO TRANSPORT MOVING

C

astle Business Finance has helped take new business Vango Transport into top gear thanks to finance solutions that work.

The founder of Superdry, Julian Dunkerton, has won a narrow victory to be reinstated to the company Board.

The Superdry Board has been vocal that, for them, Dunkerton is not welcome.

Previously, on 11th March 2019, the Board threatened to resign or not seek re-election if Julian Dunkerton was reinstated. Dunkteron won a shareholder vote by a slim margin, with 51.15% in favour of his return.

Peter Bamford, Chairman of Superdry, said: “Whilst the Board was unanimous in its view that the resolutions should be rejected and 74% of shareholders other than Julian and James have voted against, there was a narrow overall majority in favour and we accept that outcome.”

Julian Dunkerton left Superdry a year ago but has since blamed the company’s management for poor sales performance. Since his departure, share prices have slid by 65%, but there is disagreement between Dunkerton and his successor, Euan Sutherland, as to who is to blame.

Julian Dunkerton still owns 18% of Superdry.

Two major institutional shareholders, Investec and Schroders, backed Dunkerton’s return.

Together, the two own 10% of Superdry shares.

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After a successful career as a market trader in London, Peter Coath could see the decline of the high street and was looking for a new business opportunity. With an increase in online purchasing, Peter spotted the opportunity to move into delivery instead.

In late 2018, Peter set up on his own.

However, one of the first issues he faced was funding his new business when he was reliant on customers with longer payment terms.

Peter explained: “When I was running the market stall as soon as I sold something I would receive payment immediately, and so it was a big step to having to wait for payment. That meant that I couldn’t run my business or pay my own invoices until I was paid myself.”

When looking at his options to finance this new venture, Peter was introduced to invoice finance through factoring, and was recommended Castle Business Finance.

“I’d never heard of factoring before and was introduced to it by a colleague in the industry. It seemed alien and scary at first but I knew it would solve my problems as otherwise there would have been no way to afford my own food or fuel.

growing steadily. Castle’s factoring offering is really good value for money and one that I will continue to use as I grow the business. Administration was never really my thing and the service they offer means that they will chase the invoices for me, allowing me to spend more time on the road.

Castle make it easy for me and they understand my business.”

Jeremy Coombes, Managing Director of Castle, added: “For many businesspeople whilst they know their own business and markets, finance isn’t a strength. Many people instinctively shy away from it or expect lending decisions to be an automatic ‘no’ for new ventures.

“However, this doesn’t always have to be the case as we’re independent of the high street funding sources and have the autonomy to be able to make our own decisions. Finding the right finance solution, like Peter has, doesn’t have to be difficult and can often even make your life easier by letting us handle your customer payments, allowing you to focus on growing your business.”

For more information on Castle Business Finance, visit www.castlebusinessfinance.com or call 01275 390660.

“Since I started using Castle for funding, my business has been Issue 8: May - June 2019

SALFORD BUSINESS SCHOOL In partnership with industry

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OUR STUDENTS GAIN REAL-WORLD EXPERIENCE; YOU ACCESS HIGH-QUALITY, BRIGHT AND ENTHUSIASTIC STUDENTS Find out more about your opportunities to work with us www.salford.ac.uk/business-school +44 (0)161 295 2222 sbs-admin@salford.ac.uk

BECOME UNSTOPPABLE

LATEST NEWS

UK employees work the longest hours but are the least productive – and office flirting is to blame The productivity gap continues to make headlines with recent OECD statistics showing that British workers are on average 8% less productive per hour than workers in the US, 11% less productive than French workers and 14% down on Germans.

A new study indicates there might be a simple reason for the gap – the British office culture.

According to the nationwide survey, the average British office employee manages to get through just three hours of actual work per day, despite working longer hours than anywhere else in Europe.

The research found that the average office worker spends up to five hours on non-work related activity every day, including chatting

and flirting with colleagues, online shopping, and doing the tea run.

When you combine this with the fact that British workers stay longer in the office than their European counterparts, it’s no surprise the output per hour is low.

The study, by Ginger Research, found a culture of long working hours persists, with almost half (46 %) of British workers admitting they routinely stayed at work longer than they need to because everyone else does.

In fact, around one in ten (12%) of Brits said they work overtime with the sole purpose of

LISTEN

looking busy, not because of the pressure of their work loads.

And 30% admitted that they could be more productive than they are, while 17% claimed that, if their bosses knew what they were really doing at work, there would be trouble.

THINK

CREATE

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B R A N D

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A D V E RT I S I N G

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S T R AT E GY

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W E B S I T E S

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D I G I TA L

Advertising | Marketing | Design

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D E S I G N

Issue 8: May - June 2019

ADVERTORIAL

QChoice brings greater flexibility to SMEs

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espite the SME market accounting for approximately 60% of all private sector employment (Federation of Small Businesses), for one reason or another this group has the fewest employee related benefits. QChoice can help SMEs redress the balance.

The challenge The ongoing challenges of talent attraction and retention strategy remain as strong as ever, especially with the growing needs and expectations of today’s workforce. In a ‘war for talent’ where many smaller businesses find themselves competing for skilled talented people with larger employers, SMEs need to find ways of making their employee proposition more attractive.

product is sourced with a specific provider that Quantum has selected for the strength and comprehensiveness of their product. The pre-selection of each provider means that the employer does not need to incur time and expenditure determining their preferred provider for each benefit within the QChoice portal. This approach is beneficial particularly to SMEs as it allows them to save cost typically associated with market reviews, and instead only focus on the overall suitability of QChoice for their flexible benefit arrangements.

Struggling to engage staff?

Quantum’s solution has been designed with an intuitive user journey to enable simple benefit selection and to empower employees

Time for change The flexible benefit market has traditionally always been linked with the large corporate arena, however the SME market is seen as the next big growth area for flex. The main drivers behind the trend for flex among SMEs are falling costs to set up an arrangement and simpler web-based administration systems that allow relatively small workforces to access a self-service menu of benefits.

About QChoice Quantum Advisory has developed ‘QChoice’, a flexible benefits solution designed specifically to meet the needs and challenges of the SME market. QChoice provides a range of benefits, from lifestyle, through to protection and employee wellbeing benefits. Each QChoice

Contact us on the number/email address below to learn more about our offering. Richard Beddall: Direct: 02920 105116 Email: richard.beddall@quantumadvisory.co.uk

and encourage them to self-select benefits.

Quantum’s portal allows employers to personalise content to attract the attention of their employees’ and meet the increasingly varied needs of today’s diverse and multigeneration workforce.

What do employees want?

Understanding employees’ motivations towards benefits is a vital ingredient in the successful launch of a flex scheme. Smaller firms usually find it easier to survey staff in order to discover which benefits they would most value. This then makes it easier to tailor their flex package accordingly and avoid making the mistakes of offering too many benefits that staff may not take up. Quantum can help with this process by providing employee survey materials that can be used to understand employees’ opinions and thereby help with the selection of benefits to place within their own portal.

Understanding the hidden costs of recruitment Many organisations tend to underestimate the costs associated with recruitment and retention. These costs fall into two distinct areas, firstly the cost of lost output while a replacement employee gets up to speed, and secondly the logistical cost of recruiting and absorbing a new worker. Quantum can work with employers to reduce these costs, by implementing a flexible benefits scheme that has been designed specifically around tailoring benefits that resonate with employees that help to retain them.

www.quantumadvisory.co.uk

Quantum Actuarial LLP, trading as Quantum Advisory, Registration Number: OC326665, registered in England and Wales. Quantum Actuarial LLP is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered office: Cypress House, Pascal Close, St Mellons, Cardiff CF3 0LW. A list of all members is available for inspection at our registered office.

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

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LATEST NEWS

Jordans Group enters new era of global growth as it completes its rebrand to Vistra

NATIONAL DEALS ROUND-UP Retail: National retailer Mothercare has agreed to sell its Early Learning Centre (ELC) brand to the owner of the children’s toy shop chain, The Entertainer for £13.5m.

The disposal allows struggling Mothercare to accelerate the reduction of its bank debt, providing the financial flexibility and resources to support its core strategic initiatives.

Finance: British global payment processing firm Worldpay has been sold in a £32bn deal to Florida-based Fidelity National Information Services (FIS). The deal consists of £26.5bn being paid in cash and shares, with the remaining figure including Worldpay’s debt.

Jason Burgoyne

Justin Damer

Jordans Group has entered a new era of global growth following completion of its rebranding to Vistra.

Established for over 150 years, and employing over 140 personnel in the UK, Jordans unique team of lawyers, accountants, trust managers, data specialists and company formation agents was acquired by Vistra – one of the world’s leading global corporate service, trust and fund administration providers – in December 2016.

“We have always provided our clients with opportunities to do business throughout the world,” said Jason Burgoyne, Managing Director, Corporate Services at Vistra. “But being part of a global group with presence in 46 jurisdictions has opened up exciting new opportunities for our clients over the last two years. This has helped us to win new business and enhanced the service we offer to existing clients.

“The completion of the rebrand confirms we are now fully embedded into an integrated, full-service global business. At a time when many UK businesses are looking further afield because of the changes Brexit may bring, we are now ideally positioned to help UK companies successfully establish their operations overseas, as well as enable international companies who wish to establish a presence in the UK.” Commenting on the rebranding completion, Justin Damer, Divisional Managing Director of Corporate and Private Clients at Vistra, said, “We are delighted that Jordans Group is now a fully integrated part of the Vistra family. This further strengthens our presence in the UK and expands our service offerings in Europe to include business information services as well as giving us one of the strongest footprints in the UK for company formations and corporate services. With the inclusion of legal services through Vistra Corporate Law, we now have a platform to grow our legal advisory offering.”

“We look forward to leveraging our local expertise and Vistra’s global network to create further opportunities for our clients and employees.”

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FIS provides similar electronic payment services, as well as software for the US finance sector.

Technology: Cybersecurity firm Secarma Ltd has taken a 13.3% stake in Shearwater Group PLC, in a deal worth £7.4m.

The transaction sees Secarma, a provider of penetration testing and cloud security solutions, sell its Pentest subsidiary to Shearwater. Secarma is owned by UKFast founder and CEO Lawrence Jones MBE.

Employment: Recruitment company Sellick Partnership Limited has sold a majority stake to Samsic, one of Europe’s largest soft service providers.

The existing management team, led by founder and Managing Director Jo Sellick, will retain a significant stake in the business and continue to lead the business, with Samsic taking on a strategic advisory role.

Delivery: Cook Corporate have acted on the sale of the postal management company ONEPOST to The Delivery Group.

ONEPOST has its head office in Portishead and last year had a turnover of £100m. They handle millions of UK and international mail items every day.

Manufacturing: Following European Commission approval, Kongsberg Maritime parent company Kongsberg Gruppen has completed the acquisition of Rolls-Royce Commercial Marine (RRCM) for £500m.

Officially part of Kongsberg Maritime, RRCM will operate under the Kongsberg brand and the Kongsberg Maritime legal entity.

Issue 8: May - June 2019

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COVER STORY

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Issue Issue7:8: March May -- June April 2019

MARTA KRUPINSKA

Meet the woman shaking up the UK start-up scene Marta Krupinska talks to BLM about her career as a tech entrepreneur and plans for the future

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arta Krupinska has co-founded three companies and lived in four countries. As one of the most influential women in tech, a proud migrant entrepreneur, and an outspoken diversity advocate, she is determined to make waves as the new Head of Google for StartUps UK. From her impressive roster of tech businesses to her plans for her role in Google, Marta tells BLM what makes her tick.

CAN YOU TELL OUR READERS ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND?

their salaries ahead of payday, so they don’t have to borrow money at very high cost.

I’ve been in the tech and start-up world for the last twelve years, ever since founding my first company in Krakow, Poland. The UK is the fourth country that I’ve lived in.

All of these experiences, especially in the last year, have reminded me how incredible but also how hard and complex it is to start a business from scratch.

I arrived here in 2012 and co-founded Azimo, an online money transfer platform which allows migrants anywhere in Europe to send money home. The business grew to have well over a million customers in 26 countries by the time I stepped down.

This has reignited my passion for supporting entrepreneurs and helping them to succeed in their journey, especially those who come from underrepresented backgrounds and those who want to build companies that bring social impact as well as financial outcomes.

I left just over a year ago. Since then, I also founded a new start-up in the fintech space that helps give employees access to

YOU HAVE ALSO RECENTLY STARTED A ROLE AT GOOGLE. WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE? I head up Google for Start-Ups in the UK. It is the part of Google that is looking to support, educate and accelerate the start-up ecosystem.

One of my opportunities in the role is to shake up what the focus for Google for Start-Ups is in the UK. London is the second Silicon Valley – we have an incredibly robust and rich digital ecosystem in which there is fantastic knowledge, access to funding, and access to talent. We need to keep ensuring everybody In the ecosystem benefits from this.

Cont.  Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

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COVER STORY

IN YOUR OPINION, WHAT ARE THE MAIN BARRIERS THAT FOUNDERS AND ENTREPRENEURS FACE IN THE UK? The barriers entrepreneurs face are global and not unique to the UK. When you are building a company from scratch, the challenges are broadly similar, whether that’s access to funding and talent or friendly regulation.

MARTA KRUPINSKA FACT FILE Tech business Azimo went on to raise $70m (£55m) in funding and became one of the fastestgrowing fintech companies in the world, while Krupinska was named one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30 in the finance division.

The question of access to funding is particularly important, especially for first-time founders who don’t come from backgrounds of privilege. It’s harder for them, through no fault of their own. They can’t call up their mate from Eton and ask for a favour with their first fundraising round.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE AS A MIGRANT ENTREPRENEUR IN LONDON? Going into a new ecosystem is always going to be harder than staying in the one with your network – your parents’ friends, your school mates. But by and large, look where I got to. It’s been wonderful, and it’s clearly possible to survive and thrive as a migrant entrepreneur. I’ve also been incredibly lucky to meet fantastic people along the way, including my co-founders from Azimo, who have helped me with the process.

Having said that, we come back to the same challenge. Access to talent, to networks, to capital. When you’re new to a place, and you don’t have those networks, it’s more difficult.

YOU’VE BEEN NAMED AS ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN IN TECH AND FINTECH. WHAT MESSAGE WOULD YOU LIKE TO GIVE TO ASPIRING FEMALE ENTREPRENEURS? I really want to believe that there are some universal truths that you would give to both male and female entrepreneurs. This is a very nuanced discussion, and one that I try to avoid answering in one sentence. We could have a whole separate conversation about being a female entrepreneur, about how we’re socialised, how we’re expected to behave a certain way, and the types of challenges that women have to overcome.

For now, I’ll point to the fact that role models are incredibly important. I’m very happy to see that increasingly there are role models we can all look to, and that they can give aspiring female entrepreneurs the hope that they will be able to do the same thing.

Through grit and hard work, there are more and more women who have made it, and I 12

hope with them at the helm, we’ll see more women following through.

WHAT DEVELOPMENTS ARE YOU MOST EXCITED ABOUT IN THE UK START-UP SCENE CURRENTLY? I think the social impact theme is incredibly exciting. And I increasingly see investment funds which are interested in working with founders that are trying to solve social problems – even large, established funds which have historically been solely interested in financial returns.

There are funds that want diverse founders, or which invest only in women, or in people of colour. I’m excited that these start-ups are no longer being seen as charity cases – the

money-makers, the capitalists, are coming together and saying that they want to invest in diverse, impactful talent.

WHAT IS THE ONE PIECE OF ADVICE YOU’D LIKE TO GIVE START-UPS? A first class strategy paired with second class execution will always be inferior to second class strategy paired with first class execution.

Especially in a small and nimble company, it’s vital to prove that you can work hard, get your product to market, and find customers.

Execution is at the core of everything.

Strategy is still important, but you need to go, test, learn – and execute. 

Issue 8: May - June 2019

Integrity. Rigour. Success.

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SPECIAL REPORT

Special report:

What does the future hold for Amazon?

G

ordon Fletcher from Salford Business School lifts the lid on what the global business giant Amazon is planning next.

This article will look at the company’s success to date and ask the question – what other sectors might it pivot into? For example, could it disrupt the traditional model of banking, considering its balance sheet and customer base?

After 20 years of trading, Amazon is now regarded as the ultimate e-commerce success story. The path to success has been difficult, controversial and dramatic enough to produce a range of books documenting the company’s history.

The future for this giant is equally complex but more importantly, it is not solely to be found online. Amazon has already started buying traditional retail chains and is opening its own ‘bricks and mortar’ stores but at its heart, it will continue to succeed because it is a data-driven business.

It is not just that 10% of Amazon’s revenue comes from Amazon Web Services (AWS), its cloud-based data services business.

By being self-conscious of the central importance of data to its business model, it means that everything else Amazon does can be fluid.

