Platinum Business Magazine Issue 8

The widest-read business publication in the South East

ISSUE 8 . 2015

WHERE WERE THE BUSINESS VOICES?

PLATINUM Did Sir Howard Davies hear the full story at the airport expansion hearing?

WHERE TO INVEST IN 2015 Skerritts look into the crystal ball

Plus: Business Funding Guide International Trade Legal Issues Accountancy Wealth Management Business Travel Chamber News Business Style Editorial Opinion Networking Motoring

PLATINUM

CREATING A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE Coast to Capital LEP partners with PBM

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS With key Business and Academic Leaders NatWest DMH Stallard University of Sussex Hurst College

THE BIG STORY

TONY BLAIR

CRIMINAL, MYTH OR LEGEND? READ ALL PAST ISSUES AT WWW.PLATINUMBUSINESSMAGAZINE.COM

The world awaits International solutions for you Trading overseas is an exciting proposition for any business, but there’s a lot to think about. It can be challenging, especially if it means venturing into a new territory where the language, the laws and the business culture are different. But it can also bring benefits – such as helping you win new customers, increase economies of scale and reduce your reliance on the domestic market.

We have a range of resources and partnerships that could help your business fulfil its global potential.

Gary Chown ACIB MCIBS - Chartered Banker Director Commercial Banking NatWest Bank Email: Gary.Chown@natwest.com 153 Preston Road, Brighton, BN1 6BE. Tel +44 (0) 1273 545145

Be More Successful DMH Stallard has been working in partnership with businesses for over 40 years, helping them become more successful.

We focus on your business critical success factors and deliver commercial solutions to effectively manage your: • • •

Customer and supplier agreements Property and employees Finance, borrowing and insurance

Having the right strategic approach to effectively manage these factors can positively impact your bottom line.

Don’t leave this to chance.

• • •

Intellectual property Shareholders and Directors Environmental issues

Contact us now for your completely free business self assessment pack.

Email: dani.bennett@dmhstallard.com

DMH Stallard Corporate Law Firm of the Year 2014

London | Gatwick | Guildford | Brighton | Farnham | www.dmhstallard.com

The public funding.

The delays on the M25.

The charges to road users.

The 320,000 additional people affected by noise.

The breaching of legal air quality limits.

The fact that it’s double the cost.

Choose to build the runway that can’t be built...

Get the facts about

the runway debate at

gatwickobviously.com

and @LGWobviously

...or the one that can?

WELCOME

ISSUE 8. 2015

Welcome to 2015. The new year is upon us and we are excited to get it underway.

PBM is going from strength to strength with new Partners joining on almost a daily basis, securing our place as the true voice of business in the South East. Due to demand, we have greatly increased the print run, increased our distribution area and increased the pagination.

The website is receiving more than 1000 hits per day and we now have over 14,000 Twitter followers.

This issue is the largest yet at 116 pages full of fascinating interviews, company profiles, coverage of important events and pages of independent editorial. We have introduced new features such as Platinum Business Style, written by Samantha Wilding, who has given up her previous life as a political lobbyist to write for PBM. In the next few months we will also be increasing our Business Travel section and introducing a new Commercial Design feature in partnership with leading estate agents, interior designers and architects.

40 AIRPORT COMMISSION PUBLIC HEARING As the only business publication be to be invited to attend, we report on the Airport Commission public hearing and have our say... See page 40.

DMH STALLARD MANAGING PARTNER DMH Stallard are one of the largest law firms in the region, and we get to grips with their Managing Partner, Richard Pollins, to learn the secret of their success...

See page 44.

We will also shortly be announcing the launch of a brand-new Platinum Business Club in the Gatwick Diamond, in partnership with some of the largest multinational companies in the UK.

SUSSEX UNIVERSITY

At Platinum Towers, we are bursting with energy, new ideas and excitement about the coming year.

At the major university in Sussex, Ian takes tea and hobnobs with Vice

Welcome to the first issue of 2015, and watch this space for all the news, views, reviews and events across your region.

Ian & Maarten 6

44

Chancellor, Professor Michael Davies to discover

68

what the future holds...

See page 68.

THE TEAM Maarten Hoffmann – Director maarten@platinumbusinessmagazine.com 07966 244046

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Ian Trevett – Director ian@platinumbusinessmagazine.com 07989 970804

MERCEDES C-CLASS ESTATE The all new C-Class Estate is a class act, and we give it a good thrashing to find out if it can stand the PBM test. We were fortunate enough to have a Jaguar F-Type V8 Coupe at the same time – decisions, decisions….

See page 80.

AT A GLANCE 8 17 18 26 28 31

News

32 36 38 40

Natwest Bank Interview

Institute of Directors Tony Blair Investments Financial Likes and Dislikes

Gatwick Diamond Business Awards Coast to Capital Lloyds Bank Airport Expansion

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44 Richard Pollins Interview 50 Business Lunch 52 Risk Investigation 68 Michael Davies Interview 74 Tim Manly interview 80 Motoring 88 Anger Management 90 Jeff Sutherland Interview 94 Chamber News 107 Platinum Style 112 Secret Sussex 114 Wise words

Lynne Edwards - Commercial Property lynne@portfoliopublications.co.uk Tel: 07931 537588

Sally Wynn - Senior Designer

Julia Trevett – Accounts Manager All rights reserved. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. The publisher cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions relating to advertising or editorial. The publisher reserves the right to change or amend any competitions or prizes offered. No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior written consent from the publisher. No responsibility is taken for unsolicited materials or the return of these materials whilst in transit.

Platinum Business Magazine is published and owned by Platinum Business Publications Limited.

Directors: Maarten Hoffmann and Ian Trevett

THE BIG STORY TONY BLAIR

Rarely has a political leader divided opinion to such a degree, with some thinking he is a legend and others that he should be hauled before the courts as a war criminal. Maarten goes in search of the real Tony Blair…

See page 18.

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L A C S O L EW N

LUKE WRIGHT BENEFIT YEAR Key members of the Brighton business community have been recruited to support Sussex and England cricketer Luke Wright in his 2015 Benefit Year.

The business leaders will be organising a host of fundraising events in Sussex and London. The events will support three great charities and encourage more children and young adults to get involved in cricket.

Nik Askaroff, of EMC, chairs the benefit committee. He is joined by Tim Cobb of Cobb PR, Barry Carden of Cardens Accountants, Simon Maguire of Hotel du Vin, Jon Filby, Deputy Chair of Sussex County Cricket Club, Andrew Crumpton of Baker Bennett Ltd, and Natasha Askaroff, Michael Gibbs and Ryan Smith from EMC. The launch event takes place at The Grand Hotel in Brighton on Friday, March 6. Special guest speaker will be former Ashes Captain Andrew Strauss OBE, joined by Brighton comedian Stephen Grant and host ex-England bowler Ed Giddins.

The luncheon is expected to be a “sell-out” and tickets are now on sale via info@lukewrightbenefit2015.co.uk or by calling 01273 945984.

MANOR ROYAL BID SHOWCASE

BAXTER AND THE BEEHIVE LEADING Sussex solicitors, Mayo Wynne Baxter, has further expanded this week (January 5) taking an office at The Beehive, the original terminal building at Gatwick airport.

The Beehive opened in 1936, when it was the world’s first fully-integrated airport building, and is considered a nationally and internationally important example of airport terminal design. The Beehive is now part of City Place, one of the commercial hubs of the Gatwick Diamond.

This brand new office follows the acquisition of Stuckey Carr & Co in 2014, Forest Row firm PR Vince in October 2013 and Allen Ticehurst in East Grinstead during 2012.

Mayo Wynne Baxter now has nine offices in Sussex, including long-established bases in Eastbourne, Seaford, Lewes, and Brighton.

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More than 110 people attended the Manor Royal Showcase Event at Thales recently to review the Business Improvement District activities and the new developments taking place across the area.

As well as networking with fellow Manor Royal business people, guests listened to a presentation by Manor Royal Business Improvement District (BID) chairman Trevor Williams, who spoke about the achievements of the BID team over the past year and the challenges ahead.

Among the achievements were the opening of the new People’s Park, fast tracking of road repairs, good progress on improving broadband speeds, reduced levels of reported crime alongside improved profile for the area, and increased investment and regional recognition at South East in Bloom.

“Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway”

A ‘Have your Say’ session was then chaired by the BID’s executive director Steve Sawyer, where delegates were able to participate using an interactive electronic voting system. This session was designed to assess the delegates’ perceptions of BID’s activities over the past year and to help shape its future direction.

The results showed a marked improvement in the way people and businesses felt about Manor Royal, with 63% reporting good levels of satisfaction with the business district and an encouraging 76% reporting it had got better in the last year. Improving infrastructure and promoting trade were among the most important current BID projects, while creation of a Business Directory (51%) and sorting out the signage (45%) were the top two projects receiving support for future action.

Commenting on the event, Trevor Williams said: “Creating opportunities for Manor Royal businesses to get together is important, not only from a networking viewpoint, but also to hear from businesses how they feel the BID is working for them.”

Most people (78%) felt the Manor Royal BID was focused on the right things, and they were supportive of it.

{ NEWS }

SUSSEX PROFESSIONAL WINS NATIONAL PR AWARD A PR professional at Brighton-based PR agency, Midnight Communications, has scooped a top national award.

Senior account executive, Jessica Beales, was named Freshest Young PR Professional at the Fresh:PR awards staged in Manchester last week.

Midnight has a strong tradition of winning awards having earned more than 50 in its 20-year history. In fact, this is the 10th consecutive year a member of the Midnight team has been a winner or a finalist in a PR competition to recognise excellence in the Under-30s age band.

Commenting on her achievement, Jessica said: “Becoming the Fresh Award’s Freshest Young Professional is a huge honour. I am very lucky to have found a career that I love, and everyone at Midnight Communications has encouraged and supported me - and helped my development from day one. If you want to try something new here then you can, and this has enabled me to build my skill set and lead a diverse range of projects.”

Caraline Brown, managing director at Midnight, said: “I could not be more proud to see Jessica maintain our winning tradition and collect this very well-deserved honour. Her success is testament not only to her ambition and outstanding communication skills but also to the superb training that Midnight offers.”

As well as bringing home a string of awards over the years, staff who began their careers at Midnight have gone on to lead three of the UK’s leading PR companies as well as forming many off shoot agencies of their own.

DMH STALLARD MERGER

SUSSEX ENTERPRISE RE-BRANDS Sussex Enterprise, the largest business membership organisation in East and West Sussex, has been formally renamed as ‘Sussex Chamber of Commerce’ in conjunction with the national network, The British Chambers of Commerce.

The company has undergone a total brand review since dynamic new CEO Ana Christie took the reins, propelling themselves into 2015 with a contemporary and bold new vision. Sussex Chamber of Commerce will focus on easy-tounderstand, clear and consistent messaging, which will help improve the economic regional environment.

Creative Pod, an award winning Sussex and Surrey-based, design-led Print, Marketing and Design agency, managed the rebrand in conjunction with Sussex Enterprise.

Leading South East law firm DMH Stallard has merged with Guildford firm, AWB Partnership, effective 1 January 2015.

The new law firm is called DMH Stallard and has a total of 53 partners. The merger further strengthens DMH Stallard’s presence across the South East, adding to the firm’s existing offices in the City of London, Gatwick, Brighton and Farnham.

All of AWB’s existing 37-strong team, including seven partners, are retained and remain servicing clients from their offices in central Guildford. Over the next 12 months, DMH Stallard intends to re-locate its presence in Farnham and the current AWB office into one new Guildford office.

Richard Pollins, Managing Partner of DMH Stallard, led the deal. He says: “I’m delighted to announce that our merger with AWB Partnership is now complete. A merger with a highquality firm in Guildford has always been part of DMH Stallard’s long-term growth strategy.

“The newly-expanded firm allows us to service our growing client base in the region. It also supports our private client practice, which is significantly boosted by AWB’s tremendous reputation in this area and one which I am sure we will build upon further as one firm.”

Richard Middlehurst, managing partner of AWB Partnership, says: “We are absolutely delighted to have completed this merger with DMH Stallard. Their stature and reputation in the market is well-established and will provide the platform we need to offer a very compelling service to our clients.“

“Quality means doing it right when no one is looking”

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L A C S O L EW N

208,000 NEW HOMES IN SUSSEX

Whether we like it or not, a new homes building target for England alone has been set for 230,000 new homes each year for the next 20 years. That’s nearly five million new homes. (Vince Cable is pushing for the number to be increased to six million.)

We are about to see enormous changes to our towns, villages and countryside.

If the lower figure is divided equally between the 48 ceremonial counties in England, it will equate to approximately 104,000 new homes in each county, or 208,000 new homes across East and West Sussex. But in reality, we know the number of new homes will not be divided equally across northern and southern counties.

Demand for new homes is many times higher in the South East. Employment is higher, profits for house builders are much higher and Sussex is officially the UK’s sunniest county! There is more space in Sussex than in the Home Counties, yet it is still commuting distance from London, so a disproportionate amount of these new homes will be built in East and West Sussex. By looking at the size of our counties, we can easily see that anything close to the projected figures will have a phenomenal impact on all of us. These new residents will need jobs – expansion of Gatwick anyone?

“Progress always involves risks.

You can’t steal second base and keep your foot on first”

WRAPPED UP BY OCTOPUS EMC Corporate Finance has completed the sale of Lewes illustrated publisher Ilex Press to the Octopus Publishing Group. The deal means that Ilex now becomes an imprint of Octopus alongside other internationallyknown names such as Hamlyn, Cassell Illustrated and Mitchell Beazley.

Ilex is best known for its expertise in photography and the visual media, producing illustrated reference titles on creativity and popular culture. Its list includes titles by photographer Michael Freeman, author of The Photographer’s Eye and The Complete Guide to Digital Photography, and the 2013 Christmas hit The 1000 Dot to Dot Book by Thomas Pavitte.

Alastair Campbell, who co-founded the company in 2000 with Peter Bridgewater and

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Jenny Manstead, is retiring, but there will be no other redundancies, with all Ilex creative publishing staff transferring to London.

Peter Bridgewater said: I would like to thank Nik Askaroff and his hard working team at EMC Corporate Finance for all the work they put in to ensure negotiations stayed on track and the deal seen through to a successful conclusion.”

JOBS GONE Forty jobs have gone after an electrical company went into administration.

A winding up order was made to the High Court against Techelec in Crowhurst Road, Hollingbury before Christmas. It has now been confirmed the company, which was formed in 1968 and had assets of £7.1 million, has entered administration.

BM Advisory has been appointed administrator for Techelec, which had 40 permanent staff. The administrators will now attempt to recover any assets principally comprising debtors and property.

{ NEWS }

MANOR ROYAL CRITICISM A business-led partnership has heavily criticised a plan for a new retail development in the Manor Royal Business District.

Rosemary French OBE, Executive Director of the Gatwick Diamond Initiative, is critical of T&L Crawley LLP’s bid to build three retail units and associated parking, landscaping and servicing areas in Betts Way, Langley Green. A decision is expected to be made by councillors sitting on Crawley Borough Council’s planning committee in March and Ms French has urged members to refuse the scheme.

“I am frankly astonished that such a proposal should be considered in a business park because Manor Royal is desperately short of industrial space,” she said. “There is also nearly always a traffic jam between shoppers arriving and leaving nearby County Oak, which is causing a considerable nuisance to the business traffic, which is being delayed in reaching its customers and suppliers or getting staff to and from work.”

The business leader also wants councillors to delay the decision until the Government decides if Gatwick Airport should build a second runway. “Crawley Town Centre should be a world-class retail centre, and these units should be located there,” she continued. “There is a risk that Crawley Town Centre will become a barren retail centre and overtaken by out-of-town shopping such as this proposal. Crawley shops will clearly suffer once the new Westfield Centre in Croydon is opened, so we need to be pulling shoppers into Crawley to spend money in cafes and restaurants as well as shopping, not sending them out of town.”

She added: “Crawley Borough Council has supported the development of the Manor Royal Business Improvement District, but this proposal makes a mockery of the Manor Royal BID’s plans to become the best business park in the UK.”

“Things work out best for those who make the best of how things work out”

s. Go back to school.

to oles. y out ame

GOVE VISIT With just 118 days to the General Election, Clarence Mitchell, the Conservative Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Brighton Pavilion, welcomed Michael Gove, the Conservative Chief Whip, to the city.

Meeting him with local Conservative Members and activists in Hove, Clarence said: “I warmly welcome Michael to Brighton and Hove and I am very grateful for his support for my campaign. Michael is one of the most radical, forward thinking Ministers we have had in years.

“Michael’s recent record as Secretary of State for Education, driving up standards in our schools and championing best practice teaching methods, is exemplary and proves he isn’t shy of doing the right thing. He can be proud of his achievements in the face of often vociferous opposition.

“Michael and I are also both former newspaper correspondents, so I was very pleased to welcome a fellow journalist to the city.”

In Brighton and Hove, under Michael’s expert leadership in 2014, the percentage of city pupils achieving the benchmark five GCSE passes, including Maths and English, with grades of A* to C rose again, going up to 62 per cent from 56 per cent the previous year. In 2011 the figure was 53 per cent.

PORTSMOUTH BUSINESS SCHOOL

The University of Portsmouth Business Portsmouth Business School’s Master of Business School is offering a Higher Education qualification for those to looking to Administration (MBA) will provide you with the opportunity consolidate their professional knowledge. develop your strategic problem-solving skillsAnwhilst mastering informal open evening will be held on Tuesday February 24th, and details can be the latest business knowledge and practice. found by calling 023 9284 4488, or visit

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Develop your management abilities Benefit through innovative work-based learning Generous scholarships SOHO Taught part-time in HOUSE three-day blocks over two years Private Association members club Soho of House is Accredited by the MBAs coming to Brighton.

Planning permission has been submitted To find out more about our wide range of degrees, come for the empty site where the Terraces onceopen stood atopevenings the Aquarium along to one of ourRestaurant regular – details of which on the seafront. can be found at www.showyoumeanbusiness.com.

At last a private members club in Brighton and as a long term tenant of the Soho branch, I am filled with joy.

For more information or to apply:

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L A N O I S T W A E N N

OSBORNE THE PICK POCKET The sliding price of a litre of fuel has meant that the Government’s share has increased to 70%, its highest level in in almost six years.

According to the RAC Foundation, with the average petrol price standing at 109.6p per litre the Treasury now receives 76.25p of this in taxation.

Professor Stephen Glaister, director of the RAC Foundation, said: “An astonishing 70p in every pound we spend at the pumps is now destined for government. Last week the Chancellor again publicly urged fuel companies to pass on oil price reductions to motorists. Clearly, he thinks the price of fuel is still too high. Wel,l he has an easy solution. Cut duty further.”

“Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm”

A NEW APPROACH Chiswick Park Enjoy-Work in West London is home to 8,000 employees from 45 of the world’s best-known brands: Aker, Ericsson, ESPN, Foxtons, Paramount Pictures, Pepsico, Starbucks, and the Walt Disney Company, among others.

At Chiswick Park office workers (or “guests” as they are referred to) can get all their dry cleaning, shoe repairs, get their groceries delivered, car and bike maintenance taken care off by a concierge service. They can learn to play the guitar or join a sports league in their lunch hour, learn a language in one of the many evening classes, or listen to an inspiring speech from Sir David Attenborough. I could go on, but a look at this one-minute video clip gives you a better flavour: www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiRcLBotHtY All a gimmick? The philosophy behind Chiswick Park is based on the premise that people who enjoy work do better work. It

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attracts a range of tenants by offering an enhanced working environment and embracing the idea that a happy workforce is a more productive workforce.

Graham White is the new Chief Executive, joining Chiswick Park from Center Parcs, has a background in the service industry. Graham provides a keen insight into the importance of employee well-being and providing an environment which allows them to prosper and perform to their highest standards.

NO VOTE RELIEF Scotland’s economy is likely to be harmed by the collapsing price of oil, the Governor of the Bank of England has said, although most of the effects will be offset by the country’s position in the UK. Mark Carney told MPs on Wednesday that while the halving of oil prices in the past six months is a “net positive” for the UK, this was not the case in Scotland, whose economy is far more vulnerable to the fortunes of the North Sea oil industry.

“It is a negative shock to the Scottish economy, but it is a negative shock substantially mitigated by the fiscal arrangements in the UK,” he said, suggesting that the blow to Scotland will be cushioned by its union and that without the UK, Scotland would go the way of Greece.

Salmond’s boasts and promises are but ashes in the wind.

{ NEWS }

WHAT GLASS CEILING? The gender pay gap has long been a subject for debate, and although the gender pay gap in traditional 9-5 jobs still exists, figures released by PeoplePerHour, an online marketplace for freelancers, today suggest that women moving online into freelancing are bridging the gap and even out-earning their male counterparts.

Women are winning 58% of online work advertised, with an average hourly rate of £22.43 when freelancing. In comparison, men earn an average of £21.57, almost a pound less than women per hour.

The findings show that the highest paid profession listed for both men and women was mobile app development, with women earning more than men at £37 per hour as opposed to £35 per hour for men. Brighton, Bournemouth and Milton Keynes are found to be female freelancer earning hotspots.

GIRLS ON TOP Three outstanding female engineers have been recognised by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) for their professional achievements and the work they do encouraging other young people into engineering.

28-year-old senior hardware engineer Naomi Mitchison from Selex-ES has been named the IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year, and will play an ambassadorial role for the profession in forthcoming months.

20-year-old Jessica Bestwick, who works for Rolls Royce in Sussex, was presented with the IET’s Mary George Prize for Apprentices, and 27-year-old Lucy Ackland who works for Renishaw PLC in Stone, Staffordshire won the Women’s Engineering Society (WES) Award.

Recognising outstanding female engineers has never been so important after recent statistics from the IET’s Skills and Demand in Industry survey showed that women represent only 6% of the engineering workforce. Further IET research showed that only 1% of parents of girls were likely to encourage their daughters into engineering, compared to 11% for parents of boys.

“A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business”

SMALL BUSINESS LEADS Small businesses have reported the highest rise in annual income since the turn of the century. At the end of last year, an analysis of the current accounts of banks’ small business customers (generating a turnover of under £5m) showed that income levels were up 8% on 2013.

Since 2000, revenue levels have risen 20%, the Small Business Income Index showed.

According to the banks, small business income recovered to its pre-recession peak in 2013, but 2014 saw unprecedented business activity. Businesses associated with property, both in construction and management, generated the largest proportion of revenue growth, accounting for more than a third of small business customers’ income growth in 2014.

GWR TOWERS ROOMS Hilton London Paddington, one of London’s grandest Victorian Hotels, has been a leader in offering the best services in an unrivalled location since 1854.

The latest offering comes with the recent opening of their spacious and luxurious GWR Tower Rooms and Tower Lounge @ Paddington. Located in an exclusive wing, the GWR Tower Rooms offer elegant and unrivalled luxury accommodation to all guests. The name, GWR Tower Rooms, reflects the original name of the Hotel when it first opened in 1854 as the Great Western Royal (GWR), a tribute to the rich history associated with this iconic building.

The rooms will incorporate all the facilities associated with a premium product, as well as access to Hilton London Paddington’s first class lounge, the Tower Lounge @ Paddington.

Located on the top floor of this exclusive wing, the Tower Lounge @ Paddington offers unrivalled service in the heart of London. For further information about this exciting new addition to Hilton London Paddington, contact the hotel on +44 (0)20 7850 0591 or david.heinel@hilton.com.

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L A N O I S T W A E N N

ENTREPRENEURS RULE THE WORLD UK entrepreneurs created a record number of new businesses in 2014, with London and Birmingham responsible for the majority of new start-ups.

Research from national enterprise campaign StartUp Britain, which is run by the Centre for Entrepreneurs think tank, shows that 581,173 businesses were registered with Companies House last year. This beats the previous alltime high of 526,446 in 2013, up from 484,224 start-ups formed in 2012.

Unsurprisingly London was the top performer in the UK with the capital’s budding entrepreneurs creating 184,671 businesses, with Brighton at 4, Guildford at 17 and Portsmouth at 19.

“Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it”

PEPPA PIG IS DEAD

PENSION OUTLOOK Only 45% of new pensioners will be entitled to the full, new, flat-rate state pension in the first five years of the system, government figures show.

A freedom of information request submitted by investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown reveals that 45% of those retiring between 2016 and 2020 will get the full amount.

The new state pension, aimed at simplifying the system, will see a single payment of about £150 made to new pensioners from April 2016. New figures suggest that two million people will not get the full amount.

Some with a private or workplace pension provision are contracted out of some of the state second pension, which is being integrated into the new flat-rate state pension. This means they will receive a lower amount.

However, the government has stressed that they will be no worse off than under the current means-tested system.

The new flat-rate state pension was unveiled two years ago by the government, and was promised to be a fairer system. This only applies to new retirees from April 2016, rather than the 11 million people who already receive the state pension.

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After April 2017, people will also have to work longer, making 35 years’ worth of National Insurance (NI) contributions, rather than the current 30, to qualify for the full pension.

The religious madness that divides all of humanity is at it again as top academic publisher the Oxford University Press has issued guidance advising authors to avoid using pork-related words. Authors are being warned not to mention pigs or sausages in children’s schoolbooks - in an apparent bid to avoid offending Muslims and Jews. The move was revealed during a BBC discussion on free speech in the wake of the Paris terror attacks on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. Free speech is dying in the arms of capitulating tolerance and mindless fear.

{ NEWS }

SILVER SURFERS Official figures just out show that pensioners are fuelling a self-employment boom as record numbers return to work rather than retiring. The number of over 65’s who work for themselves has almost doubled in five years to 428,000.

Comprising this workforce is a mix of those who cannot afford to retire and others who still have years of valuable work left in them. Experts claim that self-employment is the new norm, with 4.6 million people in the sector, the largest number since records began in 1975.

Tellingly, they are more likely to work 12-hour days for less money than they were earning before retirement. Whatever the reason, retiring people who are more than capable of working is a waste of talent and a hugely valuable resource that this country needs. There is rarely a replacement for experience.

“The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus” PLEASURE AT THE PUMP The price of unleaded petrol has fallen to its lowest level in five years, bringing cheer for motorists and businesses.

The average unleaded price across the UK is now 109.8p a litre, according to the information group Experian Catalist. The last time it dipped below 110p was on January 3rd, 2010.

Four big UK supermarkets cut their prices by 2p a litre this week, in response to the falling cost of oil.

On Wednesday, Brent Crude dropped to below $50 a barrel for the first time since May, 2009. Some analysts have predicted the cost at the pumps could go as low as £1.00 a litre.

A double-edged sword, as the lower the price of oil, the more problems half of the world’s economies are having with their balance of payments. A high price to pay to support the US and Saudi in their attempt to bankrupt Russia!

CYBER SECURITY NEW WM ENTRANT Over-50s group Saga have made their investors smile by launching a new wealth management business and promising to pay a chunky dividend this year.

The company, whose services range from cruise ship holidays to insurance, went public last May but saw its shares tumble below the 185p offer price shortly after.

Boss Lance Batchelor, who joined partway through the flotation process, said it plans to broaden its product range by teaming up with Tilney Bestinvest to create Saga Investment Services.

The reports that Samsung Electronics has approached BlackBerry gave the ailing smartphone maker’s stock a huge boost.

Any deal is far from done and BlackBerry denies it, but the possibility does raise the question: Why would Samsung want to acquire BlackBerry? Yes, the Korean conglomerate would get a robust suite of patents, BlackBerry’s powerful (though unloved) new mobile platform, and a history of highly respected hardware design.

Still, there is really only one reason the Canadian phonemaker is attractive to Samsung right now: security. And technological and cyber security is the colossal new growth market.

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Stag House, Upper Bedford Street, Brighton BN2 1GW

{ INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS }

UNCERTAINTY AND INFRASTRUCTURE

By Dean Orgill Chairman of Mayo Wynne Baxter www.mayowynnebaxter.co.uk • www.iod.com

R

ecently, IoD Chief Economist James Sproule offered up his predictions for 2015.

Amongst his reading of the entrails for the year on issues such as wages, interest rates and Eurozone quantitative easing he had this to say on infrastructure issues: “A change in government raises the possibility of a cancellation of the HS2 line to Birmingham and Manchester. The temptation of an incoming government to accuse their predecessors of profligacy and to spend the money on projects which will be more associated with themselves could well prove irresistible. A definitive decision on a new airport for the South East remains highly fraught and a weak minority government may find it difficult to act.”

You can see the full predictions on the IoD website www.iod.com/influencing/policy/ I focus on this particular prediction because it brings together what I think will be the key themes for 2015 in our region, namely the potential effect on the economy that may result from political uncertainty and its particular impact upon infrastructure investment.

More and more commentators are picking

up on the theme of the unpredictability of the outcome of the General Election due in May, and already there seems to be mention of a possible 2nd election following an inconclusive result in the 1st attempt. Whilst this might excite those engaged in commentary and analysis, and will certainly provide column inches/feet/yards of opinion, it is not what businesses will want to see, given the volatility for the economy that can accompany it. A period of “boring” stability, with some steady -if not spectacular- growth, would surely be more preferable for the majority of us.

This will be particularly evident in respect of the effect upon potential infrastructure spending.