FAILED FIRE PHONE PROJECT This also results in some of its experiments

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failing. Nobody ever talks about the Fire phone project, even though the listing can still be easily found on Amazon. Some services remain in a continuous state of evolution.

This is most acutely seen in the efforts to define a business model that can offer rapid and local delivery of small and perishable items. The original attempt to access this market appeared as the free Kozmo.com service in the US but is now integrated into Amazon for an additional fee.

IMPACT OF ALEXA The Alexa voice assistant remains the next big opportunity for Amazon. By bringing voice interfaces into the mainstream (and the living room and kitchen), the ability for Amazon to be the voice and service at the other end of the line only increases its opportunities to monetise engagement with customers within its ecosystem.

Patents have been filed recently specifically describing extensions to the capabilities of Alexa that take engagement into new datadriven customer services. All this means that Amazon is continuously learning from the

data it gathers to deliver services consumers want, that are combined together in ways that can generate more revenue for the company.

The advantage in building an encompassing consumer ecosystem is that regular customers are increasingly likely to purchase immediately without making any comparisons. With customers not looking at other online prices or considering their local and high street prices, Amazon already has a tactical advantage over its many competitors in the retail sector – as well as any sector in which it chooses to experiment.

Any sector that is ready for data-driven transformation is a potential target for being brought into the Amazon ecosystem.

There are already many hints through its recent acquisitions as to what Amazon is considering as their next big thing.

AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES Amazon’s 2019 purchase of the autonomous vehicle company Aurora is too sensible to ignore. The Christmas 2018 launch of the AWS DeepRacer 1/18th model car joins the dots very clearly.

“AMAZON’S INVESTMENT SO FAR IN FINANCIAL SERVICES HAS BEEN WITH THE DISRUPTIVE FINTECH SECTOR IN SPECIFIC COUNTRIES. THIS MAKES SENSE. THE FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY IS HIGHLY REGULATED AND VERY DIFFERENT IN EVERY COUNTRY WHERE AMAZON CURRENTLY OPERATES. COUPLED WITH THE CONTINUING DOMINANCE OF TRADITIONAL BANKS IN MOST COUNTRIES, IT IS PRUDENT FOR AMAZON ITSELF TO WAIT.”

Issue 8: May - June 2019

AMAZON

The AWS badge links the vehicle with Amazon’s cloud computing service and much of the publicity about the kit presents it as an emerging esport offering with a DeepRacer League and a DeepRacer Cup. Entering the $1bn (£780m) global esports economy with a new competitive platform certainly justifies an occasional experiment. It is also worth remembering that Amazon paid nearly $1bn (£780m) five years ago to buy Twitch – the video game streaming service and more recently the augmented and virtual reality company Goo Technologies along with the network of gaming websites called Curse.

But even more attractive is the potential for Amazon to use data from DeepRacer to build a route into the multi-trillion-dollar logistics industry by developing its own autonomous trucks and cars.

The use of autonomous electric vehicles would be a significant development for the core of Amazon’s retail business. It is also unlikely that the design of the infrastructure that will deliver Amazon products to homes in the future could be comfortably left to others including potential competitors.

WILL AMAZON LAUNCH ITS OWN CAR? The investment Amazon has made into other artificial intelligence and machine learning companies including Harvest.ai and Graphiq is further evidence of an intended push into the autonomous vehicle market.

It is only with robust, highly responsive AI technologies that safe vehicles can be produced that will satisfy local regulators, Cont. 

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15

SPECIAL REPORT insurers and the Amazon customer.

Making Amazon’s own brand of autonomous cars available to consumers would be a new direction for its retail activity.

HOW REALISTIC IS THE LAUNCH OF THE BANK OF AMAZON? Much has also been said about Amazon’s potential move into the banking and financial service sector.

This is because it leads to the potential for Amazon to explore creative ways to offer different payment options for its consumers, that keep them within the ecosystem and at the same time can challenge traditional banking practices – without itself becoming the Bank of Amazon.

Amazon’s investment so far in financial services has been with the disruptive fintech sector in specific countries. This

makes sense because the financial services industry is highly regulated and very different in every country where Amazon currently operates. Coupled with the continuing dominance of traditional banks in most countries, it is prudent for Amazon itself to wait.

At the same time it can continue to support disruption and provide the ecosystem – including AWS – on which others can build their own fintech innovations. Amazon already sits on enough computing power and technical capability to develop and launch its own cryptocurrency that could rival bitcoin or Ethereum.

There are many reasons why cryptocurrency is important to Amazon. While the focus of media attention has been on the exchange price and volatility of a single bitcoin the real value of these currencies is their divisibility.

A coin can be divided into any small fraction that is required. An ability that would make micropayments for very small (digital) services commercially practical.

But taking this potentially radical course of action is only viable once there is mainstream acceptance of cryptocurrency by the core consumers in the ecosystem and there is sufficient regulation in place – not so much to protect consumers but rather to protect Amazon.

A far more attractive proposition for Amazon would be to monetise the blockchain itself by giving it an easy-to-use interface within the ecosystem that would then enable its users to create their own entries in the public ledger.

With enough soft Amazon wrapping around the technical complexities of this system, a challenge to the legal services industry would bring an entirely new level of high value and high margin services to the company.

HOW COULD IT IMPACT THE HEALTH SECTOR? Machine learning and artificial intelligence capabilities also open new opportunities in the health sector. A recently filed patent for Alexa detects when someone is ill through slight changes in their voice or audible coughing. It is unlikely that a patent of this type is a coincidence when Amazon also purchased Pillpack, a US-based online prescription service, in 2018.

Amazon appears unstoppable. As it has expanded from the relatively unregulated world of selling books there are a variety of barriers that it must overcome to expand its existing ecosystem. Both autonomous vehicles and healthcare move the company into highly regulated areas in the same way as any development into the financial services sector. The situations vary within each country that Amazon operates.

“AMAZON’S INVESTMENT SO FAR IN FINANCIAL SERVICES HAS BEEN WITH THE DISRUPTIVE FINTECH SECTOR IN SPECIFIC COUNTRIES. THIS MAKES SENSE BECAUSE THE FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY IS HIGHLY REGULATED.”

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Issue 8: May - June 2019

AMAZON

“AMAZON APPEARS UNSTOPPABLE. AS IT HAS EXPANDED FROM THE RELATIVELY UNREGULATED WORLD OF SELLING BOOKS THERE ARE A VARIETY OF BARRIERS THAT IT MUST OVERCOME TO EXPAND ITS EXISTING ECOSYSTEM.” WHAT ARE THE THREATS TO AMAZON? The government regulations around finance, cars, and health are all in place to primarily protect people. But different countries hold different views about the ways in which protection should be experienced.

For example, the centralised and public model of UK healthcare including the NHS’s tight data security may prove too big a challenge for Amazon’s 3.8% operating margin to tackle head on. However, the rise of citizen health with its encouragement of informed sharing between individuals provides a different route to monetising any Amazon health device or service.

THREAT OF DIGITAL SERVICES TAX Even more challenging for all of Amazon’s operations in the UK is the 2% digital services tax (DST) on revenue that was introduced by the Chancellor in 2018. It will be of the most marginal relief to Amazon that this tax is only applied after the first £250m of revenue.

This is unashamedly a taxing of the largest US-based Internet companies. While Facebook and Google – where operating margins are significantly higher – may not pause to reconsider their UK business models, it is closer to the bone for a retailer which saw $14.5bn (£11.4bn) worth of sales (in 2018) from its third-largest market.

The tax may be enough incentive for Amazon to move towards a bricks and mortar model in the UK, to focus on higher margin services or, more simply, to raise prices.

The tax will not see Amazon shuttered. For a company that is not afraid to experiment to extend its ecosystem and its markets, this will just be the next challenge to innovate further.

ALIBABA’S ALTERNATE ECOSYSTEM IS A THREAT Amazon’s other threat is Alibaba’s alternate ecosystem.

Currently confined primarily to China, Alibaba is as impressive as Amazon, but it is also contrasting with a more thorough embracing of financial services processing every step in a consumer’s journey. While Alibaba is not going to immediately threaten Amazon in its key markets of the US, Germany, UK or Japan it is the potential for expansion into large markets such as India where Alibaba and Amazon could meet head-to-head. 

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BUSINESS LEADER COLUMNIST

THE APPRENTICESHIP LEVY IS A DEAD DUCK

By Charlie Mullins OBE, the founder of Pimlico Plumbers.

Research from the government’s Social Mobility Commission finally revealed in December just how poorly apprenticeships are perceived by young people. The research found that just 20% of 18 to 24 year olds thought an apprenticeship offered the best opportunity for career progression, compared to 34% who thought higher education was the best way forward.

Unsurprisingly, this age group is also the most pessimistic about their future prospects – only one in seven believe their generation has the most opportunity to move up in society.

Time and time again, young adults have been let down by successive governments, starting with the madness of Tony Blair’s pledge to push 50% of school leavers into university.

I’ve often said that my biggest regret was that I didn’t leave school when I was 14 (I left at 15). Young people need to realise that that there’s more to life than academic study, but instead they’re told that in order to be successful they need to study.

Apprenticeships hold the key to solving youth unemployment and the growing skills gap. It’s down to the Government and businesses – across all types of industry (trade or services) – to show them the merits of vocational training.

Unfortunately, the Government’s current solution – the apprenticeship levy – is a dog’s dinner, and it’s making the situation worse. In the months from August 2017 to February 2018, apprenticeship starts fell from 232,700 compared with 309,000 the previous year. We’re losing apprentices faster than a burst water main loses water!

Businesses famously hate bureaucracy and taxes, and that’s essentially what this levy is. Naturally, that means businesses are going to despise the levy, and as a result apprenticeships suffer too. When the initiative was first announced back in 2015, I thought the apprenticeship levy could possibly be the solution to our skills gap. It’s clear now though that it hasn’t worked, so let’s stop flogging a dead horse and try something new! Everyone from big corporations to organisations like the Federation of Small Businesses can see that the levy is fatally flawed, so why can’t the government?

Let’s stop giving kids Jobseekers Allowance and instead ensure that every school leaver has a job, a worthwhile university degree, or an apprenticeship to go to.

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FINANCE

Is asset-based lending the right lever to fund growth in your business?

I

n each edition of Business Leader Magazine, we look at what funding options you can use to grow your business.

For this edition, asset-based lending (ABL) comes under the microscope with an assessment of the market’s growth potential.

The asset-based lending market has grown considerably in the UK in the last few years, despite not being anywhere near as sophisticated as the market in the US. 18

However, the future of the market in the UK is uncertain and a 2018 report into the sector by KPMG was, despite the market’s growth, cautious about its progress.

The report challenged the idea that this approach to funding business growth is entering a golden age.

the future of the market is this: “Over the past two decades, asset-based lending (ABL) has progressed from a little-known form of finance emanating from the US to a mainstream funding solution that is driving the powerhouse of the UK economy – the SME sector.

This article will look at what the future holds for this form of financing and what types of businesses benefit most from using it.

“This surge in popularity is set to continue, with ABL increasingly being regarded by leading advisors as a strategic management tool of choice to fund acquisitions, management buy outs and buy ins and to accelerate growth.”

IS ABL NOW A MAINSTREAM FUNDING SOLUTION? Andrew Rutherford is Commercial Director at Arbuthnot Commercial ABL. His view on

“One of the key reasons for this popularity is Issue 8: May - June 2019

ASSET-BASED LENDING the value of asset finance deals grew by 3% in the last year, compared with 10% the year before, which suggests while the market is still growing it is doing so at a slower rate than in recent years.

“This trend is replicated in other finance markets, including equity finance and market-based lending. This year, asset finance got off to a good start in 2019. In January and February combined, £2.7bn of new asset finance went to smaller businesses, which was up 10% on the same period of 2018. However, it’s too early to tell if the improvement will be sustained.”

Andrew Rutherford

SO, WHAT TYPES OF BUSINESS DOES ABL WORK BEST FOR? As the name suggests this form of financing growth benefits businesses that have assets and can therefore offer healthier multiples.

Andrew comments: “Since asset-based lending is based on asset values, it offers businesses greater financial stability and predictable cash flow. ABL is also ideally equipped to support growth as trends recover and can now also benefit a broader base of businesses.

Paul Jones

that ABL provides a higher level of finance than traditional methods – unlocking the value of all available assets, including debtors, stock, plant and machinery, and freehold and long leasehold property.”

Andrew continues: “According to the industry trade body, UK Finance, support for businesses through invoice finance and asset-based lending at the end of 2018 stood at £22.7bn, some 2.5% higher than the same period in 2017.

“Advances against certain assets other than invoices has increased substantially yearon-year, with an 18% rise in lending against stock and 16% increase in lending against plant and machinery.”

A SLOWING MARKET? Paul Jones, from the British Business Bank, believes the ABL market may be slowing, echoing the caution expressed by the KPMG report.

He says: “Research from our 2019 Small Business Finance Markets report shows that Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

“As we see the emergence of new technologies and applications coming to the forefront, such as Augmented Reality (AR), Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT) and robotics, the nature of the assets we fund will inevitably change.

Whilst technology-driven mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deals continue to grab the headlines, right now the underlying story lies with historically analogue companies embracing digital processes to leverage their competitive advantage.”

“SINCE ASSET-BASED LENDING IS BASED ON ASSET VALUES, IT OFFERS BUSINESSES GREATER FINANCIAL STABILITY AND PREDICTABLE CASH FLOW. ABL IS ALSO IDEALLY EQUIPPED TO SUPPORT GROWTH AS TRENDS RECOVER AND CAN NOW ALSO BENEFIT A BROADER BASE OF BUSINESSES.” Andrew Rutherford

Regarding the emerging trend of businesses being able to use IP and ideas as assets as well as physical assets such as machinery and property, the British Business Bank launched a research paper around the subject.

RESEARCH PAPER Paul explains more: “In October 2018, the British Business Bank, in collaboration with the Intellectual Property Office, launched a research paper that examines the challenges facing SMEs in using intellectual property as collateral for lending.

“It shows that firms with intellectual property have lower rates of default and loss than those without and suggests further avenues of enquiry to address current market failures.

“Smaller firms with intangible assets find it harder to access finance than it should be, given information asymmetries common to SME finance markets. Although there remain significant challenges to the development of a sustainable commercial IP-backed loan product, the lower rates of default and loss amongst IP-rich firms suggest lenders could at least lower the cost of lending to IP-rich firms, stimulating demand for debt in this segment. Likewise, there are opportunities to stimulate the supply of finance by supporting the use of intangible assets as collateral.”

HOW ELSE CAN YOU USE ABL? To conclude, Andrew explains that ABL is also more frequently being used as a private equity funding mix, and to stimulate M&A activity.

He says: “Asset-based lending is being used more and more as part of the private equity funding mix in deal structures when the target company has significant tangible assets. In these circumstances, you can combine ABL with a cash flow strip, delivering a higher level of funding, which is often required in private equity (PE) sponsored deals.”

“More and more businesses are now also looking to ABL as a proactive tool.

This can manifest itself as an opportunity for businesses to acquire competitors at ‘realistic’ prices, an increase in corporate divestitures of non-core businesses and a desire to capitalise on value creation and see businesses achieve the next level of success under new management.”  19

FINANCE

ASSET-BASED LENDING

NATIONAL FUNDING ROUND-UP BUSINESS LEADER COLUMNIST Property:

JUST 1P IN EVERY £1 OF VENTURE FUNDING GOES TO FEMALE LED START-UPS Sam Smith is Chief Executive of finnCap. It was recently revealed that just 1p in every £1 of venture funding goes to female led start-ups. The research conducted by the British Business Bank on behalf of the Treasury found 89% of start-up capital was invested in companies with all-male founders.

Research from management consultants McKinsey also suggests as much as $12tn (£9.4tn), or 11%, of global GDP could be added to the world economy by 2025, simply by having more women in senior management positions.

So there is a real opportunity to be grasped. But what do we nee to do?

Provide women with mentors Speaking to other successful women and working with someone that can act as a mentor is an important tool for passing experience down through the generations, for both men and women.

There remain very few female CEOs of top FTSE companies and the visibility of successful women remains a real issue.

While women are getting better at creating their own networks and mentoring programmes, it’s clear more needs to be done.

Don’t let doubt hold you back Research shows that in order to succeed, women, as opposed to men, have to exhibit pro-social behaviour. This is defined as behaviour that suggests an intent to benefit others, such as helping, sharing, donating, co-operating, and volunteering.

Women also appear to doubt themselves more than men and can be put off, for example, from raising funding, because the world of finance appears forbidding, male dominated, and jargon-led.

More effort could be made to demystify finance, particularly with regards to the sources of start-up and then scale up funding.

Education matters Education also plays a role. Women account for just 14.4% of the workforce in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) occupations. Too few girls are encouraged to study STEM subjects at school, with this year’s A-level data showing that less than 10% of computing students were girls.

The environment for female entrepreneurs in the UK is improving, however, recent research published by the Federation of Small Business estimates there has been a 40% increase in UK economic contribution and a 26% increase in employment generated by female-led businesses since 2012.

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Bristol-based property company Urban Creation has secured a £20m re-finance of its property portfolio with Handelsbanken.

The deal will underpin the company’s future growth and reflects the quality of its existing portfolio as well as the success of Urban Creation’s first foray into serviced apartments.

Property: Sentimental Care Ltd has agreed a £5.4m re-finance package with Barclays including additional funds to invest and develop its residential care home portfolio.

Sentimental delivers care home services across three residential homes in the South West and Wales, which are set to be extended.

Manufacturing: Corrugated sheet manufacturer, CorrBoard UK Limited, has received a £12m funding package from Wells Fargo Capital Finance UK. CorrBoard started trading in 2014 having been formed by a consortium of UK-based packaging companies. It is on track to achieve a turnover approaching £45m this year.

Technology: Robots and autonomous mine-hunters are set to revolutionise Royal Navy operations after the Defence Secretary announced a £75m injection into pioneering new technology.

The funding boost will be spent on two new autonomous mine-hunter vessels with cuttingedge sonars to enable remote mine-hunting at higher range, speed and accuracy in the Gulf region.

Space: British space internet start-up OneWeb has secured over £940m in new funding as the company looks to accelerate its plans to launch a global high-speed broadband network.

The firm is competing with US rival, Elon Musk’s SpaceX, to build a system where global internet coverage is possible.

Issue 8: May - June 2019

Finance

TO DRIVE your business

FORWARD Invoice. Trade. Import/Export.

Call us on 01275 390 660 Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

castlebusinessfinance.com 21

FINANCE

The rise of the ‘pre-profit business’: when does the fundraising end?

W

ith a proliferation of pre-profit businesses receiving investment, BLM looks at what lies beneath the headlines and asks the question: where is the tipping point for investors funding good ideas that are not yet making a return? And should entrepreneurs always celebrate an investment?

milestones rather than traditional measures of business success such as profit and customer acquisition.

University of Florida professor Jay Ritter recently published research (December 2018) that showed that 83% of all new US public listings were from ‘pre-profit’, i.e. unprofitable, businesses – the highest on record since 1980.

A fixation on fundraising is a distraction for both founders and investors.

Mark Pearson, founder of Fuel Ventures, says: “You tend to find that founders who celebrate fundraising as a success are the ones who have their focus on the wrong places. If you’re spending all of your time and energy on fundraising, you’re not spending time on your business.

So why is there an increasing appetite for pre-profit investments? If a company does not turn a profit but is valued in the billions, where does that value reside? What are the potential consequences of this patient – or perhaps misplaced – capital? And are entrepreneurs becoming more focused on raising cash than turning a profit?

THE CULT OF FUNDRAISING There has no doubt been a shift of focus in the start-up and scale-up landscape, with founders increasingly celebrating fundraising

“Empty vessels make most noise,” says Paul Brown, CEO of Mail Handling International (MHI) and an active investor. “When founders are raising funds, they bang the drum to get people excited and project success. But you have to think: is this a real celebration or just a noisy one?”

“My view is that real, business-minded entrepreneurs are the ones focused on celebrating other business-related milestones, such as revenue targets, client wins, or new territory launches over raising money.”

“ALL PUBLIC LISTED COMPANIES ARE VALUED BY REALISTIC POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL PERFORMANCE. THE CHALLENGE FOR PRIVATELY HELD COMPANIES IS WHEN THERE IS A LACK OF MEASURE OF WHETHER THE PROMISE MADE AT PITCH HAS BEEN DELIVERED.” Paul Brown 22

Of course, early-stage investments have always been made based on a promise.

At a later stage, there are accounts and revenue – concrete measures of business performance.

The cult of fundraising comes in when companies, particularly further down the line, are valued highly despite a failure to ever turn a profit. This is a different story to the newly born entrepreneur, excited by the first validation of his or her business.

Paul Brown says: “All public listed companies are valued by realistic potential and actual performance. The challenge for privately held companies is when there is a lack of measure of whether the promise made at pitch has been delivered.”

Peter Cowley, serial entrepreneur, angel investor, and author of The Invested Investor, says: “The hype comes in when you get these big numbers – the unicorns valued at over a billion dollars – when the company may still be losing money.”

THE UPSIDE OF PATIENT CAPITAL Pre-profit companies are not all bad news.

Some early-stage companies follow the ‘Amazon model’, declining to draw a profit and instead plowing revenue back into the business to facilitate long-term growth.

Others may be research-oriented, developing worthwhile products or technology which will take decades to complete.

Peter Cowley offers the example of drug development. “There’s no way you’re going to get a customer for a drugs discovery company until the drug is discovered and Issue 8: May - June 2019

FEATURE

checked – and that takes a lot of time and money. So clearly you need investors before there is really a business in place.”

Chris Olds is the CFO of Ultrahaptics, a company which is focused on developing the next stage of virtual reality technology by creating tactile sensations in mid-air. Ultrahaptics has raised over £60m in equity finance from a range of investors since inception.

Chris says: “The shift to pre-profit investment doesn’t mean that investors’ expectations have changed, it shows that their perception and appreciation for value has changed. Investors only back pre-profit organisations if they can see a strong growth and a returns strategy that warrant the additional investment risk.

“The clear benefit of long-term investors

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

that we’ve experienced is that from the very beginning you can make decisions that benefit the group long-term, rather than focus on short-term gains that would be at the expense of the bigger growth opportunity. The potential downside of a more aggressive growth model is that you will probably have to give away more equity to fund that strategy.”

Investors must strike a delicate balance between patience, faith and due diligence.

“Patience is a key factor in the venture capital technology space,” says Mark Pearson. “Investing in younger, fast-growth potential companies isn’t a quick win.

“Investors should be in for the medium to long term if they believe in the founder’s vision, while at the same time doing all reasonable diligence to validate that the business and its key people have the ability to deliver on future plans.”

THE TIPPING POINT When does a business cross the line between ‘pre-profit’ and outright failure? As mentioned, a lack of initial profits does not automatically mean a lack of potential.

Mark Pearson points out: “A lot of famous investments in the big tech companies we know today wouldn’t have been made if based on metrics or revenue alone. It takes an accurate foresight combined with a realistic sense of commercial opportunity to find the best investments.”

So how can investors separate the genuine prospects from the empty hype?

Cont.  23

FINANCE Paul Brown suggests reading into the pitch and the organic growth of the business: “Every time I hear the word ‘pivot’ in a pitch, I think ‘failure of the original business model.’ Better to look for rounds of funding based on an evolutionary journey, a funding round to accelerate a proven profitable model, or ideally, organic internal accelerated growth after round one.”

If already invested, Peter Cowley says the difference between pre-profit and failure comes down to the investor’s faith in the founders.

“There’s no set tipping point between preprofit and outright failure,” Peter says. “It generally comes because founders have not been able to break-even and the investors have lost faith in the team. There are three options at that point: go bust, sell the business, or reduce the business size until it can break-even.”

Ultimately, investors need to separate fantasy from reality. Which companies, even if unprofitable at present, have a reasonable chance of long-term growth and a secure market share? Is the internal logic of the business model sound? Or, like Lyft, is the business predicated on undercutting its own profits in a sector with low barriers to entry?

Paul Brown says: “Rather than talk about specific companies perhaps we could be

FEATURE asking: When is tech just a fantasy? When is investment just a combination of tax efficiency and a lottery ticket? When are investment pitches more like the emperor’s new clothes? With complex software and virtual businesses that even sophisticated investors sometimes don’t fully understand, there is a very real risk of investors being misled by a company requiring funds to pay the salaries. Due-diligence and trust is key.”

THE INVESTMENT RELATIONSHIP Fundamentally, investors need to trust that the founders they place their capital with have sound business sense and the right intentions. A culture of hype means that founders and early investors profit on a promise, and the true value of a company does not come into play until further down the line. At some point, however, when a company has been overvalued, someone will get burned.

Peter Cowley says: “There’s no doubt that raising money at a higher valuation is positive for the founder. If the valuation is higher, the founders lose less of the company when selling equity. It’s also beneficial for early shareholders as their shares are effectively worth more money.”

However, the value placed on these companies is completely abstract. Peter says: “The issue is, what use is that money?

What does a high valuation mean? And, it

“THERE’S NO DOUBT THAT RAISING MONEY AT A HIGHER VALUATION IS POSITIVE FOR THE FOUNDER. IF THE VALUATION IS HIGHER, THE FOUNDERS LOSE LESS OF THE COMPANY WHEN SELLING EQUITY.” Peter Cowley

means nothing until an exit of some form.

Usually a trade sale, sometimes a floatation, an IPO, or occasionally a private equity house might buy the shares. So higher and higher valuations are positive for all those insider parties, but the negatives come at the exit.”

Do you have faith in the fundamental concept of a business? Do you trust the founder to pursue a commercially viable path? And crucially, do you have faith in the person pitching to you?

Peter Cowley is an experienced angel investor. He recommends thoroughly considering who to get into bed with: “I used to evaluate pitches based on tech and markets, but now I evaluate purely on people. I’m effectively buying an option in the future of that entrepreneur. I give them some money to get on and trust them to do prudent, scaling things.”

He adds: “The bond between early-stage shareholder and entrepreneur is stronger than a marriage. You’re stuck together on the journey, so you have no choice but to be patient until something happens.”

LONG TERM CONSEQUENCES OF PREPROFIT HYPE The gradual warping of the investment landscape raises a slew of unanswered questions. For example, what does it mean for the future of fundraising if valuation becomes more about visibility than profitability? If strong publicity becomes more important than the long-term viability of a venture? What kinds of businesses will dominate the start-up economy, and which business models will perpetuate?

Perhaps fears of increasing economic instability are overblown. But when an unprofitable company like Lyft is valued at $24bn (£18.8bn) despite slowing growth and a flawed business model, the concept of ‘valuation’ itself seems to be in flux. And with billions of dollars’ worth of capital being siphoned into black hole businesses each year, something – at some point – has got to give.

Paul Brown says: “When there are significant failures there will be calls to regulate and consequences for mis-selling investments. This will inevitably stifle the opportunities for the genuine risk-takers.”

In the meantime, investors must tune out the hype and focus on the potential behind the pitch. 

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Issue 8: May - June 2019

CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS, TAX CONSULTANTS & FINANCIAL PLANNERS

FINANCE

Why do women find it harder than men to access funding?

I

Mark Pearson

n this debate, Business Leader Magazine asked four highly respected thoughtleaders in the investor space: Why do women find it harder to access funding?

Despite women making up half the population, it’s not as straightforward as it should be for female entrepreneurs to access the funding they need to start and scale-up businesses.

Barclays and the Female Founders Forum published a report in 2017 called ‘Untapped Unicorns’ on the challenges faced by women seeking funding. The report found that compared to female entrepreneurs, men are 86% more likely to access venture capital and 56% more likely to secure angel investment.

Juliet Rogan Jenny Tooth OBE

Furthermore, in 2016, 91% of investment capital went to companies without a single female founder, while only 9% of capital went to companies with at least one.

This is all despite the fact that when womenowned businesses are granted funding, they show 20% higher returns with 50% less investment.

“AS ONLY 14% OF BUSINESS ANGEL INVESTORS IN THE UK ARE WOMEN, WE KNOW THAT FOR MANY WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS, THE EXPERIENCE OF RAISING FINANCE HAS BEEN ESPECIALLY CHALLENGING” Jenny Tooth OBE

26

Dr Marie Griffiths So if performance is not the issue, why do so few female entrepreneurs access investment opportunities?

NOT ENOUGH APPLICATIONS Juliet Rogan, Head of High Growth & Entrepreneurs Coverage at Barclays, says that not enough women are applying for funding. “There are fewer female entrepreneurs looking to access investment funding, and that’ll take a while to change as people get more used to the idea of setting up an entrepreneurial high growth business and we see more female entrepreneur role models establish a new norm.”

She adds: “We also need to broaden that understanding of different kinds of funding available. Women can be more risk averse when it comes to taking on investment, so there are many things that can be done to help through support networks. We need to make sure that female founders are prepared from a pitching perspective to get the funding they require.”

LACK OF DIVERSITY IN THE INVESTMENT INDUSTRY There may be a lack of female entrepreneurs applying for funding – but the reasons behind that dearth are not as simple as plain disinterest. It may partly boil down Issue 8: May - June 2019

DEBATE

to a realistic assessment of a female entrepreneur’s chances of being taken seriously.

Mark Pearson, Founder & Managing Partner at Fuel Ventures, notes: “A lot of larger venture capital funds are run by a different generation of male-dominated investment teams who have not historically backed female entrepreneurs. This has created a circular effect – and so the problem goes on.”

Jenny Tooth OBE, Chief Executive of the UK Business Angels Association, agrees: “As only 14% of business angel investors in the UK are women, we know that for many women entrepreneurs, the experience of raising finance has been especially challenging when they have to present their business idea to a room almost entirely filled with male angel investors. Women have previously noted that operating within this largely male-dominated ecosystem can be intimidating and can make it difficult for women to fully access the breadth of investment opportunities available.”

It is not news that women are generally – even if subconsciously – held in lower regard than men. Nor is this a UK-specific problem. The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor’s (GEM) 2012 Global Report on Women and Entrepreneurship found that in every single economy included in the study, women were perceived to be less capable than men. But Diversity VC estimates that only 18% of UK investment professionals are women, while women represent just 13% of decision makers in UK venture capital. And some other countries are doing markedly better. Women are twice as likely to be entrepreneurially active in the USA than in the UK. Jenny Tooth recommends increasing diversity amongst investment professionals.

“Women typically invest more frequently into women entrepreneurs than their male counterparts, with over half (54%) of women angel investors backing at least one femalefounded business and only a small minority of male investors doing the same. Because of this, it is imperative that we start properly addressing how the industry can increase diversity and implement notable change as the benefits of diversity extend far beyond the investment landscape.”

GENDER BALANCE ISN’T ENOUGH Female investors are more likely to take Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

women-owned businesses seriously.

But simply appointing more women as investment professionals does not amount to a diverse industry. The pre-judgement that women face also impacts ethnic minority entrepreneurs. And for women of colour, the disadvantages are compounded – despite research showing that non-white women are more often entrepreneurial. Prowess found that amongst black entrepreneurs, there is almost no gender gap, with black women 97% as likely to start a business as black men.

Juliet Rogan says: “We focus a lot on the male/female divide but it’s diversity in general that is important. If you’re in a minority, it’s always going to be more difficult to get that representation so as an industry we need to focus on it through the networks we create.”

LOOK ABROAD FOR GUIDANCE So, what more can be done, besides the push for a more diverse investment profession and for male investors to look beyond the familiar? Dr Marie Griffiths, Reader in Digital Technologies at the University of Salford, suggests that we look to the US for guidance. “The UK needs to adopt best practice from elsewhere,” Marie says. “Look towards America and other countries that are experiencing an increase of female and black, Asian and ethnic minority business start-ups.” The US introduced the Women’s Business Act

in 1988 to develop long-term infrastructure to support female entrepreneurship. As a result, around a third of US businesses are now majority female-owned, with womenowned businesses continuing to grow at double the rate of other US companies.

Marie suggests public sector programmes as a good place to start. “The FSB argue, and it is surprising this is not common practice, that all Government supported enterprise development programmes should be equality impact assessed, so that the impact can be made on women at the budgeting, design, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation stages. It can be argued that this should also be extended for minority groups.” The public sector could also examine its procurement processes.

In 2009, the National Policy Centre for Women’s Enterprise (NPCWE) found that women-owned businesses win fewer than 5% of public sector and corporate contracts.

BUILD UP NETWORKS As for female entrepreneurs, Mark Pearson encourages successful business women to take the spotlight. “We need to see more women coming forward to share their success stories. A good starting point would be a higher percentage of female representation at conferences and industry events, and greater peer-to-peer support.

Highlighting more female successes would surely encourage more female founders into the entrepreneur space.”  27

LEADERSHIP

Leadership series:

How should you respond to a major crisis in your business?

A

s part of its leadership series, BLM looks at how those running scale-up and high-growth companies can best respond to an internal or external crisis.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GOOD AND BAD LEADERSHIP IN A CRISIS? Dr Jeremy Snape: “Good leaders are resilient: they find a way to win from the most challenging of positions. Despite the uncertainty, their intent is clear and they stay calm and consistent around their goals which inspires people to follow them. Bad leaders can’t take the pressure. They either react overly emotionally or they don’t react at all. Great leaders trust others to build the solution; bad leaders don’t even trust themselves.”

Chris Atkinson: “The most important difference is whether the leader’s behaviour increases or decreases the sense of panic.