We know, particularly in the South East, that there are significant impediments to sustained growth imposed not only by the shortage of housing but also by the current road and rail networks, which are struggling to maintain even the status quo in terms of allowing people and goods to be moved around the counties. Without a vision which resolves the current position and takes into account the projected population and economic growth, our infrastructure will creak still further. This seems to be the case, based on current trends, irrespective of whether the Airports Commission’s findings favour Gatwick providing additional airport capacity.

Pessimistically, I worry that political compromises to grab or keep seats around the cabinet table could adversely affect the kind of sensible, apolitical economic planning for the medium to long term that we especially need at this moment, and which it would have been preferable to have seen over the last few decades.

However, to be optimistic, perhaps we should view the new style of co-operative, collaborative government that the parties may be forced into for the foreseeable future as a new era which might see some sensible long-term planning emerge.

Just a thought Sir Richard Branson recently commented that “because I stay fit and healthy, I’m working as hard as I’ve ever worked”. Do you pay enough attention to your health and fitness?

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TONY BLAIR

CRIMINAL, MYTH OR LEGEND?

By Maarten Hoffmann

T

ony Blair has always been a bit a conundrum. Superb presentation skills, a great PR man and an extraordinary ability to connect with the electorate. He also managed to keep a foot in both camps with the ‘New Labour’ vision that carried the Labour die-hards along whilst taking the wind out of the Tories’ sails, often being dubbed ‘the heir to Thatcher’.

He bridged the traditional party divide so well that he went on to rule for ten years.

So why does he find himself lambasted from almost every corner of the media scrum as a grubby money-chasing charlatan, and in the

more bullish media arenas, as a war criminal with the blood of thousands on his hands?

Teflon Tony still manages to shrug off these barbs and to continue making pots of filthy lucre around the world, to avoid probing questions and stall the Chilcot enquiry to the point that some wonder if we will ever see it. It is a peculiarly British disease in that we resent people who make it; people who succeed are often deemed to have some awful character flaw and need to be taken down a peg or two. Globally, Blair is highly respected as a statesman and deal maker extraordinaire. But here at home we resent any

politician, and certainly a Labour politician, who goes on to fame and fortune, expecting them to leave office and devote themselves to saving endangered bats or playing golf.

Blair was still a young man when he left office, and shouldn’t we be proud of a British politician who is so widely acclaimed around the world? Why on earth shouldn’t he be entitled to make money whilst he’s at it? Look in the mirror and say you wouldn’t do the same thing given the chance!

The stumbling block is, of course, Iraq and George W Bush. That and the disgraceful spin

{ THE BIG STORY }

“There’s this notion that l want to be a billionaire with a yacht. I don’t! I am never going to be a part of the super-rich” that dogged the latter days of his tenure and Labour’s inability to carry through on a raft of manifesto promises.

Anthony Charles Lynton Blair was born on May 6th, 1953 in Edinburgh. He attended Fette College, a prestigious independent school in Edinburgh, during which time he met Charlie Falconer, whom he later appointed Lord Chancellor.

Apparently, the young Blair modelled himself on Mick Jagger, but his teachers were unimpressed, stating that ‘he was a complete pain in the backside [and that they were] pleased to see the back of him’. As a student, he attempted to find fame as a guitarist

with his band Ugly Rumours before reading Jurisprudence at Oxford and graduating with a second-class Honours B.A. In 1975, he became a member of Lincoln’s Inn, enrolled as a pupil barrister, where he met his future wife, Cherie Booth.

Lincoln’s Inn was founded by Derry Irvine, who went on to become Blair’s first Lord Chancellor. Blair joined the Labour Party shortly after Oxford in 1975, and in 1982 suffered his only election loss in his 25- year political career, when he failed selection to represent Beaconsfield, which was as safe a Tory seat as could be found.

Although known for his centrism in politics,

he revealed in a letter written to then Labour leader Michael Foot that he had come to socialism through Marxism and considered himself firmly on the left, in stark contrast to his later leanings of Labour lite.

Finally, in 1983, he won his first seat of Sedgefield, and in his maiden speech in the House of Commons on 6 July, 1983, Blair stated, “I am a socialist, not through reading a textbook that has caught my intellectual fancy, nor through unthinking tradition, but because I believe that, at its best, socialism corresponds most closely to an existence that is both rational and moral. It stands for cooperation, not confrontation; for fellowship, not fear. It stands for equality. The Labour Party is declared in its constitution to be a democratic socialist party rather than a social democratic party.”

Once elected, Blair’s political ascent was rapid. He received his first front-bench appointment in 1984 as assistant Treasury spokesman. In May 1985, he appeared on BBC’s Question Time, arguing that the Conservative Government’s Public Order White Paper was a threat to civil liberties and demanded an inquiry into the Bank of England’s decision to rescue the collapsed Johnson Matthey Bank in October 1985 - ironic when we see what happened with the banks in 2009.

In 1987, he stood for election to the Shadow Cabinet, receiving 71 votes. When Kinnock resigned after a Conservative landslide in the 1992 election, Blair became Shadow Home Secretary under John Smith and finally become party leader in 1994.

His ascent to the top seat of power came on winning the general election in 1997 and is still the youngest person to become Prime Minister since 1812. He won the 1997, 2001 and 2005 elections and is the Labour Party’s longest serving PM. In his first six years in office Blair sent British Troops into battle five times, more than any Prime Minster in British history. If we ignore Kosovo in 1991 and Sierra Leone in 2000 as these were limited offensives, we are left with his two major world changing policy decisions – invading Iraq twice, in 1998 and 2003, and Afghanistan in 2001.

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{ CELEBRITY INTERVIEW }

“Whatever criticisms people have of me, they’ve seldom thought of me as politically stupid”

20

{ THE BIG STORY }

“I’m not holding my breath for the call from Putin. It won’t come, so let me not either praise or insult” His reputation took a severe battering when he aligned himself with the foreign policies of George Bush and engaged in the so-called ‘War on Terror’, following the twin towers tragedy in 2001. Based on the adage that every civilian killed creates ten terrorists, one might view that the awful position the world finds itself in now, with raging Islamic terrorism, was created by the actions of Bush and Blair.

139 of his own MP’s opposed the war, 100,000 people marched through London, and playwright Harold Pinter and Malaysian Prime Minter Mahathir Mohammad were the first of many to denounce Blair as a war criminal. Significantly, this debacle also sowed the seeds of New Labour spin, orchestrated by Alastair Campbell and Peter Mandelson, and fully supported by Blair’s great fiend at the time, Rupert Murdoch.

It is easy to pass judgement with the benefit of hindsight, but history shows that bombing such shadowy terrorist organisations has never worked. It only serves to fuel hatred and resentment and drive the general population to the terrorist view point. Bush had a different agenda in being seen to avenge 911, and in what some might say is typical US foreign policy, lashing out blindly without actually knowing who the perpetrators were. Al Qaeda was frightening, but in its current incarnation as ISIS is truly terrifying, and few would argue that the roots of such barbarism were sown in the

invasion of Iraqi and Afghanistan.

Christopher Hope of the Telegraph recently asked Blair if the war has taken a toll on him, and he replied “Saddam Hussein was 20 times worse that Syria’s President Assad and it will take a generation to make Iraq safe.” Asked whether he minded if people called him a liar and a war criminal, he replied “People still abuse me over Iraq. The fact is yes there are people who will be very abusive, by the way I walk down the street and by the way I won an election in 2005 after Iraq. However, it remains extremely divisive and very difficult. I have long since given up trying to persuade people it was the right decision”. He added: “In a sense what I’ve tried to persuade people of now is to understand what a complex and difficult decision it was. Because I think if we don’t understand that, we won’t take the right decision about a series of these problems that will arise over that next few years.

“You’ve got one in Syria right now, you’ve got one in Iran to come, and the issue is how do you make the world a safer place? The question is supposing I’d taken the opposite decision. Sometimes what happens in politics, unfortunately these things get mixed up with allegations, deceit, lying and so on but in the end sometimes you come to a decision where whichever decision you take the consequences are difficult and the choices ugly.”

With estimates of 100,000 civilians, and 179

British soldiers, killed since 2003, Mr Blair conceded that the price of the Iraq war had been “very, very high”.

But he added: “Think of the price that people paid before Saddam was removed. Think of the Iran-Iraq war in which there were one million casualties, hundreds of thousands of young conscript Iranians, who were killed, many of them by the use of chemical weapons. Chemical weapon attacks on his own people, the Kurds.

People oppressed, deprived of their rights, tortured and killed on a daily basis year on year on year…”

Asked if Iraq was “safer today”, he said: “No I wouldn’t say that. But what I would say it is safer, in my view, as a result of getting rid of Saddam.

In other words I think we are in the middle of this struggle, it’s going to take a generation, it’s going to be very arduous and difficult. But we are making a mistake, a profound error, if we think we can stay out of that struggle because we are going to be affected by it whether we like it or not.”

Sir Menzies Campbell, the former LibDem leader, accused Mr Blair of being defensive.

He said: “The fact remains that he made two cardinal errors. First, by allying himself too closely to the policies of George W Bush, and second by ignoring the fact that Bush’s objective of regime change was contrary to the Charter of the United Nations and illegal. Ten years on, it is

21

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almost impossible to find anyone in this country or even in the United States who is willing to support the military action against Saddam Hussein.”

One further Iraq related battle he still has on his hands, and some say could be the undoing of him, is the long-awaited Chilcot Enquiry into the 2001 invasion. Stalled as it awaits agreement on the papers it can or cannot see relating to contact between the White House and Downing Street, there are very active forces at play determined to keep such papers from the public. This only fuels rumours that there is something to hide. A cross-party group of MP’s is about to try to force a Commons vote to compel Sir John Chilcot to publish by the end of February. The report is finished but is awaiting a response to warning letters he sent out to those that will face criticism. Norman Baker MP (Lib Dem, Lewes) recently stated “It is outrageous that the report has not yet been published.

We need it in the public domain before the election and we need to know who is holding it

“I have long since given up trying to persuade people it was the right decision. Think of the price that people paid before Saddam was removed”

up and why.” Some might say this is a sad end to the reputation of a man that was rightfully lauded for his achievements that convinced the electorate to vote for him three times and dragged the Labour Party out of the dark ages.

Nothing Blair does now can remove him from this shadow. His entrepreneurial activities since leaving office attract nothing but opprobrium as he keenly tries to explain that his business dealings are not as lucrative as everyone thinks.

In a wide-ranging interview with Vanity Fair, the former Prime Minister also cites Henry Kissinger as a role model. Kissinger is hated by many on the left because of his part in the covert bombing of Cambodia but Blair looks to his longevity rather than his policies.

“One of the things people are going to have to get used to is that you are going to get leaders leaving office in their early 50s,” Blair says. “I have a lot of energy. I feel extremely fit. There’s no way I’m going to retire and play golf. You look at someone like Henry Kissinger. He’s 91 and he’s still going strong. I love that. Or Shimon

Peres - these are my role models.”

Blair, who has built a global business network since leaving Downing Street, defends his financial dealings, describing his involvement in countries around the world as not work for hire but work that can change the character of countries.

Denying there was any conflict of interest in the work he does, he says of Tony Blair Associates: “We have incredibly strict rules”.

He has been involved in giving advice to governments in Kazakhstan and Mongolia, among others.

Asked by Vanity Fair’s veteran correspondent Sarah Ellison if there was anyone he would not work for, such as the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, Blair smiled and switched the topic to Kazakhstan.

Later in the interview he says: “I’m not holding my breath for the call from Putin.”

Asked again what he would do if Putin called, he said: “It won’t come, so let me not either praise or insult.”

There has been a lot of speculation about Blair’s wealth. Earlier this year, he scoffed at reports he was worth over £100m and said it was less than £20m. The Vanity Fair interview further refines that.

One of his staff - described as a “Blair spokesperson” - said his net worth is “roughly equal to what he has given away”, which Vanity Fair estimated at £10m.

But this number does not include Blair’s portfolio of properties, which include a mansion in Buckinghamshire and six homes in London, which estimates put at much more than £10m.

Asked about Iraq, the most divisive issue of his premiership, Blair expresses resentment at the damage done to his reputation. “People say: ‘Why should you listen to him?’ because of Iraq.

{ THE BIG STORY }

“At school, he was a complete pain in the backside and we were pleased to see the back of him”

And I keep saying: ‘That’s why you should listen to me,’” he says.

“Because I’ve been through this in government, and since leaving office I’ve been studying it the whole time. One thing that is quite interesting to me is how poor western governments are at the moment – and I don’t exempt mine from this– how poor they are at understanding what’s going on in the world.”

His view of the world is more sophisticated now, he adds. “I mean, I find my own understanding of the Middle East, but also further afield, just so much more sophisticated and deep now than the understanding I had in government, even with all that infrastructure – the intelligence services and foreign office and so on.”

Asked about the criticism he faces, particularly in Britain, Blair says it is overstated. “First of all, you know, I actually did win three elections, not lose them. I won the last election with a majority, even after Iraq.

“Whatever criticisms people have of me, they’ve seldom thought of me as politically stupid.

I have always been a centrist politician and I remain a centrist politician. And the centre, in my view, still has the true governing constituency of the country but not the governing constituency of the media.

“The right don’t like it because l used to win elections, and the left don’t like it because they think l sold out … It’s multiplied because of the legacy of Iraq.”

But then Blair doesn’t help himself. He fell out with Murdoch over the supposed affair with Murdoch’s wife, Wendi Deng; continues

unabated to buy up real estate across the world; has recently implied that Ed Milliband cannot win the next election and then retreated from it when cornered; still obstructs Sir John Chilcot; has now involved Alastair Campbell in the Kazakhstan gravy train; has a wife who has her foot permanently in her mouth and generally deals with unsavoury despotic regimes. He states, of course, that money raised from his private business ventures, directed through

“I have a lot of energy. I feel extremely fit.

There’s no way I’m going to retire and play golf” Tony Blair Associates and his Firerush Ventures companies, goes to fund his philanthropic work, which a cynic might feel is a tad disingenuous.

Earlier this year, former US National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski told the FT that he had a “visceral contempt” for Blair on account of his moralising and money-making since leaving office.

Further bile was vented recently when the Save the Children charity awarded him a Global Legacy Award in New York.

So we arrive back at the enigma that is Tony Blair: visceral contempt from some quarters, considerable statesman-like respect from others, complacency from yet more.

I feel that Blair genuinely thought he was doing the right thing by going to war, and let’s remember, before one is too quick on claiming he was Bush’s poodle, that the first invasion was under Bill Clinton, who was, in the first instance, none too keen on war at all. Blair is still a young man, and of course he is fully entitled to make money and do with it what he will, as indeed we all are. His efforts as an integral member of the Middle East Quartet, that is working to find a solution to the Israeli/Palestine dilemma are admirable, and let us not forget that it was Great Britain that started that debacle with the 1917 Balfour Declaration and the 1947 UN Partition Plan that carved up Palestine and implanted the Israeli State into one of the most hostile Arab regions on the planet. The fact that the Palestine situation has not been resolved should bring shame on us all.

As l write this, the news is showing images of slaughter in Paris and US war ships are entering the Gulf again with troop ships and enough weapons to start a third world war and Russia is being forced into bankruptcy– the world has become a terrifyingly dangerous place, and laying that all at the door of one Anthony Blair, is naïve in the extreme.

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{ INVESTMENTS }

PUT SOME EMOTION INTO YOUR SALES EFFORT

By Chris White, Marketing & BD Consultant, EMC

F

eelings and emotions. We all have them.

And marketers do their best to appeal to them when developing consumer campaigns. Just think of all those twee TV ads for John Lewis, M&S and the like leading up to Christmas.

But what part do they play in the typical business-to-business (B2B) buying decision?

Surely hard-headed commercial types are far more likely to be persuaded by more tangible and practical factors than raw emotions?

Wrong! Recent research by Google and The Conference Board shows that a business purchaser’s emotions are, in fact, twice as important as more rational features and benefits in a B2B sales cycle.

It’s all about creating ‘brand connection’.

This applies as much to how the average SME communicates its offering to clients and, critically, the specific messages it conveys to

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them through a sales cycle, as it does to large corporate advertising campaigns.

And here’s why. The research reveals that if a B2B buyer has a high brand connection they are: • 5 times more likely to consider buying from the company; • 13 times more likely to purchase from them; • 30 times more likely to pay premium prices for their services.

‘High brand connection’ customers are defined as those who give brands top scores for trust, image and industry leadership. In other words, they feel confident using the brand, believe it is an industry leader and see it as having a unique and positive image.

The Google researchers tested ‘brand connected-ness’ by dividing the perceived benefits of B2B brands into two distinct

categories – business value and personal value.

Business value included the facets of a brand that we are familiar with – the traditional appeals to logic and reason regarding a product’s functional benefits in areas such as performance, comparative data, structure and order, as well as business outcomes such as, achieving business goals and objectives demonstrated though case studies and thought leadership.

(This is the material that you should be presenting to clients on your website and in your sales collateral. It’s how you can demonstrate the practical superiority of your product.

Performance data, client case studies and quotes, technical fact sheets, awards won and sector-leading articles and thought papers offer clear evidence of business value.)

Personal value included how the brand could impact on buyers professionally, socially and emotionally. Would the purchase result in the

{ INVESTMENTS }

“Feelings and emotions. We all have them. And marketers do their best to appeal to them when developing consumer campaigns”

buyer being perceived as a leader? Would it help them to fit in with colleagues and receive admiration from others? Would the product provide excitement, happiness and/or a sense of accomplishment?

(This is a much more subtle area and one where large B2B companies sometimes struggle. The triggers are much harder to communicate, although owner/managers tend to unknowingly deliver them through the close relationships they form with individual clients.)

Researchers analysed the impact of both values on 14 commercial outcomes, including consideration, propensity to purchase, pay a premium, and advocacy.

Personal value was shown to have twice as much impact as business value. So not only do emotions matter in B2B buying, they actually matter more than the rational aspects of business value.

It clarifies what many marketers have always suspected – that business purchase decisions are, like consumer ones, largely based on emotions. Indeed B2B buying decisions are more emotionally charged than consumer decisions because there is often so much more riding on their success.

Although buyers who don’t perceive any business value at all won’t consider buying a product or service, in reality this is rarely an issue as a massive 74% of B2B buyers believe that most B2B brands will create the value they seek. However, 86% of B2B purchasers don’t see or believe the facets of B2B brands that suppliers claim are unique.

This lack of perceived differentiation has a dramatic effect on willingness to pay a premium.

Only about 14% of customers perceive a real difference in a supplier’s offerings and value that difference enough to be willing to pay for it.

So business value is important as a qualifier – something to establish you in a buyer’s consideration – but it won’t make you stand out against your competitors. This state of ubiquitous business value eventually leads to the need for price competition. No clear differentiation means buyers will select the supplier that is willing to drop their price.

How then do you appeal to the personal emotional triggers that will create a differentiator?

Personal value triggers

Practical strategies

Professional benefits – how will choosing your brand enhance the buyers career? His professional kudos? What will make the purchaser look good to his boss?

- Can you create and publish a case study or press article featuring the client?

Social benefit – how will it enhance the purchaser’s popularity amongst their peer group, sector, colleagues?

- Are you associated with sector forums or networking events that you can invite your client to?

Emotional benefits – There is often a huge amount of personal risk at stake in the purchase decision: how can you give the purchaser more confidence? (No one ever got fired for hiring IBM?)

- Can you structure success-based pricing?

Can you underwrite product performance?

Can you introduce him/her to clients that have faced similar risks?

Self-Image benefits – How will a choice for brand create pride in the buyer? Have Apple achieved this through iPad in the work environment?

- Are the products that you are supplying best in class? Aspirational?

- What is the CSR or social business aspect to your strategy? Can you involve the client in some way?

Once your business value is established, and you therefore qualify to be considered, achieving the above will set you apart, appeal to the buyer’s fears, emotions and prejudices, and provide a route to differentiation and greater margins.

Part of the answer must lie in your brand positioning and messaging, as well as at a more tactical and relationship level. For example, in complex, high value sales processes it might be possible to weave subtle messaging into conversations, correspondence and meetings.

• Can you make the client look good to his colleagues? Can you involve the client in some philanthropic exercise in the course of your business? Can you raise the profile/boost the ego of your client through PR? There is a myriad of ways of tackling this critical aspect of business development strategy that will play at different volumes and at different times. I suspect that after some examination, getting emotional about your brand won’t seem quite as barmy as you might first have thought.

In summary then: • Can you easily and clearly articulate the functional and performance benefits (business value) of your product or service?

• Importantly, are these benefits quantifiable and do they have third party endorsement? Are they unique?

• Can they be customised to the needs of the particular client or sector you are targeting?

• Don’t forget that these benefits merely qualify you to play.

• Think carefully about what you can do to appeal to more emotional personal benefits.

This will become easier the more you know about your clients either personally or through careful research around the buying cycle.

CONTACT: EMC Management Consultants Ltd, Rochester House, 48 Rochester Gardens, Hove BN3 3AW Chris White Tel: 07970 710543 Email: chris.white@emcltd.co.uk Web: www.emcltd.co.uk

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{ INVESTMENTS }

SOME SIMPLE LIKES AND DISLIKES:

By Andy Merricks Head of Investments 2015 has got off to quite a volatile start, which no doubt sets the tone for the rest of the year.

Perhaps the most striking feature to date has been the continuing collapse in the oil price.

Opinion is divided over whether this is a bad thing – being symbolic of sluggish and declining global demand – or a good thing – acting as a tax cut and pay rise rolled into one, which will stimulate more consumer spending. For now, we err towards the latter. As well as oil, there will be new challenges as well as the old – some of more importance than others – but hasn’t it been ever thus?

Successful investment is about changing one’s mind; not randomly or every time an opinion is expressed, but in a considered way to account for the changing landscape. To be set in one’s ways is the quickest route to the poorhouse.

Having said this, one needs a view of sorts from which to set out on 2015’s uncertain path.

For what it’s worth, this is ours. The current economic backdrop seems very like the latter half of the 1990s. The United States and their

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new-found energy are leading the way, with a consequential rise in the US Dollar. Japan remains in a deflationary trough (although there are at last serious attempts by the Japanese authorities to extricate themselves from it) and it seems likely that the Eurozone is about to slip into a deflationary trough of its own. The Emerging Markets are struggling to cope with a commodity bear market and interest rates continue to buck the forecasters’ expectations for the 5th year in succession by remaining firmly rooted near to zero. From an investment perspective, what do we like and dislike, and how will our portfolios be affected?

UNITED STATES – LIKE: As we’ve touched upon, the US has assumed the mantle of most attractive investment opportunity for a number of reasons. It is not only about the emergence of shale gas and oil leading to apparent self-sufficiency in energy by 2020.

There may yet be a twist in the tale regarding

those forecasts, but its advantages in the short term can’t be denied. Backing this up, though, is the quicker pace of economic recovery, brought about in no small measure by the decisive actions of the Federal Reserve in unleashing QE after the financial crisis of 2008 – something so lacking in Europe. The US is largely home to one of our favoured themes of the decade (biotechnology) as well as to the monsters of the technology world, although significant challenges are stirring in Asia to some of the household names. The biggest worry about the US is that it has already seen its stock markets rise on the back of these factors and is no longer as attractive as it was, but momentum can drive markets for longer than many a mathematician can fathom.

US DOLLAR – LIKE: It is very difficult to find reasons why the US Dollar will not continue to strengthen throughout 2015 against virtually all other major currencies. The biggest concern here is that it will strengthen too

{ INVESTMENTS }

“Strap yourselves in and sit back for the lively bucking bronco ride that is likely to be 2015” far and derail our reasons for liking the US stock market as set out above. It also worries us that there is a consensus of opinion in favour of the Dollar, and history tells us that the crowd often gets it wrong. However, with Japan reiterating its determination to weaken the Yen, with the apparent onset of QE in Europe and the intention to weaken the Euro, and with the General Election in the UK in May likely to act as a catalyst for a weaker Pound amongst the uncertainty that the outcome will provide, the alternative to a strengthening Dollar is not obvious.

JAPAN – TENTATIVELY LIKE: We’ve been caught out by Japan before and we won’t be alone in being caught out again in the future, but the commitment by Prime Minister Abe and the Bank of Japan to weakening the Yen, thus providing the foundation for the economy to achieve its 2% inflation target, seems absolute if their actions in November are anything to go by. A massive new wave of QE by the BoJ, accompanied by snap elections that Abe subsequently won to put himself back in power for a further three years, showed that they mean business. The trouble comes in the actual implementation of their plans. The Yen is always susceptible to bouts of strength as it acts as a safe haven in times of crisis, and it has been said that it will need to weaken by 15% each year in order to allow the 2% inflation target to be achieved, but an overweight position to the Japanese market (hedged) may prove to be a source of some financial gain this year.

EUROPE – TENTATIVELY LIKE: Why would anyone like Europe? Even tentatively?

It looks to be on the brink of deflation (the falling oil price has probably made this an inevitability) and there are elections in Greece and the UK which are being openly fought on the possible withdrawal from the EU. German growth is wavering and there are demonstrations on the streets of Germany and France against immigration. The sanctions against Russia are hurting European exporters, yet we give it a thumbs up. We commented earlier about changing our minds, and this is a good case in point, but we are prepared to invest on the basis of valuation and the prospects of the implementation of QE in a meaningful way. It is dangerous to assume that the ECB will actually do anything of note, but the

time has probably arrived for action rather than words. If we see action, the equity markets may well respond very positively. For exactly how long will remain to be seen, but we’ll sit in there and wait for now.

UK – DISLIKE: When we say we dislike, it is only until the election is out of the way. Economically, we seem to be second only to the US in terms of recovery, but the election this year will probably be the first since the Thatcher years that has had such a potential

“Successful investment is about changing one’s mind; not randomly or every time an opinion is expressed, but in a considered way to account for the changing landscape”

impact on markets, depending upon the outcome.

It is virtually impossible to predict which party or parties will form the next Government, but for once there are real differences between what they are offering. The market will undoubtedly prefer one outcome over the other, and until we know what that is there will be uncertainty, and any major advance is unlikely. For that reason we will reduce our exposure to the domestic market in the run-up to May. EMERGING MARKETS – DISLIKE: Our lack of exposure to the Emerging Markets hurt our performance in the middle of last year,

but we were glad that we stayed out by the time the year ended. A strong Dollar is rarely a good thing for Emerging Markets, so if we’re right about the Dollar we’ll be right about EMs. The correlation between EM performance and that of resources is extremely strong, and we don’t see any rebound in the resources sector soon. The geopolitical risk in some EMs is also rising, and our thoughts are that it will get worse before it gets better in the EM sector.

COMMODITIES AND GOLD- DISLIKE: In the same way that a strong US Dollar tends to hurt Emerging Market equity returns, so does a strong Dollar have a similarly adverse effect on commodities and gold. In fact, we’d go further and suggest that a strong performance from commodities and gold on the back of a rising Dollar is virtually unheard of. So, if we’re right about the strength of the US currency, then we are very happy to continue to avoid anything to do with the natural resources and precious metals sectors. The only proviso would be in the event of a serious global event occurring, in which case gold could see its position as key safe haven re-emerge. The other major factor against the expectation of a sustainable rally in natural resources is the increasing risk of a deflationary world as opposed to the inflationary world that most of us have been brought up in. We genuinely think that our lifetimes have been lived through the exception rather than the rule in economic terms, and it will take some people longer to adjust to the “new normal” than others.

So all aboard, strap yourselves in and sit back for the lively bucking bronco ride that is likely to be 2015.

Sources: BCA Research- December 2014

The information contained within this document is for guidance only and is not a recommendation of any investment or a financial promotion.

Skerritt Consultants, Skerritt House, 23 Coleridge Street, Hove, BN3 5AB. Tel: 01273 204 999.

29

{ BUSINESS SCENE }

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Property Professionals lunch The quarterly Property Professionals was held in January at the Pub du Vin in Brighton. The lunches are organised by Portfolio Magazine, Searches UK and Rockinghorse children’s charity. The speaker in January was Lee Evans from Organic Roofing, who spoke about the environmental advantages of having a green roof.

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1. Claire Tobin (Leaders Estate Agents), Andrew Whitehead (Property Consultants UK).

2. James Mortimer (TSG Financial), Brian Quinton (Metro Bank), Faye Stenning (Searches UK), Stewart Payne (Handelsbanken).

3. Bob Bastian (Stephen Rimmer Solicitors), Lynne Edwards (Portfolio Magazine).

4. Fiona McTernan (Portfolio Magazine), Tony Pearson (Sussex Surveyors), Jane Wilkinson (Leaders Estate Agents).

5. Allison Bartlett (Freshen You Up), Julie Firth (Mishon Mackay).

6. Berinder Hothi (Rix & Kay), Andrew Crutchley (Callaways Estate Agents), Sam Leonard (Handelsbanken), Jane Bourn (Rix & Kay).

7. Grant Crossley (Robinson Low Francis), Jo Williams (PDT Solicitors), Tim Cross Field (Oakley Commercial).

8. Steve Lowry-Smith (SLS Legal Limited), Dean Marson (Square One Financial Planning), Ariana Gee (On The Move), Rebecca Baker (NFU Mutual Insurance).