Most employees will quickly recognise there is a crisis and the last thing they need is the additional intensity that comes when a leader also emphasises the crisis.

“A good leader will also provide a point of stability, focus and security in crisis. For example, creative thinking would be an important skill to get out of many crisis situations, but it is one of the first abilities to suffer under the pressure of a crisis.

“There are several long-perpetuated myths around leadership at times of crisis. For example, leaders need to ‘take control’ at a time of crisis; this is only partially true and 28

The Panel (L-R) Will Harvey Exeter University Chris Atkinson Strategic Leadership Dr Jeremy Snape Sporting Edge

is often misinterpreted. Leaders need to be in control and be seen to provide a steady influence but taking control by shouting orders is only appropriate in a narrow range of emergency scenarios.”

Will Harvey: “Effective leadership requires sensitivity to the context and necessitates a conciliatory approach to engaging with multiple stakeholders. The communication approach should be consistent through multiple media channels. This management of the crisis should be a team endeavour but led and owned by the Chief Executive.

Ineffective leadership during a crisis will see the Chief Executive adopting a defensive or silent approach to questioning. An inconsistent narrative or a leader perceived as isolated will not inspire confidence internally and externally in the management of the crisis.”

WHAT TRAITS DO YOU NEED TO PROVIDE STRONG LEADERSHIP THROUGHOUT A CRISIS? Dr Jeremy Snape: “Great leaders have the courage to make the big call in high-pressure situations based on performance and results, not on comfort and convenience. They are selfless, doing the right thing for their teams when the pressure forces everyone else to look

after themselves. They are passionate and driven to win but also have a solid ethical foundation.

“They have the ability to execute under pressure in the short-term but also to think long term. Great leaders are focused under pressure and can make clear decisions which are communicated in a way that their followers understand. They have an inner strength that allows them to prove their critics wrong and achieve the impossible.”

Chris Atkinson: “Clarity of outcome – very often at a time of crisis people get stuck in thinking about ‘how’ to solve the problem.

One of the most useful behaviours of a

“THERE ARE ALSO SEVERAL LONG-PERPETUATED MYTHS AROUND LEADERSHIP AT TIMES OF CRISIS. FOR EXAMPLE, LEADERS NEED TO ‘TAKE CONTROL’ AT A TIME OF CRISIS; THIS IS ONLY PARTIALLY TRUE AND IS OFTEN MISINTERPRETED.” Chris Atkinson

Issue 8: May - June 2019

CRISIS MANAGEMENT

“GOOD LEADERS ARE RESILIENT: THEY FIND A WAY TO WIN FROM THE MOST CHALLENGING OF POSITIONS. DESPITE THE UNCERTAINTY, THEIR INTENT IS CLEAR AND THEY STAY CALM AND CONSISTENT AROUND THEIR GOALS WHICH INSPIRES PEOPLE TO FOLLOW THEM.” Dr Jeremy Snape

leader is to articulate very clearly the outcome that is needed. This allows the people around the leader to consider all options and creative ideas.

“Trust the team – considerable research has proven that one individual can never match the problem-solving ability of a group, no matter how talented the one individual!

“Give space – this is the hardest behaviour in a time of crisis. Our instinctive behaviours ramp up the pressure and often creates a highly pressurised environment that damages performance. One of the most difficult steps needed as a leader is to ‘shield’ the team so that they can focus on finding the solution.

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“Be consistent and visible - you don’t have to be calm the whole time (you are human after all) but you do need to be consistent in your mood or behaviours and you definitely need to be visible.”

CAN YOU GIVE AN EXAMPLE OF GOOD LEADERSHIP DURING A CRISIS? Dr Jeremy Snape: “The best example of leadership this year was Jacinda Ardern, the New Zealand Prime Minister who within a few hours of the horrific terrorist attack in Christchurch mosque was in the community, visible, sharing the grief of the community, wearing their cultural dress and showing great empathy for their loss. Within a few days, the gun laws were changed to prevent

the same thing happening again.

“Kasper Schmeichel also showed incredible leadership when the Leicester City Chairman’s helicopter crashed in front of his eyes.

“He selflessly tried to save the passengers before the flames engulfed the cockpit but then showed great character in the way he became the spokesman for the Club as the world watched in shock. Kasper’s compassion and ability to galvanise the team in adversity was a powerful display of leadership.”

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LEADERSHIP

CRISIS MANAGEMENT

Chris Atkinson: “A brilliant example is Microsoft’s Satya Nadella. It is said by many that he inherited an organisation in crisis from Steve Ballmer. Industry experts were asking if he could ‘save’ the company, it was so serious. Nadella has since taken an approach that mirrors many elements of best practice in a crisis.

“One of his first actions was to make a clear declaration of the outcome or focus. He said: “The world is about cloud first, this gave all managers a clear strategic direction and prioritisation. Secondly, I wonder if you could have named Microsoft’s CEO before you read this? He has largely stayed out of the spotlight; he has allowed others to lead and innovate.

“EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP REQUIRES SENSITIVITY TO THE CONTEXT AND NECESSITATES A CONCILIATORY APPROACH TO ENGAGING WITH MULTIPLE STAKEHOLDERS.”

“His presence is more visible Will Harvey inside the company than outside and it is having a real impact on the culture. Microsoft has generally become a more friendly partner and less of a feared adversary. Five years into his tenure as CEO, he has proven that you can lead through a crisis with humility and clarity.” 

NEWS

BUSINESS LEADER COLUMNIST

IS ‘GROW BIG, GROW FAST’ THE RIGHT APPROACH?

By Greg Le Tocq, the co-founder of Cloud Savings Company – which owns Vouchercloud. Groupon recently bought the business for £49m.

The advice given to many entrepreneurs at the moment is grow big, and grow fast. But what about the foundation of the business?

This method typifies the difference between being a salesman and a business leader. For the former, you’re building a product (the business). For the latter, you’re creating something long-lasting and bringing a team along for the ride.

Snapchat, one of the world’s largest social media platforms, was founded with growth in mind. They grew big, and they grew fast. Despite this behemoth leap to nearly 200m users, profit has never materialised. Indeed, the $5bn valuation of the company founder dropped to around $2.5bn in recent years.

That’s not to say that setting goals like this is a bad thing – far from it. Planning to be at a certain stage within a particular amount of time is a remarkably effective driver. The problem comes when that goal is the be all and end all – when it’s set for its own sake. Once that goal is reached, what then?

I’m of the opinion that staff are the greatest asset a business has. The more we invest in them, the better they perform and, in turn, the better the business performs. My question is this: how can you effectively motivate a team towards a shared vision – a shared success story – if your only major focus is short-term growth?

The real foundations of a business can be condensed into the following areas – strategy, staff and sterling (other currencies are available). If the right people are on-boarded in the business, when combined with a flexible cash flow and longterm strategy, the process of growth becomes more clear cut.

Who is the UK’s latest tech unicorn?

The latest UK business to become a unicorn (a company valued at more than $1bn) has been revealed as Checkout.com, following its latest equity funding round of £176m.

Like many of its fellow British unicorns, Checkout.com operates within the Fintech space and develops a range of software for businesses to process online payments in multiple currencies.

The Isle of Man-based company first turned a profit in 2015 – just three years after incorporation.

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We see many new businesses focus on growth first, when instead they should focus on the foundation – the overarching success of the business. It’s a case of one hand washing the other. While it can be easy to get carried away with exciting innovations and projects, it shouldn’t be at the detriment of ensuring your house has a sound foundation first and foremost.

My advice? Start your business like it will be your last. Give it everything you can and dedicate your efforts to long-term growth strategies as well as short-term considerations.

Issue 8: May - June 2019

LEADERSHIP INTERVIEW

COMMUNICATION DURING CRUNCH TIME

R

ita Trehan is known for helping Fortune 500 companies improve performance and increase profits. Here, she gives her thoughts on communication during crunch time.

Managing a crisis is complex, from how you deal with your public image with customers, investors and the wider community to how you handle the aftermath with your people.

It’s common to confuse significant issues with a crisis but the reality is the two are different. Put simply, in cases where a significant issue surfaces, companies have the time to investigate - to look at options and decide. A crisis, however, requires some level of immediate response.

So how can business leaders nip a crisis in the bud?

COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE We’ve heard it all before about how top

communication is a precursor to top results. Ensuring that those who need to be informed (such as customers, investors, employees, suppliers) are kept fully upto-date at the earliest opportunity will reduce the risk of false assumptions being circulated.

Your people are key. Engaging with them early helps address any anxieties they may have and helps stop any speculation that may be starting to manifest. They can also be your greatest ambassadors if they understand what is going on and how the company is tackling the crisis.

In addition to ‘how’ to communicate, the ‘when’ is a vital factor too. My one piece of advice that I would give to all leaders is don’t tempted to believe that solving the crisis and then communicating is the right way to approach the crisis.

Frankly, it is not. There is an insatiable thirst for news stories nowadays and businesses need to act so they do not become headline news.

and not be afraid of doing so. When it is clear that there has been a mistake or mishandling by the company, acknowledging that the company has acted outside of the organisation’s values or against their mission is imperative.

People need to see authentic leadership.

Corporate platitudes that imply there has been little thought in the message that is being conveyed will be lost on the people who the message is intended for.

MAKE IT A LESSON LEARNED There is simply no point in working through a bad situation if there is no lesson learned at the end of it.

Reflecting on how a crisis became a crisis, by understanding when the problem tipped into the realms of disaster, can help prevent history from repeating itself.

BE HONEST AND PREPARE TO APOLOGISE CEOs need to be prepared to apologise

Eddie the Eagle headlines NextGen Eddie the Eagle, renowned Olympic ski jumper and the subject of a recent Hollywood movie, headlined at the NextGen speaker series in May. NextGen is an inspirational speaker series, which was founded by Business Leader and Weston College. Accountancy firm Albert Goodman is the sponsor.

Before Eddie spoke, the 200 guests heard from Ascot Group founder Andrew Scott, who talked about his career in business.

He said: “I think the most important things for business leaders are resilience, certain goal you want to achieve, and a certain journey in mind, but there could be lots of different ways for getting from A to B. “You might get a few knockbacks and face a few challenges, but you have to get around those obstacles – whether you go over them or under them or through them, you can find a way. Never give up.”

Following the event, Eddie spoke to Business Leader about his approach to life.

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BLM FAST-TRACK

BRINGING OXBRIDGE TO THE WORLD:

FIND OUT HOW THESE TWO OXFORD GRADUATES HAVE TURNED THEIR EDUCATION EXPERIENCE INTO A BUSINESS

O

xford Summer Courses is now entering its tenth year as a provider of education courses to people from all over the world, and its growth has been impressive.

Oxford Summer Courses’ revenues have risen from £958k in 2014/15 to over £8.1m in 2017/18, while in the same time period, staff numbers rose from three to 26.

Last year, the revenue rose by a staggering 80%, and the two ex-Oxford graduates also know how to turn a profit, with the business operating a healthy bottom line.

Inspirational Oxford So, how did it all begin?

The company’s story started when school friends and Oxford graduates Harry Hortyn and Robert Phipps founded a residential tuition company in 2010.

is an inspirational place because of Oxford itself, as well as the people you work with and the tutors that you learn from. It really lights a spark within you, and we wanted to share that with as many students as possible.

“We thought that with there being a lot of empty space over the summer, we could utilise this to teach courses and this would also allow us to give academics more teaching opportunities out of term time.

There was an appetite for international students to come here too and learn in an authentic way.”

They started with just a few lessons out of the prestigious Oriel College, spotting early on the value of courses taught from a world-renowned British university.

The company now operates out of 14 Oxford colleges, as well as at Cambridge University and University of London.

Their popularity internationally has led to academics travelling across the world to join the business.

Harry comments: “Robert and I were both students at Oxford University and we both had an amazing experience here. It really

Humble beginnings Before Oxford Summer Courses achieved its impressive growth, the company

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operated for many years as a side project for the co-founders.

Hortyn said: “At the start of the business we were both working full time jobs, and used the weekends to keep the plates spinning for Oxford Summer Courses. We would then take time off in the summer to actually run the courses. That was our process for several years but then in 2013, we gained an important accreditation from the British Accreditation Councils. They came in and inspected everything that we did and set out to professionalise the business.

“In 2015, we both committed to the business full time and we have doubled in size in terms of our revenues every year since then. In 2015, it went from me, Rob and his mum – who was our sales manager – to now having 34 full-time staff at our permanent head office.”

Summer vs semester One of the many attractive elements for Issue 8: May - June 2019

OXFORD SUMMER COURSES

all night completing their work. It is more like the atmosphere of the last week of the summer term, by finding a balance between academic work and having enough time to explore the city, museums and restaurants, and that kind of thing. It is not as intense as term-time would be.”

International popularity International growth is also on the company’s agenda, with students from across the globe engaging on the course and an opportunity to launch schools in other countries.

Hortyn explains: “There are a number of different factors for why we have become so popular internationally, but our main one is word of mouth. We find that one year, we get the older sibling and then a few years later their younger sibling or friends will join us. From word of mouth, we have built relationships with schools and certain cities around the world.

Oxford Summer Courses is the authenticity of the Oxbridge experience.

But how does a summer course differ from regular term time for an undergraduate?

Hortyn explains: “There is a wide range of academic courses available that are similar to what undergraduates study. The most popular ones are business, medicine, psychology, law, but there are many specialist subjects as well like philosophy and biochemistry.

“However, we have also recently launched a lot of more ‘modern’ subjects. These include artificial intelligence, robotics and other scientific courses at the cutting edge of technology. In total there are around 40 different subjects, and the students pick one of these to study over a two-week period.

“Our courses are not as intense as those a full-time student would study. We have softened, so people do not need to stay up

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“Oxford has a strong international reputation for high quality education – so it is an excellent source of tutors. That is something that does appeal to international students.

There is also a social and cultural aspect to our success with international students.

Going punting, visiting the museums, and local attractions are all things that people see as quintessentially British and are part of the Oxford experience – that is a huge appeal for foreign students.”

Future growth In regards to expansion internationally, Hortyn says: “In Santiago and Lima, where we currently operate, the schools are a reasonable size – but are only around the

top 40 or 50 in the world. This is a good indicator, because in all those other top cities we are not operating in, with higher populations, there are probably a lot more students who want to come and engage with what we’re doing.

“This means that there are definitely a lot more cities that are viable. This is particularly true for those countries with the most barriers when looking to come to the UK. We are particularly interested in engaging with students further from the UK – East Asia, China, Australia, Latin America – places where we can make an impact, rather than it being purely commercial.”

However, it’s not just physical teaching in a classroom where the company is looking to grow. Oxford Summer Courses next big plan is to start offering online courses, making it easier for people to access this high level of education.

Hortyn explains: “By taking it online, no matter where the student is, or what time of day it is, the student will be able to access really high-quality teaching in their subjects – that is what we are really excited about at the moment.

“We will offer projects around specialist STEM courses, in order to close the skills gap – a national problem that a lot of industries are now facing. The tech and skills shortages are impacting on what employers are looking for, and sometimes when people leave education they don’t have the necessary skills. We aim to help with this, and there is an interesting opportunity for us to continue growing.” 

“IN 2015, WE BOTH COMMITTED TO THE BUSINESS FULL TIME AND WE HAVE DOUBLED IN SIZE IN TERMS OF OUR REVENUES EVERY YEAR SINCE THEN.” Harry Hortyn

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WHY ARE UK CITIES FINDING IT SO HARD TO BECOME SMART?

hurdle in getting a universal system in place.

Paul Swinney Centre for Cities

Vassilis Seferidis Zeetta Networks

T

he term ‘Smart Cities’ is frequently used but will mean different things to different people. In this report, BLM looks at what a Smart City is and investigates why UK cities are so far behind their global counterparts.

A ‘Smart City’ might conjure up futuristic images of flying cars, high spec tech and a large metropolis straight out of a sci-fi movie, but the reality is that it has real world 34

Keith Day Telensa

applications that are taking over the world’s major business regions.

Smart city developments are designed to incorporate all facets of data, telecoms and people-centric technology to enhance the quality and performance of urban services.

Whether it is transport links, utility services, or a way for businesses and homes to reduce wastage and cost – smart city applications are the future for major cities across the world.

What is a ‘Smart City’?

The confusion and disagreements over the meaning of ‘Smart City’ are often the first

Paul Swinney is the Director of Research and Policy at Centre for Cities – an independent think tank that looks into why economic growth and change happens in UK cities.

Paul explains the issue with the definition of ‘Smart Cities’: “The term ‘Smart City’ is very loaded and means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. On the one hand, it gets sold as the dream of having buildings talk to each other with cars flying around – all very tech-heavy and futuristic.

“The reality is that this is about managing a city – it is less sexy, but it is where we are with the current smart city agenda. What it actually means is looking at the current way we do things, and finding a way of doing it smarter to yield better results across a variety of fields.”

This management of a city is the essence of what a smart city aims to be – to make the Issue 8: May - June 2019

SMART CITIES

It is this infrastructure, or the lack of it, that is the primary concern for the future of smart cities in the UK. Peter Boucher, CEO of Excalibur Communications continues: “The physical infrastructure is not in place to deal with the level of data needed to run a complete smart city. The core internet, and data network infrastructure needed to connect, store and analyse this data and information – as well as billions of individuals’ personal and business devices across the UK – are not ready.

“In theory, every lamppost, every fridge, every car door – everything can be connected in a smart city. This is the Internet of Things.

You could sit there with thousands of connected touch points across all sectors, businesses and private properties – but the core issue is that the sheer amount of data involved is going to explode. The UK is in the bottom three in Europe for being the slowest developing nation when it comes to fibre connectivity.

“It is vitally important and as well as the infrastructure, we will need the right algorithms in place to process the data and make it usable. Leading worldwide businesses have whole sections of their companies looking at how best to use data and tech in the future.”

city run smoother, with fewer emissions, and ease of transport and living – all through the use of innovative IT. What is the biggest issue in the UK? The UK is a world leader in tech and innovation, and with a talent pool that is arguably the envy of the sector – it would be conceivable to believe that the UK is perfectly placed to be the global leader in smart city applications. However, this is not the case.

Vassilis Seferidis, the Co-Founder and CEO of Zeetta Networks, says the UK is being let down: “It is clear to me that the UK has a golden opportunity to remain a world leader in this sector thanks to the creativity and technological expertise of our people.

However, we are badly let down by an outdated and inadequate infrastructure.

“While countries like South Korea, Singapore, and Japan are deploying ultra-fast Gigabit connectivity to every single home in their countries, here in the UK, high-speed Internet Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

access remains a dream to the vast majority.

We desperately need large infrastructure investment from both the public and private sectors, and a comprehensive national communications strategy that addresses the fact that nearly 70% of the UK public still don’t know what a smart city is or the benefits that it can bring to their lives.”

“THE TERM ‘SMART CITY’ IS VERY LOADED AND MEANS A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS TO A LOT OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE. ON THE ONE HAND, IT GETS SOLD AS THE DREAM OF HAVING BUILDINGS TALK TO EACH OTHER WITH CARS FLYING AROUND – ALL VERY TECHHEAVY AND FUTURISTIC.” Paul Swinney

Hisham Elkadi, Dean of the School of the Built Environment at Salford University, agrees that getting the right infrastructure in place will lead to the introduction of new smart city tech.

He says: “Getting the right infrastructure in place is what will make smart cities succeed in the future. If you look at mobility, for example – it will be huge for smart cities.

Reducing car ownership and implementing disruptive tech within this area is a key area of future research. Car sharing works today, but in the future, it might be autonomous.

We need to look at what this means for businesses and people living within cities.”

How does the UK compare to the rest of the world?

With places like the USA, China, Singapore, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Madrid and Stockholm leading the way in particular facets of smart city applications – where does the UK actually rank?

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Seferidis believes that whilst the UK is behind in regards to application, it often leads when it comes to ideas: “Although we lack the resources of larger cities and nations, our smart city programmes lead the world for innovation and creative use of technology.

“Take our smart city programme here in Bristol. Compared to other smart city programmes, which are typically dominated by a large technology vendor, we have been the first in the world proposing the use of open networking technologies and standards.

Peter Boucher Excalibur Communications

“This means we offer access to any company - or even individual - that wants to gain access to the city’s resources for experimentation or development of new applications and services.”

This expertise in the UK is clear to see with Telensa, too – a smart lighting, sensing and control platform firm based in Cambridge.

This company is an example of where the UK is leading the world in a certain area of smart city applications.

Keith explains: “If I was to look at an individual city that is world-leading in smart city tech, I would look at Cambridge. We are working with Smart Cambridge alongside companies like Microsoft to introduce the Urban Data Project, which is about collecting more detailed information, especially on traffic movements and how they relate to things like air quality. This has never really been done in the UK or anywhere in the world before.”

Which UK city is the ‘smartest’?

Due to the ambiguous nature of the term ‘Smart City’, unsurprisingly many different parts of the UK claim to be the ‘smartest’.

“THE DIGITAL ISSUE IS A RELATIVELY EASY ISSUE TO FIX, WE JUST NEED TO BUILD THE RIGHT FIBRE AND CONNECTIVITY NETWORKS TO BE ABLE TO HOUSE SMART CITY APPLICATIONS IN BUSINESSES.” Peter Boucher

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Hisham Elkadi Salford University

This is clear when the debate around the future of the concept is brought to the public.

Last year, Huawei released a Smart Cities Index Report, to analyse where all the major UK cities rank for smart city applications.

In the eyes of Huawei, Bristol is leading the way, with the capital hot on their heels.

Other tech hubs such as Manchester, Oxford, Cambridge, Milton Keynes, Leeds and Birmingham have also ranked highly in the report.

That then allows the correct infrastructure decisions to be made, and shows where funding needs to go.

“What is most revealing is that no other city in the UK has the same extent of data on how people use the transport system when compared to London. That is why data is key, especially as a management tool.”

However, many believe that due to the UK’s heavy business focus on London, the capital is in fact far ahead of the other cities.

Advantages for businesses With Smart City applications spreading out across the UK, it is important for all businesses to look into how it will affect them, their staff, and their operations, and consider what a smart city will mean for the future of business in the UK.

Paul explains: “In terms of places that do that well, the only real example of that in the UK is London, which has been using smart city applications for a number of years in certain fields. They have done it through Transport for London (TFL), for example, through its contactless card system. It was just through the Oyster card, but it can now be used by your contactless credit or debit card. What that allows us to do is generate a lot of data about people moving through London and using the infrastructure available to them.

Paul comments: “The better management of the city means that workers should be able to get through the city more easily from their home to their place of work than they otherwise could. Public services function better than they do currently, which then reduces the cost to business. There aren’t any direct benefits to businesses, but having a city that is better managed means that it will function better. It does mean that people can be better transported to the places they need to be, be that work or otherwise. It also Issue 8: May - June 2019

SMART CITIES

FIVE GLOBAL SMART CITIES THE UK CAN LEARN FROM helps moving goods in and out of the city, the quickest way possible.”

“GETTING THE RIGHT INFRASTRUCTURE IN PLACE IS WHAT WILL MAKE SMART CITIES SUCCEED IN THE FUTURE. IF YOU LOOK AT MOBILITY FOR EXAMPLE – IT WILL BE HUGE FOR SMART CITIES.” Hisham Elkadi

When will ‘Smart Cities’ be commonplace in the UK? So, what conclusions can we come to? Britain has the knowledge but not the nous to implement what is needed to make our cities smarter. It seems we are being held back by not having uniform governance or long-term smart city plan.

But is Britishness one of the main barriers to solving these problems, and are we simply not thinking big enough?

Peter explains: “We as British people don’t think big enough when it comes to 50 to 100 year plans for what our cities and industries will look like and operate – we are stuck in a five to ten year cycle. The problem with infrastructure is that we don’t think long term, and that is exactly the issues smart cities are facing. Most other leading nations in Europe, Asia and North America are so much better at taking long-term views, and are putting the right infrastructure in place.”

However, it is not just that the British think too short-term to make sure that the right infrastructure is in place. There has also been little discussion as to how all areas of society will all link together.

Peter continues: “The digital issue is a relatively easy issue to fix – we just need to build the right fibre and connectivity networks to be able to house smart city applications in businesses.

There is a lot of infrastructure to put in place but it is achievable, and will provide long term benefits. When it comes to hospitals, schools, roads, and the logistics of people moving around a city, they are huge investments, which need to be discussed and implemented before any of this becomes a reality.” 

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No matter where you look to find the ‘Smartest City’ in the world, there are a few names that are consistently held in high regard.

Below, Business Leader Magazine highlights five of the world’s leading smart cities. Incidentally, London consistently ranks in the top five for most reports into the industry.

New York, USA One of the world’s most densely populated, diverse, innovative and decentralised cities in the world. Its local government created PlaNYC in 2007 to continuously look into how it can adopt smart city applications. The city’s leaders can learn from the data presented and then apply relevant tech where needed.

Singapore A decentralised state whose government offers large funding programmes worth billions to research and implement new smart city tech. Companies are given the freedom to research smart applications and collect data to see if there are real world benefits. Tax reductions and training programmes are partly government funded.

Seoul, South Korea The ‘Global Digital 2020: Smart City Seoul’ plan began in 2013, with the government’s aim of taking their services digital. The data that came back from this, and the current smart tech in place, has led to the introduction of much needed modern services – and an increase in the quality and quantity of internet infrastructure.

Amsterdam, The Netherlands Amsterdam’s open public and private partnerships have led to knowledge sharing across the city, meaning that all companies within the tech space can co-operate on the research and implementation of smart city tech. Whether they are universities, government or enterprises, they all share information on a universal system.

Barcelona, Spain The Catalonian capital has publicly boasted about its early adoption of the Internet of Things (IoT), and it is now reaping the rewards of having one of the worlds most ‘connected’ cities. Whether it is managing energy consumption or analysing how citizens travel across the city, IoT implementation has saved the city money, energy and time.

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Meet the UK’s most successful scale-up businesses

W

elcome to the Business Leader Scale-Up 30 Series where we will be profiling and identifying some of the UK’s leading scale-up companies, creating wealth and jobs.

In this edition of Business Leader Magazine we reveal 30 of the most successful scale-up businesses in Manchester.

WHAT IS THE CRITERIA FOR INCLUSION? The qualifying businesses operate within a ten-mile radius of the chosen city and in their latest published accounts have a turnover between £10m-£50m.

These are the often-forgotten mediumsized firms that are the heartbeat of the UK economy.

WHO ARE MANCHESTER’S FASTEST GROWING SCALE-UP FIRMS? 30 businesses, combined turnover around £750m+ and over 6k combined employees.

NB: All companies are private limited with share capital * statistics courtesy of ScaleUp Institute

WALKER SMITH GLOBAL LTD Turnover: Turnover Growth: Employee Count: Sector:

£25m - £30m 23.34% 500 - 550 Professional services

BRUNTWOOD MANAGEMENT SERV. LTD Turnover: £45m - £50m Turnover growth: 28.42% Employee count: 550 - 600 Sector: Property & serviced offices CARFINANCE247 LTD Turnover: £20m - £30m Turnover growth: 153.87% Employee count: 200 - 250 Sector: Finance SYKES COTTAGES HOLDINGS LTD

Combined Turnover £750m+

Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

£25m - £30m 78.05% 250 - 300 Leisure & tourism

CAR TIME MOTOR COMPANY UK LTD Turnover: £25m - £30m Turnover growth: 23.94% Employee count: 30 - 60 Sector: Finance MANCHESTER

6k combined employees

= 1k employees

PRETTYLITTLETHING.COM Turnover: £45m - £50m Turnover growth: 191.27% Employee count: 120 - 150 Sector: Retail CARGO OVERSEAS LTD Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

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£25m - £30m 21.34% 50 - 70 Transport & logistics Issue 8: May - June 2019

SCALE-UP

METRONET (UK) LTD Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

£20m - £30m 32.51% 150 - 200 IT & telecoms

Is Manchester a scale-up paradise?

SUDLOWS GROUP LTD Turnover: £45m - £50m Turnover Growth: 94.74% Employee count: 150 - 200 Sector: Customer service & data SALFORD ACADEMY TRUST

By Henry Whorwood - Beauhurst

Turnover: £30m - £40m Turnover growth: 243.81% Employee count: 200 - 250 Sector: Education

Beauhurst currently tracks over 5,000 companies that have visibly met the OECD’s definition of a scale-up: an enterprise with average annual growth in employees or turnover greater than 20% per annum over a three year period, and with more than 10 employees at the beginning of the period.

EDGE WORLDWIDE LOGISTICS Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

£30m - £35m 29.11% 50 - 100 Transport & logistics

PLEASE HOLD UK LTD Turnover: £25m - £30m Turnover growth: 35.18% Employee count: 350 - 400 Sector: Advertising FAIRHOME GROUP PLC Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

£40m - £45m 184.47% 50 - 70 Housing developers

SCAN COIN LTD Turnover: £15m - £20m Turnover growth: 127.22% Employee count: 60 - 100 Sector: Cash management solutions MUTV LTD Turnover: £10m - £20m Turnover Growth: 29.31% Employee count: 70 - 100 Sector: Media

One in ten of these companies are based in the North West. Manchester is particularly densely populated, with over 200 scale-ups comprising one fifth of the high-growth businesses in the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP). These figures place high in the national rankings for absolute and percentage terms outside of London, only falling behind Leeds City Region and South East LEP. This is unsurprising when we consider the age and history of the market in the North West.

26% of high-growth companies in Manchester are what we consider to be established (usually over 15 years old with multiple offices and a lot of traction). This is a significantly higher proportion than other areas in the UK, with twice as many as in London, but notably less than in Leeds (33%).

The area does boast some young tech companies, like six-yearold OakNorth Bank, which has managed to achieve scale-up status impressively early on in its growth.

However, most UK scale-ups are mature, non-tech companies that have operated for several decades before becoming scale-ups, and this pattern is even more pronounced in Manchester.

In keeping with the North West’s reputation as an industrial powerhouse, the scale-ups in the region are most likely to be in the industrial sector (40%) and business and professional services (41%).

Whilst only 12% of all UK scale-ups are in tech sectors, Manchester has a particularly small tech scaleup population at just 7%.

Whilst only 2% of Manchester scale-ups have a female founder (half that of the national average), an encouraging 58% have at least one female c-suite employee, vastly exceeding the national average of 41%.

These figures show that Manchester is undoubtedly a driving force in the Northern powerhouse, showing fast and sustained growth over time.

Cont.  Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

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GROWTH

SIMGINUITY LTD

GARIFF CONSTRUCTION LTD

MCD MANCHESTER LTD

Turnover: £20m - £25m Turnover growth: 65.88% Employee count: 180 - 200 Sector: Manufacturing

Turnover: £10m - £15m Turnover growth: 33.47% Employee count: 50 - 70 Sector: Construction

Turnover: Turnover Growth: Employee count: Sector:

THE TSK GROUP LTD

CITY FOOTBALL SERVICES LTD

SADAQAT GLOBAL LTD

Turnover: £10m - 15m Turnover growth: 42.55% Employee count: 60 - 80 Sector: Sport

Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

EDM LTD

HEALTH ASSURED LTD

TOM HOWLEY LTD

Turnover: £20m - £30m Turnover growth: 63.17% Employee count: 180 - 200 Sector: Manufacturing

Turnover: £10m - £20m Turnover growth: 31.88 % Employee count: 140 - 170 Sector: Health

Turnover: £20m - £25m Turnover growth: 46.49% Employee count: 180 - 200 Sector: Kitchen furniture manufacturer

AKW GROUP PLC

ARDMAC PERFORMANCE CONT. LTD

DIGITAL PROJECTION INTERNATIONAL LTD

Turnover: £30m - £35m Turnover growth: 23.88% Employee count: 130 - 150 Sector: Logistics

Turnover: £20m - £25m Turnover Growth: 32.29% Employee count: 70 - 100 Sector: Construction

Turnover: £45m - £50m Turnover growth: 34.54% Employee count: 115 - 130 Sector: Manufacturing

LIMA NETWORKS LTD

BARBURRITO LTD

FUTURE DIRECTIONS CIC

Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

£30m - £35m 40.23% 70 - 100 Interior design

£10m - £15m 23.51% 50 - 70 IT & Technology

Turnover: Turnover growth: Employee count: Sector:

£10m - £15m 24.83% 300 - 350 Food & drink

£20m - £25m 31.66% 750 - 800 Food & drink

£15m - £25m 38.28% 15 - 30 Retail & manufacturing

Turnover: £15m - £20m Turnover growth: 29.46% Employee count: 580 - 620 Sector: Healthcare

The big challenge for many scale-ups Rob Perks, CEO of business growth specialists and scale-up ambassadors Inspire, comments: Scale-ups, or fast-growing SMEs, have a unique challenge as well as a fantastic opportunity.

They are identified by Government and many economists as the key to solving Britain’s productivity problem, as well as having the potential to be the sector that leads the economy into the fourth industrial revolution, spearheading the charge into the digital and technological transformation that is surely coming globally.

It is vital to the success of the UK economy in the coming decades for Britain to be at the forefront of this revolution.

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Many of these SMEs are innovating at a much faster rate than their corporate rivals, introducing new product and service solutions to complex problems across many sectors of the economy.

There is much opportunity, both for these entrepreneurs and for the wider economy.

The challenge is that many of these champions of innovation and new thinking have little experience of running a business at, say, £1m turnover or above.