9. Craig Vile (Angels Media), Kerry Mayo (Focus Group), Glyn Williams (Aspray Brighton).

10. Allison Bartlett (Freshen You Up), Marius Foster (John Hilton Estate Agents), Angela Paterson (Brighton & Hove Inventories), Callum Kirk (McMillian Williams Solicitors), Katie Lawley (McMillian Williams Solicitors).

11. Andrew Stenning (Searches UK), Lynne Edwards (Portfolio Magazine).

12. Lee Evans (Organic Roofs)

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{ SECTION TEXT HERE }

THE VOTES ARE IN T

he entries for the Gatwick Diamond Business Awards have exceeded all expectations and broken a few records along the way. Entries are being judged and we will announce the finalists for this prestigious event in the next issue.

The Gala Dinner is on March 19th at the Copthorne Effingham Park Hotel and will be the award ceremony of the year for Sussex businesses. Top comedian Hugh Dennis will be the compere and there won’t be a dry eye in the house.

You will know Hugh from the BBC programme Mock the Week and the award winning semiimprovised sitcom, Outnumbered. Hugh made his name as one half of Punt & Dennis, and he still appears with Steve Dennis on Radio 4’s

programme, The Now Show – arguably one of the funniest programmes on R4. Hugh’s appearance at the GDBA is quite apt as he started life as a brand manager for Unilever, and one can only imagine how much work got done in that department with Hugh cracking jokes every five minutes!

The after-show entertainment will be ably presented by Heart Radio’s Mark Watson (not to be confused with the Mock The Week comedian).

Mark hosts the Heart Drivetime show in Sussex every weekday afternoon from 4pm. Joining the Heart Sussex line up at the end of 2014 was a big deal for Mark, as his first taste of radio was in the exact same building as his first work experience venture in the mid-90s.

Nicknamed at school as “that new kid”, since he attended eighteen different schools, including Thomas À Becket in Worthing, Mark has since enjoyed a hugely successful radio career at stations across the country, including Eagle Radio in Guildford and as host of the Kestrel FM breakfast show in Hampshire.

Mark joined the original Heart in the West Midlands in 2012, and within weeks he was

on-air from London across the entire Heart Network and now presents Heart Drivetime weekdays from 4-7pm.

Business boosting Awards, outstanding comedy, superb music, great food and even better company – the Gatwick Diamond Business Awards are the event of the year.

The bad news is that 95% of the tickets for the evening have been snapped up and there is now a wait list for seats. If you are not lucky enough to be there, you can follow it all on Twitter (@ gdbizawards) and we will have all the news in Platinum Business Magazine.

“This will be the award ceremony of the year for Sussex businesses”

www.gatwickdiamondbusinessawards.com Tel: 01293 813888 Email: info@gatwickdiamondbusiness.com Twitter: @gdbizawards

31

{ NATWEST INTERVIEW }

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPARK

NatWest is promoting its latest initiative for up-and-coming entrepreneurs, which includes a mentoring service. For Gary Chown, Director of Commercial Banking for East Sussex, supporting local businesses is second nature, as he explains to Ian Trevett

T

o say it has been a turbulent few years for NatWest, and the banking sector in general, is an understatement. The mistakes of a few have impacted on so many people, not least the committed and professional staff at the bank, who are dedicated to providing a good service for their customers. Having joined his local Worthing branch of NatWest at the tender age of 16, Gary Chown has seen the good times and the bad, including that sharp shock to the economy in 2008. “You had to grow a thick skin with all the bad press, which was a challenge when everyone here was working so hard for their customers,” he recalls.

IT IS THIS DETERMINATION TO DO THE RIGHT

32

THING THAT IS STARTING TO BEAR FRUIT, NOW THE ECONOMIC CLIMATE IS LOOKING UP. “Our number one priority continues to be looking after our customers really well, and we monitor that in terms of our customers’ feedback. How good is the service they receive, what do they think of the bank, would they recommend us? That’s top of our list in terms of what’s important. I ensure that my team maintain a high profile with their customers and in the local business community. When you get that right, we build long term mutually beneficial relationships with our customers and they look to us in terms of support for their business strategy.”

IT IS AN ADMIRABLE POLICY TO FOLLOW, BUT HOW MUCH HAS THIS BEEN INFLUENCED

BY THE RECESSION AND THE NEGATIVE PERCEPTION OF THE BANKING INDUSTRY. “It has always been the top priority, but I guess in the past we may have spent too much time looking at the bottom line. We have gone back to basics and we are really focused on the overall customer experience. We are backing UK businesses and communities, and that is being championed from the top down within the Bank.

“Our customers are telling us that we are doing the right things and the customer feedback continues to reflect this. We benchmark each year to improve on it, measuring feedback using

{ NATWEST INTERVIEW }

“You had to grow a thick skin with all the bad press, which was a challenge when everyone here was working so hard for their customers” the ‘Net Promoter Score’. It’s industry standard in terms of understanding how our customers rate the overall service and score us from 1 to 10. We monitor how we are progressing in terms of customer satisfaction levels.”

“I would add that when you talk to the Relationship Directors/Managers in my team, they will tell you that they get the most satisfaction from their job when they have helped a customer with their business ambitions. They find it rewarding when they see customers who have grown, invested and built their business up, especially where we have been involved from the start of the business. Customers don’t forget that first step when the bank has been there for them and provided support. It really does lead to long term business relationships.”

“It’s not always about lending money. We have a range of other products and services geared to helping our customers. But that is the most rewarding aspect of what we do – supporting our customer’s ambitions.”

Gary started at NatWest soon after taking his O’ Levels. “I started in a branch in Worthing.

One of my key jobs was making the tea for the managers! I was all set to start at the local sixth form college when a family friend who worked at NatWest told me that they were recruiting and that they offered study leave to undertake the banking qualification. They offered me a position, and the rest is history, as they say. It gave me a really good grounding in: what a bank does, how you provide great customer service, and the banking sector generally.”

“They gave me some study leave to go and get the qualifications for banking, and after working in a couple of branches in Worthing I came over to Brighton into a large commercial office in the

mid-1980s. Shortly after that, the bank started to set up Business Centres, where all of the local business customers were managed by a dedicated team of managers and support staff. If you have teams of people who really understand business, that has to be a better proposition for the customer. I really enjoyed getting out to visit customers and seeing what their businesses did and how they operated.

“It’s not always lending money...the most rewarding aspect of what we do (is) supporting our customers’ ambitions”

“My first role as a business manager, looking after smaller and start-up businesses, was in Tunbridge Wells, which was a good learning experience. I progressed through roles in the business segment, and then into the commercial segment during my time in Kent. Around 2005 I came back to Sussex with a promotion to a lead manager role (called a Relationship Director), where I ran the Eastbourne office and had a portfolio of customers as well. I started my current role, Director of Commercial Banking in late 2010.

“I am responsible for a team of nine managers

in East Sussex, who’ve got about 600 customers between them. So I’m responsible for quite a bit of income for the bank. We have some specialist managers looking at sectors such as leisure, healthcare, professional practices and education. To a degree, it’s best described as running my own business, within the bank. It’s an enjoyable but challenging role. I also provide support for the bank’s healthcare managers across London and the South East.”

AS IMPORTANT AS CUSTOMER SERVICE IS, I SUGGEST THERE MUST SURELY BE COMMERCIAL TARGETS IN SUCH A POSITION. “Yes, of course. We need to support our existing customers, attract new customers and grow our income like any other business. We’re a business, a profit-making organisation and need to make a return on investment. We want to continue to grow our customer base across Sussex. We’ve sown the seeds in terms of preparation, and customers know what we can offer, plus we have got an excellent pipeline of deals to progress for our customers.”

SO, THE MESSAGE IS THAT YOU ARE BACK IN BUSINESS? “We have always been open for business.

During the recession I was occasionally asked whether the banks were lending. We never shut up shop. We were still assessing businesses in the same way, using tried and tested business models, because those fundamentals don’t change. But you’re assessing a business proposition in a very tough market. If the economy is challenging then it’s going to make things more challenging, for the customer.

“We never stopped lending. I can honestly say that we really did continue to support our customers as best we could.

“One project I am really enjoying is being on the judging panel for the Sussex Young Start-up Talent”

33

“Our lending book grew again last year, which is an important trend to continue. If you do nothing, your book reduces very quickly, as loans repay month on month. In 2014, not only did we cover this usual repayment; we grew on top of that as well, right across the region.

That’s a very positive point to make.

“As you come out of recession, there can be more of a cash flow need for businesses, often because as they need more working capital as they grow. That creates an opportunity for banks to get involved in helping and supporting those businesses.

“It bodes well for 2015 that economists are predicting that the base rate will remain favourable for borrowers. We do have an election coming up in May, which might result in people waiting to see how that might go. There may be bumps in the road along the way, but I think the general economic trend is improving.

But it’s still challenging out there from a global perspective.”

HOW MUCH LEEWAY DO YOUR MANAGERS HAVE IN TERMS OF LENDING? THE PERCEPTION CAN BE THAT WITH A LARGE BANK YOU FILL OUT A FORM, YOU TICK THINGS AND IT ALL GOES THROUGH A MACHINE. “And the computer says ‘No’! It isn’t like that, thankfully. We use financial models to help us, but that’s around crunching the numbers to work out the ability of a business to service the repayments. The key things a Relationship Manager will be assessing about the business include the management structure and ability,

34

the market the business is in, the product life cycle and whether the deal makes sense.

“It’s very much about the expertise and experience of that Relationship Manager in looking at the proposal. Yes, the financial metrics are important, because they drive the ability to repay the loan, but they also help management assess the wider picture and reach a conlusion on the proposal. Relationsip

“What we don’t want is someone sitting there thinking, ‘Well, the banks aren’t lending, therefore it’s wasting my time going to talk about it”

Managers also have a fair degree of discretion on lending decisions, wheras for larger lending propositions, we get an extra set of eyes looking at things, and our credit colleagues will help us on that. But that’s quite a slick process, and, if we have done our job well, we get the right decision for the customer.”

WHEN IT COMES TO ASSESSING AN APPLICATION, ARE YOU INFLUENCED BY THE GENERAL CONFIDENCE IN THE ECONOMY? “You have to take into account what the economy is like and what the trends are indicating. So if a business is setting up from afresh and has a need to attract market share, you’ve got to take into account how the economy is moving, and does it make sense for that business? Is it the right decision for them to do that at this time? You’ve got to take into account all of that information to reach a sensible business decision. I’m very lucky as I have a very experienced team of Relationship Managers working with me.”

NOW THAT THE ECONOMY IS LOOKING ROSY, DO YOU FIND YOURSELVES TRYING TO PERSUADE COMPANIES TO BORROW? SIN OTHER WORDS, ARE YOU OUT THERE PROACTIVELY LOOKING FOR BUSINESS? “It can be useful for customers to know that their bank has an appetite to lend when required.

We can provide ‘Statements of Appetite’, where we are saying, ‘Based on the numbers you’ve given us, your track record with us and the information provided, we would like to sit down with you and explore the ways in which we could provide support.’

“What we don’t want is someone sitting there thinking, ‘Well, the banks aren’t lending, therefore it’s wasting my time going to talk about it.’ We want to dispel that notion because it hasn’t helped confidence levels, and we want to lend in a responsible manner.”

{ NATWEST INTERVIEW }

WHICH TAKES US TO A BROADER QUESTION: HOW MUCH CAN YOU ADVISE PEOPLE? IS IT TOO RISKY TO DO SO, IN CASE IT DOESN’T WORK OUT WELL? “We’re always happy to work with customers around a proposal and give them the benefit of our thoughts. But at the end of the day, they’ve got to make the final decision themselves. We can highlight the pros and cons of something and give them a balanced argument. What are the benefits? What are the risks? How can you mitigate those risks?

“We’re not going to say, ‘You should do this or that,’ because that’s not our call. What we can do is work with them and spend some time to understand their business and point out the main options available to them.’

THIS IS QUITE VALUABLE IF YOU’RE A COMPANY THAT’S GOING INTO UNCHARTED WATERS, INTO THE UNKNOWN. IT’S QUITE INTERESTING THAT THE BANK ACTUALLY HAS THE CONFIDENCE TO SAY, ‘THESE ARE THE RISKS AND THESE ARE THE POSSIBILITIES.’ “The chances are we have the experience of seeing a similar business going through the same challenges. In all likelihood I or one of my team will be able to call on that experience to good effect. It’s about making sure that people have thought out what’s right for them.

“I have always encouraged businesses to talk to their bank. The bank can talk you through the different funding options, the different products that might help and other ways the bank can provide support. We can suggest other organisations that can help too, such as Coast to Capital , Locate East Sussex and the local Chambers of Commerce. It’s just making sure customers have all that information in front of them when they’re developing the strategy for their business.”

I’VE NOTICED THAT NATWEST HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN SEVERAL LOCAL BUSINESS AWARDS. WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF DOING SO? “We think they are a good thing to support and encourage our customers to enter. At the last Sussex Business Awards, we took some customers along, and some of them were asking, ‘How do I get involved in this?’ Awards are a great way for a business to increase its profile and for getting the recognition for what they’re doing for the UK economy. As a bank, it’s about rebuilding people’s confidence and trust in the bank, because we’ve been through a horrendous time with the recession, and the banks have had a lot of criticism. We accept that, have taken it on the chin, and we are rebuilding from that low point. Visibility in the business community is part of that rebuilding as we look to support UK businesses and communities.

“We want to build the profile and accessibility of the bank so people know we remain open for business and keen to talk. We also get involved in business mentoring, as it is good for the staff to share their business expertise and to give something back to the community.”

“We have a good team here that are always looking to get involved in community events, which they organise themselves. The team has raised money for charities such as Tomorrow’s People, a local charity that helps young people getting into work, when we took part in a Mud Run back in the autumn. It is a side of a bank that people don’t always see.

“One project I am really enjoying is being on the judging panel for the Sussex Young Startup Talent, which was created by Matt Turner

of Creative Pod and Lorraine Nugent of Media Word Waves. It’s for young entrepreneurs who have got original business ideas. The final is set up a bit like Dragon’s Den, though I don’t have a pile of money on my desk! We critique their business plan and help them with a few pointers.

Ultimately, we need to select the winner, which

“It bodes well for 2015 that economists are predicting that the base rate will remain favourable for borrowers. We do have an election coming up in May, which might result in people waiting to see how that might go” is a difficult choice with such a talented bunch of finalists. It’s great to see the entrepreneurial spirit is there, and it’s coming through, and good to see how talented these young people are.”

Chatting to a director like Gary dispels any stereotype of a brash, flash banker - the type that got us in such a terrible mess. Banks are huge institutions, staffed by professional, wellmeaning people, whose voices never get heard in the media. soft-spoken and modest, it is clear that Gary is entirely genuine when he says that all he cares about is helping his business customers to succeed. And for that reason, Gary and his team also deserve to succeed.

Gary.Chown@natwest.com www.natwest.com 35

{ COAST TO CAPITAL INTERVIEW }

CREATING A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE WE TALK TO TIM WATES, CHAIRMAN OF COAST TO CAPITAL LEP Highly experienced and influential business leader Tim Wates was appointed Chairman of the region’s Local Enterprise Partnership in May 2014.

Tim wears many hats in a variety of roles following a career with Cazenove & Co. in the City of London. These include being Chairman of the Wates Group Family Council, the Family Shareholders Forum, a shareholder and Director of two small companies and a trustee Director of the ‘Clink’ which successfully rehabilitates prisoners through training in fine dining restaurants in prisons. In addition, Tim is also a UK Trade Ambassador for the Government.

A family man with four children, Tim finds time to enjoy good food and fine wine and works off any overindulgences with a weekly game of indoor soccer most Saturdays near his home in Surrey.

AFTER SEVEN MONTHS AS CHAIRMAN OF COAST TO CAPITAL, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THE LEP? I was pleased to be asked to fill the role vacated

by John Peel, OBE when he stepped down in May, and the first six months have flown by. During that time I’ve met with a wide range of business people, and the Board’s support has helped to make my transition from Vice-Chairman to chairman a smooth process.

In recent months, we have made significant progress in driving forward economic growth plans for our region.

Last summer, the Government announced its decision to back our Growth Deal and invest £202m across our region.

As a result, some 14,000 jobs, 4,000 new homes

36

and 190,000 square metres of employment space will be delivered over a six year period.

We also welcomed the Autumn Statement confirmation of funding for local transport schemes, including Gatwick Airport Railway Station and the A27. Coast to Capital has worked hard to present a strong business case to Government argue that LEP monies should be used to support these important projects.

Our Coast to Capital Business Growth Scheme has been successful too. It’s very much about job creation. More than 300 new jobs will be created from the grants awarded by the Coast to Capital Business Growth Grant scheme in 2014. Some 37 businesses from across the local enterprise partnership’s region, including Brighton and

Hove, Croydon, Gatwick Diamond, Lewes and West Sussex, were this year awarded a slice of £2.14m for projects to help them expand.

Our region has much potential for future growth and we must do all we can to ensure it continues to compete effectively with the prosperous regions of Europe. I am looking forward to seeing us make further progress during 2015.

WHAT ARE YOUR AMBITIONS FOR THE LEP? Promoting our region as a forward-looking centre for innovation is becoming increasingly important as we continue to encourage inward investment and build our relationships with national stakeholders ahead of the next round of

{ COAST TO CAPITAL INTERVIEW }

“Promoting our region as a forward-looking centre for innovation is becoming increasingly important as we continue to encourage inward investment and build our relationships” growth negotiations and after next year’s general election.

The key ambition for me and fellow board members is that Coast to Capital will be recognised as one of the best performing LEPs in the country.

WHY IS INNOVATION SO IMPORTANT FOR OUR REGION? Ongoing innovation is key to creating and sustaining long term competitive advantage.

Creativity, ambition and international outlook are also important, and in recent months I’ve been delighted to meet many innovative companies whose achievements demonstrate our modern local economy.

Many of our region’s businesses already have a strong track record and we need to replicate their successes and raise the bar across all sectors. This means giving people a helping hand to succeed and encouraging companies to invest in their futures and create the jobs of tomorrow.

WHAT ELSE DO YOU SEE AS A PRIORITY FOR COAST TO CAPITAL? We need to continue to help businesses by pursuing avenues to influence a better connected region, not least by playing a role in assisting the development of our transport network and digital infrastructure.

I was delighted when our bid for Brighton to be home to one of three Digital Catapult Centres in the UK was successful. As a result, from March we will have a state-of-the-art hub for some of the country’s most innovative digital companies and entrepreneurs. This wouldn’t have happened without the LEP driving the bid and, in particular, the expertise provided by Phil Jones, Coast to Capital Board Director.

However, it’s not just about our cities. With

Government support, we will also seek to assist rural businesses disadvantaged by location by enabling them to be reliably connected to world markets.

On the employment front, Coast to Capital has an ambition to maximise skills and resources within communities and, by working with employers and colleges, we hope to assist the creation of new pathways into work for young people, and routes back to the workforce for the unemployed.

“I was delighted when our bid for Brighton to be home to one of three Digital Catapult Centres in the UK was successful” HOW IS COAST TO CAPITAL GEARING UP FOR THE YEARS AHEAD? The country relies on our region as one of the largest contributors to the national economy outside of Central London and, with the continued support of the Government and of our business and public sector partners, Coast to Capital will successfully meet this challenge.

We have an excellent Board with a great mix of public sector and education leaders and a good range of business people – from senior leaders in blue chip companies to entrepreneurs. We also benefit from a talented Executive Committee whose members bring strong commercial and

entrepreneurial expertise in managing the dayto-day affairs of the LEP. Vice-Chairman Steve Allen founded, achieved venture capital funding for and sold a sustainable local business, and he certainly understands the challenges faced by ambitious entrepreneurs, whilst Daryl Gayler, Regional Director, Corporate & Commercial Banking South East at the Royal Bank of Scotland, advises corporates with turnovers of up to £500 million on a daily basis. Our Chief Executive Ron Crank also brings a wealth of public and private sector experience.

With the benefit of this leadership team, combined with the Government’s increasing emphasis on the LEPs as the key vehicle for driving economic growth locally, I am very excited about leading the Coast to Capital LEP. FINALLY, IN 2014 YOU WERE MADE A UK BUSINESS AMBASSADOR. WHAT DOES THIS ENTAIL? I was very pleased to be appointed by the Prime Minister to join a group of high profile business leaders who assist UK companies to create opportunities to attract inward investment into the UK. UK construction and infrastructure have much to offer and, as a UK Business Ambassador, I will aim to help maximise overseas investment into the UK and also encourage export opportunities for the sector. This is highly complementary to the international ambitions of Coast to Capital.

Discover more about the activities of Coast to Capital LEP and how to get involved by visiting www.coast2capital.org.uk

37

{ FINANCE }

SEIZE THE DAY

By David Rawlance david.rawlance@lloydsbanking.com • lloydsbank.com/business

2015 IS THE YEAR FOR SMEs TO SEIZE OPPORTUNITIES AND GROW

A

recent survey by The Federation of Small Businesses found that the South East, including Greater London, was one of the top areas to grow in confidence at the latter end of last year, with 62 per cent of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) expecting to expand their business during 2015.

Positive research and the start of a new year always bring a sense of optimism, and can be encouraging news for enterprise leaders in London and the South East who are keen to pursue their growth ambitions over the coming 12 months.

However, in order to do this successfully careful planning is essential – as is sufficient support.

38

HOW IS LLOYDS BANK HELPING? We help our customers with a whole range of financial packages and guidance, from supporting start-ups right through to multimillion pound turnover businesses.

We also support a number of Government initiatives, such as the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS), ensuring that SMEs have access to competitively priced funding for growth.

Lloyds Banking Group’s SME net lending growth between January and September 2014 was £1.2 billion - more than any other bank participating in the FLS Scheme.

We believe there’s no such thing as “one size fits all” every business situation is different, with

individual funding needs. We offer ‘traditional’ funding, such as loans and overdrafts, or more alternative funding solutions like invoice discounting and hire purchase facilities, or a combination of the two.

ALTERNATIVE FINANCE Short-term pressures, such as late payments from clients, can seriously affect the operations of an SME. Invoice discounting is a useful service in this situation. This type of finance can be used to improve a company’s working capital and cashflow, and allows them to draw money against sales invoices before a client has actually paid.

“With growth gathering momentum and the UK economy recovering, it is crucial now, more than ever, to have the backing of a bank that understands your business”

{ FINANCE }

“With the right funding – and the right support – businesses across London and the South East can look forward to a successful year ahead” Alternatively, factoring, which is similar to invoice discounting, releases up to 90 per cent of the value of issued invoices and enables firms to free up cash from unpaid invoices. With this option, a third party will take responsibility for the business’ ledger.

If firms, or manufacturers specifically, are looking to increase orders or capacity, hire purchase facilities can offer the key to investment in new assets, enabling them to purchase new plant and machinery by spreading the cost over periods of up to 5 years.

an order has been confirmed from a quality buyer and is backed by documentary credit. This gives firms the reassurance of being able to take on new contracts and grow a business without affecting cashflow.

The use of documentary credit also means that Lloyds Bank may be able to make payment early when goods have been shipped to a customer, so manufacturers and exporters do not have to wait for a customer to pay, providing capital to fund further operations.

SECTOR SPECIFIC HELP IS ALSO OUT THERE

MANUFACTURE SUCCESS WITH TRADE AND SUPPLY CHAIN FINANCE For ambitious manufacturers and exporters, there’s plenty of fuel to drive growth as the Government aims to increase exports by £1 trillion by 2020.

There are a number of trade and supply chain finance options available from Lloyds Bank to consider, such as supplier finance, where suppliers can obtain early payment of their invoices, giving them greater access to invaluable cashflow.

Similarly, pre-shipment finance can provide a manufacturer or exporter with the working capital needed to produce and ship goods once

It’s important that firms have a bank that understands their specific needs, and at Lloyds Bank, our regional relationship managers can help SMEs choose the best funding for their business. Each and every one of them has discretion to make local decisions – meaning a more simple, streamlined experience for you and your business.

can design individual support packages for customers.

They can also help connect firms with support from organisations like the EEF and UK Trade and Investment (UKTI).

With growth gathering momentum and the UK economy recovering, it is crucial now, more than ever, to have the backing of a bank that understands your business and helps you to achieve your ambitions.

With the right funding – and the right support – businesses across London and the South East can look forward to a successful year ahead.

Any property given as security, which may include your home, may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage or other debts secured on it.

All lending is subject to a satisfactory credit assessment.

We have key market specialists in a whole range of sectors, including manufacturing, property, healthcare, education and agriculture, many of them holding sector specific professional qualifications. They are always happy to talk through business plans, as well as helping with strategy development, and because our specialists can apply both their local and sector knowledge to each business case, they

39

{ AIRPORT EXPANSION }

“It is incredibly important that the entire business community get behind this cause as this is a oncein-a-lifetime opportunity�

AIRPORT COMMISSION T

he commission responsible for the decision on the airport expansion held a public hearing recently at the Arora Hotel, Gatwick, headed by by Sir Howard Davies, and we are delighted to announce that this magazine was the only business publication invited to attend.

It is incredibly important that the entire business community get behind this cause as this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ensure that our region has a world-class international airport on our doorstep. Not only will it make doing business so much easier, having a raft of business flights available locally, but it will bring a significant increase in employment to the area. Recent figures show that Sussex will be mandated to build 204,000 new homes over the next 20 years simply to absorb the increase in the UK population. These people will need jobs, and the expansion of Gatwick will offer a large number of such jobs.

The morning of the public hearing was taken up with a large, vocal group representing local communities that will be overflown, and, naturally, they are not very happy about it.

The commission will respectfully ignore such groups, as whether the expansion goes to Gatwick or Heathrow, homes will be overflown.

The important factor here is that the number is

Sir Howard Davies

{ AIRPORT EXPANSION }

“We are delighted to announce that this magazine was the only business publication invited to attend.”

PUBLIC HEARING 18,000 homes in Sussex but 320,000 around Heathrow.

The question comes down to which airport best serves the future requirements of the UK air transport infrastructure. It should be physically impossible to expand Heathrow as there is simply no room to do so, and if it were not there now, no one in their right mind would choose to build it there, so close to one of the largest cities in the world. Of the three options available, a new runway at Gatwick or Heathrow, or extending the runway at Heathrow, the Heathrow extension would be the politically safest route to take, although this would make no sense whatsoever as, within five minutes of completion, it would be full, and we would start this process all over again. It would also mean expanding the M25 and building a tunnel beneath it, which would be hell for years and wreak incalculable damage to the economy.

Heathrow would also require public funds, whereas Gatwick is privately funded.

After the noisy community groups departed, the afternoon calmed with representatives from local business, and every speaker demonstrated that there is a 92% yes vote from business. This is a huge number and should not be ignored. We need this expansion; we need the jobs; we need the new companies that would flock to Sussex if

By Maarten Hoffmann

Gatwick is given the go-ahead.

Jeremy Taylor, CEO of Gatwick Diamond Business was scheduled to speak, but due to personal circumstances could not attend. Rosemary French OBE, CEO of the Gatwick Diamond Initiative, therefore admirably stepped in to present his speech. A summary of Jeremy’s points is listed below.

Christina Eubank, head of Eastbourne unLTD Chamber of Commerce and the Association of Chambers of East Sussex, also spoke eloquently about the need to expand Gatwick and the positive impact on businesses in the region.

Jeremy made many very good points, and I will summarise just a few here: • The Diamond has a sub-regional economy of £21bn, centred on one of the largest business parks in the UK. • The Diamond is home to 45,000 businesses employing over 400,000 workers.

• 43% of Gatwick’s operational spend is with local suppliers.

• The Gatwick expansion will bring much needed improvements to the surface connectivity of the area.

• Much is made of the fact that Heathrow is a ‘hub’ airport, yet only 14% of London’s travellers use it as such, and with manufacturers now building ‘hub busting aircraft’, point to point traffic is increasing dramatically.

• With all the major airlines based at Heathrow, we will suffer from a lack of competition.

• There is the possibility that some major companies will desert Sussex, resulting in a drop in existing employment at a time when we desperately require an increase in employment.

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{ AIRPORT EXPANSION }

The Gatwick Management Team

T

he new CEO of Heathrow, John Holland-Kaye, recently took a cheap shot at Gatwick’s bid, stating that ‘Gatwick is only good for holidays’.

This demonstrates the strength of Gatwick’s bid, as such comments in the national media only serve to demonstrate Heathrow’s deep concern.

And, of course, spin took hold, as he is totally incorrect. Gatwick were not slow to respond and issued a statement saying: “It is one thing to patronise your competition. It is another to patronise the majority of your own passengers.

We would respectfully remind Mr Holland-Kaye that 70% per cent of travellers use Heathrow for leisure and one in five passengers fly from Gatwick for business. Additionally, we reported record traffic figures, proving that we’re serving the widest range of travel and airline models, and Gatwick broke through the 38m passenger mark in 2014”.

The war of words will continue, but little will affect the Commission, whose mind, l am quite sure, has already been made up. But what Government will make the decision, as the Commission report will not be decided upon until after the General election in May? Cameron will have to plump for one, Milliband could dump the lot, and no doubt Farage would make an airport expansion for Brits only!