They show their brilliance in coming up with new ideas and developing them into fantastic new products and services, but as their operation grows, so does their frustration as they find themselves evolving into CEOs and MDs and leaving their much preferred innovating behind as they grapple with finances, marketing, sales, and people who work for them but don’t share their enthusiasm.

So, how can this tragedy of seeing these exciting businesses crashing and burning because of a lack of business skills be avoided?

Sometimes, these innovators can acquire the skills they need to be successful business leaders. But for others, bringing in an expert business leader is the way forward.

The ScaleUp Institute has recognised this problem and is encouraging every Local Enterprise Partnership across the country to have a credible and strong scale up support programme to guide these highly important leaders through the maze of support available, help them develop a robust strategy for successful growth of the business, and create peer-to-peer groups for shared learning.

Issue 8: May - June 2019

Discover the UK’s fastestgrowing businesses.

Beauhurst is the professional platform for rich information on the UK’s most ambitious companies.

CEO and Founder

Equity fundraising 1 July 2014

£9.5m £40.6m pre-money

Equity fundraising 17 September 2016

£93m £179m pre-money

www.beauhurst.com

GROWTH

HOW TO LAUNCH YOUR BUSINESS IN INDIA F

or its latest trip abroad, Business Leader gives you an insight into what it takes to launch a business in the world’s second most populous country.

In the last year alone, India has risen to become the world’s third largest economy with many experts predicting that by 2040 it will have surpassed the USA and only sit behind the might of China.

In the last year, exports from British companies to India rose by 17%, with India importing £360.5bn worth of goods and services. This highlights the ever-growing potential to launch a business venture in India.

So how can UK businesses launch in India?

Whilst India does show great promise as a business destination for UK companies, there challenges too.

Corruption, poor infrastructure, and vast cultural differences can all play a part in an unsuccessful business launch, which is why getting to know India and the region you may be operating is vitally important.

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Internationally inviting So which sectors are most active in the country?

Currently, the primary focus in Indian business is on manufacturing, agriculture and professional services. However, there are now also emerging tech and pharmaceutical sectors.

Indian real estate billionaire PNC Menon believes that his nation is a great place for UK companies to launch a business venture within these industries.

He said: “India is an international country where the people are extremely warm. It is a very accepting place for outsiders looking at starting new ventures.

industry specialist that has recently expanded its operations in India.

“In recent years, all major sectors have become increasingly active in India. This has led to the nation currently going through a growth phenomenon. The general economy is buoyant with money being pumped in all sectors to boost the economy.”

Market Development Director Tim Ferkin comments: “Although there are issues within India relating to quality assurance, payment terms and industrial processes, it has provided many opportunities for Caldwell.

One of those British companies that have made a successful move into the Indian market is Caldwell, a glass and glazing

“The people in India never put up barriers to doing business. It’s a very entrepreneurial culture, and in my experience, local Issue 8: May - June 2019

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

companies are really keen to learn from British, European and American businesses.”

So, what prompted Caldwell to invest in India?

Tim explains: “We already dominated our sector in the US and UK, and needed a new market to expand into. India was the obvious choice for three key reasons.

“One, we’re already well-established in the area – our products have been sold in the region for years – and now we’ve just taken the natural next step. Two, there’s Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

no language barrier – English is the official language of business in India.

“And three, it’s one of the most dynamic economies on the planet. The growth rate is currently running at over 7% a year, which is faster than China’s, and by 2050 it’s expected to be the world’s second largest economy.”

Cultural differences Guilia Simonelli works for Newable, a company that supports British SMEs that trade internationally.

She recently led a trade mission to Mumbai, and whilst there she noticed several differences that businesses need to be aware of.

She explains: “The first challenging part was many decisions are made very last minute and this can lead to operations being dis-organised. Business logistics and ‘getting a date in the diary’ can be a challenge in India.

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INTERNATIONAL TRADE

“Face-to-face meetings are vitally important but due to the transport links and distance between offices, this can be very difficult to organise and stick to the schedule. In the UK, we are used to being a lot more efficient with our meetings and time spent in them. It made it clear that having a physical presence in the country would be key to future success.”

Tim echoes these sentiments and believes that in-depth pre-visit research is needed to make sure that moving into the Indian market is the right move for any business.

He comments: “India is a vast, culturally diverse place – and it’s hard to make generalisations about a country that’s home to more than a billion people. If you’re coming here to do business for the first time, you need to do at least a bit of basic research into the specific region you’re looking to work in.

“India is a very religious place, for example.

Nearly 80% of the population are Hindus, but there are significant Muslim, Christian and Sikh minorities. Find out which is the dominant faith in the area you want to work in.

“Two other things to remember – health and safety often isn’t a top priority in India. And it’s important to pick your partners carefully.

“When foreign investors are in town, some local companies just see dollar signs. They’ll be very eager to ingratiate themselves with you, but often their businesses aren’t great.

Take your time and choose wisely.”

“IN RECENT YEARS, ALL MAJOR SECTORS HAVE BECOME INCREASINGLY ACTIVE IN INDIA. THIS HAS LED TO THE NATION CURRENTLY GOING THROUGH A GROWTH PHENOMENON. THE GENERAL ECONOMY IS BUOYANT WITH MONEY BEING PUMPED IN ALL SECTORS TO BOOST THE ECONOMY.” PNC Menon

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How can your business succeed?

As Tim has explains, getting the right local contacts is vital when first scouting out a region and potential business venture.

He comments: “We have worked with a local company to carry out a thorough analysis of the Indian market, which has given us a huge amount of valuable knowledge.

“But personally, I flew to India once a quarter for over seven years. In the past two, I’ve been going over once every four to six weeks. That’s the sort of commitment you need to make if you’re going to get something like this off the ground. It’s been more than worth it, though, and I’m really excited about what the future holds.

“Culturally, legally and economically, India is a world away from what we’re used to in Europe and America. Some of those differences can be challenging, and you have to get your head around a very different set of business regulations and legal requirements.

“Initially, that red tape is frustrating. But once it’s dealt with, it’s actually very easy to do business in India. If I was going to give

“IF YOU’RE COMING HERE TO DO BUSINESS FOR THE FIRST TIME, YOU NEED TO DO AT LEAST A BIT OF BASIC RESEARCH INTO THE SPECIFIC REGION YOU’RE LOOKING TO WORK IN.” Tim Ferkin

one key piece of advice, though, it would be to find a strong local partner. In my view, that’s the key to success.”

PocketApp Another success story in India is PocketApp – a mobile technology business set up by Paul Swaddle. Paul grew the team from three to 50 in the first two years of trading, and now has offices in London and Mumbai.

He comments: “One of the things that can make India tricky is that lots of things appear similar – for example the laws are broadly similar. However, the similarities are often in fact only surface deep. Take the law and wider legal system – on the surface they look similar but in truth the time it takes for a case to get to court makes it quite useless.

“You do need someone with local knowledge to ‘translate’ for you. There are numerous public holidays in India and in individual states, but not all are actually given to all employees so you need to know how this may impact your business. There is so much to learn but so much opportunity.” 

Issue 8: May - June 2019

GROWTH

FEATURE

Why don’t more UK businesses think in the

billions?

B

ritish businesses have a habit of building quick and selling fast, with many of the global powerhouses hailing from Germany and the USA. Why is this? And why don’t British firms often build for the long-term?

Why do so few UK businesses expand to become global giants? Are there structural obstacles in place, such as lack of investment? Does it come down to culture – to different values and attitudes than in the US? Or is it a failure to think far into the future, past short-term gains?

Investment Mark Pearson, CEO of Fuel Ventures, considers a lack of funding the primary obstacle for UK businesses looking to grow.

“Business owners will often launch startups with their own personal investment or will raise a small amount of money in their first round of funding. However, growing a business is difficult and expansion is expensive. Many businesses struggle to access the cash needed to develop, leading many to become stuck at SME level.”

Mark cites a recent study by Liberis, which found that over half of UK businesses struggle to access the funding they need to grow.

“Without funding education and vital cash injection, business growth becomes stunted, prompting CEOs to sell quickly,” he explains.

Cont. ▸ Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

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GROWTH

THREE BILLIONAIRES WHO THINK BIG

ELON MUSK Age: 47 Born: Pretoria, South Africa Lives: Los Angeles, USA Net worth: $19.8bn (£15.3bn) Key businesses: SpaceX, Tesla Inc., Neuralink, The Boring Company, Open AI, PayPal Known for: Commercial space travel, electric cars, planning a human colony on Mars

MARK ZUCKERBERG Age: 35 Born: White Plains, USA Lives: Palo Alto, USA Net worth: $70bn (£54bn) Key businesses: Facebook, Internet.org Known for: Becoming a billionaire at 23, the film The Social Network, legal controversies around data and privacy

JACK MA Age: 54 Born: Hangzhou, China Lives: Hangzhou, China

The reticence of investors may also be due in part to the long timeframe needed to scale a business, especially when R&D is required. Sean Fielding is the Director of Innovation, Impact and Business at the University of Exeter, as well as Chair of the UK’s Association for Knowledge Exchange Professionals. He says: “Science-based businesses can be highly successful, but they can also take a long time to prove the concept and gain customers. We find that there is less experience of high-tech, high-growth companies amongst UK investors and funds are often structured to expect a quite short-term payback.

“Since UK investors tend to have expectations of high and early returns, they are likely to sell out to the next wave of investors after a relatively short period. There is therefore a marked difference between the amount of time that investors in the US stay associated with their investments compared with the UK. “In response to this, UK universities have been leading the way in supporting the development of so called ‘patient capital’ schemes where the investors typically do not expect an exit for up to 15 years. Currently this is a specialist market with a small number of players, but we think it will grow because the returns can be substantial.”

Investment is only part of the picture, however, and Chris Atkinson, UK Managing Director of Strategic Leaders, does not consider funding to be the primary barrier to UK business growth. “We see multinational companies investing heavily in the UK, so I don’t see that investment is the issue. It is more likely to be the human factors such as organisational culture or attitude that influence growth.”

Workplace culture With Brexit perpetually at the forefront of public discussion, people have been asking what it means to be British. Part of what makes us unique is our workplace culture. For example, British workforces tend to feel comfortable challenging instructions.

Chris Atkinson says: “For the last seven years I have worked with a large German manufacturing company with plants in the UK. There is what you might call a rebellious attitude in the UK. It often manifests in wanting to challenge the directions given by the head office and trying to do things differently in the UK than how things are done in other countries. Often these differences become something that the British feel very proud of.”

But is it necessarily good to always insist on a ‘British’ approach?

Comparisons between UK attitudes and those of workforces abroad may not always swing in our favour.

Net worth: $39.3bn (£30.3bn) Key businesses: Alibaba, Taobao Marketplace, Alipay, Ali Mama, Lynx, Tmall, eTao, Alibaba Cloud Computing, Juhuasuan, 1688.com, AliExpress.com Known for: The Jack Ma Foundation, the Kung Fu short film Gong Shou Dao, member of the Communist Party of China

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“SINCE UK INVESTORS TEND TO HAVE EXPECTATIONS OF HIGH AND EARLY RETURNS, THEY ARE LIKELY TO SELL OUT TO THE NEXT WAVE OF INVESTORS AFTER A RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD.” Sean Fielding

Issue 8: May - June 2019

FEATURE Chris notes: “I was working in the USA recently with a Swiss company and was immediately struck by how adaptable and positive the teams were in the States. We had some problems with logistics and communication, but the group were not affected at all – they adapted and had a great experience. If that happened in the UK, I would expect to have a battle on my hands to win the group over from that moment onwards.”

National attitudes Of course, culture goes beyond the attitudes of single teams in workplaces. It may be that countries like the US and Germany are predisposed on a larger, social scale to encourage high-growth businesses.

Chris Atkinson, who has worked extensively with firms in the UK and abroad, says: “Generally, organisations in the States have a more optimistic outlook – they are self-confident and motivated. British organisations tend to have a more cautious attitude to the future and are somewhat cynical of the hype of the American approach. German companies take a more methodical approach; they organise and structure themselves for the future.

This involves more robust planning and processes than we tend to have in the UK. So, in some ways the UK falls in between two approaches, not as emotional as the States but also not as methodical as German firms.”

David Doughty, too, thinks British society may in some ways hinder business ambitions. “Dare I say it?” David says, “I think a lot of it has to do with class. The US and Germany are relatively class-free societies whereas the UK is still dominated by class, and most investors tend to come from, and deal with, members of the upper echelons of society.

“My own experience is that investors, particularly VCs, have very little day-to-day knowledge of business, especially the areas they are investing in. They lack the patience to invest for the longer term compared with their counterparts in the US and Germany – it is only in bio-tech, particularly gene technology, where UK investors have successfully contributed to the growth of Unicorns – and this is because the nature of the industry demands a 15 year pay-back

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period. Many UK software start-ups have had to go to the US to raise funding and grow as UK investors look to invest too little to get a return too early.”

The global giants of the US may also have incubated in a particularly potent consumerism. Chris Atkinson notes, “Having just got back from USA I was reminded how strong their advertising culture is and how powerful brands are. The culture in the USA both consumes and produces a huge amount of media and this facilitates the growth of mega-brands which ultimately delivers the global companies. In Europe, and especially the UK, we are more conservative about putting millions into advertising and, as consumers, we are more sceptical of the claims of large marketing campaigns. I think that puts a lot of British companies off – we would rather our product or service speak for itself.”

investment from overseas and particularly the US.” Chris Atkinson, too, warns: “I think we need to be careful about applying the cult of celebrity to the business world. We like to create heroic figures and want attribute success to their unique approach. However, it is very clear that those figureheads are just one part of a large management structure that, together, delivers the outcomes. We should recognise the successful contribution of many UK firms that operate internationally without looking for a charismatic celebrity leader to attribute the secret of their success to.”

Misplaced ambitions The US may dominate global market capital and host the world’s megacompanies. But is size really everything? Chris Atkinson urges UK businesses to consider their future goals carefully.

“If you read the press about the growth of Agile as a concept, we are seeing that bigger is not better.

Even the largest companies are now trying to replicate the agility, flexibility and responsiveness of smaller, faster organisations,” Chris says.

The Virgin conundrum If one company – and one entrepreneur – would seem to defy the limits of UK investment and culture, Richard Branson’s Virgin springs to mind. Branson is not shy or retiring, and Virgin has not scaled to sell. Has Branson successfully adopted US entrepreneurial culture within the UK? In short, no – or at least, an American-style swagger is not the fundamental ingredient.

David Doughty points to a different US import: “Richard Branson is a self-publicist who has managed to keep his private life private.

“There are many successful entrepreneurs from the UK who have built global businesses but, without exception, they have had

“It is a battle they cannot win – their business model and structure is not fit for our VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) world. It could well be that the future of all industry and the most prosperous organisations in the 21st century will be about speed rather than scale.” 

“ WE LIKE TO CREATE HEROIC FIGURES AND WANT ATTRIBUTE SUCCESS TO THEIR UNIQUE APPROACH. HOWEVER, IT IS VERY CLEAR THAT THOSE FIGUREHEADS ARE JUST ONE PART OF A LARGE MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE THAT, TOGETHER, DELIVERS THE OUTCOMES.” Chris Atkinson

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The Panel James Woollam Hayes Parsons Insurance Brokers Matthew Tanner SS Great Britain Paul Brown Mail Handling International Robert Sargeant Stride Treglown Tom Morri CBRE Paul Jones British Business Bank Catherine Frankpitt UWE Tim Woodward WBD Ros Trotman Thrings LLP/Women in Property Briony Phillps Engine Shed Marc Watters Metrobank Alan Bailey Future Economy Group Adam Booth Three Sixty Real Estate David Westgate Andrews Property Group Sharon Alred Signaure Recruitment

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Regional focus

We need to look at why it takes so long to build infrastructure in Bristol

A

s part of its regional review series, Business Leader brought together leaders from the Bristol City region to look at the opportunities and challenges the city is facing. Inclusion, transport and access to finance were amongst the topics discussed.

WHAT MAKES BRISTOL A UNIQUE PLACE TO DO BUSINESS? AND WHAT ARE THE MAIN CHALLENGES IT FACES? James Woollam: “As an independent, privately owned insurance broker operating in a market where our competitors are all large corporates, being based in a city like

Bristol and championing all its positives gives us a big point of difference.”

Paul Brown: “What I love about Bristol is it vibrancy and position as a commercial global hub. What I get frustrated about is that the city doesn’t value its blue-collar workers and blue-collar heritage. It’s regularly converting industrial space that employs real people in the city into places that are white collar centric.

“The only white-collar jobs acceptable for blue-collar people are call centres and data tapping and we’re losing our industrial heritage by pushing it out to south Gloucester, which is not where this community lives.”

Tom Morris: “We’ve not been good enough in Bristol with managing density in the city.

Issue 8: May - June 2019

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If you go to Manchester for example, they’re building much bigger towers than we are.