There is still time to voice your opinion at: www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/134578HXHDU or bombard their Twitter account: @ukairportscomm or website at: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ airports-commission There will be people and communities that will inevitably suffer, and if l were one of them, I would be royally hacked off, but this decision will be based on the good of the country and IS

going to happen. Sussex can gain vastly more than it loses from a larger Gatwick, and I feel compelled to re-state: Sussex will be mandated to build 204,000 new homes within the next 20 years (see Local News). At a 2.9 average per household That is potentially 600,000 more people living in our county. Where will they work? Gatwick currently employs almost 50,000 people (directly/indirectly) along with thousands of third party contractors and suppliers, and this will more than double if they can simply add an extra strip of tarmac.

Sussex needs growth, not contraction.

Heathrow or Gatwick? Let’s hope for all our sakes that the right decision is made.

• Gatwick can be delivered quicker, with

far less disruption and political opposition • Gatwick expansion will only impact

a fraction of the people affected by

noise at Heathrow -18,000 additional

people compared to 320,000 • Expansion at Gatwick will deliver £90

billion to the UK economy and

120,000 jobs • Gatwick will deliver more flights to

more countries than Heathrow –

including the key emerging markets • Gatwick’s plans are privately

financed, so the taxpayer won’t

have to pay £5 billion, as they would if

Heathrow expanded.

Get involved and voice your opinion at: www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/134578HXHDU

42

Sussex-based Skerritts received the coveted Citywire award for a record fourth successive year from comedian Ed Byrne at the awards ceremony at the Park Plaza in Westminster.

{ INTERVIEW }

GROWTH AND STABILITY

Over the years DMH Stallard has established itself as a leading law firm in the region. For the last 18 years, the former Managing Partner, Tim Aspinall, has successfully steered the firm through change and challenges. Now Richard Pollins has taken over the reins, and he speaks to Ian Trevett about his ambitions and plans for DMH Stallard.

A

fter 24 years at the firm, Richard Pollins was appointed Managing Partner at the start of 2015. “I think I am what you will call a lifer,” says Richard. “But I am not alone.

Three members of the current management team were all in the same trainee intake together back in 1990. Our Chairman, Rustom Tata, our senior litigation partner, Tim Ashdown, and I all trained together and grew up through the ranks. Simon Elcock, who is our regional

44

Head of Dispute Resolution, and Tina George, Head of our Real Estate department, were also both trainees. The firm has an excellent track record of attracting and retaining good people.”

The combination of key staff retention and controlled growth has generated impressive results, with recognition demonstrated by accolades from both within the industry and the business community. DMH Stallard won Corporate Law Firm of the Year at the South

East Insider Dealmakers Awards in 2012 and 2014. The practice is annually recognised as one of the leading national law firms by the independent legal research directories, Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners. The latter noted, rather succinctly: ‘This is a top firm!’ It’s nice to hear the legal profession speak in plain English!”

Richard himself is an advocate of plain speaking, as he declares on his web profile.

{ INTERVIEW }

“Chambers and Partners noted, rather succinctly: ‘This is a top firm!’ It’s nice to hear the legal profession speak in plain English!”

“Unlike many law firms, we don’t indulge in ‘lawyer speak’. We talk your language. We’ll explain the benefits – or disadvantages - clearly and simply. So you will get the best legal advice, based on sound commercial principles.”

“I have no plans for dramatic change - it is very much business as usual, helped by a planned 6 months transition. We’re not going to throw the strategy on its head. There will inevitably be a change of style rather than substance, as you’d expect with a new person at the helm. But I’m working with the same management team, so we have continuity.

Our business has grown quickly over the last 18 months, with turnover in the last financial year up to £19m and profits up by 29% year on year. Next year the core business will grow again; with the AWB merger in Guildford we will exceed £21m. With core costs under control and an innovative Management Team who are acutely aware of the rapidly changing legal landscape, we expect profitability to accelerate fast. That in turn gives us more options. The core regional business remains a driver for the firm, and we would look at merging with firms in the region if it helped us accelerate growth and services.

“We are looking to grow in Surrey, and our recent merger with AWB, will consolidate our position there. The plan is to transfer our Farnham operation over to Surrey within 12 months into a brand new office. We will continue to look for quality merger partners

as we consolidate our position in the Surrey marketplace.”

How much of your business is Londonorientated? “London is an extremely important part of our business. Our London office has a level of expertise which complements our regional presence very nicely and distinguishes us in the region. In the last 12 months we have completed 13 capital market (Aim) transactions with a combined deal value of over £165 million,

“I believe it is a great firm to work for and it has been a big success story for Sussex”

closed our role in a hotel refinancing project in Africa, and acted for a number of infrastructure investment funds. Those are projects you only win with a quality London office.

One of the great things we learnt during the recession is that by working together we

can weather any storm effectively, and we can transfer staff between the two offices to help on a particular project. Having that flexibility works really well, but it means the type of lawyers we’re looking for have to be quite flexible and forward thinking. London adds some real quality and deals we would not otherwise access, but our largest and most valuable deals for corporate and real estate are still in the region.”

With 53 partners and a turnover in excess of £21m, it is clearly a job that will be demanding.

Is there still time for direct client work?

“It’s a full-time job and I will miss working on transactions with the key clients of the firm. But I’ll continue to work with them in my new role as Managing Partner.”

Richard is well aware that the effective use of social media is vital for the firm’s future.

“Historically, law has always embraced technology at quite a late stage, and solicitors are by their very nature fairly conservative. I think professional services, generally, are a bit behind the times because the partners are at a certain age where, perhaps, they haven’t grown up with social media. But a lot of our younger staff coming through, as well as many of our clients, are using social media pretty effectively as part of their day-to-day lives. It’s quite a change, and it’s inconceivable to think that over the next five years we as professionals won’t be using social media more effectively to win new work, spread the word about the firm’s activity, and to secure new business.”

“Our business has grown quickly over the last 18 months, with turnover in the last financial year up to £19m and profits up by 29% year on year”

45

What percentage of your work is private to commercial? “With the AWB merger, private client work will rise to around 20 per cent. One of the reasons we did the merger with AWB is to enhance our private client offering. Private client is an area we are keen to grow, and there is a clear opportunity for us to win more work from private individuals who value a quality service from a firm they can trust.

DMH Stallard plays a vital role behind the scenes in many of the region’s big developments, whether infrastructure improvements, tourism attractions or housing/business schemes.

A proud Brightonian (“Born 1967, Brighton General”), Richard is passionate about recent developments in the city.

DMH Stallard have been advising Coast to Capital on the exciting i360 development in Brighton. “It’s a tremendous project, very exciting, and one which I’m sure will deliver long-term benefits to the region. Brighton and Hove remains an exciting area, and we’ve been involved in several regeneration projects in the city: Jubilee Square, New England Quarter,

46

“It’s a nonsense to have any further expansion in and around Heathrow.

Anyone who has used Gatwick Airport recently will have seen a massive improvement in terms of the infrastructure”

and of course the Brighton and Hove Albion Community Stadium at Falmer, where the firm managed the Planning process. I’m a lifelong Brighton & Hove Albion fan, and we go to games as a family. As a fan, I’m very proud to be Managing Partner of a firm that represents Brighton and Hove Albion football club.

“I love living on the south coast. I’ve lived in Saltdean for over 12 years and am delighted that we were asked last year by the community interest company to assist with the redevelopment project for Saltdean Lido” For the wider region, Richard is hopeful that Gatwick will get the green light for an extra runway. “I think it would be a brilliant thing for the region, absolutely. It makes perfect sense.

It’s a nonsense to have any further expansion in and around Heathrow. Anyone who has used Gatwick Airport as a passenger over the last few years will have seen a massive improvement in terms of the infrastructure. The owners are clearly committed to enhancing the passenger experience, and that can only be good for business.”

{ INTERVIEW }

local businesses. This is central to they way we support and work in partnership with our clients. We have built a reputation as a law firm that supports organisations in a commercial way – it’s not just legal expertise. We want to help our clients to become more successful.

Whether it be through ensuring they are best equipped to operate effectively in their chosen sector or making sure they have taken steps to minimise potential risks, our aim is to help them improve their bottom line.

“Pushing out into the market has also been a key part of our external recruitment and we’ve needed to do this to satisfy growing client demand. We recruited Jonathan Grant, who is our Head of Corporate in 2007 from asb law.

In the last six months we have recruited five new partners, including Abigail Owen, who was named Corporate Lawyer of the year in 2013 and 14. Other partners have been recruited from the likes of CMS Cameron McKenna and Bircham Dyson Bell – City firms with pedigree, and I think this underlines our commitment to bringing in serious talent.

“I’d like us to be seen as the firm of choice for ambitious, commercially-minded lawyers and to continue to build on our success.”

Tel: 01273 329833 Email: enquiries@dmhstallard.com Web: www.dmhstallard.com

“I want all our partners to be very much part of the regional business community, taking up non-executive directorships where appropriate and supporting local businesses”

Exciting times are ahead for DMH Stallard, and Richard is clearly proud to be part of the story. “I believe it is a great firm to work for and it has been a big success story for Sussex.

“One of the other key messages I would like to get across is how we’re really keen for our partners to be more visible in the region. I think if there was any criticism about our firm over the last few years it is that, despite our continuing success, we’ve been perhaps less visible compared with much smaller firms in Sussex.

That has been due in part to a very conscious decision to focus our efforts on existing clients, particularly during the recession, and make sure we looked after them. In hindsight, it has meant that some of our partners have become less engaged with the local business community, and as a new Managing Partner, this is something I want to address.

“I want all our partners to be very much part of the regional business community, taking up non-executive directorships where appropriate and supporting

We believe that effective networking is all about relationship building in a relaxed and informal environment and The Platinum Club provides the ideal platform for companies both large and small, to come together for an enjoyable evening in the luxurious surroundings of The Grand Hotel Brighton.

“ ”

Don’t just take our word for it, here is what some of our members have to say

Let me tell you that the Platinum Club “ is no ordinary networking club. For anyone who is tired of run-of-the-mill networking events I would suggest you try the Platinum Club.

John Healy – Healy’s LLP

”

The Platinum Club is all that networking should be, but so “ rarely is. Newcomers need never feel nervous as the evenings are hosted in impeccable style and all are made welcome with effortless introductions to useful new contacts. If you attend only one networking event, make sure it’s the Platinum Club!

Sophia Lee-Spencer, CEO, Callisto Associates

”

The platinum club has proved an excellent forum to network “ with good calibre business contacts, many of which have led to both opportunities and friendships. It’s always an enjoyable and high quality event. This is down to the rigour with which it is managed, run and hosted. It’s one of the highlights of my Amanda Menahem - Hastings Direct business calendar!

”

We have recently become members of The Platinum Club “ where we have met great people and even gained new clients already. I would highly recommend The Platinum Club if you are looking to meet new businesses, in a relaxed and friendly environment.

Becky Sharp – Harvey John Recruitment

”

I would recommend the Platinum Club “ as a fantastic way to meet new contacts in a relaxed evening of networking with a great location! Good spread of Companies and make you feel at home!

Tony Rice – Coulsdon Audi

”

The Platinum Club is undoubtedly one “ of the most prestigious networking groups I have attended. The meetings are vibrant and positive and we leave the events with a spring in our step, pleased we made the commitment to attend.

Denise Buchan – Classic Consulting

”

Platinum events are always so well “ organised and attended by the right people.” Keith Jackman – Mercedes-Benz

Call: 07966 244046 • e-mail: info@theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk • web: www.theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk

{ BUSINESS SCENE }

1.

2.

1. Clarence Mitchell (The Conservative Party), Sam Leonard (Handelsbanken), Pieter Grobelaar (Concordia Health).

2. Amanda Menahem (Hastings Direct), Roy Whitehouse (WIS International).

3. Becky Sharp (Sharp Insight), Dave Bone (Barebones Communications).

4. Daisy Fitsimmons and Katie Gibson (Pier Recruitment), Samantha Wilding (Style&Grace) and photo-bomber Hoffmann.

3.

4.

The Platinum Business Club, The Grand Hotel, Brighton The Platinum Club met just before Christmas for the final hurrah of 2014 and there was much hilarity as Alex Walsh, a startlingly good close-up magician, mingled unbeknownst to the guests and live jazz from the incomparable Matt vanKan soothed the year away. But 2015 is here and watch this space for the announcement of the all new Platinum Club in the Gatwick Diamond, launching in the Spring. Membership enquires to: info@theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk

5. Michael Wilkins (Allied Irish Bank), Chris Sparkes (Baker Tilly), Gemma King (Vivid Marketing), Chris Lind (Shore Events).

6. Samantha Wilding (Style&Grace), Alan Trace (Extech).

7. A Christmas surprise for Louise Walden of Big Beach Marketing

5.

6.

7.

9.

For more information on joining the most dynamic networking group in Sussex, contact info@theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk or call 07966 244046

49

BUSINESS LUNCH Lunch at The Talbot, review by Maarten Hoffmann

I

have to admit to never having visited Cuckfield.

But having been once, I will be going again, if for nothing else than this most remarkable tree. As you round the corner in South Street and enter the High Street, you are faced with the most magnificent tree that affords a canopy across the entire road and is a sight to behold.

I have absolutely no idea what type of tree it is, but go and visit and you will not be disappointed – and if you know what it is, please write in and tell me.

Leaving the tree behind, I then encountered the very pretty Talbot Public House & Restaurant on the right. As I am currently reviewing a stunning £100,000 Jaguar F-Type for the motoring column this month, the thought of parking in these narrow streets was a tad daunting, and then, hooray, a place right outside the restaurant. The day is going well so far.

Pretty is how I would describe The Talbot, with a lovely courtyard for al fresco dining, but as it was just above freezing, I had absolutely no intention of sitting there and was duly shown

50

to my inside table by the very attentive and chatty staff. I like the décor – simple, stylish and calming – and most importantly, the tables are set well apart to enable couples to have a private tete-a- tete. I do get tired of being shoehorned into tables that are literally inches from their neighbour.

My guests arrived and we perused the lunch menu which is compact but with just the right amount of choice. I chose potato & leek soup with toasted chestnuts (£5.75), Lynne selected twice baked Brighton soufflé with caramelised walnuts and spiced mulled pears (£6.50) and Dan chose terrine of confit chicken and ham hock with celeriac coleslaw, lentil and sherry vinegar (£6.50).

Now a soufflé is a risk for any restaurant, as when it’s good, it’s heaven on a plate, but when it’s bad it is absolutely awful and sets a bad tone for the rest of the meal. We waited with trepidation. I was also interested to see how they had combined confit chicken in the ham hock. The charming and attentive waitress,

Julianne, approached and set it down: you could have cut the tension with a knife. Lynne cut into it and I could wait no longer, I leant forward and ate it right off her fork. I know, etiquette says one does not do such vulgar things, but hey, I was anxious. It was light, fluffy and just the right texture, and the spiced Pears on the side was an inspired touch. Phew – anxiety over, we could relax.

Dan then remarked that his hock was fabulous but kept raving about the coleslaw.

Odd boy, Dan, as let’s face it, we can all make coleslaw, but as he forcefully stuffed a forkful into my mouth I realised he was spot on – what was that taste? A call to the waitress was in order and we requested the recipe from the kitchen and awaited its arrival.

Main course beckoned and I ordered slowbraised shoulder of lamb with rosemary dumplings and wilted greens (£13.75), Lynne decided upon goats cheese, spinach & roasted red onion tart with baby spinach, sautéed new potatoes, toasted almonds and white wine

{ WORKING LUNCH }

The Talbot Public House & Restaurant, High Street, Cuckfield.

01444 455898 www.thetalbotcuckfield.co.uk

sauce (£13.75) whilst Dan, who was still banging on about the coleslaw, ordered turkey with cranberry and pancetta stuffing with roast duck fat potatoes and bread sauce (£13.75).

“As he forcefully stuffed a forkful into my mouth I realised he was spot on; what was that taste?”

The turkey was superb, the tart was excellent, but I have to say that, on this occasion, my lamb was just a tad dry. rather than a shoulder as you might expect, it was actually pulled lamb shaped into a little tower, and although the presentation was beautiful, it was just a little dry in the middle. It didn’t stop me devouring the entire dish though as the flavours were spot on, and bravo for the concept.

Although I didn’t try the goats cheese tart, as i believe goats cheese to be the Devil’s brew, Lynne hoovered up the entire dish in no time at all, and it’s presentation was superb. Three very happy campers.

Then as always, just when you think you couldn’t squeeze in another morsel, the dessert menu arrives. No, no l always say, take it away…

Oh, what’s that l spy, sticky toffee pudding?

No-one in their right mind can refuse a sticky toffee pudding (£6.50) – and that goes for Dan,

who snapped it up before l could even open my mouth, so l plumped for Plum & orange marshmallow topped with poppy seed popcorn & blackcurrant sorbet (£6.50).

I was really not sure if I could to eat it but I most certainly wanted to see what this concoction looked like. It was like art on a plate. Beautifully arranged with the lightest marshmallow triangle quivering on the plate with little balls of popcorn, and a wonderful dollop of blackcurrant sorbet. As previously mentioned, I couldn’t eat another thing but, during our non-stop conversation found that I had devoured the entire dish – absolutely gorgeous. Whilst Dan was animatedly chatting to Julianne, I swiped a forkful of his sticky toffee and, my oh my, wonderful is not the word. Rich, moist and with thick clotted cream slowly running like a river of joy down its northern flank.

By this time, I had trouble moving, breathing or even reaching for my phone to call my doctor about ordering another batch of statins, but we were all happy, sated and determined to return to this little slice of heaven we had found nestled in a pretty village with the stunning tree. Did I mention the tree?

The final thing we received was the recipe for the coleslaw – celeriac, whole grain mustard, mayonnaise, salt & pepper and parsley. Of course, any self-respecting chef

would never give you all the ingredients, and Dan worked out it must have been pickled and therefore the flavours were greatly magnified.

Dan was last seen surreptitiously concealing the recipe in his pocket.

As I write this several days later, I am still trying to fit my now greatly increased girth into the tiny Jaguar and Dan is shortly to be arrested for causing a public disturbance with his hysterical cackling laughter that echoes around the village as he views my attempts.

The Talbot is a great find, and in the summer, the Courtyard is packed to bursting and we would highly recommend it. And go see the tree.

51

{ RISK INVESTIGATION }

RISK INVESTIGATION

By Roy Whitehouse roy.whitehouse@wis-int.com • 01273 803430 or 07939 478571 • www.wis-int.com

P

Is, Private eye, private dick, investigators, shoestrings, detectives, risk this, control that, analysis the other and all the various names and slogans they go by. They are in the top four of professions, alongside police, doctors and lawyers, that are constant subjects in books, film and television. But what do private investigators really do?

The majority of private investigators come from the police, military or security services, although there are a number that come from other walks of life. Some of the best PIs I know have never had such a background, joined the profession from a young age and learnt on the job.

PIs are found in every country in the world, there are many professional associations that cater for such Investigators, and many receive ongoing education. In many countries,

52

Investigators are licensed to operate, although in the UK full licensing will not be in place until late 2015.

In the UK, investigators range from the oneman-band working from home to the large London based companies with smart offices and a staff of 500. But no matter what their presentation, they ultimately do the same thing: investigate, research and inquire, gathering facts and data on the subject of the investigation.

Obviously, the larger companies have more resources and access to more avenues of information. But even the big guys use many smaller PI’s to do the leg work. 80% of all information is gathered from open sources, with the remainder coming from paid databases, but there will never be a replacement for years of experience and a black book of great contacts.

WHAT DO THEY DO Most people conjure up a vision of investigators hanging around street corners watching wayward spouses and the like. This is far from reality. The private investigation industry deals with everything from the simple inquiry to extremely complex fraud cases, the locating of people and assets, assisting legal firms in gathering evidence for litigation, both for defence and prosecution, the undertaking of due diligence and business intelligence. Competitive intelligence is also undertaken by private investigators as well as investgations of internal theft and fraud. The profession has general investigators and specialists and a client would normally approach a general investigator in the first instance, who, if required, would bring in a specialist as and when necessary.

{ RISK INVESTIGATION }

“Most people conjure up a vision of Investigators hanging around street corners watching wayward spouses and the like. This is far from reality”

In cross-border inquiries, investigators can normally undertake these quickly, without bureaucracy, as they have the use of associates throughout the world. As an example, say a client wishes to establish who is meeting the subject traveling from London to New York. An Investigator will be able to arrange this with an associate in that country very quickly, or if you wish to physically establish if a company operates from a certain address in Luanda and the condition of that address, your Investigator can arrange this.

Let me give you a few examples of cases we have handled in the last month: Researched and obtained evidence of asbestos poisoning at certain companies and locations in Oldham that occurred in the 1960s; Confirmed the death and burial of an insurance claim in North London; Traced property and assets of a number of subjects in Spain, France, Romania, Croatia, Portugal and Germany; On behalf of an Irish car hire company we have located and interviewed the driver, who is based in Portugal; Undertaken criminal and civil checks on prospective employees for a US company; Undertaken ‘Alive and Well’ checks for US insurance companies; Looked into the criminal activity of a company within the financial sector in Spain & Portugal; Researched a government department in Dubai; Undertaken full commercial due diligence inquiries into certain service companies.

This gives an idea of what the modern Investigator does in today’s world.

WHO USES THEM Investigators are used by a wide section of the business world; the obvious clients are lawyers, accountants and insolvency practitioners, as well as insurance companies, banks, recruitment specialists and other general companies. Some companies also undertake work for government departments and some Police forces in certain matters.

HOW THEY OPERATE Investigators have to operate within the law governing the type of activity they undertake.

They should be registered with the Data Commissioner as processors of personal data, they should carry insurance for their profession, they should operate

within the data protection laws, the human rights laws as well as the laws regarding gathering of evidence. Failure to observe these regulations could render all evidence gathered useless.

The majority of Investigators are professional and know their area of expertise, but one should ask for references or check their credentials when using one for the first time.

WHY YOU NEED ONE All companies, large and small, should have an investigator in their armories, together with their accountant, lawyer, marketing. and other consultants.

The Investigator will be able to tackle those questions that most companies find difficult to ask, such as: Are my staff stealing from me?

Do I really know my agent in Spain? What is my competitor doing? How do I trace the assets of the person I am suing? What’s the background and reputation of my contractors? I think my customers are going out of business and they owe me money, and much more.

You should have a general Investigator on your list of professional suppliers who will be able to undertake most requests, and if a specialist is required, such as a fraud examiner, drug testing, fingerprinting, DNA, handwriting analysis, accident investigator or the like, then he or she will be able to bring these on board as and when they are needed.

Before you make a business decision you need to be in possession of all the facts. The unique services of the investigator provide these facts.

Roy Whitehouse CFE. CII Roy has been in private practice for over 30 years and is a past President of the Council of International Investigators, was on the board of the British Portuguese Chamber of Commerce and is a Certified Fraud Examiner.

His company, WIS International, have offices in London, Brighton and Portugal. In 2013 WIS International were awarded the Internationalisation Award, by the UK Trade & Investment, (UKTI) for its contribution to British Business Abroad.

53

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6103

{ ART AUCTION }

CHESTNUT TREE HOUSE BIG HEART CHARITY ART AUCTION Artisit: Janine Kilroe, www.janinekilroe.com

S

ussex’s arts calendar will be bolstered by a brand-new event next year when Chestnut Tree House children’s hospice and Brighton Dome join forces to host the Big Heart charity art auction in March.

The very first Big Heart auction will include over 200 donated artworks from local, national and celebrity artists, illustrators and photographers, including works by Raymond Briggs – illustrator of the much-loved The Snowman and Patron of Chestnut Tree House – Dan Baldwin, Jake Wood-Evans, Dion Salvador Lloyd, Pippa Blake, Gary Goodman, Natalie Papmichael and Phillipa Cannan.

Each piece of art will be available for purchase, with all proceeds going to support both Chestnut Tree House – which cares for over 300 terminally ill children in Sussex and South East Hampshire - and Brighton Dome, itself a registered charity committed to providing a groundbreaking arts programme that touches and enriches thousands of lives.

An online gallery showcasing all participating Big Heart artists and artworks is available to view at www.bigheartauction.org.uk. The auction will then go live on eBay for Charity from Thursday, 26 February to Sunday, 8 March.

Alongside the online gallery, Brighton Dome will play host to a public Big Heart exhibition from Tuesday, 3 to Friday, 6 March. The exhibition is free to enter and will be an opportunity to see first hand artworks from a wide range of artists.

The partnership builds on the collaborative work already begun between the organisations through the Umbrella Club, Brighton Dome’s membership club for children and young people

with life-limiting conditions and their siblings and carers.

Liz Ganney, Head of Fundraising Development at Chestnut Tree House, said ‘We are very excited about our first Big Heart auction. This is a great opportunity to snap up a unique piece of art whilst helping to raise vital funds so Chestnut Tree House can care for local life-limited children and their families across Sussex.’

June Frickleton, Big Heart curator and art expert said ‘The artist community in Sussex have been amazing. We’ll have a wide range of high quality artwork available and hope to appeal to all tastes. In addition to our fabulous local artists we hope to have a few artworks from celebrities and big names from the art world. We know artists are a very generous bunch and we have been just delighted by the support we have been offered. It’s going to be a really unique auction for a very worthy local cause.’

Andrew Comben, Chief Executive of Brighton Dome & Brighton Festival said: “We are delighted to be working with Chestnut Tree House on the inaugural Big Heart charity auction. The project not only enables us to build on our partnership work with Chestnut Tree House through the Umbrella Club; Brighton Dome’s membership club for children and young people with life-limiting conditions and their siblings and carers, but also to showcase and support the work of the local artistic community who have generously donated to the auction.”

ECE Architecture, an award-winning Sussex based architectural firm, is the headline sponsor for the first Big Heart auction.

Tony Clark, Chairman of ECE Architecture said,

‘As supporters of Chestnut Tree House for many years, when we were asked to be the headline sponsor for the very first Big Heart auction we did not hesitate. There is a natural affinity between art and architecture and we are delighted to be involved with the Sussex arts community, who have generously donated pieces for the auction.

All at ECE are looking forward to making the auction a memorable success.’

Other supporters include, the online organic cosmetic producers, Green People and Brighton Sushi restaurant Moshimo, who will be supporting the gala event that closes the exhibition. Brighton design agency, Designate, have donated their creative time and devised the Big Heart brand materials.

Visit www.chestnut-tree-house.org.uk or www.bigheartauction.org.uk you can follow us at: @BigHeartAuction and on Facebook: www.facebook.com/bigheartauction.

55

TO DO... business plan repare annual budget and * P rketing and business * Refine last years ma liver above development plan to help de

support to get the * Get some interim sales sales team working smarter

mpany d’s shares before the co * Buy out Mum & Da t business valued first gets worth too much but ge s dept we need those * Sort out the account nth figures by the 10th of mo

Director * Appoint a non executive ne alo is I can’t keep doing th

e and lp to sort out the warehous * Find some he despatch ... its a mess

the family!!! * Book a holiday for

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{ MOTIVATIONAL THINKING }

MAKING CHANGE A HABIT: TOP TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP IN 2015

By Sarah Hopwood Business Consultant, International Speaker, TV Presenter, Voiceover Artist and Cruise Lecturer. www.sarahhopwood.com

T

hings have permanently changed, yesterday’s logic is gone - it cannot serve us today. Normal as we knew it doesn’t exist. The pendulum has swung. Generation Y, those born between the late 70’s and early 90’s, are moving into leadership roles and influencing the business world.

I have been asked a number of times how best to manage or communicate with Gen Y. Their value systems are different and they challenge the status quo, pushing and driving the change they want. This ability to be ‘light on their feet’ has created a dichotomy for employers.

By making change a habit we can all achieve the success we are looking for. One of the first signs of change is risk. You can’t have one without the other. When we take risks we can feel a sense of stress and fear. Unsurprisingly many of my generation have been programmed from youth to stay safe and comfortable, in the belief that moving out of this cave was too risky.

1/TAKE A BREAK: lunch breaks should be just that. My children, now well into their 20’s, have never had a proper lunch break that hasn’t been a business meeting or similar. Why? There is so much evidence to show that a proper break will mean you – yes, you – and your staff will be more effective in the afternoon. My son has introduced

20 minute power naps. Staff book their slot knowing the time does not have to be made up.

Daniel swears he and others work much more efficiently, and for longer, after the nap.

Businesses that thrive really look after their staff and win. The sense of ‘belonging’ can never be underestimated as a human need. Nor can one underestimate how important it is to look after your team as you do your family. They are your family.

2/GIVE PERMISSION TO FAIL: If you haven’t failed, then you haven’t risked. If you don’t give your people permission to fail, they will never risk doing more or better. Gen Y thrives on not playing it safe. Playing safe, coupled with the temptation to brush mistakes under the carpet and seek better opportunities elsewhere, will keep them slightly under-performing. Fear of reprisal or career damage is a roadblock to creativity, the adventurous spirit and new markets.

3/PROTECT CREATIVE THINKING: Sir Ken Robinson, author and educationalist, rightly says creativity is being stifled. Open plan offices have their merits, as does brainstorming in the boardroom – but these benefits are often emotional responses rather than factual. We really are missing quiet, space and time for

creative thinking. Why not designate a small room for problem solving, space to think and dream? You might be amazed at the results!

4/CELEBRATE FLAIR, BUT MANAGE TALENT: some leaders resist flair, enforcing arbitrary thinking, such as ‘this is the way we have always done it around here’. Conversely, others appreciate the flair but are afraid to manage the person for fear they will leave. I believe both scenarios make the business vulnerable.

5/COFFEE STAINS COST: after a while you become blind to chronic mistakes in your business; you see them every day so effectively stop seeing them. Ask younger or new staff what they think should be changed or repaired.

Management and Change consultants have their place; additionally, a company’s staff knows more about the internal business than anyone, so might just need to be asked.

6/INVEST IN WELL-BEING: Gen Y wants to be happy, as we all do, but have a different barometer of happiness. Invest in your people.

Knowing your motives are right and your mind is open will motivate your team. Even when you make mistakes, they will go above and beyond if they feel a valuable part of the whole - and Gen Y have a lot to offer.

Year of birth

Who are they

Values

Work ethic

Value received

1900 - 1945

Traditionalists

Patriotic Loyal Prudent

Dedicated

Loyalty Relationships

Baby Boomers

Idealistic Revolutionary Competitive

1965 - 1979

Generation X

Resourceful Self reliant Adaptable High tech

Balanced

Feedback Team work Flexibility Recognition

1979 - 1994

Generation Y

Optimistic High tech Inclusive

Determined

Support Systems Relationships

1946 - 1964

Driven

Profit Reputation

57

EVEN THE DIRTY MARTINI IS SPOTLESS BAR & TERRACE

Relax in style in the Waterhouse Bar & Terrace, experience our hospitality and enjoy our ‘Perfect Pairings’.

The menu features locally sourced items for a real taste of Sussex, with Hailsham Lamb burger ‘Perfectly Paired, with a Sussex Mule or our decadent Tea by the Sea ‘Seaside Delights’ Afternoon Tea taken on the terrace.

With a car park on site, the Waterhouse Bar & Terrace is the perfect place to enjoy a family lunch with a difference, revel in a gathering of friends or savor any special occasion.

Open daily from 08:00am. For Afternoon Tea reservations please call 01273 775432 Hilton Brighton Metropole, Kings Road, Brighton, BN1 2FU

{ HOTEL AWARDS }

STAY THE NIGHT

The Brighton and Hove Hoteliers Awards 2014

A

t a glitzy awards ceremony at the Hilton Brighton Metropole hoteliers and hotel staff celebrated the contribution made

by Brighton and Hove hotels and B&Bs to the local economy.The event was organised by Jeremy Ogden from the Brighton and Hove Hoteliers Association (BHHA), the Hilton Brighton Metropole and The Grand Hotel.

As organisers, the Metropole and the Grand decided not to enter the awards.

It was an overdue opportunity to salute those who work in a hard-working sector which is vital to the success of the city.

The General Managers of the hotels, Andrew

Cleanliness Award Winner My Hotel Sponsored by Brighton Visitor and City Cars Finalists: Drakes, The Cavalaire Warmest Welcome Winner The Cavalaire Sponsored by City College Brighton and Hove Finalists: Artist Residence, Blanch House Unsung Hero Award Winner Sam Patterson from Hotel Du Vin Sponsored by Rockinghorse and The Argus Appeal Finalists: Rae Davies from Jurys Inn, Andrei Mila from Strawberry Fields

Mosley and Howard Lewis, commented: “We are immensely proud of what the BHHA have achieved, with the support of the Hilton and The Grand, in putting the event on last night, and hope that the event will now go on to even greater success.

“The event itself was a fantastic occasion, celebrating our business across the city, from the smallest guesthouse to the largest hotels.

“We had over 300 attendees, many of whom were local corporate businesses from whom we have had great feedback. It is always a real benefit for hotels to be able to connect with these businesses, and we are grateful to them for coming.

Ambassador for Customer Experience Award Winner Blanch House Sponsored by Platinum Business Magazine Finalists: My Hotel, Jerome Pesenti from The Thistle Best Initiative Award Winner Jurys inn Sponsored by Brighton i360 Finalists: Lime House, The Old Ship Outstanding Personality Award Winner Arif Said - Nineteen Sponsored by Juice FM Finalists: Ken Eunson from The Thistle, Gillian Lindfield Butler from The Old Ship Hotel

“We are also grateful to the sponsors and judges who helped so much in supporting the event, worked with us to ensure the event’s success and put a lot of effort into making sure that the judging process was fair and thorough.

“The message we are keen to send from these awards is that there is a real energy amongst the hotels and guest house community to consistently raise the bar in terms of standards for our customers, and in doing so to ensure that we are doing all we can to encourage business and leisure trade to the city.”

Charity and Community Award Winner Jurys Inn Sponsored by Brighton Supplies Finalists: My Hotel, Strawberry Fields Best Breakfast Award Winner Artist Residence Sponsored by Southern Water Finalists: Granville Hotel, Paskins Property of The Year Award Winner Hotel Una Sponsored by Visit Brighton Finalists: Artists Residence, Drakes

59

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{ TRAVEL }

THE CRAZY WORLD OF AVIATION

By John Burroughes Managing Director of UNIGLOBE Preferred Travel T: 0845 180 7817 • E: sales@uniglobepreferred.co.uk • W: www.uniglobepreferred.co.uk

W

ith the start of the New Year and oil prices plummeting, plane manufacturers competing with who delivered the most aircraft in 2014, together with unprecedented external global threats, I thought it would be interesting to look at a few facts and figures of the world that I inhabit on a daily basis.

I can’t promise any conclusions, only more questions.

If we start with the big news that we are all reading on a daily basis, namely the plummeting price of oil. Who would have thought we would be looking at sub- $50 a barrel, as I write this article Brent crude is priced at $47 indeed Goldman Sachs have warned that it will fall below $40 a barrel this summer. Ironically, in 2008 Goldman Sachs predicted that Brent crude would hit $200 a barrel - how times change.

We see stories of oil companies taking writedowns in the billions of dollars, we see stories of countries not only maintaining their production

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at these low prices but in some cases increasing production in order to maintain the financial income the countries require to survive.

The graph (right) makes incredibly scary reading. This information is from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and if we just take a mid-range country such as Russia, who according to the IMF need the price to be $105 to balance their national budget. And yet in other articles we read that they have increased production. If we applied the same business logic to any of our businesses I don’t think it would be very long before we became extinct.

With the above turmoil, spare a thought for the people in charge of forward buying aviation fuel for any of the major airlines. I would imagine there might of been one or two sleepless nights and a few stress relief pills being required.

While we are on the price of a barrel of oil, as we all know it is priced globally in US dollars.

Watch out for increasing news on the proposal that the Middle East oil producers, plus China,

Japan and France have all agreed to start trading oil using a basket of currencies including the Yen, Yuan, Euro, gold and a new, undefined currency planned for the nations of the Gulf Cooperative Council including Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Qatar. This is a move that is being talked about and is a few years off,

{ TRAVEL }

“In China they don’t spend a long time debating whether somewhere should have an extra runway” it is also reported that this has the backing of Russia. One to watch for the future.

In the last few years in my industry we have seen continuous consolidation of carriers and this shows no signs of abating, indeed the markets are currently waiting for an improved offer from the IAG group, the holding company of British Airways, to purchase Aer Lingus.

Surprisingly shares in Ryanair rose on this news mainly because it owns 30% of Aer Lingus and would make a healthy profit. British Airways helping Ryanair to make a profit! I did say it was a crazy world.

In the same week we have seen the EU rule that Cyprus Airways has been receiving state aid as a result of this Cyprus Airways have ceased trading. The four A320 aircraft operated

by Cyprus Airways currently sit at an airfield in St Athan, the Vale of Glamorgan and are being looked after by a company that is co-owned by Bruce Dickinson, the front man for the rock band Iron Maiden. I did say this was a crazy world.

Over the past few months there has been much debate and comment about Heathrow versus Gatwick for increased runway capacity, this week saw both airports announce their passenger numbers for 2014, we saw Gatwick announce 38m passengers have passed through the airport whilst Heathrow saw 73.4m passengers.

We also saw Airbus and Boeing go headto-head on numbers, the European Airbus consortium hung onto the top spot for the number of passenger jets ordered during 2014, having sold 1,456 against Boeing’s total of 1,432.

Airbus also announced that it had delivered 629 aircraft during 2014 which represents a company record; Boeing on the other hand delivered 723 new aircraft in 2014. Boeing also make up to 25% of its new 787 dream liners in the UK for those equipped with Rolls-Royce engines. Although predominantly American, a good boost for UK plc.

A little earlier I talked about Gatwick versus Heathrow; in China they don’t spend a long time debating whether somewhere should have an extra runway. Back in 2011 they announced a five-year aviation plan, in 2012 they announced they were on track to build 70 new airports by the end of 2015, yes that is 70 new airports!

By the end of this year China is on course to reach 230 airports, with the Chinese carriers

operating 4,700 planes, I did say it was a crazy world.

Let’s move a little closer to home and have a look at EasyJet, founded in 1995 by Sir Stelios haji-loannou and currently run by Carolyn McCall OBE, who I personally had the pleasure of meeting and listening to last year. Carolyn is a very inspirational person and judging by the results EasyJet are achieving, is doing a first rate job.

“Spare a thought for the people in charge of forward buying aviation fuel for any of the major airlines.

I would imagine there might of been one or two sleepless nights and a few stress relief pills being required” From its humble beginnings EasyJet is the largest airline in the United Kingdom by number of passengers carried, they have a fleet of over 200 aircrafts and fly to 134 destinations in 32 countries.

The reason I mention this is because last week the shares (listed on the London stock exchange) of a little-known African airline called Fastjet increased by 25% and this took them to the lofty price of £0.015.

Fastjet have designs on being the equivalent of EasyJet of Africa, something other carriers have tried in the past but failed. Last week there was some good news that caught the attention of the stock market.

In December, Fastjet had their first profitable month, this was due to increased passenger numbers during their peak holiday season which saw them carry their one millionth passenger.

Being a fledgling airline they do not forward buy their aviation fuel, but rather purchase it on the spot market, something that is working very much to their advantage at the present time.

One last thing of note about this venture is one of the major shareholders is none other than Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou - interesting.

Let’s switch back again and just take a quick look at the world’s largest passenger jet, the Airbus A380, configured for its maximum capacity it can carry 525 passengers. Currently Airbus have 317 of these jets on order and as we know, all airlines like to maximise the potential of their aircrafts both in terms of number of passengers and turnaround times, but for the purpose of this exercise let’s just assume that the aircraft would fly at 80% occupancy and would only fly for 292 days a year - just a thought but if all 317 of these jets were operated at this capacity they would move 39 million people in a year. I did say it was a crazy world.

Now just to cheer you up, you will all remember the great volcanic ash crisis of 2010, when for 6 days in April across 20 countries in Europe around 10 million people were grounded due to the ash cloud caused be the eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull, well have you heard of Bardarbunga?

My guess is not, but Bardarbunga is another equally strangely named volcano in Iceland that has been erupting for almost five months now. The volcano has now produced a lava field around 85 square kilometres, making it Iceland’s largest basaltic lava flow since 1784.

Again one to watch but I would recommend from a very very safe distance.

And lastly if any of you require assistance navigating the crazy world of business travel please feel free to give me a call on: 0845 180 7800 or drop me an email at: John@Uniglobepreferred.co.uk

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{ SUSSEX MANUFACTURING FORUM }

FANS OF THE UK V

ent-Axia, the Crawley-based, awardwinning manufacturer of fan and ventilation systems, has told other Sussex manufacturers how re-shoring production from China has created new jobs and boosted the competitive advantage of the market-leading company.

Speaking at the latest Sussex Manufacturing Forum event, Vent-Axia ambassadors Jenny Smith and Graham Morrison explained how the company’s decision to bring manufacturing back to the UK had enhanced product innovation and improved customer responsiveness.

“We are now much closer to our market,” said Jenny. “We have cut our lead times from three months to a matter of weeks, which not only means that we have less cash tied up in inventory, it also enables us to respond much more quickly to market opportunities.”

Vent-Axia has invested £350,000 in tooling for new production lines and associated building works. Re-shoring has created new jobs,

strengthened the company’s local supply chain and reduced its carbon footprint, as well as speeding up the Research & Development cycle from prototyping to production, helping Vent-Axia maintain its position as a market leader.

“Re-shoring has created new jobs, strengthened the company’s local supply chain and reduced its carbon footprint”

in a global market place,” said Jenny. “’Made in Britain’ remains a very powerful selling factor around the world.”

The Sussex Manufacturing Forum is sponsored by UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), accountants and tax advisers Carpenter Box and HSBC Bank Plc and is open to any manufacturing or engineering business with a base in Sussex.

Chris Coopey, Forum facilitator and head of the Manufacturing Group at Carpenter Box chartered accountants, said: “Vent-Axia illustrates the value of the manufacturing sector to the local economy – and proves how innovation and market flexibility can deliver success in today’s highly competitive environment.”

Manufacturing or engineering businesses wishing to find out more about the Sussex Manufacturing Forum should visit: www.sussexmanufacturingforum.com.

“We’re also held up by government as a prime example of how UK manufacturing can compete

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• Payroll services • Financial and investment services* • Wealth management We love to make your profits larger and tax payments smaller!

Go to www.carpenterbox.com to see what our clients say or get in touch on 01903 234094

*Carpenter Box Wealth Management LLP is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority

www.carpenterbox.com 64

{ MARKETING }

GOING THE EXTRA MILE… TO KATHMANDU?

By Louise Walden Director of Big Beach Marketing

A

t Big Beach Marketing, we are very proud of the relationships we have with our clients. As initial outsiders coming into a business, we are very aware of the need to nurture new relationships to build trust and understanding. With existing relationships – and we can boast that over 50% of our clients have been with us since Big Beach started – it’s about deepening the affiliation, always seeking to further our understanding about the business we work with and often going the extra mile to deliver exceptional service.

As a great example of this I recently went the literal extra 4,554 miles to Kathmandu in Nepal for one of our clients, adventure holiday tour operator Himalayan Footsteps (www.

Himalayanfootsteps.com), to experience what they provide their customers. I firmly believe in an old Chinese proverb about learning; Listen and forget, read and remember, do and understand. (Confucius) IMAGINE KATHMANDU Marketing for a Himalayan tour operator has been a wonderful experience, can you imagine the fantastic images of the landscape? Writing about the adventure to be found in such a diverse region and, most importantly, working with a team who are both experts and innovative in their approach, has been a refreshing change from some of the more technology-based,

business-to-business marketing that we are often involved in.

To learn more about a product or service we usually spend time with front line staff members, listen into sales and service calls or simply use the product/service. There’s also the valuable first encounter (via website/ literature/call) that we bring to a business, as a way of seeing it from a potential customer’s point of view.

As the Himalayas are very different from the UK (and therefore out of my frame of reference), the ‘do and understand’ part of the learning process had to be realised…so I packed a rucksack and hopped on a plane! The objective was to follow in the walking shoes of a Himalayan Footsteps customer and also take video footage for the new website being launched this February.

WHAT’S YOUR KATHMANDU? As a first-time visitor and a single traveller to the Himalayas, I was perfectly placed to respond – first-timers and solo travellers are one of the target segments for Himalayan Footsteps, as they seek to educate, organise and facilitate the perfect trip.

Experiencing the product first hand was invaluable and has made me a better marketer, as it got me thinking like a potential client. The Himalayan Footsteps team are specialists,

Big Beach Marketing Tel: 01273 434552 Web: www.bigbeach.co.uk

which means it’s harder for them to imagine knowing little or nothing about their service, that is to experience it like a consumer.

If you’ve been in business a long time, you no doubt understand your products and services very well. However, you could learn something new, different or affirming if you see your offering through the eyes of somebody such as us, with the (in)experience of a first-time customer.

So what is your Kathmandu? Learn from us, as we learn about you.

THE BIG BEACH APPROACH Our approach to any client relationship is to try and bring fresh information and insight to your business. We’ll go the extra mile wherever necessary and we recognise that we have a window of opportunity to experience your business and product/service proposition for the first time - as a prospect would.

WANT TO KNOW MORE? If you want to see the detail of my trip, it will be as a blog post in February on the new site. In the meantime, check out the amazing range of trips to Nepal, Bhutan, India and Tibet with Himalayan Footsteps.

If you want an honest, constructive and helpful view of your product, service or business then get in touch. Or call your own new enquiries line; you may be surprised at what you learn.

65

Do you want to be part of a winning team?

Hastings Direct is a multi-award winning business and one of the UK’s fastest growing insurance providers with over 1.5 million customers. We have ambitious plans and we’re seeking talented professionals to join our winning team based in Bexhill-on Sea. As a company that’s going places and yet still small enough to feel like you can make a difference, we can offer genuine development and career progression.

We have many exciting career opportunities;

Customer Facing /Contact Centre roles available;

Claims Personal Injury Manager - To design and implement the Claims Personal Injury Strategy and drive strategic initiatives to develop business area, empowering management of best practices.

Customer Representatives Customer Representatives earn up to £18,000 (including basic salary and bonus)

IT Development Manager - To provide leadership and supervision to technical teams who are responsible for developing information technology initiatives that support the strategic objectives of the Corporation.

We provide our customers with a refreshingly straightforward service and we’d like to hear from you if you enjoy talking to customers and love working in a fast paced, busy office.

Risk Manager - The purpose of the role is to manage the risk function, whilst providing strategic oversight on emerging risks as the business undertakes significant growth plans and co-ordinating risk activity which takes account of regulatory change.

Project Managers - Establish and maintain portfolio projects to support our PMO office implementation of major business, tactical and strategic change in operational areas.

Call Centre Manager - Successfully lead and develop the contact centre to deliver excellent customer service to Hastings Direct customers.

Information Security Manager - Provide leadership and strategic direction to Hastings Insurance Group, to bring the group IS risks under control via the design and implementation of policy standards.

As a customer representative you will be talking to our customers over the phone, providing straightforward service, whilst working in a supportive team that recognises and rewards hard work.

We provide first class training in order for you to succeed in your role.

Are you: • Self motivated?

• Adaptable?

• Dedicated to delivering great customer service?

• Flexible to working 37.5 hours per week within the hours below?

Mon – Fri 8am to 9pm, Sat 9am to 5.30pm & Sun 10am to 5pm.

Retention Manager - Define and implement a market leading renewals and in-life customer journey to drive business performance.

To learn more about each of the above vacancies please contact us:

recruitmentteam@hastingsdirect.com

01424 735735 ext 8924.

2013 and 2014 Car Insurance Provider of the Year, Consumer Moneyfacts Awards 2013 Insurance Times Awards, Personal Lines Broker of the Year 2013 UK Broker Awards, Personal Lines Broker of the Year.

{ HASTINGS DIRECT }

WELCOME TO THE BOARD Amanda Menahem, HR Director, Hastings Direct Insurance

H

astings Direct Insurance is one of the country’s largest and most successful insurance companies, and, as the name suggests, they are based here in Sussex.

Their award winning HR Director has been appointed to the board of Coast to Capital, the local enterprise partnership for Brighton and Hove, Lewes, London Borough of Croydon, the Gatwick Diamond and West Sussex.

Amanda Menahem is the HR Director for Hastings Insurance Services Ltd., one of the largest employers on the South Coast. Amanda joined the company as HR Director in March, 2009, having held a number of senior HR management roles. In 2014 she and her team were awarded the 2014 HR Excellence Award for the most effective recruitment strategy, beating off competition from national and globally recognised companies such as River Island and McDonald’s Restaurants.

Amanda is a Sussex resident, a graduate of the University of Sussex and has a keen interest in local matters. She leads on a number of

initiatives with both universities in Brighton to create mutually beneficial learning and employment opportunities.

“I look forward to working with the Coast to Capital team and partners to help create a deliverable skills strategy for the area” Amanda has a First Class Honours degree in Psychology from the University of Sussex and started her career in recruitment and training within the retail sector, which included

a managerial position at Harrods.

She later moved into senior HR roles within the pharmaceutical sector before joining Hastings Insurance Services Ltd. Speaking on her appointment, Amanda said: “I look forward to working with the Coast to Capital team and partners to help create a deliverable skills strategy for the area in order to contribute to its economic growth and job creation drive. To achieve sustainable growth, the area’s businesses will need to attract and retain the very best talent.”

Coast to Capital chairman, Tim Wates, leads the board in shaping and driving the local enterprise partnership, its strategies and work programme. He said: “Amanda is an excellent addition to the LEP board. We will benefit from her experience in the areas of people strategy and skills and leadership development. We very much look forward to working with her.”

PBM would like to congratulate Amanda on her appointment and we look forward to reporting on the exciting year ahead for Coast to Capital.

67

{ INTERVIEW }

DOWN TO EARTH There is very little that Professor Michael Davies doesn’t know about the behaviour of soil. Soil Mechanics is a vitally important speciality. As climate changes, the ground under our feet reacts and impacts on buildings and structures. But for now the soil research can wait, as Michael’s current role as the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research at the University of Sussex is taking up a rather large chunk of his time... Interview by Ian Trevett

I

t’s been a long time since I was last in Sussex House, the administration building at the University of Sussex. It’s also the first time I have been invited. At my last visit I wasn’t quite as welcome: it was during the 1980s, when the cry went up to ‘Occupy Sussex House!’ It was probably an indignant protest about the size of the student grant. A grant? That shows my age.

Whilst some Sussex traditions don’t change, today’s students do seem far more serious and concerned about careers (and living with debt).

Professor Michael Davies agrees. “It’s a much tougher market out there now for students.

You can’t just turn up anymore for an interview saying, ‘I have a degree.’ But I’m a bit loathe to say we need to make students ‘shovel ready’ because we’re here to educate, not to train.”

“I think there was always some vocational emphasis on engineering degrees. Coming from an engineering background, my pressure was to turn out engineering students who could arrive

68

on their first day at work, switch on the computer, use the in-house software, do everything… That’s not right, because the formation of an engineer is by education and then by professional training, over a longer period. They have to have the skills so they can understand and pick up the professional training.

“I think we’ve always had that pressure at the interface between the engineering profession and universities. It’s spilling over into other areas now because it is such a competitive market, and students who have better skills will inevitably land the better jobs. It is incumbent upon us to ensure that our graduates are welleducated, to the degree that they can go to the library and research on their own, not just the school feeding them. Employers want graduates to need a minimum of supervision, and that means getting social skills right as well as the academic skills.”

“When somebody comes out of university,

{ INTERVIEW }

they have to be employable, otherwise we’ve let them down. After all, they are paying £9,000 in fees a year, and they do feel more like they are customers. Being away for the best part of six years, I’ve noticed that parents are now much more involved. More parents now come to Open Days. When I was at Cardiff University, it was very rare that a parent would turn up, and if they did, the applicants were almost embarrassed.

They’d be dropped off but very rarely would the parent come in. Now the parents want to ensure that their child is getting a good education.”

Michael’s position is Deputy Vice-Chancellor, a typically academic moniker. How would this translate in a more recognisable business structure? “My established post is Pro-ViceChancellor for Research, and we rotate the Deputy Vice-Chancellorship between the three Pro Vice-Chancellors. I’m in my second year as Deputy Vice-Chancellor. In business terms the Vice-Chancellor is the CEO. I’d say my equivalent would be an Executive Director. Sanjeev Baskhar is the Chancellor, which is a ceremonial position but he does have some residual powers.”

Michael’s role takes him further and further away from his original academic speciality, more of which later. His previous role was Dean of a large engineering faculty in Auckland, New Zealand, and there is striking similarity in how he has approached both roles: namely in his passion for encouraging innovation.

Michael chairs the board at the Sussex Innovation Centre (SInC), the business incubator based on the university campus. “I’ve always enjoyed the innovation side. In New Zealand, I was the Pro-Vice-Chancellor for our Innovation

campus, which had started life as the accommodation for the Commonwealth Games athletes. When the university took it over, it became a place where things were almost dumped because they couldn’t find anything in the main campus. So when I was asked to run that campus I developed a vision that it should become where we do innovation. I was allowed

“When somebody comes out of university, they have to be employable, otherwise we’ve let them down”

to build the academic/research side as well as develop an estates plan that allowed the creation of a number of clusters of innovation. Working with Auckland Council, we looked at producing a space where companies could come onto the campus. It has many similarities with the SInC, but the main difference in Auckland was that we had more spin-out type of activity from the university. But we’re building on that here.”

Having seen the hive of activity and creativity at SInC, I can’t help but feel that it doesn’t get enough credit for what it’s doing. We have this diamond mine of enterprise and all these small

companies that are actually making an impact, often internationally.

“I share your frustration. I often say people seem to see through us rather than look at us as a university and what we do for the community There are currently about 80 companies either in or as members of the centre. Their turnover has been massive over the years – many tens of millions; and it has been highly successful in creating jobs and in creating companies, which, as you say, are making waves. Mike Herd has been there from the start and he is doing a great job. He got the Queen’s Award in 2013, which was really quite exciting.

“There’s a fantastic atmosphere and the tenants talk to each other. We can help channel funds from initiatives like the City Deal Wave 2 Funding and European sources, such as RGF, to provide help to companies. For example, we were awarded funding from the Higher Education Funding Council for Catalyst Funding, which allows us to employ students to work as interns with companies, who would otherwise be unable to employ interns. And these internships are innovative projects with real value.

“I would love us to have more university spinouts; we usually have one company per year.

Because we’re a relatively small university, that’s pretty good. We’re just spinning out TribeHive, who are developing an app where phones can work together to create a signal in a crowded place such as stadium. Rather than competing with each other, they are working together, and it’s creating a little local network.

It is a clever software.

“The university also has its own Enterprise

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Panel, which cross-fertilises with SInC, but it does frustrate me a bit that so few people know what we are doing at SInC and the university.

We employ the best part of 2,500 people.

We’re probably one of the biggest employers in the area. We’re probably one of the biggest exporters. International student fees alone are £43 million a year. And then you add on research, well over £40 million a year export share. How many people in the Brighton area export £40 million a year? So I’m trying to get the business community to look at us not as being an Ivory Tower.

“Perception is everything. What I want to do is break that perception. We get down and dirty with business as well. We’re here, we’re trying to be out there, we’re competing in the market place. We’re competing for the best students and we want really good facilities. That’s why Brighton is as important to us as we are to Brighton. Lots of students come here because they want the city, which is great. It’s a symbiotic relationship. We help Brighton, as a city, as does the University of Brighton, and at the same time the city helps us to attract students.

“We mustn’t rest on our laurels. We have an awful lot more to do. We have been working with Coast to Capital to create an Innovation Centre behind Brighton Station, within the New England Quarter. We’ve got five floors above a cafe, I think it’s about 25,000 square feet. Coast to Capital is investing in the region of £5m and we expect it to be up and running within two years.

“We’ve also got some pretty exciting plans to develop in Croydon, so we can be at the top and bottom of the Coast to Capital region. We’re taking two floors of an iconic building called

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Number One Croydon, right next to East Croydon railway station. So we’ll have one outside East Croydon station and one outside Brighton station. Once you’ve seen One Croydon, you keep on seeing it. It’s a building that looks like 50 pence or 20 pence pieces all rotated. One floor will be for an Innovation Centre and the other will be for Innovation together with university activities, such as employability. We will have a

“We have been working with Coast to Capital to create an Innovation Centre behind Brighton Station... We’ve also got some pretty exciting plans to develop in Croydon. I like building things!” bridgehead in South London – or a portal, as I like to think of it – which we can use for going out and coming into the university, so we can reach out and people can then reach through that portal into the university.

“It’s the first time we’ve ever had anything other than a residence outside the valley, so it’s

a huge step. And it doesn’t say, “Right, from now on we will be building off the campus” – not at all. Because I think what makes Sussex very special is that we are a campus university. But what it does do, is provide us with the ability to reach out and allow people to reach back into the university. It’s all very exciting. I like building things!”

Part of the Croydon development will promote employability. Going back to my stint at the university, I recall hardly any mention of the world of work. Now there is a large, modern Careers and Employability Centre, expertly headed by Linda Buckham, placed in the library.

“We are aware that students want to gain something which is valuable. It is incumbent upon us to provide an education, which is both of the highest quality academically but also prepares them for life. And having the Careers and Employability Centre is part of that.

“It was deliberately put in the library because that’s where the greatest footfall is. It’s there, in your face, so that students don’t leave it until the last moment to think about what they are going do after studying.”

Continuing on my nostalgic trip, the other difference I have noticed is how the growth of the university has redressed the balance, from what was once a predominantly arts-focussed establishment.

“We have increased the size of Life Sciences, and it is more noticeable when you grow STEM subjects because you have to provide more labs. But in our 50 years we’ve won three Nobel Prizes, the top international standard, in Natural Sciences. So we have always had that strength.

The university keeps growing. We’ve doubled

{ INTERVIEW }

capacity of the library and modern technology means a lot of things are now digital rather than paper.