“Regarding Paul’s point about where we build, I don’t agree because I believe we are geographically constrained. If you are a developer looking for inward investment there isn’t the space for it, so there has to be a balance with trying to re-locate some of businesses. You may also re-locate a business that has fifty staff but attract one that employs four hundred and fifty jobs, so you create a net benefit.”

Marc Watters: “I like the diverse culture that you have in Bristol and this has provided us with a catalyst to open and grow in the South West. We hope to open four sites in Bristol in the next four years.

“Another positive about Bristol is the amount of start-up and technology businesses that are based in the city, and the world-class universities here which help create a strong eco-system.”

“WE’VE NOT BEEN GOOD ENOUGH IN BRISTOL WITH MANAGING DENSITY IN THE CITY. IF YOU GO TO MANCHESTER FOR EXAMPLE, THEY’RE BUILDING MUCH BIGGER TOWERS THAN WE ARE.”

David Westgate: “Bristol is a fantastic place to live and work in but there are issues around transport and infrastructure links. If you look at places like Yate and Keynsham where they have train lines, this is where it’s likely that you will see the growth taking place.”

Dr Matthew Tanner: “The problem with Bristol is that it can feel like we’ve lived here for thirty years and we like how things are done and we don’t have to change. But the notion we can just stay as we are is a false hope and complacent, and we will end up getting left behind.

“It’s the same with the tourism sector in Bristol. It’s the second biggest sector in the city but we feel we can rely on a couple of attractions and a few nice restaurants, which isn’t good enough.

“One other frustrating point is our inability to work with Bath. Everybody seems to have their tribe and it’s become too political and people are constrained in their own pockets of influence.”

Alan Bailey: “What astounds me is that we live in one of the UK’s most innovative cities, with so many great businesses and people, but we struggle to get this right. The situation needs to be grabbed by the scruff of its neck.

But what I would say is that the way leaders and politicians collaborate has improved in the last few years.”

DOES THE POLITICAL STRUCTURE CURRENTLY BENEFIT THE GROWTH OF THE CITY? Dr Matthew Tanner: “There is a lot of effort going into things and we all hope The West of England Combined Authority (WECA) will work but they have a structure that is fundamentally undeliverable. There is a political imbalance between the three authorities, which makes it hard for Tim Bowles (WECA Metro Mayor) to have any major impact.”

WHY CAN’T WE SOLVE THE TRANSPORT & INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES IN BRISTOL? Paul Brown: “I think we need to look at why it takes so long to build infrastructure in Bristol and the UK; part of this is how the contracts are procured. They are completing much bigger infrastructure projects in Singapore and Hong Kong five times faster than it takes us to build a roundabout.

“The solution could be to be to stop building in a bowl and look to places outside of the city, like Filton, for development.”

Tom Morris

Cont. 

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WHAT ARE THE OTHER CHALLENGES BRISTOL IS FACING? James Woollam: “Our office is in the city centre and one subject that never gets talked about is the amount of student accommodation that is built in the city centre at the expense of office space. We have lost hundreds of thousands of sq ft and this is pushing prices up for businesses looking for space to grow.”

Briony Phillips: “Finding commercial office space is one of the biggest challenges for growing businesses. Many of the incubators are full and the corporates have secure office space, but the businesses in the middle do struggle to find space.

“Places like Runway East are helping to solve this problem but it has stagnated growth on a micro-scale.”

Sharon Alred: “Start-up space is good in Bristol, but it can be difficult for high-growth businesses to find adequate office space.

What we’re seeing is that businesses are staying where they are and just buying smaller desks. Not because they want to but because there isn’t another option.”

Adam Booth: “I would say that one of the main challenges that Bristol still has is with its profile both nationally and internationally.

Manchester benefits from having Andy Burnham, who bangs the drum for that region. Bristol needs an equivalent figure to do this.”

“START-UP SPACE IS GOOD IN BRISTOL, BUT IT CAN BE DIFFICULT FOR HIGH-GROWTH BUSINESSES TO FIND ADEQUATE OFFICE SPACE, SO WHAT WE’RE SEEING IS THAT BUSINESSES ARE STAYING WHERE THEY ARE AND JUST BUYING SMALLER DESKS.” Sharon Alred

WHAT WORK ARE UNIVERSITIES DOING TO SUPPORT BUSINESS GROWTH IN THE REGION? Catherine Frankpitt: “We have amazing universities that serve they city and they contribute an awful lot to the eco-system, both in creating entrepreneurs and businesses from their incubators but also by creating a highly skilled pool of talent that businesses can access.

“It’s also worth noting that alongside bringing in talented students and graduates to the region we also need students from Bristol – and deprived areas in the city – to attend university. 25% of UWE graduates, for example, are from Bristol. We need to do more but the universities are helping to improve access to skills and opportunities for people in the city.”

HOW DO WE ENSURE MORE BRISTOL BUSINESSES HAVE ACCESS TO THE FUNDING THEY NEED TO GROW? Paul Jones: “50% of equity currently stays in the M25 corridor and when it does venture out, it’s only to the major cities.

“Bristol companies are receiving equity, but people tend to come to the city and then leave, so it doesn’t always stay here. The powers that be have recognised this issue and work is being done to ensure more funding and private equity comes into Bristol and the regions.”

Briony Phillips: “Funding is the second biggest challenge for Bristol firms, after office space. BPEC are doing some great work to alleviate this and we have the third biggest community of angel investors here, but 60% of that funding is still going back to the Golden Triangle of London, Oxford and Cambridge.

“The reality is that London start-ups have access to six times the amount of capital that companies in other regions do. The data is stacking up against us but change is coming.”

HOW CAN BRISTOL BUSINESSES BETTER PREPARE FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION? Ros Trotman: “All businesses, big and small, should make diversity and inclusion a top priority. More diverse businesses mean more successful businesses. Whilst Bristol is leading the way with the launch of the UK’s first Women in Business Equality Charter this year following the launch of the Bristol Equality Charter last year, we now need to see more Bristol businesses pledge their commitment to these initiatives and bring about changes within their organisations.

“This is a public commitment to improving equality in the city by signing up to a set of objectives, including measuring and sharing progress on achieving greater equality. This can be done in a number of ways such as through improvements in the recruitment and progression processes, and does not need to be time-consuming or costly to do.

It just needs to be supported at all levels within an organisation.” 

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Issue 8: May - June 2019

ADVERTORIAL

TERCON CIVIL ENGINEERING

BENEFIT FROM WESTON COLLEGE SUPPORT helped us find some brilliant members of staff. One person in particular, was our apprentice Alex. He has come on in leaps and bounds since he first stepped into the business and we are continuing to invest into his development.

WHO ARE TERCON? Tercon is a regional contractor that delivers specialist Groundwork and Plant packages on major projects for the UK’s biggest contractors, as well as carrying out turnkey main contract Civil Engineering and Commercial or Industrial Building projects.

We also offer degree apprenticeships, where we sponsor a student to complete their university studies and they work with us one day a week on release. Degree apprenticeships is something that we believe in as a company, and we will continue to support in the future.

WILL TERCON BE LOOKING TO TRAIN STAFF AT THE NEW CONSTRUCTION TRAINING CENTRE? Weston College’s Construction Training

Centre is going to be a godsend for our business. We will now be able to train our existing staff in one place, rather than using different training providers, that are based all across the country. We are excited to have this “one stop shop” on our doorstep, as being able to train/upskill our staff is vital for our business.

WHAT ARE THE COMPANY PLANS FOR FUTURE GROWTH? We started off as a very small business, but we have seen growth over the last few decades and this is set to expand over the coming years. There are lots of opportunities in this industry, and we are looking forward to the future.

We are based in Avonmouth, and currently employ 47 members of staff.

HAVE YOU FACED A SKILLS SHORTAGE? As with many organisations in the construction industry, we are facing a skills shortage. We find it particularly hard to fill field based vacancies, and we sometimes struggle with finding office staff as well.

HOW HAVE YOU DECIDED TO COMBAT THESE CHALLENGES? Three years ago we decided that we would partner with Weston College, as they are an outstanding training provider, and local to our Bristol base. They also offer apprenticeship standards for the areas of the business that we need support with.

It can still be a challenge to find the right recruits/apprentices for the business, and for them to maintain the level required, but the team at Weston are highly engaging and always on the end of the phone when we need them. I would honestly rate their engagement as excellent, and this has

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

51

LIFESTYLE

“I’m not a businessman, and I’m not ambitious.

I’m a romantic idealist.”

M

arco Pierre White has been called the godfather of modern cooking.

The youngest chef ever to hold three Michelin stars, Marco gave them back in order to keep his independence. Now a restauranteur, Marco has restaurants across the UK under eight different brands.

BLM sat down with Marco to discuss his values, the vegan movement, and why he gave back those Michelin stars.

YOU COME FROM A FAMILY OF CHEFS, IS THAT RIGHT?

“IF I WANT TO FLY TO INDIA, TO SINGAPORE, I CAN. IF I HAD THREE STARS FROM MICHELIN, I COULDN’T DO THAT AND HAVE INTEGRITY. AND I WOULDN’T WANT TO GO TO A MICHELINSTARRED RESTAURANT UNLESS THAT CHEF IS BEHIND THE STOVE.”

52

Yes, my father and grandfather and uncle were chefs. In those days, you took on your family profession. If my father had been a butcher, I’d have been a butcher. If he was a miner, I’d have gone down the pits. But he was a chef so that’s what I did. I didn’t want to be a chef. I wanted to be a gamekeeper. I love to be outdoors, fishing and so on.

WHAT WAS IT LIKE GROWING UP IN LEEDS? I spent the first six years of my life with my mother. She died when I was six. So then from age six to 16 I was brought up by my father. I was fortunate; I was brought up on the outskirts of Leeds. I spent my childhood on the Harewood Estate – it was my playground. I was on the wall fishing; at Lofthouse farm; in the main park. I didn’t think it would come to an end. But school ended on the 27th March 1979, and on the 30th March, I started work at the Hotel St George, Harrogate, as an apprentice chef.

Issue 8: May - June 2019

MARCO PIERRE WHITE

CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT YOUR MOVE TO LONDON? I didn’t move to London until I was 19. I went to work with the Roux brothers. And I found London rather scary, whereas I’d been fine walking through woodland in the dark. I found city centres scary. I arrived at about the same time as the Brixton riots, and I lived in that part of town, in Clapham.

I didn’t enjoy London, actually. You just end up in a rut. Even though I was there for three decades, I didn’t enjoy it.

HOW DID YOU MAKE THE LEAP TO OPENING YOUR OWN RESTAURANT? Everything in my life has been by default.

There’s no strategy in anything I do. It just happened; it was no great achievement of mine. I misunderstood what they were saying to me. They said: we’ll lend you the money.

They wrote to the bank. How lucky was I? YOU ENJOYED HUGE SUCCESS AT A YOUNG AGE. DID IT ADD PRESSURE FOR YOUR CAREER? I don’t even think back to it. It was nonsense. You’re being given awards by people who know less than you. So what are they worth? They’re like tin stars. I don’t do awards. I’m not that insecure that I have to be told I’m good. That would be horrific; I can’t think of anything worse.

IS THAT WHY YOU GAVE BACK YOUR MICHELIN STARS? I just didn’t want to cook anymore. I didn’t want to live a lie. I could have pretended to cook, continued to charge my prices, questioned everything I stood for in life…

No. I couldn’t live a lie. I must be honest in life. And now, if I want to come to Cadbury House tonight, I can. If I want to fly to India, to Singapore, I can. If I had three stars from Michelin, I couldn’t do that and have integrity. And I wouldn’t want to go to a Michelin-starred restaurant unless that chef is behind the stove. If he’s filming in Australia or America, why am I paying those prices? I want him to cook my dinner.

WHAT ARE YOUR VALUES? WHAT DRIVES YOU? Well first, let me tell you that I’m not a businessman. And secondly, I’m not ambitious. I work with ambitious people. I’m a romantic idealist, really. That’s why I do what I do. It’s as simple as that. You can’t love everything you do in life. Out of all the Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

places I’ve done, there have only been three places I’ve loved. One was Harveys, one was Mirabelle, and the other is the Rudloe Arms.

The rest of them are just businesses. They’re not personal.

For me, it’s not about achieving great wealth.

I can’t think of anything more vulgar. And I’m not so insecure that I need to buy a Ferrari or a Rolls Royce or a Rolex. I like what Oscar Wilde said: “Crime isn’t vulgar but vulgarity is a crime.”

Money for me is purely to create, and to make. It’s not to be wealthy. Income stream is what’s important.

WHAT ARE YOUR INTERESTS OUTSIDE OF WORK? My one luxury in life is spending lots of time with my children. That’s my real luxury and my real pleasure. I also like going deer-stalking without a gun, just with a pair of binoculars. I like fishing; I like being outdoors. And I like reading.

What I do crave is ‘ordinary’.

What I’ve learnt in my life is that privacy is freedom. I like working, but I don’t want to be in the public eye. I’m not interested in that. I don’t want to be a celebrity: I like normal, ordinary, real. I like spending time with my children. I like spending time with my friends. Fishing with my children. A glass of wine and I’m happy. And a perfectly cooked fried egg sandwich.

I don’t like confusion; I like simplicity. I want everything around me to be simple, and the reason is that my mind is quite complex. I’m a great believer that the more you do to food, the more you take away. Simplicity. Intelligence.

Let mother nature be the artist.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE VEGAN MOVEMENT? Well I was a vegan for nine months. I thought I’d try it. It was the most boring nine months of my life. But I tried it, so I can pass comment. I stopped all protein, all dairy, all sugar. All alcohol, all cigarettes.

All indulgences and vices. It all went. I lost five stone in weight. I lacked energy, though I slept better. But I was never fulfilled. I was constantly eating. For me, food is all about the emotional impact. I was always hungry.

I used to look at cheese boards, and it was like the brie was walking across the board towards me. Or I’d look at a roast beef and it looked sensational. Your mind starts to manipulate you, saying: Eat it. Do it. You want it. And I have to say, that moment of surrender was the most exciting moment, when I finally succumbed.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE TRAVEL DESTINATION? I’ve been to a lot of places, and the truth is they’re all beautiful. Really, wherever you go.

Lisbon, Barcelona, Cadiz, Venice, Martinique – it’s all beautiful. I love Italy, but then I am half Italian. I love France. But I think the country that intrigues me the most is India. That’s what plucks the most extreme emotions out of me. For me, it’s all about the emotional impact.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE WINE? The ultimate wine in the world – without question – is Château d’Yquem. That’s a sweet wine. I like something very light. I don’t like big wines; they beat me up, really.

But if I’m in the south of France, I want a glass of rosé. In Italy, I want a local wine; when I travel, I want a wine of that region.

We all know I’m not a fan of English wines: I think they’re overpriced and not great.

But I suppose when I’m in England, I like a Chianti. A Pinot Noir. 

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ECONOMY, POLITICS & MARKETS

The 21st Century

‘Scramble for Africa’

L

ast summer, Theresa May declared the UK would strive to become the largest G7 investor in Africa by 2022.

The goal sets the UK in direct competition with China, the US, and the rest of the European Union.

According to EY Global’s 2018 Africa Attractiveness report, the USA led Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Africa in 2017 with 130 projects – an increase of 43% to reach an 18% overall share. The UK came in second with 72 projects and a 10% share – an increase of 76% from the previous year.

France came in 3rd with a 9% share and China 4th with 8%. Germany ranked 5th with a 5% share and 39 projects – but managed an increase of 105% to get there.

The continent of Africa is rich in natural resources, but then, it always has been. So why now? What is driving the world’s second ‘Scramble for Africa’? And how can British investors find profitable, ethical investments on the continent?

Africa: Open for business Several socio-political and environmental changes have renewed interest in African investments. One example is the completion of long-term infrastructure projects. Africa has always been resource-rich, but the infrastructure is increasingly in place for companies to access those resources.

Thomas Abraham-James, Managing Director of helium mining company Helium One, says: “Africa is a vast continent whose endowment of natural resources has been known for centuries. The continent has however been hampered by a lack of infrastructure, so most 54

Manufacturing

development to date has focused on large-scale, easily accessible projects.

“I do see the African continent’s appeal increasing to foreign investors as more infrastructure projects come to fruition. This is certainly the case in Tanzania where our company’s helium assets are located. The Rukwa Project is nearby to power, road, rail, an airport serviced daily by jet aircraft, and a large-scale cement works – most of which did not exist a decade ago.”

Invest Africa makes a compelling case for the continent’s attraction. “Africa has a huge wealth of natural resources and human capital,” Karen Taylor says. “By 2035, the number of sub-Saharan Africans reaching working age (15-64) will exceed the rest of the world combined.

“The continent also boasts 30% of the world’s mineral resources, ample renewable energy potential and significant agricultural assets. Given these factors and investment opportunities, international companies cannot afford to ignore African markets.”