“We’re about to invest up to about £60 million in a new Life Sciences building, including a Bio-Innovation Centre. Medical Sciences are now very important for the university. We’ve got the Medical Research Council Genome Damage and Stability Centre. There are some really interesting things going on. There is a recently formed Drug Discovery unit, and we just appointed a new Dean of the Medical School - which is a joint institution with the University of Brighton - who is actually a surgical oncologist. We cover everything from absolutely fundamental research through drug discovery right the way through to treatment.

“We have almost 14,000 students now and by 2020 we would like to be about 18,000.

However, we have to ensure the sustainability of the university, both in terms of its capacity to conduct world-class teaching and research as well as its financial sustainability. We don’t want to go bigger than that. I think if we were bigger than that, we would lose the ability to stay on one campus, and that’s one thing that holds us together. It’s a campus university. It’s the first time I’ve actually worked on a genuinely campus university where students and faculty from all disciplines work closely together. .

“We are in the process of building new halls of residence as well as a new student union because students need a place to be on campus.

We’re developing the arts theatre (formerly the Gardner Arts Centre), which has been renamed the Attenborough Centre and will open this year, probably in March or April, with a formal opening in September. It will be a facility which will not be solely for the drama club, but also for doing teaching and research in the creative and performing arts.

“We want to bring people onto campus, and so it will be a really good way of interfacing with the public in our creative endeavours; but also bringing people for lectures. We want to have a real live hub where things happen.”

While the ambitious plans for the university seem to be progressing nicely, there is one loser in all this - the research into soil engineering!

Michael started as a civil engineer and did a Masters and PhD in Soil Mechanics, which is about how you treat soil as a construction material and how it acts naturally in things like slopes.

“My research has encompassed everything from building embankments on floodplains right the way through to the ways earthquakes impact on structures. A lot of my research has been on the effects of the rising in annual temperature on permafrost in alpine regions. As that ice warms

up, you get large deformations; this can result in everything from a cable car station starting to slip on a slope, which you don’t particularly want, to very large landslides, and then basically looking at what mechanisms have caused that and what evasive mitigation measures you should take in order to reduce the effect of that.

“Perception is everything. What I want to do is break that perception” “I don’t have as much time as I’d like. I have papers waiting to be finished and I have just stood down as the editor of one journal, but I sit on a number of editorial boards, so I keep my hand in academically. Until last year, I was the Vice-President of the International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, which is basically the international body for my academic discipline. But one of the attractions to this particular job was the fact that it was outside my comfort zone. I wasn’t surrounded by engineers. I wanted a new challenge, and that was part of the attraction.

“I’m a great believer in celebrating what we do. People who invest in universities, myself included, want to know ‘What are you doing with my tax money?’ Now, when we undertake an assessment of any research, we have to show what the impact of the research is. The way I always put it is: ‘What waves is your research creating?’ And then we have to measure the wavelength and the amplitude. It is hard to measure. If you’re a poet, how do you measure that people have actually taken on your poetry and developed ideas from it? Or in engineering, have you introduced a process which people have actually used. It’s not just making it, it’s the fact that people want it and what difference does it make to people. So it’s that whole impact agenda. I think that got us thinking a lot more about what we actually do.

“I think we have a common mission, and if we can help each other, I’d be delighted. What I would really like to happen is for the people in the city to see that we’re all working in the same way. We’re not snooty Sussex University, we’re actually sleeves rolled up, trying to help and to create wealth and jobs, as well as a fairer and healthier society, to enhance everybody’s quality of life. That’s what we’re about.”

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{ UNIVERSITY OF PORTSMOUTH }

NEW HORIZONS

Paul Rolfe takes the lead

P

aul Rolfe is Managing Director at New Horizons Learning Centres, a subsidiary of the world’s largest independent IT training company with 300 centres in 70 countries.

“I chose the Portsmouth MBA because of its excellent reputation locally, nationally and

internationally and the University’s outstanding National Student Survey results. I was also impressed that the course was AMBA accredited.

The Portsmouth Business School is fantastic the staff are friendly and highly knowledgeable and the facilities are second to none. It has excellent teaching and collaborative spaces and reliable and modern technology, which really enables you to achieve your best. The School is very forward thinking too, especially in the way the MBA is structured around themes rather than topics. The theme-based delivery enables you to more effectively grasp how the effect of a decision in one business area may have a profound effect on other areas of the business.

As Managing Director of New Horizons South Coast I have a very busy schedule but found that the block delivery model has really benefited me in managing work, life and study to give me

manageable life balance.

The MBA is an ideal qualification for me as it covers a number of important business topics such as Strategy, Finance, Marketing and Sales as well as much more. It is also helping me to think differently due to the increased awareness of working with others from different disciplines, backgrounds, cultures and industries. Learning from others’ experiences really enriches the course.

I love the city of Portsmouth; it is very vibrant and there is lots to do. And more importantly, it’s very safe and welcoming. The other key feature is the location, being close to the sea, a short train ride to London, a ferry to Europe and an airport in Southampton.”

For more information about the Portsmouth MBA visit www.showyoumeanbusiness.com

Show you mean business. Go back to school.

Portsmouth Business School’s Master of Business Administration (MBA) will provide you with the opportunity to develop your strategic problem-solving skills whilst mastering the latest business knowledge and practice.

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Develop your management abilities Benefit through innovative work-based learning Generous scholarships Taught part-time in three-day blocks over two years Accredited by the Association of MBAs

To find out more about our wide range of degrees, come along to one of our regular open evenings – details of which can be found at www.showyoumeanbusiness.com.

‘The MBA is a key to unlocking the doors to senior and executive level management roles.

The pace of the course allows me to carry out a full time international sales role at the same time as studying.’

Katie Ilincariu Europe and South America Sales Manager, Fosse Liquitrol

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For more information or to apply: T: +44 (0)23 9284 4888 E: mba.admissions@ port.ac.uk W: www.port.ac.uk/mba

{ BUSINESS SCENE }

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The Brighton and Hove Hotelier Awards 2014 The finest hotels and guesthouses in Brighton and Hove gathered at the Hilton Brighton Metropole in November to celebrate hospitality in the city.

The event was organised by Metropole and The Grand, along with the Brighton and Hove Hoteliers Association.

1. Hilton Brighton Metropole 2. Strawberry Fields 3. Jurys Inn 4. Holiday Inn 5. Paskins 6. Mayor and Mayoress of Brighton, Howard Lewis, Hilton Brighton Metropole 7. Guy Hilton, Hilton Gatwick Airport and guests 8. Smart Training 9. Neil Kirby, Nicki & Geoff Loader 10. Andrew Mosley, The Grand Hotel & guests 11. The Grand Hotel 12. Amherst Hotel 13. Paula Seager & Lynne Edwards 14. Think Social

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{ INTERVIEW }

INDEPENDENTLY SPEAKING

T

imed to coincide with the season of Open Days, the ‘Education Special’ is a staple of the regional, glossy magazine, complete with the obligatory ‘Meet the Head’ interview.

Usually, this means a series of safe questions are emailed over, and the carefully chosen words are returned, after some vetting from the school’s marketing department. And you have an interview that could have been lifted straight from the school’s professional prospectus. In fact, you could quite easily replace the name of the school and the photo with that of another Head Teacher and no-one would be any wiser.

This is a great shame, as our Head Teachers, whether from state or independent schools, are worth listening to. All are intellectual, driven and influential. There can be few issues of more importance to any society than education, and our Heads know more about the topic than anyone else.

One of the region’s finest independent schools is Hurstpierpoint College, or Hurst for short. Tim Manly has been the Head for almost ten years

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and has presided over a very successful period with considerable expansion. Gamely, Mr Manly agreed to meet Ian Trevett to discuss some real education issues...

The absence of debate or the tackling of contentious issues in education features has long been a source of frustration, as education is so deeply rooted in the make-up of our society. So it was quite a relief when Tim Manly agreed wholeheartedly to this interview and invited me to ask any question I wished. I happily obliged, but first an introduction to the man who has run the historic Hurst College for very close to a decade is in order.

“I graduated in 1986/87 at the height of the Thatcher boom, during the Lawson years, and like most people I went to London. I was thinking about two careers: teaching or joining the Met police. I still wonder from time to time what would have happened if I had taken the other path. The idea of going from school to university and back to school again was not appealing, so I ended up working for an American firm of headhunters.

Tim Manly, Headmaster of Hurst, on politics, Eton, social mobility and the importance of giving.

Interview by Ian Trevett

“I was doing a Masters at the LSE as well, and when I was 30, there was one of those defining moments where my oldest child had been born, and I wasn’t seeing very much of him. The company was talking about sending me out to Hong Kong, and it was at that moment I had to decide whether to go into teaching or sell my soul forever. I went to Cambridge to train and loved it, but I was thinking, ‘I’m a classicist. Noone wants a classicist anymore. Who wants a Latin degree these days?’ But, fortunately, I got a job at Sevenoaks School.

“While I was at Sevenoaks, it switched entirely to the International Baccalaureate and went through rapid growth and improvement, very exciting times. I realised very quickly that this was absolutely the best decision I’d made.

After a few years I went up to Oakham in the Midlands. Great place - Rutland, England’s smallest county and a lovely school. I was appointed by the Head, Tony Little, and worked with him for a while before he went off to be Head at Eton.

{ INTERVIEW }

“I have to say I’m extremely wary of politicians who’ve never had to employ anybody, who’ve never had to make someone redundant and deal with those pressures and what that means” “I studied Latin, Greek, Ancient History, a bit of Philosophy. Don’t be taken in. That sounds terribly intelligent. I’m not that intelligent, definitely not.”

Aside from the modesty (it seems fairly obvious that intelligence is essential to achieve a Masters in the Classics), I was interested that Tim had cut his teeth in a commercial environment, which I suggested offered a more rounded world view.

“It does a couple of things. It gives you exposure to the world beyond. Schools are great places but they can be quite inward-looking. So it is important to have an awareness of what the life of a parent is like, and the life that the majority of the children here are going to go on to, or engage with.

“For me personally, it gave me a commercial sense, which I was lacking. And that’s probably quite a useful thing to have. It also gave me a very strong work ethic and an understanding of what it’s like to be under pressure. When you’re in business, something is always beginning, coming to an end, falling apart, or is halfway through. You never have that sense, as you have within teaching, of a rather lovely agricultural rhythm, where you start each year afresh, and every year you harvest and move on.

“That experience in business was very good in terms of dealing with those sorts of pressures, that sort of pace, that sort of work ethic, that sense of what drives people as well. Having said that, there are teachers who have done nothing but teach and are phenomenally good.

Commercial experience doesn’t necessarily make a good teacher, but it is certainly useful in my position as a Head. And also as a Housemaster, when you’re dealing with parents, it’s quite important for you to get a sense of what their lives are like and what is important.”

In another example, I think there is a little bit of a public tiredness of politicians who have only ever been politicians.

“I have to say I agree with that. One of the great concerns is the rise of the professional politician who has done the classic university, Conservative Central Office or Millbank, special advisor and then gets a seat. I’m extremely wary of politicians who’ve never had to employ anybody, who’ve never had to make someone redundant and deal with those pressures and what that means. I think this is a real weakness in our political caste, as I would describe them.

There is a danger that they are becoming very Westminster-centric. It always has been to a certain degree but the lack of that profile of an individual who has been out there and been bashed a bit and had the odd success, and then comes into politics later in life, I think that’s hugely valuable. And there’s a danger we’re losing that.

“The decline in working class MPs, which is not just a Tory thing, has been mirrored by the rise in the ‘professional’ ones. Again, that really worries me. We’re becoming increasingly anodyne, and the bandwidth of experience within parliament is getting narrower and narrower. And that cannot be good.”

Which leads to the popularity of those figures on the fringes?

“The company I worked for was talking about sending me out to Hong Kong, and it was at that moment I had to decide whether to go into teaching or sell my soul forever” “For all that one may think about Nigel Farage, entertainer or politician, rightly or wrongly, members of the voting public look at him and think, ‘He’s real. He understands what it is to be in my shoes and what my life is about. And he’s going to do something which is in tune with that.’

“The irony is that he’s had a privileged upbringing. I think he was at Dulwich College, a good London independent boys’ school, and then City trader – and now he’s man of the people. In some ways he follows the path of a classic demagogue. The man is actually not quite what he appears. But he’s surrounding himself with the people, he’s on the barricades, singing along with them. And I think that’s very seductive, because you don’t see David Cameron or Ed Miliband in the same way.”

Is there a problem in that the political elite is very much dominated by a very small clique of people who come from the same schools, the same universities. A couple of years ago,

Michael Gove also criticized business, the arts and many sports as being dominated by independent schools’ alumni. Funnily enough, this speech was delivered at an Independent Schools Conference.

“To be criticised for being successful is an interesting angle to take. The most obvious example in the last few years has been the number of Olympians from independent schools.”

And music?

“Well, yes and no. I’ve always wondered about this one because, if you go back to our generation, the likes of Pink Floyd and Genesis, they were guys coming out of Charterhouse.

It was a real mix. There has always been the educated public school profile musician who has actually got a little bit of music training.

But you had the greats, like Jagger, who was a choirboy.”

I wondered whether in the past independent schools would train musicians classically and be dismissive of popular music, whereas now, because independent schools are so much more open-minded, they will encourage more expression.

“I think there’s an element of that. I think schools like Hurst are much better places than they were 30 years ago because there’s a real sense of purpose, which was lacking for many years. I went to a similar type of school, St Edward’s in Oxford, in the 1970s and we didn’t have a clear understanding of why we were there. The Victorian ideals, which remained until the 1940s, had gone. They’d been shaken down in the 1960s, and there was a lack of awareness of what the school was about.

“Now there is a clearer focus on encouraging young people to develop. If you do music, you do it for enjoyment - there is training, but it is also to encourage creativity. One of my recent leavers, Richard Hadfield, was part of the vocal group, Collabro, who won Britain’s Got Talent.

When he was here, he was in the choir, played rugby, and was actively involved in the school - a very talented individual. But the basis of his singing actually came from years of doing musical theatre with us and also being a very accomplished musician and singer.”

Do you think in order to have a real chance in life, you need to go to an independent school?

“I don’t. There is no doubt that a school like this is marvellously well resourced and gives

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children a chance to really develop. Does that mean to say that they can’t develop in the maintained sector? No, not at all.

“If you look at the school you may well think that what we provide for our children is great. It doesn’t mean to say that this can’t be provided elsewhere. It also highlights the importance of parents and how they develop their children.

For the 90 per cent of the population who go into maintained schools, within that there is going to be a huge range of experiences, both in school but also in terms of family. So I wouldn’t say you have to come to a school like this. I think that’s a little bit excessive.”

And the predominance of Old-Etonians at Government level?

“There is no doubt that if you are at an Eton, with the resources and quality of staff they have there, as well as the tradition and culture, you will be expected to excel. Expectation is absolutely key. In very crude terms, excellence, almost outperformance, as pupils would describe it, is the norm. That’s what you do. But I think one has to choose one’s words carefully about Eton, as Tony Little commented: ‘Eton is a four-letter word’.

“Yet it is one of the very few schools in the country where, genuinely, you could be the son (or the daughter - an interesting question) in a family who has no money, who is third generation of not working, in the poorest part of Britain, and you could still go there. And they will genuinely pay for you, and they pay for your kit and everything else in a way that you would actually be okay. It’s always an interesting one

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taking someone out of that milieu and putting him into another. And there is a very large number of such boys at Eton.

“Eton is highly selective. So if you were to boil it down, you’re dealing with a very large number of pupils, much larger than most schools of this sort, who are there by means of a very

“There is no doubt that if you are at an Eton, with the resources and quality of staff they have there, as well as the tradition and culture, you will be expected to excel” selective process, who are often on some sort of bursarial award. If Eton was not sending a decent proportion of those boys on to Oxbridge, Harvard, or on to very prominent positions, then they’d be doing something wrong.

“Eton is an extreme. The question, of course, is at what point is that deleterious to the wider community? And to me it’s very clear. If you look

at, for instance, Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, he’s there, I presume, because he is very good. I quite like the guy. I don’t know him but I like him. I like the way we’ve got Welby over here and we’ve got Pope Francis in the Vatican.

These are interesting characters who seem to have a fairly open, intelligent view of religion across into the secular. I think that’s really appealing. So you think, someone like Welby, that’s good.

“Sticking with Eton for a while, you might look at some of the actors. With Damian Lewis, you might think he’s at a huge advantage because he had great acting lessons at school, but he seems as though he’s got talent. Hugh Laurie, again, has huge talent. These people have gone to America, speaking American on television, that’s quite impressive, and you admire them.

“I think where we all have a bit of an issue is where there’s a suspicion that there is a sort of coterie going on. What would be derided by those on the left as the old boy network, and nobody likes a sense that there’s a group of people out there who are working to advance their own ends. That could just as well apply to the trade unions of the 70s when you and I were growing up, eg the closed shop in Fleet Street, where it was generation after generation in the same way.

“That’s probably where we have our biggest issue, because I think a lot of people look at the government and they see David Cameron and they see various Etonians around him. They’re not always Etonians. I think George Osborne is from St Paul’s, but there is a slight feeling

{ INTERVIEW }

“That luck, in some people’s minds, would be regarded as privilege, and privilege is hesitantly okay if two things happen: Number one is if you make the most of it and you really use the opportunity that you’ve got - to your own good and the good of those in the school.

“Number two, it’s okay as long as when you net it out at the end of your life, as a result of that privileged education, you have given more to others than just to yourself. Because if we are just running an institution which is perpetuating a wealthy elite, that is not good enough. That’s not good enough for us as a school, neither is it right for those children.

“I’ve been talking a lot about the concept of givers and takers in the world, and that ultimately givers are the most successful ones and takers, the Enrons of the world, are the ones who implode. We have a duty to make sure that

of questioning if this really is meritocratic?

Whether it is or not, the perceptions are always going to be quite damaging. It’s always important to remember, whatever it is that we do, if you surround yourself by people who are too like-minded and you don’t have those disruptors and those challengers, then you will end up heading down an ever increasing narrow mind with probably increasing rigidity in your approach. And that is not good.

“The interesting thing about someone like Michael Gove is that, yes, he’s very good friends with Cameron and Osborne, but he’s also an outsider and a disruptor and a potential attentionseeker as well. Most Etonians, tend not to be attention-seekers, but have a quiet confidence.

“Going back to your question, ‘Do you have to go to a school like this?’ Well, it helps in some ways and not in others. You have to have those disruptors if you are going to maintain that sort of meritocratcy and a vibrant way of thinking about things.”

Tim’s views on social mobility are fascinating, but perhaps it is a bit unfair to focus on this tricky subject rather than business issues. Tim disagreed.

“It is important. I said to the whole school at the start of term: ‘You’re very lucky to be here. You’re lucky to be growing up in a stable, wealthy, westernised democracy. So you won the lottery on that front. But coming to a school like this, you’ve really won that lottery because you’ve got resources and the environment and all the rest of it, which is superb. So you really are very lucky.’

we reach out and have other people coming in.

We’ve just launched our BN6 bursaries in the local area, and anyone who’s in a primary school in this area can apply for places here.”

Do you have strong links with local schools?

“We have a good link with Warden Park over the years – a really super school. It’s a very good link, socially combining two groups of children in a very productive way. We’ve done various drama projects with them over the years and we’ve also had Gifted & Talented Days over here for their Year 10s. It’s a very nice link.

“We’re also building a link with a school in Southwark, which I’m working on at the moment, where a group of their pupils are going to come down and spend some time with us. These are good things for my pupils. I think one of the biggest challenges we face is being a lovely school in West Sussex, very often middle class, very white, we want them to extend their horizons, but not in a zoological way. We don’t want: ‘We’re going to look at them, they’re coming to look at us, and then we part with our prejudices nicely reinforced.’ Having said that, my children here, they are pretty down to earth.”

In the magazine we’ve talked extensively about vocational education. Is it very different here, I queried, because Hurst isn’t preparing people to go to work when they’re 16 or 18? The college is preparing them to go on for further studies.

“The vast majority will go on to university.

Although one thing I’ve noticed is the effect of the rise in fees. The only decent thing you can say about the fees is that it’s made parents and their children think twice about whether this is the right thing to do. By the time they’re 18, I do want them to have a little bit of a sense – better perhaps than we did as a generation – of what

it is they want to go on and do. So as a school, in the last two or three years we’ve really developed the careers side. We’re organising about 80 - 90 internships a year.

“Internships have a little bit of a toxic reputation as the better ones may be reserved for those with connections. So we ensure the

“I’ve been talking a lot about the concept of givers and takers in the world, and that ultimately givers are the most successful ones and takers, the Enrons of the world, are the ones who implode” students have to apply for them. They go off for a week or two, some are paid, some are not paid – that’s obviously yet another hot topic at the moment – and the great thing about those internships is that the children have to get themselves into a bit of a mindset to start thinking about what life in the world of work is like, and also what it is that they are going to be interested in.

“My oldest daughter did a week in London with an advertising agency and a week with a structural engineering firm down in Hove.

Completely different. But she came away thinking, ‘Actually, maybe the structural engineering is the one for me.’ And that for me is key, because how many of us aged 17 have a clue?”

By now, Tim’s PA is frantically trying to wrap things up, as his next meeting is waiting patiently. Time had flown by and I would have enjoyed chatting more. He is open, considered and thoughtful - and this calm influence is clearly benefiting the school and its pupils.

Final words? “I’m here to run a school and for the children here to thrive. That’s it. We are both parents and we both know what is right for our children. I suspect if you and I were to list the ten things we want for our children, they would be exactly the same.” www.hppc.co.uk

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Hurst Hurstpierpoint College

Pre-Prep | Prep | Senior School | Sixth Form

Outstanding education for boys and girls aged 4 to 18 years

We invite you to find out what Hurst can offer your child www.hppc.co.uk

Spring 2015 Open Mornings for all Hurst Schools 14th March & 9th May Hurstpierpoint College Hurstpierpoint West Sussex BN6 9JS

Admissions 01273 836936

JE SUIS CHARLIE

“I would rather die on my feet than live on my knees” Stephane Charbonnier, Editor, Charlie Hebdo RIP

{ MOTORING REVIEW }

Motoring Editor: Maarten Hoffmann

JAGUAR F-TYPE R COUPE

GUSH ALERT!

TECHNICAL STUFF: Engine: 5.0 litre supercharged V8 Performance: 0-60mph 4.0 seconds Top Speed: 186mph (limited) BHP: 542bhp Economy: 25.5mpg (ha!)

Price: From £51,235 V6. £85,000 V8R As tested: £102.160 80

I

am not easy to impress. I have been slightly OCD about the art of the car since I was ten and have been writing about them for many years. I make no apology. To the purist, a beautiful car is a work of art with the added bonus that you can actually use it. Try that with an investment into fine wine or art? Therefore, when I come across a new horseless carriage that really floats my boat, you are going to hear about it.

When it comes to mid-priced supercars that can be happily driven every day, we are in unfamiliar territory. Forget the likes of Ferrari and McLaren, as they can certainly not be driven every day, in heavy traffic and in and out of car parks, and would certainly not be called mid-priced. An everyday driver would be Porsche 911, BMW M Series, Audi RS, Mercedes AMG, Aston and, of course, Jaguar.

I reviewed the F-Type convertible in V6 form last year (issue 2, The Pointy Car) and was rightly impressed, and although it stood on the podium, it was not on the top step. Fit a roof and drop in a 5.0 litre supercharged V8 and the game changes considerably. This is the fastest car I have driven in 2014, and that’s saying something.

Eye candy first. The roof makes it look gorgeous, and, with its huge glass roof, almost as airy as the drop top, and the backside on it is a sight to behold! Just take a look at its rear and you cannot fail to be impressed and just a little turned on – or is that just me? As this is the only angle from which you will ever see it, it’s just as well! Then climb aboard, switch the exhaust to open, crank open the windows and fire it up. Sublime. The noise is quite seductive and the seating

position lets you know that you can easily pop to Cannes and back without realising it. Having said that, a few years back my wife demanded (sorry, requested) that I drive to Munich to collect her dog that had been on vacation with a friend (apparently dogs take holidays!). I took a Jaguar S-Type, drove to Munich, threw the dog into the back of the car, turned around and drove home. I can honestly say that, physically, I didn’t feel the journey at all. Jags have always had a rep for comfort, and praise the lord, it is still there, even in their latest jet fighter.

The beauty of this Jag is that it can be insanely fast or you can dial it down to ‘sedate’ (almost).

Turn the exhaust off, slip into auto and it will cruise around town forever. Easy to park, with cameras and sensors all over the shop, short and highly manoeuvrable – it’s like a Focus on steroids. The steering is accurate, which gives the novice great comfort, with computers whirring away calculating how much of a twerp you are, and the road-holding is supreme, thanks to active dampers, a short wheel base, light aluminium body, fat tyres and beautiful, pure design.

Chucking out the anchors is a delight too, with the largest carbon-ceramic brake discs ever fitted

to a Jaguar. The 007-sounding Torque Vectoring System calculates the angle of attack required for any particular corner, has a chat to the ABS system and adjusts accordingly. I guess the only weak spot in this car is the human.

Ian Callum, who designed the Aston DB7, crafted this little gem, and you can tell that here is an extraordinarily talented designer with a decent budget, which he certainly did not have with Aston.

In this sector and price, he has created one of the finest-handling and -driving road cars on the planet. It is quite beguiling.

It is also expensive, thirsty, expensive to tax, and, if used as a company car, will take a big chunk of your salary in BIK, but, to be frank, if that worries you, you shouldn’t be driving this car in the first place. This is for the person who runs their own company, has a chunk of investment not doing anything and wants to use a piece of art that will appreciate in value if cared for. And I repeat – you can use this car every day. I had the car for 7 days around Sussex, with the odd motorway trip to Bath and Alcester, and, for some strange reason, I had an absolutely packed diary of meetings and

events all over the county! I clocked up over 1200 miles and could quite easily have done 12,000.

Most companies launch their coupe first, followed by the convertible but Jaguar like to do things differently. The convertible, was great, but the hard top is always the car that designers design and is invariably the better-looking car.

Most staggering about the new F-type coupé is the simple fact that Jaguar have improved the torsional rigidity over the convertible by 80 per cent. That such a large change can come from adding a fixed aluminium roof is more than impressive, with the extra metal turning the F-type into a true monocoque structure in the process.

The coupé has more control, better agility and greater steering precision than the convertible.

And that was no slouch in the first place.

With a top speed of 186mph and the 0-60mph sprint covered in just 4.0 seconds, the most powerful F-type coupé is epically quick, and the fastest road car ever produced by Jaguar.

I know some find such excitement akin to an immature, schoolboy crush, but I defy you to look at certain cars on a sunny day, from a certain angle, and not to go phwhoaaa……

“The beauty is that is can be insanely fast or you can dial it down to ‘sedate’ (almost)”

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{ MOTORING }

HOW TO FINANCE THAT CAR

By Kevin Rowe, A1 Car and Fleet Solutions.

Tel: 01444 620620. Mail: sales@a1carsearch.co.uk. Web: www.a1carsearch.co.uk. www.a1fs.co.uk

T

here are various funding options available to both business and private buyers. There is no one set package that is correct for any one situation, and every customer should be given the correct advice and advised on the best package to suit their requirements.

There are three main contributing factors to which funding option is the right one.

VEHICLE TYPE: You can have two identically priced new or used vehicles, however each vehicle has differing depreciation, running costs & tax implications.

VEHICLE REQUIREMENTS: Annual mileage; type of driving; space & specification.

AFFORDABILITY: Monthly budget & deposit amount. These variables make a huge difference in costing each deal and ensuring the client secures the right vehicle.

There are a few rules of thumb though. If you are doing high mileage, leasing is not the way

to go as there are too many restrictions and penalties for mileage or condition at the end of the term. Using a package that has fixed annual mileage can be problematic as your driving habits or requirements may change in the term.

If your circumstances change and you no longer need that vehicle, business leases can be very expensive to get out of, whereas with PCP’s, or straight finance deals, interest is calculated daily, so there are no real penalties.

Some packages come with maintenance included, and from experience, these only really pay off on higher mileage deals. Therefore, most of the time it is advisable to take a pay as you go deal, especially if your vehicle comes with a long or high mileage warranty and long life servicing.

Countless times over the years, we have found that you can actually buy a nearly new vehicle for the same monthly payment as the lease on a new car. Many clients take this option as the deal is more flexible and the vehicle is owned outright, giving a tangible asset and a deposit on another vehicle next time round.

For more information on what’s best for you or your business, advice and pricing, contact us.

HIRE PURCHASE This is the traditional form of financing a vehicle, it usually runs for between 12-60 months and you own the vehicle at the end of the term.

Many people shy away from Hire Purchase nowadays as it is seen as outdated, with many more companies preferring lease purchase or contract hire.

Actually, in many cases it is the most costeffective and flexible finance option on the market. You can settle the contract at any point and the interest is calculated daily, so no big shocks or surprises, no over-mileage charges, no damage charges, no worrying about contract end, and you’re not tied in for the long haul.

We often take companies out of their lease schemes and get them into purchasing their vehicles either by HP or outright purchase as it is often the best solution.

PERSONAL CONTRACT PLAN At the outset of the agreement we’ll set a guaranteed future value for your car.

You pay a deposit and then make monthly repayments based on the outstanding loan balance less the guaranteed future value.

“There isn’t one set package that’s correct for any one situation, and every customer should be given the correct advice”

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At the end of the monthly repayment period you’ll have three options; pay the guaranteed future value and the car is yours; hand back the car with nothing more to pay; or, as most of our customers do, part exchange the car and use any equity as a deposit on your next car.

Typically repayment periods are over 25, 37 or 49 months. The guaranteed future value is based on your repayment period and mileage. This can be set from 6,000 to 30,000 miles per annum.

The car can be up to 36 months old at the start of the agreement but must not exceed 60 months.

A maximum of 40% deposit is allowed and the minimum loan amount is £3,000.

BUSINESS / COMPANY CAR CONTRACT HIRE Contract Hire is a popular choice amongst companies seeking to remove assets from their balance sheet, eliminate the financial risk associated with disposing of their vehicles and benefit from the convenience of an optional full maintenance service at a fixed monthly cost.

Contract Hire also allows companies to reclaim 100% of the VAT on the servicing element of the rental cost, and 50% of the VAT on the finance rental cost.

Under Contract Hire, the customer is never entitled to purchase the vehicle as it must be

sourcing a vehicle, but the continued growth in the Contract Hire market suggests that this funding method will remain the preferred choice for most companies in the future.

“Countless times over the years, we have found that you can actually buy a nearly new vehicle for the same monthly payment as the lease on a new car”

BUSINESS CAR LEASING / COMPANY CAR FINANCE LEASE Business Car Leasing or Company Car Finance Lease is a product which provides the finance funding only. However, the company is never entitled to purchase the vehicle – it must be sold to an unconnected third party when you have finished with the vehicle.

As a business customer on a company car lease contract, you will bear the risk of any financial settlement (if any) from the vehicle value at the end of the contract. The optional final rental owed on the agreement will be stated on your finance lease contract agreement. Many customers manage this risk by requesting a ‘Balloon’ rental payment that is less than the predicted Residual Value, creating a ‘safety’ margin in case of changes in your circumstances over the contract period.

You also may have the option to keep the vehicle for a further period of time by paying

sold to an unconnected third party at the end of the contract.

There is a wide choice of financial arrangements available to companies when

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“Vehicle supply is all we do and therefore we have spent many years honing our knowledge of the marketplace”

an annual “Peppercorn Rental” usually equal to about two monthly payments (contact your broker or finance provider). Always be aware that if a final payment has been included within your contract you are still responsible for settling this amount.

CAR CONTRACT PURCHASE Car or van Contract Purchase offers many of the ‘No Risk’ advantages of Contract Hire, coupled with an optional service and maintenance package. It also enables you to purchase the vehicle at the end of the contract agreement for a guaranteed price.

However, the vehicle will be registered in your company name and will therefore appear on the company balance sheet as an asset. This means that the Writing Down allowances can be claimed.

VAT is charged only on the servicing element of the monthly payment. Contract Purchase is ideal for companies who can’t fully reclaim VAT and is more suitable for financing cars over £23,000.

At the end of your Contract Purchase agreement term there are various options open to you and you will need to decide whether you wish to purchase the vehicle, or allow the leasing company to dispose of it on your behalf.

Writing Down allowance will be available.

You will need to decide whether you wish to pay your ‘Balloon’ payment now or to defer the purchase of your vehicle further by extending the finance for a further period.

VEHICLE LEASE PURCHASE Lease Purchase is an agreement designed to offer dedicated vehicle funding where the customer wishes to purchase the vehicle. It is purely a financial package, and does not allow inclusion of a maintenance package or any other added-value services (such as are available through Contract Purchase).

The customer is fully liable for the total value of the vehicle and has no option but to return the vehicle to the contract provider at the end of the agreement. Monthly payments are not subject to VAT. Vehicles are registered in the name of the customer, and where this is a company, the vehicle will appear on the balance sheet, and

So as you can see, there are numerous methods of financing that new or used car and your personal or business circumstances will dictate which one is right for you. Vehicle supply is all we do and therefore we have spent many years honing our knowledge of the marketplace, so feel free to get in touch and use our knowledge to your advantage.

Motoring powered by

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class Estate.

Now from only £309 a month*

The new Mercedes-Benz C-Class Estate blends dynamic styling inside and out, outstanding practicality and efficient yet exhilarating performance.

This spacious and sought-after model is packed with high-tech features too, including the innovative new touchpad, Parktronic with Active Park Assist and Garmin® Map Pilot navigation as standard.

Representative Example: Mercedes-Benz C 200 Estate

£309

+VAT per month* Operating Lease

For further information or to arrange your C-Class Estate test drive, please call 0844 659 6408.

Payment Profile 36 months

Annual Mileage 10,000

Lookers Mercedes-Benz Fleet Sales 0844 659 6408 www.leaseamercedesbenz.co.uk Member of the Platinum Business Club

Official government fuel consumption figures in mpg (litres per 100km) for the C-Class range: urban 15.2(18.6)-54.3(5.2), extra urban 33.2(8.5)-80.7(3.5), combined 23.2(12.2)-68.9(4.1). CO2 emissions 285-109 g/km. *Business Users only. Full terms and conditions apply. Advance payment applies. All payments subject to VAT: Finance based on an Operating Lease, 10,000 miles per annum. Excess mileage charges may apply. Rental includes Road Fund Licence for the first 12 months. Guarantees and indemnities may be required. Orders/Credit approved between 01/01/2015 and 31/03/2015. Subject to availability, offers cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer.

Some combinations of features/options may not be available. Credit provided is subject to status by Mercedes-Benz Financial Services UK Limited, MK15 8BA. Prices correct at time of going to press (01/15).

{ MOTORING REVIEW }

M MERCEDES-BENZ C-CLASS ESTATE

A CLASS ACT

ercedes have always been quite good at estates. I recall an E-Class estate l once owned that was my kids’ favourite car, based purely on the fact that the two jump seats in the boot faced backwards. Much to the horror of other drivers, I am quite sure, they made faces and signs at anyone who had the misfortune to be behind me. Sadly, Mercedes don’t do this anymore, and you can’t help thinking that the Chairman of the company had to put up with this once too often when he was driving!

As with all Mercs, the interior trim and quality shine through, making the cabin a thoroughly nice place to be. Entry level SE models come equipped with leather seats, climate, cruise and 16” alloy wheels. Personally, I would plump for the Sport, with 17” alloys, heated seats, LED lights, lowered suspension and a generally up-graded trim. Of course, l would actually yearn for the AMG version, but I am trying to be sensible here.

TECHNICAL STUFF: Model: C220SE Bluetec Engine: 2.0 litre Performance: 0-60mph 7.7 secs Top Speed: 145mph Economy: 65.7mpg Price: £30,980 86

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The Mercedes Bluetec engine range is very impressive and swift enough, and if you really must buy a diesel (see Anger Management, issue 8), they don’t suffer from a lack of guts at low revs. Even the C220 has a lot to give and won’t run out of puff. The C250 will give you an extra shove but is quite a price increase over the 220 or entry level 200.

To make this feel like a Merc of old, you really should order the optional Airmatic suspension, which ensures that this car can be driven to Meribel for skiing with little fuss and in fabulous comfort. For an extra £895, this thing will drive like a limo. It’s a clever mix of town shopper and motorway diva. Against the Audi A4 Avant and the BMW 3-Series Touring, I would go for the

Mercedes-Benz of Gatwick

Mercedes-Benz of Eastbourne

C-Class every time – there is a style to Mercs that is tough to replicate. The Jaguar ZF Sportbrake is close, but the pedigree of the Mercedes shines through, and the resale value will far better. It’s more expensive than the 3-Series Touring, but the interior knocks it out of the park.

Its boot space is not at the top of the league, but the rear seats are flat and wide and they fold down at the touch of a button. It was more than enough for me.

As with all premium cars today, the heart is controlled by a knob and a screen. If you are new to the car (that’s me, every seven days), this can be mightily confusing, but sit and work at it for 20 minutes and it all comes clear. Drive this car every day and it becomes intuitive very quickly,

Mercedes-Benz of Brighton

Mercedes-Benz of Tonbridge

and shortcut buttons are a godsend. You know by now I do love my toys, and you absolutely must order the head-up display that projects speed and satnav onto the windscreen. You don’t need it till you use it, then you can’t do without it.

You really can fall in love with this car. It quickly becomes like a very comfortable pair of shoes.

The seriously quick AMG is not here yet, but if you have a couple of quid knocking about, order the C250 AMG Line variant, which you will never get bored of. It will be all the above and much more. Audi limit their warranty to 60,000 miles, whereas Mercedes offer three years and unlimited mileage. That’s a sign of supreme confidence.

Mercedes-Benz of Ashford

Mercedes-Benz of Maidstone

CONTACT: MERCEDES-BENZ OF GATWICK, EASTBOURNE, BRIGHTON, TONBRIDGE, ASHFORD AND MAIDSTONE ON 0844 659 7503

{ ANGER MANAGEMENT }

ANGER MANAGEMENT

By Maarten Hoffmann

64 DEGREES OF SEPARATION - FROM REALITY

I

n 2009 we entered the worst recession the world had seen for a generation, and many businesses went to the wall. First amongst them in the South East were restaurants, pubs and hotels. Sad as this was for the owners, it did mean that a lot of deadwood, overpriced and, frankly, downright poor establishments disappeared and the strongest survived.

A culling of the herd, if you will.

Now, six years later, the chancers are back, regarding their customers as nothing more than cash cows to be treated with total disdain, barefaced rudeness and to be ushered out of the door as fast as possible to get the next group of cows in.

At PBM we believe in not denigrating restaurants we review as it is someone’s hardearned money that went into the creation, and there will always be some who like it. Should we ever review an establishment that is awful or disgusting, we either omit the review or occasionally break the courtesy rule.

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This rule is about to be broken...

I booked to dine with a very good friend and business colleague at a restaurant in Brighton called 64 Degrees. I thought it odd when l booked on-line for 7.30pm, only to be told that they ‘required’ the table back by 9.00pm. I fully understand the need to turn tables as often as possible during a service, and the thought did flicker across my mind as to how they would manage to police this particular rule.

We duly arrived on the dot of 7.30pm and were seated in a very cramped restaurant by the front door, which was constantly opening and closing, with the occasional dig in my back and gust of frigid air, but my dining companion and I were engrossed in conversation, this was easily ignored. The fare was quite good, and when offered dessert, we duly ordered a dish each and continued our conversation.

Our absorbing reverie was rudely disturbed when the maître d’ came over to inform us that

the dessert had been cancelled as he needed the table, and would we kindly pay up and leave!

“Now, six years later, the chancers are back, regarding their customers as nothing more than cash cows to be treated with total disdain” I have dined at some of the best restaurants in the world, and, it must be said, in quite a few dodgy ones to boot, but I have never, ever encountered such unprofessional rudeness in

{ ANGER MANAGEMENT }

“I have dined at some of the best restaurants in the world and it must be said, quite a few dodgy ones to boot but I have never, ever encountered such unprofessional rudeness in my entire life”

my entire life. There are two professional ways in which a restaurant can deal with this situation: 1/ Ask the arriving group to take a seat at the bar for a complimentary drink whilst their table is readied. 2/ Ask us if we would mind taking our dessert at the bar as they needed the table.

I checked, and there were four empty chairs at the bar, and no one in their right mind would have argued with either of the above proposals, and everyone would have been happy.

But no – pay up and get out was the reaction of 64 Degrees.

They had no knowledge, of course, that I am a restaurant reviewer as I tend to go incognito and pay for my meal, and thank heaven for that, as, had they known, they would no doubt have left me there for hours and I would never have learnt of this appalling behaviour.

This is gouging, pure and simple. They might think they can get away with it in tourist season, as, with such a transient population, the word might not spread, but for the winter months they

will need us, the residents of Sussex, and all I can say is that they deserve an empty restaurant.

Brighton and the wider region abounds with great restaurants who really care about their clientele, make them feel welcome and don’t throw them out when they have outstayed their welcome.

As for the food, to be honest, l was so incensed by this degrading treatment that I cannot now recall a single dish I ate. Good or bad, there is absolutely no excuse for this behaviour. I contacted the owners and informed them of my experience and was given the excuse that the waiter was new and made a mistake. Hogwash.

The waiter was carrying out the orders of the owners, and blaming your employees for carrying out your orders compounds the problem.

This is taking customers for fools and implies that the restaurant is so good that you should put up with being thrown out and be grateful you were allowed to dine in the first place.

There is an old saying that we are all linked by 6 degrees of separation – I would suggest this is a restaurant linked by 64 degrees of madness.

“This is taking customers for fools and implies that the restaurant is so good that you should put up with being thrown out and be grateful you were allowed to dine in the first place” 89

{ AUTHOR INTERVIEW }

DON’T GO CHASING WATERFALLS Ian Trevett meets Dr Jeff Sutherland, the man who has helped revolutionise project management, using rugby as an inspiration. Well, it is World Cup year...

I

t’s a brave man who declares that the way the world works is broken, and he has the solution. Having flown in more than one hundred missions over North Vietnam, bravery is hardly an issue for Dr Jeff Sutherland. Brave or not, it takes an innovative mind to challenge the status quo and dare to be different. The sort of person who decided to revolutionise the way businesses and IT projects in America were managed by using the example of... rugby!

In many corporations and institutions there was a worrying trend during the 1980s and 1990s. They would embark on huge, ambitious IT-based projects, which seemed to have two things in common. Firstly, they went massively over budget and missed deadlines. Secondly, they didn’t work. Which probably wasn’t the intended outcome.

The industry standard was to use Gantt charts, or waterfall charts - a project schedule developed by Henry Gantt just over a century ago.

Jeff explains the process. “They had lots of intelligent people working for months, figuring

90

out what needed to be done and more months planning how to do it. They produced beautiful charts with everything that needed to be accomplished and the time it would take to produce each and every task. Then they showed each piece of the project cascading down to the next like a waterfall.

“I went into the CEO and said, ‘I’m just a medical professor but I think all these people are crazy out there...”

“They became works of art. Every single step of the project is laid out in detail. Every milestone.

Every delivery date. The only problem with them

is that they were always, always wrong.”

Why did it go so badly wrong when applied to scaled-up IT projects? Firstly errors made early on in the process often went undetected until much later on, making huge swathes of coding and work obsolete. Secondly, the time-scales were so long that by the time the project was ready for use, technologies or client requirements had changed for the original brief.

So, according to Dr Sutherland, a whole new approach was required, based around the concept of productive team-work, and the inspiration came from a 1986 article by two Japanese business school professors, Hirotaka Takeuchi and Ikujiro Nonaka in the Harvard Business Review.

Jeff acknowledges their research. “Takeuchi and Nonaka were studying the best teams all over the world, and the ones that really worked well reminded them of watching rugby teams.

And so they called this style of working Scrum.

“It’s about total focus. Everybody has locked arms, and they crush anything that gets in the way. I have now become a rugby fan. When we

{ INTERNATIONAL {TRADE AUTHOR - CASE INTERVIEW STUDY }

CHASING THE GAZELLES Mike Punter, Managing Director, IT’S BETTER TOLtd,GET DOWN AND DIRTY IN THE SCRUM Parafix FAR Tapes and Conversions www.parafix.com businesshelpdesk@brighton.ac.uk

first started the first Scrum team, we started watching all these rugby videos and I still use the All Blacks’ Haka in all my courses. Doing the Haka has a very good psychological effect on the guys.”

I was sent a copy of Jeff’s book, Scrum (cowritten with his son, a journalist more used to working in the world’s most dangerous warzones), and found it be a fascinating and very readable book about how to make things happen and how to build teams. Importantly, the author was a man who has actually achieved great success in the real world, having served as Vice President of Engineering or Chief Technical Officer at 11 software companies. I met with Jeff and his wife Arline, Vice President of Strategic Operations, at the Random House offices in Victoria to find out more.

Starting with the obvious question, why write the book - a question that Jeff is quick to answer.

“In Silicon Valley and in IT companies in general, the Scrum method of working has become famously successful in managing software and hardware projects, but in general business practice it remains relatively unknown. The principles can be applied to any business model and any event that needs to be managed, even wedding planning.”

Arline concurs, “I am a retired Unitarian Minister, and I have introduced Scrum into six

congregations in the United States. They wanted to grow attendance numbers, grow the budget, and we even used it to deepen the spiritual life of the congregation.”

“Rip up your business cards. Get rid of all titles, all managers, all structures. Give people the freedom to do what they think best and the responsibility to be accountable for it.”

So how did Scrum develop from an appreciation of rugby to a business model?

“It helped that I didn’t come from a software background,” explains Jeff. “I was a fighter pilot in the Air Force, and then I was a professor in a medical school for eleven years. I was funded by the National Cancer Institute to do research using computer simulations of biological

systems. I worked with guys at their labs and they all used small teams, but with very hightech computer modelling.

“In 1983 I was approached by a company called MidContinent Computer Services who had a hot new product called an ‘Automatic Teller Machine’ (ie a cashpoint), but they couldn’t get their networks to talk to each other.

“I went in and they were running these huge projects with Gantt charts that that were always late. I said, ‘Okay, all these tasks, each one has a date, what’s the probability that one of these dates is missed and the whole project slides to be late?’

“The reply was, ‘The probability is 99.99%.’

“I watched the managers running around, saying, ‘We need to have more meetings, more reports, more micromanagement…’ Everything they were doing slowed it down even more until it came to a grinding halt. So I just went into the CEO and said, ‘I’m just a medical professor but I think all these people are crazy out there. If you give me the worst business unit in the bank, I will fix it. I guarantee it. But we’re going to have to run it as one team. I need everybody and I need you and the other senior management to stay out of it. I’m going to run it as a little company and you guys stay out of it. And I’ll show you how to turn this around.’

“We got them into small teams, we did one-

91

“We determined that it was the daily meeting that was the difference, but we tried that and it wasn’t working. They were sitting down for an hour for a daily meeting so we shortened it to 15 minutes. But it still didn’t feel like it was working to us. So I started playing the tape of the All Blacks Haka, before the daily meeting. And then we would discuss: ‘What’s the difference between our team and the All Blacks?’ They had total focus, all arms locked, the attitude ‘We want to crush anything’. And we said, ‘Okay, now let’s have the daily meeting.’

“Someone would say, ‘I’m going to work on X.’ And all of a sudden the team would say, ‘No, that’s not the best thing to work on. You should try Y, we’ll help you and we’ll get it done in an hour.’ And then we’d go round the room like that and everybody would be changing everything and doing everything, and coming up with ways to get over any obstacles. And as it started to get intense, people were standing up, so we thought let’s stand up for the meetings, which have to be intense and short, and we timed them strictly. It became our Haka.”

The principles for project management worked by Dr Sutherland and his colleague Ken Schwaber, are, of course, based on much more than a bunch of people standing up and getting very animated. However, this expression and freedom is important, as no-one knows more about the frustrations and obstacles than the people actually doing the job.

“Ken Schwaber’s by-line was always, ‘Scrum is based on common sense’. My by-line was, ‘Scrum is all based on non-common sense because people don’t have any common sense.’

They don’t naturally do it.”

A great deal of the ideas in the book are based on common sense, or non-common sense as Jeff prefers. Each chapter has a takeaway or summary with non-common sense gems like: ‘Planning is useful. Blindly following plans is stupid.’ week cycles, at the end of every week stuff had to be done, software had to be deployed.

At the beginning of every week we’d prioritise everything by business value. And so every week we’d learn how to do the next week better. In less than six months it was the most profitable business unit in the company. So that was the first prototype of Scrum.”

So what exactly is Scrum? As the idea of a rugby scrummage suggests, it is all based on building tightly-knit teams that work together.

Ideally a team would be around seven people, with a variety of skill sets and the autonomy to work without constraints. There needs to a set short-term goal to create something tangible.

“When I started the first scrum at a company called Easel, I told the CEO that each month I

would show him a piece of architecture. A piece of software that a customer can actually use. A fully implemented feature. This was achieved by embarking on ‘sprints’, where the whole team would drive on to make this happen.”

A key element of sprints is the daily standup meeting, evolved from the Haka, which Jeff enjoys so much. “I was working with a Scrum team in 1994, and we read a paper about Bell Labs. They had figured out that they were 52 times faster than Microsoft.

Scrum has developed by looking at extreme data points. You’ll never break out of the pack unless you look at extremes. So when we saw that eight people at Bell Labs were worth 400 Microsoft developers, we said that we needed to understand why and implement it immediately.

“It started to get intense, people were standing up, so we thought let’s stand up for the meetings, which have to be intense and short, and we timed them strictly.It became our Haka”

{ AUTHOR INTERVIEW } ‘Fail fast so you can fix early.’

‘No heroics. If you need a hero to get things done, you have a problem. Heroic effort should be viewed as a failure of planning.’

‘Multitasking makes you stupid.’ (see box) ‘No assholes. Don’t be one, and don’t allow the behaviour. Anyone who causes emotional chaos, inspires fear or dread, or demeans or diminishes people needs to be stopped dead.

“Once they taste the spirit of a great rugby team they will never go back” And ‘Rip up your business cards. Get rid of all titles, all managers, all structures. Give people the freedom to do what they think best and the responsibility to be accountable for it. You’ll be surprised at the results.’

There are plenty of UK projects which could benefit from such an approach, such as the antiquated way the NHS keeps patient records.

Has Scrum taken off in the UK? “There’s a large amount of Scrum going on in the UK. If you go to simplyhire.com and then look at the number of Scrum jobs in the UK, there are 30,000.

“But it hasn’t always been easy here. One of my friends, we’re business partners now, went into British Telecom. He was the expert on deployment of software and they brought him in to be the agile leader of BT. Everything he touched doubled in productivity. He started with a small team of about ten people and by the end of the year he had 1,000 people, doubling the productivity of everything - and the unions started to sue BT. “His immediate reaction was a typical Scrum guy reaction: ‘I have no time for this, I’ve got a better job down the street.’ You see that’s what’s going to happen, the best people will bolt immediately if you’re not doing the right thing.

And Scrum gets them doing the right thing. Once they taste the spirit of a great rugby team they will never go back.

“As a way of working, the developers have more fun, they get back a life, they get back a creative spirit, and they want to stop this waterfall madness.

“If you look at the US, there are 566,000 jobs open today for Scrum people. Seven per cent of the total new jobs in the US are Scrum. My last

interview was with Sky News, and their question was, “Why is the productivity in the UK so low? It is one of the lowest in the G7.’ I said, ‘If in the US three quarters of the people do twice the work in half the time, compared to the UK, you are going to be a lot less productive. And business is going to flow to the US.’ “Today in the US it’s not just about doing Scrum, it’s about doing it better. Everybody’s doing Scrum, and it has become like rugby – only a few teams win the World Cup. And which ones are they going to be? You have to play harder, you have to be fiercer, you have to be more focused.”

The book concludes by taking the principles out of IT and business in general, to other sectors of society, notably education.

“The leading edge of Scrum to me is in education today. Children take to it like a duck to water. It’s not foreign to them. They can’t believe that this was written for adults. I’m told it’s perfect for teenagers. We were visiting in the Netherlands with a class, and a girl said she went home one night and her father was really depressed. And the family asked why. He said, ‘Oh, they introduced Scrum into my IT group today.’ The daughter says, ‘Well, what are you doing?’ He explains it and she says, ‘You’re doing it all wrong. You need to go back and do this and that!’ So the kids are going to tell us how to fix this in the long run. That’s where the future is going to be.

Scrum by Dr Jeff Sutherland is published

by Random House Business Books.

MULTITASKING MAKES YOU STUPID Can you multitask effectively?

The problem is that context switch always costs you. If it’s a major switch when you’re really concentrating on something, and then you change, it’s going to take you 20 minutes to get back into the flow.

Here’s what I want you to do. The task is to write down the numbers 1-10, the Roman numerals 1-10 (I, II, III, IV, etc.) and the letters A-J in rows as shown: 1 I A 2 II B 3 III C Time how long it takes.

Now do the same but write it out a column at a time. See the difference.

If you try and work on 5 projects at a time, it has been shown that the cost of context switching is 75% of your time. This is just pure waste.

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } SUSSEX

WILL CONFIDENCE CONTINUE TO GROW IN 2015?

By Ana Christie Chief Executive at Sussex Chamber of Commerce

T

he British economy is forecast to grow, which is great news for all businesses.

The British Chambers of Commerce forecast growth of 2.5% for the economy and the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors expect modest house price rises of up to 5% in the South East. Both Coast to Capital and South East LEP have been awarded a Growth Deal with Government which confirmed that £21m could be accessed from 2015 to develop the talent pool to provide the skills businesses need to grow. Furthermore, the strategy for growth will see thousands of jobs created and additional homes built across Sussex. What’s more, the Rural Coalition is urging Government in 2015 to address three core areas to support them: the rural economy, affordable housing, and health and social care services.

The final recommendation to Government regarding another runway, whether at Gatwick or Heathrow, will be made in 2015. With a second runway at Gatwick, a quarter of the UK’s population will live within 60 minutes travel of the airport. Whatever the decision, the chamber is here to support businesses in the county.

Investment is being made in infrastructure north to south in Sussex. Currently, 38% of passengers entering or exiting Gatwick airport use rail services. Improvements are being made

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to bus servicers, car rental, and connecting trains to Great Northern Thameslink, with 108 new Gatwick Express carriages to be added by 2016. The aim is to have 30 trains an hour to London and Brighton as the airport is investing £130m by upgrading these services. However ,there is still a great requirement to improve the rail and road infrastructure from the east to the west of the county, and vice versa.

“With a second runway at Gatwick, a quarter of the UK’s population will live within 60 minutes travel of the airport”

Lord Livingston, Minister for Trade and Investment, recently said that small and mid-

sized businesses “have the potential to be economic powerhouses for the UK economy, creating jobs and growth for all regions of the UK.” But, he added, their success is dependent on expanding beyond domestic markets. SMEs can work closely with Sussex Chamber of Commerce to explore new markets and trade internationally. With links to UKTI and the British Chambers of Commerce, we can help businesses expand further through support and guidance from experts, including meeting businesses that have already taken the plunge, and through various international trade forums and events held in the county. From handling your export documentation to training courses in International Trade, we are here to support your business. Inward investment is set to increase. There has been great interest from professional services and manufacturing companies wishing to set up their businesses in Sussex, which is great for the economic growth in the area. However, any available property and land is at a premium and in short supply in the county versus the demand from overseas businesses.

As for the larger corporate companies, there is a desire to take new risks. This desire to take new risks is being supported by positive growth within the UK, the recovery of the

US economy and ample liquidity. However, according to a recent Deloitte survey, they now see the central risk to their businesses coming not from economic or financial turbulence, but from rising political uncertainty. Many global companies will be paying close attention to political developments this year during the next general election.

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has very recently published an open letter, “A Better Britain in 2015”, to the leaders of the UK’s largest political parties, urging them to put forward their respective visions for a better Britain in the run up to the most wideopen general election in decades. The open letter calls for an end to ‘tawdry political tactics and point-scoring’ of political parties, which is creating greater uncertainty among businesses and putting the UK’s future prosperity at risk.

For many businesses, both small and large, one of the greatest sources of challenge and uncertainty in 2015 isn’t the state of global markets, but home-grown UK politics.

“As the leaders of the UK’s largest political parties, we call on you to act responsibly in the forthcoming campaign, putting the UK’s longterm success over tawdry political tactics and point-scoring. It is the national interest, not your party’s electoral interest, which is of greatest importance to businesses and individuals alike.

We want a UK with more devolved decisionmaking, but without artificial new barriers to business and trade. We want public spending based on prudence and long-term stability, not short-term giveaways and gimmicks. We want taxes based on success, not drag-anchors on risk-taking, investment, or the creation of jobs.

A drive on reducing the crushing input taxes that

dim businesses’ ambitions before they turn over a single pound, and maintaining corporation tax at 20pc, would be a sound beginning. We want to know what you will do to work with business to bridge the yawning gulf between the world of education and the world of work, to improve both the career prospects of our young people and the skills available to worried firms who are unsure where their future talent will come from.

“This desire to take new risks is being supported by positive growth within the UK, the recovery of the US economy and ample liquidity” We want to know what you would do differently to boost the UK’s global trade performance, by empowering and supporting companies brave enough to sell products and services across the world. A better Britain in 2015 is a nation that trades more confidently, recapturing some of the mercantile spirit of our past. Most of all, the General Election campaign must maintain a relentless focus on policies that deliver prosperity. As businesspeople and voters, we will judge you - the leaders of our political

class - on what you help us to achieve”. John Longworth, Director General, British Chambers of Commerce.

Sussex is recognised as a key economic growth area for the South of England and your support helps ensure that Sussex is a vibrant place for business. Together we can continue to grow in 2015.

The Sussex Chamber of Commerce will now offer brand new membership and events packages giving businesses the opportunity to network, grow their business, avail themselves of support services which offer discounts and valuable advice, allow businesses to explore new markets internationally, have a voice and influence legislation, policy and decision making. There are sponsorship opportunities to champion events and promote your business to a broader audience, and a referral scheme to show our gratitude to our members and to spread the word and the benefits to a wider community. Young Chamber will be piloted to connect schools and local businesses, to give young people a voice with which to engage with business and experience a greater understanding of the workplace and future employment opportunities.