Then and now According to the ONS, “In terms of industry, mining and quarrying, and financial services were the main industrial groupings in receipt of UK FDI, accounting for 54.4% and 34.3% of total UK FDI into Africa in 2014, respectively.”

Long-established British mining and quarrying activities in Africa often have roots in colonialism. Rajneesh Narula OBE, John H. Dunning Chair of International Business at Henley Business School, University of Reading, says: “British firms have considerable history in the extractive sectors in Africa dating back from colonial times. This has its advantages. Nonetheless, colonial ties have their limits.”

Fin-Tech & Tele-communications

African investment opportunities are not limited to mining, however. Karen Taylor encourages British companies to invest, “Not just in natural resources such as minerals and oil, but in modern tech-driven sectors such as renewable energy, fintech and telecommunications. Retail, manufacturing and agri-business also offer scope for growth on the back of an emerging middle-class throughout the continent.”

Rob Withagen, Co-founder and CEO of Asoko Insight, agrees that investors should broaden their horizons. “The hottest industries on the continent right now are tech-enabled, consumer-facing sectors: those that address real problems affecting real people where Issue 8: May - June 2019

the local community is left to live with the damage.”

Infastructure

Finally, Rajneesh urges the fair use of infrastructure: “[Companies] tend to build the infrastructure needed for the project but not for the community. There’s no running water for the local population but there’s a camp where everything functions. So you end up with a situation where the local community doesn’t have any water because it’s being used up by the mine.”

This is not to say that mining is inherently unethical – only that ethical investments require consideration and oversight. Rajneesh suggests choosing companies which engage with NGOs. “Western multinationals tend to involve NGOs from the outset, to plan CSR activities and minimise environmental and social damage.

They avoid conflict with NGOs by engaging them directly.”

Mining & Quarrying

Financial Services tech can make a real change. Examples include health, where mobile applications can increase access to services; payments, where technology has improved financial inclusion; and energy, where access to offgrid systems is facilitated by online solutions.”

A study in ethics: Mining in Africa While investment opportunities on the continent may be diversifying, mining and quarrying operations still dominate UK interests in Africa at 54.4% of FDI. Mining operations often have the most tantalising profit margins – but also come under regular censure for unsustainable or corrupt practices. For investors who wish to balance profit with the global good, Rajneesh Narula Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

offers three areas for due diligence.

First, there are the legal rights to the land. “Very often mined resources are expropriated,” Rajneesh says. “The foreign firm is given property rights at the federal level, but there are traditional rights are also associated with the land. There might be families living there, farming there. Their rights are expropriated by the state for the multinationals. That has a colonial ring to it.”

Second, there is the afterlife of the mine.

Rajneesh says: “After the ore has been extracted and you have an open pit mine, the land tends not to be usable for anything else. In many cases in Africa, the government doesn’t negotiate or enforce clean-up, so

“It’s important for the British government to make sure our companies behave well,” Rajneesh warns. “Because people remember for generations when something goes wrong – when there’s a mining disaster and 50 people die from lead or mercury poisoning, for example. So whatever profit you’ve made will be lost in terms of reputation.”

The second scramble What about broader considerations for approaching various investments? Thomas Abraham-James of Helium One offers some first-hand advice: “Like anywhere, it is important to understand the local culture in the African nation(s) you operate.

Expecting all of the world’s nations to abide by the same values and customs as yours is ignorant and foolhardy.”

Thomas adds: “Time and observation is required in order to appreciate local customs, but this learned understanding will aid any business activity. As for ethical considerations, I would recommend simply operating according to international best practices, and to ensure that the local community benefits from your presence.”

Rob Withagen of Asoko Insight also emphasizes the community impact: “There must be a move away from simply taking advantage of the lower costs and towards investments with an ambition to add to local employment and value creation in the local economy.” 

55

HR

What do employers need to know about post-Brexit immigration rules?

W

hen the UK Government published its white paper on EU immigration after Brexit, it sketched out a regulatory framework which could impact UK businesses of any size and sector. If a business employs workers from the EU – or indeed, from further afield – UK immigration policy must inform HR best practices.

In the foreword to the white paper, Prime Minister Theresa May wrote: “This will be a system where it is workers’ skills that matter, not which country they come from. It will be a single system that welcomes talent, hard work, and the skills we need as a country. It will attract the brightest and best to a United Kingdom that is open for business.”

It is the Prime Minister’s job to laud her government’s policies, but Marley Morris, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) is less convinced. Marley says: “Our concern is that the immigration system has lacked a sense of strategy for quite some time. It’s been largely contradictory, with different demands and expectations from different government departments.

“On the one hand, you have the net migration target from the Home Office, but then you also have the Department

56

of Education’s intention to expand international student population in the UK, our aims for housebuilding and infrastructure development which require a significant number of construction workers, the demands of the health and social sectors - there are clear tensions between different government objectives.”

However the new immigration system unfolds – and there will likely be plenty of creases to iron out – these new policies dictate the rights of current EU workers in the UK after Brexit and the future scope for businesses to recruit labour and talent from abroad. Alongside much-discussed fears of a skills shortage, the system also raises a somewhat underpublicized question: that of EU-based entrepreneurs, and their ability to found businesses in the UK. Current EU workers based in the UK The impact of the new system on current EU workers is relatively simple. After Brexit, EU citizens currently based in the UK will need a settled status document to live and work in the UK, and to enjoy the continuation of their current rights and free movement.

Gerwyn Jones, Senior labour market advisor for the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), urges UK business owners to ensure their EU employees are aware of the need for settled status.

Gerwyn says: “It’s important for employers to communicate to their employees their value to the organisation and just how easy and free of charge the digital process is. It requires fifteen minutes of their time and

there is a very generous deadline of June 2021, if we get the deal, or December 2020 under ‘No Deal’.

He emphasises: “The uncertainty EU citizens will have felt after the referendum result is unnecessary as they will have the right to live and work here indefinitely under the settled status document.”

Though the announcement of the settled status policy may be a relief for EU workers after years of uncertainty, employers should not simply leave their employees to it. They may be able to offer practical support in the application process, along with, perhaps more significantly, emotional support. The latter may prove crucial for employers hoping to retain top EU talent in their workforce.

Gerwyn recommends that employers “help with the process in terms of making use of facilities and IT equipment – and make [EU workers] feel valued by the organisation.”

The impact on future migration Much more complex for UK businesses is the impact of the new immigration policy on future recruitment from abroad.

IPPR’s research suggests that if the suggested conditions were applied to EU workers currently living in the UK, around 75% wouldn’t meet the requirements.

That 75% of current workers can still get protection under the settled status programme, but the requirements – the £30,000 salary requirement and mediumskills threshold – will certainly impact EU immigration after Brexit.

Cont.  Issue 8: May - June 2019

NET MIGRATION STATISTICS IN THE EU NET IMMIGRATION/EMIGRATION FOR YEAR SEPT 2017- SEPT 2018

345,000

PEOPLE LEFT THE UK

627,000

PEOPLE ARRIVED IN THE UK

APPROXIMATE POPULATION IN UK BY NATIONALITY, JULY 2017 – JUNE 2018 AUSTRIA

CZECH REPUBLIC

GERMANY

ITALY

NETHERLANDS

SLOVENIA

BELGIUM

DENMARK

GREECE

LATVIA

POLAND

SPAIN

BULGARIA

ESTONIA

HUNGARY

LITHUANIA

PORTUGAL

SWEDEN

CROATIA

FINLAND

IRELAND

12,000

47,000

292,000

141,000

101,000

23,000

6,000

28,000

113,000

66,000

985,000

93,000

174,000

11,000

203,000

83,000

217,000

5,000

17,000

LUXEMBOURG

ROMANIA

CYPRUS

FRANCE

MALTA

SLOVAKIA

1,000

NON-EU NET MIGRATION HAS INCREASED, WHILE EU NET MIGRATION HAS DECREASED

39,000

261,000

337,000

433,000

12,000

194,000

7,000

57,000

SEPT 18

SEPT 18

NON-EU NET MIGRATION

EU NET MIGRATION

187,000

63,000

DEC 08

DEC 08

83,000

EU8 LONG-TERM INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, UK, YEAR ENDING DECEMBER 2008 TO YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 2018

EU NET MIGRATION CONTINUES TO FALL BUT WE STILL SAW MORE PEOPLE ARRIVE IN THE UK THAN LEAVE

100

300

EU REFERENDUM

EU REFERENDUM

250

80

200 60 150 40 100 20

50

0

-20

0

Dec 08

Sept 09

Sept 10

EU8 IMMIGRATION

Sept 11

Dec 12

Sept 13

Sept 14

EU8 EMIGRATION

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

Sept 15

Sept 16

EU8 NET MIGRATION

Sept 17

Sept 18

-20

Dec 08

Sept 09

Sept 10

EU IMMIGRATION

Sept 11

Dec 12

Sept 13

EU EMIGRATION

Sept 14

Sept 15

Sept 16

Sept 17

Sept 18

EU NET MIGRATION

57

HR

FEATURE

Businesses and sectors which currently rely on EU workers to make up their workforces will have to adapt to the new skills-based system. Gerwyn Jones (CIPD) suggests employers look to the exceptions built into immigration policy.

“There are some loopholes,” Gerwyn says.

“One of them is the Youth Mobility Scheme, which allows all 18-30 year olds to live and work in the UK for up to two years.

Organisations may want to try and attract those younger workers, perhaps through social media.”

Reminiscent of similar schemes in countries like Australia, the Youth Mobility Scheme may particularly suit sectors like tech and the creative industries, where adventurous young workers might look abroad for inspiration in their field.

How else can UK businesses which rely on immigration adapt to the new system? For skilled workers, Gerwyn Jones suggests that employers learn to look beyond the EU. “The new system might deter EU nationals from coming to the UK because the other EU countries and economies across Europe have free movement and are flourishing just as well, such as Germany and Holland.

“But it will also be easier to recruit non-EU workers from 2021, which I think has gone underreported. One might expect high levels of recruitment from Commonwealth countries in particular – doctors from India and Australia and South Africa, for example.”

Migrant entrepreneurs in the UK Another potential solution – or at least, partial solution – to the fears of a skills shortage in sectors like construction is for the government to empower migrant entrepreneurs to open businesses in the UK. New immigration policies have so far focused on migrant workers and have somewhat neglected migrant entrepreneurs.

“THE HOME OFFICE NEEDS TO OPEN UP A NEW ROUTE, POTENTIALLY, FOR ENTREPRENEURS TO COME TO THE UK ALONGSIDE THE CURRENT ROUTES THEY’RE MAPPING OUT FOR EMPLOYEES.” Gerwyn Jones 58

Gerwyn Jones says: “The Home Office needs to open up a new route, potentially, for entrepreneurs to come to the UK alongside the current routes they’re mapping out for employees. This will be especially important for sectors such as construction where EU nationals from Poland have come over and set up their businesses and been very successful.”

Without freedom of movement and the preferential status EU citizens have enjoyed thus far, EU migrant entrepreneurs will effectively face the same conditions as Non-EU founders.

But that does not make founding a business in the UK impossible: Brazilian entrepreneur Rafael dos Santos, founder and CEO of the tech PR platform, High Profile Club, considers the UK to be particularly welcoming of migrant entrepreneurs, despite current rhetoric.

“I see entrepreneurship in the UK as way more positive than most people,” Rafael says. “I never felt that I was in any way discriminated against or that someone would buy someone else’s products or service because I’m Brazilian. My experience, and my experience of helping other migrant entrepreneurs, has been that the government is super supportive.”

After the UK leaves the EU, Rafael does not foresee any fundamental change to that openness. He says: “After Brexit, if we leave the EU, it is very difficult to predict how things will be. But, for example, I’m a member of the Institute of Directors.

It’s a very welcoming, open network. And entrepreneurs’ personalities are friendly, we help each other. So, it’s difficult to think that there will suddenly be no support after we leave the EU.” That is not to say that migrant entrepreneurs have it easy. Rafael says: “Obviously it is more difficult currently if you’re not from the EU, but there are other things too – you need to learn the language, the vocabulary, the culture, the ways of doing business.

“The other thing is that if you’re born in the UK, by the time you start a business you have a support network around you. If you’re a migrant entrepreneur, you don’t – you have to build that up, and it takes two to three years to build a really good network

around you. You have to be way more resilient and you have to push harder as a migrant entrepreneur to get your business off the ground in the UK.”

“AFTER BREXIT, IF WE LEAVE THE EU, IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO PREDICT HOW THINGS WILL BE. BUT, FOR EXAMPLE, I’M A MEMBER OF THE INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS. IT’S A VERY WELCOMING, OPEN NETWORK.” Rafael dos Santos

Looking forward Where does this all leave UK employers trying to plan for the future? Despite the white paper, so much of Brexit remains unclear and uncertain. Gerwyn Jones (CIPD) predicts an increase in Non-EU migration, a decrease in EU migration, and a net decrease in total migration from 2021. He also forecasts some risk of skills shortages.

“The prevalence of skills shortages has been exaggerated in the recent past – around 10% organisations are at risk of genuine skills shortages. But this is still the worst level in a generation, and that will worsen when migration becomes stricter in 2021.”

Gerwyn adds: “You will see it’s not just skilled positions – perhaps a bigger problem will be unskilled labour shortages, given that migration restrictions will hit low skill sectors such as hospitality, retail and construction the hardest.”

Finally, Gerwyn cautions against focusing on the negatives: “I think there are going to be winners and losers in this, and the debate has so far been dominated by the losers. But we shouldn’t forget that the performance of the Labour post-Brexit has been remarkably strong.

“We’ve seen record low unemployment rates and wages rising – but what we need above all is a political agreement that gives some certainty to business. The main drag on economic growth of the last few years has been the fall in business investment which is completely understandable given the uncertainty surrounding future trading agreements.” 

Issue 8: May - June 2019

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Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

59

MY WORKING DAY

RYAN HACKER

DIRECTOR AT VITHIT

A

s the leader of a company, you are there to set an example, to lead and inspire a team of individuals to achieve a series of business goals. But how do business leaders go about their daily routine?

Business Leader spoke to Ryan Hacker, Director at VITHIT, about his working day.

What time do you usually wake up?

I am usually up around 7am, however this varies on where I am travelling. If I’m on an early flight out to Dublin for meetings at our head office then the alarm is usually set for 4am – which is always a challenge!

What do you typically have for breakfast?

I keep it simple with my breakfast and tend to have a big bowl of porridge. It keeps me going until lunch and as I’m a type 1 diabetic, it also tends to not spike my blood sugars too much.

What is the rest of your morning routine before you start work?

I have a habit of turning my alarm clock off and checking my phone straight away and sifting through emails.

What is the first thing you do at the start of your working day?

The first thing is I always check emails. This can be during my travel to the office or if I’m 60

travelling elsewhere. This is so I can then make a plan for the day, week and month ahead according to what new information I receive at the time.

How do you prioritise your day’s work?

I tend to be much more productive in the morning, so I will always start with the most difficult tasks first. Once these are completed I will usually move on to a lighter workload in the afternoon and complete a lot more admin during this time.

Do you plan meetings or are they a waste of time?

Yes, absolutely! Meetings are key for us. Whether it is meeting new buyers or meetings with other brands to share best practice – there’s always something you can learn from meeting someone new. From an internal point of view, we try and sit down out of the office for a casual catch up to discuss the week we had previously and plan the week ahead.

Do you have a working lunch or is it good to take a break?

I like to take 10 to 15 minutes and get out of the office for a bit of a break and some fresh air. This works for me, however, I can completely understand if people need to take an extended break to reset the mind before heading back into work.

When does your working day finish?

The working day tends to finish when the work is done. If I know I will be working through the evening then I’ll always take a

few hours off and enjoy some dinner before doing anything else. In opposition, if I feel like I have achieved what I set out to do that day by 4pm then I will take the opportunity to finish earlier than normal.

How do you prepare for the next day’s work?

The last thing I do before bed is check my calendar and see what I have scheduled for the next three days. This is so I can prepare well in advance for any upcoming meetings and leave myself to be as proactive as possible.

Favourite piece of technology?

I struggle to sleep sometimes and often have lots of thoughts or ideas going around in my head. I have tried getting up and writing these down but this only seems to wake me up more. I decided to buy an Amazon Alexa recently and every time I’m in bed and something comes up I just add a note using Alexa. I do admit it’s slightly weird to be talking to Alexa at 11pm – my girlfriend certainly thinks so!

How do you switch off?

Switching off is never easy – however, I think the time when I properly switch off is when I’m playing guitar or piano. I find it weirdly meditative.

Best piece of advice you’ve received?

Take a look at how much we’ve done wrong.

Remember your mistakes and you will never have to make them again.

Issue 8: May - June 2019

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