Please review our website for further information: www.sussexchamberofcommerce.co.uk

GOODBYE SUSSEX ENTERPRISE - HELLO SUSSEX CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Sussex Enterprise; the largest business membership organisation in East and West Sussex, has been formally renamed as ‘Sussex Chamber of Commerce’ in conjunction with the national network, The British Chambers of Commerce.

The company has undergone a total brand review, propelling themselves into 2015 with a contemporary, bold and re-defined vision.

Sussex Chamber of Commerce will focus on easy-to-understand, clear and consistent messaging, which will help improve the economic regional environment.

In addition, Sussex Chamber of Commerce will officially launch its new website www. sussexchamberofcommerce.co.uk, aligning the name change and re-brand, to appeal to a high calibre of future-focused businesses.

Ana Christie, Chief Executive of Sussex Chamber of Commerce, said, ‘Sussex Chamber of Commerce has been proud to provide local businesses with fantastic contacts, expert skills and advice for over 70 years. The rebrand is an excellent opportunity for us to hone our business approach and champion future growth, with an improved image and aligned business objective. Although we are updating our name and brand, existing clients can expect the same, fantastic level of service

with updated support, development and membership benefits.’

Creative Pod, an award-winning Sussexand Surrey-based, design-led Print, Marketing and Design agency, managed the rebrand in conjunction with Sussex Enterprise.

Matt Turner, Managing Director of Creative Pod, commented, ‘As the only accredited Chamber of Commerce in Sussex, we were delighted to work with Sussex Enterprise to modernise their brand, creating bold and elegant messaging with a contemporary visual identity. We hope the rebrand will propel the company into the New Year with a clear identity, consistent with the national network, whilst maintaining localised business objectives.’

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } EASTBOURNE

EASTBOURNE UNLTD - A TOWN CHAMBER SINCE 1882

By Christina Ewbank Chief Executive, Eastbourne unLtd Chamber of Commerce West Rocks Hotel, for drinks and an excellent three course lunch. It was a real pleasure to catch up with all those Past Presidents who have helped make Eastbourne what it is today – a vibrant and active town with a successful economy”, said Mark McFadden, whose tenure as President ends after three years this May. The new owner of West Rocks Hotel and Chamber Member Chris Copping has invested £350,000 so far on refurbishing the 120-yearold hotel and welcomes all Eastbourne residents to come in for teas and refreshments or enjoy a classic English meal at the new ‘Channel Restaurant‘. The food is locally sourced, cooked fresh for each meal and is highly recommended by all the Past Presidents.

“The Presidents Lunch was an idea suggested

by Mike Reid of Reid + Dean Estate Agents, and it was a pleasure to host such a lovely event.”

Said Chris Copping, who moved to Eastbourne after a successful career as a Senior Director of Citigroup, “We really feel welcome and part of the community since joining the local Chamber, and my team are very excited to be re-opening this beautiful old hotel to all residents of Eastbourne.”

From the rear, left to right: Bill Plumridge (1997), Dave Cooper (2004), George Turner (1983), Ron Naylor (1996), David Stonelee (1986), Steven Goss-Turner (2005), Ray Groves 2007), Kevan Regan (1991), Christina Ewbank (2009), Mike Reid (2003), Ian Shearer (2000), Pat Baldwin (1993), Mark McFadden (current) and Anne Angel (1988).

P

residents of all the ACES Chambers of Commerce give their time freely to promote East Sussex and support the local economy, and once you become a Chamber President, like leaders of the United States, you are always Mr or Mrs President!

Many of the Eastbourne UnLtd Past Presidents

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still volunteer to help out in the office and give their time freely, so it was a delight to see them all together before Christmas, with the current President, Mark McFadden of Stiles Harold Williams.

“We met for lunch at the new Channel Restaurant on Eastbourne seafront, part of the

For more information about your local Chamber visit www.acesalliance.org and www.eastbourneunltd.co.uk

{ CHAMBER NEWS } BRIGHTON

Photos by Simon Callaghan Photography and Brighton Togs

2014 IN NUMBERS

By Abby Moreton, Membership Manager at Brighton Chamber

2

014 was a very busy year at the Chamber. We grew in all sorts of ways, expanding our team and packing our events calendar. I’ve had a look back at the events we did last year to try to pick out my favourites. It’s been a tricky task: there are so many to choose from.

I love our monthly breakfasts at Carluccio’s – the food is delicious and everyone is in such a good mood because it’s Friday. And our carefully chosen inspirational speakers make sure we all go away feeling good and ready to face the day. We usually sell out, with 80 businesses attending every month. It’s one to book early.

The Big Debates always create a stir, often tackling important topics such as the Living Wage, or whether to ban cars in Brighton. But I also like our ‘just for fun’ events. We’ve been behind the scenes at the Theatre Royal, had an after-hours tour of Brighton’s Victorian sewers and learned the secrets behind Harvey’s at their brewery tour.

Whether you like networking, training or social events there are plenty of ways to get involved. Here’s our 2014 in numbers.

MEMBERSHIP • In 2014 we welcomed over 150 new members, including a hospital, a locksmith, a gym, a garden designer, chauffeurs, business coaches, a bank and many other experts you can call on when you need them.

EVENTS • We delivered 98 events, including socials, pop-up breakfasts, behind-the-scenes, our annual Summit and Big Debates. 42 were training workshops with over 200 attendees • In total, our events attracted over 2000 attendees.

BUSINESS SUPPORT • Earlier in 2014 we designed and delivered 14 Ride the Wave business support events, attracting over 600 businesses. A new series has just started which is running to March 2015. Keep an eye on the calendar for details of the workshops.

• We recruited 70 volunteer mentors for the New Enterprise Allowance (NEA) scheme, helping 500 business start-ups.

• We provided online and telephone support throughout the year, dealing with over 3000 enquires from businesses.

ONLINE • We have over 9000 followers on Twitter.

• We have over 2200 members in our Chamber LinkedIn group.

• We’ve uploaded 120 news items for members and 163 blog posts about our members.

• We’ve received 30,000 unique visits to our website.

AND ALSO • We’ve employed Laura Evans as our Business Support Navigator.

Laura helps businesses, social enterprises and charities to find the right advice and support (supported by the Regional Growth Fund).

• We’ve recruited more than 180 local businesses for the Living Wage Campaign in Brighton & Hove, now in its third year.

• We’ve provided a successful platform for Construction Voice. You’ll see even more specialist events this year.

• We’ve supported a wide variety of strategic meetings to improve business in the city.

• We’ve worked with 60 of our members who are volunteering their time and expertise to help the Chamber to continue to develop and grow.

To find out more about Brighton & Hove Chamber of Commerce visit www.businessinbrighton.org.uk or call 01273 719097.

Make 2015 the year you get involved.

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } ACES

THE ALLIANCE OF CHAMBERS IN EAST SUSSEX GOVERNMENT OPENS UP £50 BILLION OF CONTRACTS TO SMEs – MAKE SURE YOU GET YOUR SHARE… With thanks to Lindsay Kennedy of SME Insider 25% of all government contracts should go to small and mid-sized businesses by May 2015, according to guidelines from Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude.

In total, government departments spend around £230 billion per year on products and services. This makes the new rules a major opportunity for smaller players to enter the market and snap up high-value contracts in sectors ranging from PR and marketing, courier services, facilities management and office supplies through to IT services such as systems building and coding.

What’s more, central government agencies are now obliged to pay their invoices within 30 days (and must ask contractors to do the same), cutting out the crippling payment delays that put SMEs off bidding for contracts in the past.

In an effort to make the procurement process transparent, the government is in the process of launching Contractsfinder, a new portal for submitting bids, that allows companies to find open contracts in their area, to group together in a collective pitch if required, and to see which contracts went to whom and at what prices.

So, with just six months until the rules come into effect, how can small businesses position themselves to appeal to government procurement teams?

Sally Collier, head of Crown Commercial Services and an expert in government procurement, has the following advice: • First, determine your strategy. Work out whether you want to sell to central or local government, and whether you want to sell direct or via a large supplier.

• Second, decide on the top six relationships you need to cultivate to achieve this – whether it’s with large suppliers, or direct with the buyers listed on Contractsfinder.

• Finally, talk to the buyers. They want to speak with you to explain what they’re after, so that everyone gets the best result.

“I recall a similar pledge being made by Gordon Brown some time ago so it is great to see robust policies being put in place to make it happen” said Derek Godfrey, Business Representative of the South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP).

Suppliers can register free with ContractsFinder: www.online.contractsfinder.businesslink.gov.uk For regular and valuable SME news insights register your email address with: www.smeinsider.com

MAKING PROCUREMENT EASY If you would like to take advantage of the new government policy to use SMEs to supply the public sector and are a small company, would you like help and guidance arranging procurement contracts, PQQs and tenders?

Contact procurement specialist Julie Harmer of Gemma Consultancy by email at gemmaconsultancy@mail.com. She has

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worked in public sector procurement both locally and centrally for over twenty years, and, as gamekeeper turned poacher, can help you create successful tenders to win new contracts from all parts of the public sector.

As part of their desire to help SMEs, East Sussex County Council have established a simple online portal which is a collaboration

between public sector authorities in the South East region to provide a simple, secure and efficient way for managing Procurement activities, reducing time and costs for both buyers and suppliers.

From this site you can: - See what opportunities are available from all authorities using the portal;

{ CHAMBER NEWS } ACES

- Register your organisation to bid for public sector business from any authority, using the portal; - Access support and guidance to help your organisation to make the best bid possible; - Find out more about the purchasing authorities (buyers), including links to other

work opportunities in the region.

“As part of our procurement processes we will always review the way in which we are structuring our contracts, and look for ways to encourage smaller local suppliers to participate”, said Laura Langstaff, Head of Procurement at ESCC.

In this financial year ESCC has spent £96m with Local Companies, which is 42% of their overall spend. All of these opportunities were advertised on the SE Shared Services Portal.

Registering your company is quick and simple.

Just visit: www.sesharedservices.org.uk/esourcing

ACES MEMBER NEWS EAST SUSSEX VEHICLE MANAGEMENT FIRM WINS NATIONAL AWARD

Vehicle fleet management is clearly thriving in East Sussex with 1st Choice Vehicle Finance scooping an important national award, Best Small Fleet Leasing Company, at the annual Small Fleet Leasing Awards.

A fast-growing micro-business, 1st Choice Vehicle Finance has added to both sales and administration teams in a bid to boost customer satisfaction. It has also achieved BVRLA accreditation to enhance customer confidence in dealing with a professional organisation operating to a strict code of conduct.

“We are a small team giving personal service so that our clients come back time and time again and have built up a fleet of over 600 vehicles since we started in 2006.

We are all absolutely delighted to win this

award!” said Managing Director Neill Cole.

1st Choice has also invested in its website to ensure the customer has instant access to stock via a site that is informative, accurate, quick and easy to navigate.

“1st Choice are building solid foundations through good advice and excellent customer service,” said judge Steve Cocks director of Lex Autolease Broker Division.

For more information visit:www.1stchoicevehiclefinance.co.uk

NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR SAVOIR FAIRE ACCOUNTING Nick and Caroline Cole represented the Eastbourne firm, at the 2014 British Accountancy Awards, which seek to inspire excellence in the accountancy profession.

The judges, a panel of accountancy professionals said “Savoir Faire showed clarity of vision – especially in working

bilingually to serve its French clients.” They were also impressed with their “care for staff and clients” when presenting them with The Accountancy Practice Start-Up Award.

The award was presented to Caroline and Nick by broadcaster Sandi Toksvig.

Founding Director Caroline Cole said, “We were excited to have been shortlisted in the Start-Up category and thrilled to have been chosen as winners from the 7 shortlisted firms. We are pleased our successful

specialist niche, dealing with French clients, has been recognised in what are the most prestigious accolades in our profession.

We are proud of our close relationships with our clients and team, which have helped Savoir Faire Accounting grow quickly in our first two years.” Amongst other clients, Savoir Faire provides accountancy and bookkeeping services to the Eastbourne Chamber of Commerce.

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } CRAWLEY

CRAWLEY & GATWICK CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

A

s we enter 2015 the Country will be gearing up for an election in May. We have one of the most marginal seats in the UK and need to make sure that the best candidate is elected, one who will promote the town’s businesses and ensure the long-term economic viability of those businesses.

Crawley & Gatwick Chamber of Commerce is a vibrant and active part of the local business and community environment. Crawley is ideally placed in an ever-expanding regional business hub for commerce, leisure and development.

The transport links for the area are excellent for national and local travel, with Gatwick Airport on our doorstep and fabulous rail and road links to both to the City of London and to the South Coast, which is easily accessible and just 40 minutes away.

The area boasts many major international and national businesses basing their head offices in the area, such as Thales UK, Virgin Atlantic and, new to the town in 2014, Nestle.

The Chamber has regular monthly meetings where members are encouraged to network and do business.

As an organization we represent your views and aspirations for the town, both locally and on a regional basis.

The Chamber offers opportunities to present your business at our events to other members.

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We encourage you to trade locally and offer benefits to other members of the Chamber.

We keep our members updated via our monthly newsletter, and via this magazine, of development and tactical action plans being developed by the local authority. You, as a member, will have the opportunity to comment

“Crawley & Gatwick Chamber of Commerce is a vibrant and active part of the local business and community environment” and influence local decisions being made. You will be invited to attend events where you can directly ask questions, make constructive criticisms and voice your support for local initiatives.

The Chamber regularly supports and contributes to the overall wellbeing of the local community. Members are encouraged to take an active part in contributing to voluntary and community initiatives. We are a strong advocate in helping young people to grow into a potential workforce and leaders of tomorrow and fully support the local entrepreneurial initiative ‘Young Start-up talent’.

We have strong links with other Chambers in the area and actively promote their events to our members.

Our next members’ breakfast meeting is on 25th February at the Arora Hotel in Crawley; 8.00am please contact: jose@crawleychamber.co.uk or book via the website: www.crawleychamber.co.uk to book your place.

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{ CHAMBER NEWS }

DATES FOR THE DIARY

NETWORKING EVENTS

WORTHING & ADUR CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

4NETWORKING

Welcome Event. Wednesday 4 February. How can you make the most of your membership? Come along and find out.

A choice of breakfast or lunch networking events, which including three one-to-one meetings, which last ten minutes each.

Chamber Hub - FREE Networking. Friday 13 February. Join us for our regular Networking Event at Shoreham Harbour Club.

Monday 2nd - Eastbourne Lunch - Beachy Head Pub Tuesday 3rd - Haywards Heath Breakfast - The Birch Wednesday 4th - Tunbridge Wells Breakfast - The Hand & Sceptre Thursday 5th - East Grinstead Lunch - Tammy’s Thai (Lingfield) Friday 6th - Shoreham-by-Sea Breakfast - The Sussex Yacht Club Tuesday 10th - Worthing Breakfast - Hill Barn Yacht Club Tuesday 10th - Uckfield Lunch - East Sussex National Wednesday 11th - Battle of Hastings Breakfast - The Sussex Exchange Wednesday 11th - Sevenoaks Lunch - The Woodman (Ide Hill) Thursday 12th - Brighton Lunch - Devils Dyke Pub Friday 13th - Crawley-Gatwick - Sandman Signature Hotel Monday 16th - Eastbourne Lunch - Beachy Head Pub Tuesday 17th - Haywards Heath Breakfast - The Birch Wednesday 18th - Tunbridge Wells Breakfast - The Hand & Sceptre Thursday 19th- East Grinstead Lunch - Tammy’s Thai (Lingfield) Friday 20th - Shoreham-by-Sea Breakfast - The Sussex Yacht Club Tuesday 24th - Worthing Breakfast - Hill Barn Yacht Club Tuesday 24th - Uckfield Lunch - East Sussex National Wednesday 25th - Battle of Hastings Breakfast - The Sussex Exchange Wednesday 25th - Sevenoaks Lunch - The Woodman (Ide Hill) Thursday 26th - Brighton Lunch - Devils Dyke Pub Friday 27th - Crawley-Gatwick - Sandman Signature Hotel

Networking Breakfast. Friday 27 February. Scott Marshall will join us for a Networking Breakfast to update us on the current economic growth ambitions. Scott is our main contact at the council for issues that are inhibiting business growth in the area. In his role to drive forward economic growth and prosperity in Adur and Worthing, Scott is keen to build close links with businesses through the Chamber of Commerce. www.worthingandadurchamber.co.uk MUMPRENEURS The Mumpreneurs Networking Club, business networking events for entrepreneurial women, business mums and those that want to reach them. Everyone welcome.

Shoreham. February 5th 2015. Adur Outdoor Activities Centre Brighton. February 6th 2015. Laughing Dog Gallery Emsworth. February 10th 2015. The Brookfield Hotel Lewes. February 11th 2015. The Volunteer Richmond & Twickenham. February 13th. 2015 St Margaret’s Tavern Worthing. February 13th 2015. The Thomas A Becket Portsmouth. February 24th 2015. The Queens Hotel Arundel. February 25th 2015. The Crossbush Horsham. February 25th 2015. Bill’s Restaurant Teddington. February 25th 2015. The Teddington Arms Chichester. February 26th 2015. Student Union, 2 Common Room, Chichester College Chiswick. February 26th 2015. The Lamb Brewery www.mumpreneursnetworkingclub.co.uk

“I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read on the train” Oscar Wilde

On Thursday 5th March, a new group will be launching at the London Beach Hotel near Tenterden, Kent to be known as 4Networking Weald of Kent.

Visitors are always welcome and breakfasts cost just £12.00 and lunches £15.00 For more information visit www.4networking.biz or contact Chris Lodge - chrislodge@grayhooperholt.co.uk or 07850 255312.

FIRST FRIDAY NETWORKING Informal networking on the first Friday of each month (and sometimes the second and third Friday!)

First Friday: 6th February 2015 Worthing, Tunbridge Wells, Tenterden, Portsmouth, Lewes, Guildford Eastbourne, East Preston, Croydon, Crawley, Chichester, Bognor Regis Arundel, Alderholt (Fordingbridge) - NEW Second Friday: 13th February 2015 Romsey, Haywards Heath Third Friday: 20th February 2015 Horsham, Brighton For times and locations go to www.firstfriday-network.co.uk

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FEBRUARY 2015

Beautiful Homes Across our City STRAIGHT TALK

Busting estate agent jargon

Classic Modern KITCHENS

&

+ ALEX POLIZZI The region’s largest property publication

FREE

COMING NEXT ISSUE

3

THE BUSINESS OF CHARITY

3

PENSIONS

3

INTERVIEW

Charity has become big business but should it really be run like a business?

Big changes are afoot and our expert explains the new rules

We chat with Eleanor Harris, MD of the Brighton i360 and ask if she minds everyone calling it a doughnut on a stick?

3

TECHNOLOGY

Think your working life has changed over the last 20 years? The next ten years of technological advances will make your head spin

3

GATWICK DIAMOND BUSINESS AWARDS

3

REEVES ACCOUNTANTS

We announce the finalists for the most prestigious awards in Sussex

we chat with them about their future plans

If you would like your company to be involved in any of our future editorial features, you have news you would like the entire county to hear about, or for information on how to advertise, please contact Maarten Hoffmann or Ian Trevett on maarten@platinumbusinessmagazine.com tel: 07966 244046 ian@platinumbusinessmagazine.com tel: 07989 970804 To view all previous issues, please go to our website

www.platinumbusinessmagazine.com

Platinum Business News!

Develop potential and access future talent through placements At the University of Sussex we believe that Undergraduate Placements can open up a world of opportunity for both the employer and student.

Finding a placement is a very competitive process and so successful students tend to be motivated, enthusiastic and very keen to learn.

You can test potential graduate hires over the course of the year and in doing so expand your talent pipeline and narrow the graduate skills gap.

Students on placement can bring enthusiasm, creativity and up-to-date academic knowledge; they can be a huge asset to your business for a year. If you have a project or temporary role that could benefit from extra staff and fresh ideas, a placement student could be just the employee you are looking for.

The Careers and Employability Centre can help you at each step, from honing a job description to engaging with potential employees. We can advertise and promote your vacancy free of charge.

All undergraduate students at the University of Sussex can choose to undertake a placement as part of their degree, so you can access a wide range of subjects and students. Students retain a University supervisor, so your company can build links with the faculty here, many of whom are engaged in cutting-edge research.

for more information on our Placements and Work Experience service to employers: Contact Claire Colburn, Senior Placements and Work Experience Officer.

Careers and Employability Centre, The Library, University of Sussex, Brighton, BN1 9QL T: 01273 877528 E: c.colburn@sussex.ac.uk W: www.sussex.ac.uk/careers/employers

Please mention Platinum Business Magazine when you contact us.

M

ost of us recognize that the way we dress says more about us than any words can ever convey, and yet, with time restrictions and lack of real knowledge, many of us just get it wrong or play it so safe that our dress style just says dull and unimaginative.

PBM is here to help with a new feature written

by Samantha Wilding, a new Sussex resident who has recently quit her impressive corporate life to follow her love of fashion and style.

Educated in the US, and with a Masters in British Politics from the London School of Economics, Sam spent the last two decades in corporate life; first in the sphere of public affairs and issue management, and more recently in wider communications and corporate responsibility work.

Sam has worked with a variety of multinational companies and major brands, including Microsoft, Delhaize Group, Unilever, Nationwide and Office Depot, advising chief executives and senior management on public affairs and communications strategy and direction.

During the 1997 general election campaign, Sam worked on the policy team for one of the three main parties, briefing

parliamentary candidates and journalists on key policy issues.

Having worked with a wide range of people in both business and politics, Sam has a keen awareness of how successful people do (or should) present themselves. Her unique combination of client advisory skills, corporate experience and innate eye for style has led her to creating Style&Grace.

She now focuses on helping people define a style that works for them, dress with polish and elegance and reveal renewed confidence.

Each month Samantha will be presenting tips on how to dress to impress for both men and women and she is also available for private consultations to address your specific needs.

Samantha Wilding Tel: 07833 084864 Email: Samantha@styleandgrace.eu Website: www.styleandgrace.eu Twitter: @alwayschicUK

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Samantha Wilding Tel: 07833 084864 Email: Samantha@styleandgrace.eu Website: www.styleandgrace.eu Twitter: @alwayschicUK

D

esigner Pierre Cardin once said, ‘I can go all over the world with just three outfits: a blue blazer and grey flannel trousers, a grey flannel suit, and black tie.’ All are, of course, variations on the suit, which became the ubiquitous ‘uniform’ for many men in the twentieth century.

The twenty-first century is arguably more casual, and this relaxed approach has crept into suit wearing too. So many men wear badly fitting, scruffy suits – I’m sure Mr Cardin would despair. This is ironic, given the fact that men take more care about how they look and recognise that their clothes are a vital aspect of their ‘brand’.

Let’s get back to looking sharp, gentlemen. In this article, I am going to remind you what to consider when buying a suit, the key elements and the most common mistakes. My aim isn’t to encourage you to instantly revamp your wardrobe, but inspire you to invest in it.

The suit as we know it today began to take shape at the end of the 19th century, when riding jackets and waistcoats became shorter to accommodate city dressing, and darker colours began to dominate. By the end of the 1930s, the three-piece suit (jacket, trousers and waistcoat) had become the accepted daily wear of office workers in Britain. This hasn’t altered much, and remains the basis of the modern suit.

CUT, CLOTH, COLOUR When buying a suit (bespoke, made to measure or ready to wear), consider when, where and how often you will wear it. Will you wear it every day, or just to the occasional meeting?

Do you commute? Do you sit at a desk or do a lot of standing and presenting? Answering these questions will help you determine the cut, colour and cloth most appropriate for you.

The cut is the basic pattern regarded as the standard by tailors and manufacturers. It is better to buy a well cut suit in a lesser fabric than vice versa. Above all, the cut should look ‘natural’, allowing movement and suiting your measurements. The fit, on the other hand, is about overall body allowance. The classic fit

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“My aim isn’t to encourage you to instantly revamp your wardrobe, but inspire you to invest in it”

has an extra four inches all over to allow room for comfort and movement. The contemporary slim fit, popular at the moment, is cut narrowly all over, but be careful of being too ‘modish’ as it will date the suit.

A medium weight cloth (12-13 ounces) is sensible for a suit you can wear most of the year.

A tailor will advise choosing a cloth as heavy as you can bear as it hangs better, but keep your personal preferences and purpose in mind. Of course, today’s suits are made of much lighter weight fabric than in the past, when offices were heated only by coal fires, or not at all.

Wool is by far the best cloth for suits. The ‘super number’, as in ‘super 150’, denotes the fineness of the individual fibres (much like the

{ PLATINUM STYLE } Retailers and tailors in Sussex and beyond: • Gresham Blake, Brighton and London

– bespoke, made to measure and ready

to wear

• Paul Clark in Lewes – ready to wear,

plus accessories and toiletries

• Hugh Rae in Lewes – great tweed Jackets • Crosby’s of Seaford – geared to the

older man but a treasure trove of good

stuff • Woodies, Brighton – bespoke tailoring

and ready to wear

• Marks and Spencer and Moss

Bros (nationwide and online) – both

are regenerating their menswear and

revamping their image

• Designer range at Debenhams

thread count in sheets). The finer the wool, the rarer it is, so high ‘supers’ – 180 and above – are very expensive. Whatever the number, the cloth should have strength and structure, what tailors call ‘guts’. Most ready to wear suits are plain weave or worsted wool (smooth and tightly woven). Flannel and tweed (also from wool) are popular at the moment.

Many men, particularly those working in finance, law, business or politics, choose traditional colours: blues and greys. Again, think of building your suit wardrobe – start with the basics in block (plain) colour, then move on to different textures and patterns. Avoid black, however – it looks too funereal.

If you choose the darker, more conservative colours, a bespoke lining is a great way to express your individuality and liven things up.

At Gresham Blake, for example, you can design your own lining (see box for details).

(nationwide and online) – particularly

Patrick Grant

COMMON MISTAKES The most common mistake is poor fit, with many men opting for jackets and trousers that are too big. Is this because our obsession with ‘comfort’ has crept into our psyches to such an extent that everyone automatically goes up a size or two?

Know your true size, and stick to it! Remember the tailor’s mantra: balance and harmony are the keys to a well-fitting suit that allows the wearer to look ‘natural’.

TROUSERS ARE TOO LONG: Balance is the objective: the bottom of the trouser should be balanced with your shoe size, leaving the front third of the shoe uncovered (unless you have very large feet). Braces make fitting trousers much easier as they keep them hanging properly, and have the added advantage of elongating your legs.

SLEEVE LENGTH: Shirts with sleeves that are too short and jacket sleeves that are too long are common mistakes. The cuffs should cover

the wrist, just touching the base of the thumb, and at least 1cm of the shirt cuff should show.

JACKET IS TOO BIG: The jacket’s shoulder pads should square with your shoulders; if they droop or leave dents, the jacket is too big. The fit of the jacket collar depends on a well-fitting shirt.

WOMEN BUY YOUR SUIT: Guys, get a grip. Care about what you wear and go and find your own clothes (see the box below). Your wife or girlfriend cannot try on or be fitted for a suit for you. As I said, your clothes are part of your brand. And you care about your brand, don’t you?

Keep in mind that a good wardrobe (with the suit as a central element) is built over a number of years - a bit like decorating your house or building your business. It is a personal process and should result in a style that is uniquely yours.

“So many men wear badly fitting, scruffy suits; Let’s get back to looking sharp, gentlemen” 109

Chestnut Tree House { SECTION TEXT HERE }

BuSInESS AwArdS 2015 Thursday 12 March 2015 South Lodge Hotel, Horsham 6pm Drinks Reception, Dinner and Awards Ceremony

Hosted by Ambrose Harcourt Broadcaster and Patron of Chestnut Tree House

The Chestnut Tree House Business Awards are to recognise businesses and individual employees who are outstanding in their communities and to thank them for supporting Chestnut Tree House.

The awards categories are: • Outstanding Individual Fundraiser • Fundraising Team Of The Year • Most Innovative Fundraising Idea • Outstanding Voluntary Project • Outstanding Long Term Supporter • Outstanding SME Supporter • Outstanding Corporate Supporter Deadline for nominations 2 February 2015

To nominate a business, book a place or find out more visit: www.chestnut-tree-house.org.uk email: corporate@chestnut-tree-house.org.uk Or telephone: 01903 871837 Registered charity number: 256789

Chestnut Tree House Business Awards 2015 are kindly supported by:

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www.becreative.co.uk

www.crawleytownfc.com

www.hiykon.co.uk

www.creativepod.net

www.southlodgehotel.co.uk

{ NETWORKING }

THE BUSINESS NETWORK Networking - The Reality Check with Sussex Businesses

By Emma Pearce Marketing Consultant, outsourced marketing services and social media training www.pearcemarketing.co.uk

Emma Pearce interviews four Sussex businesses about how they utilise networking in their marketing plan and the benefits it brings. Here is part three with Mike Flannery

Risk Management & Accident Investigation sector specific and attracts attendees from all over the South of England. I also like Business Cornerstones because it is all B2B and the members are from a wider area across Sussex.

HOW IMPORTANT IS NETWORKING IN YOUR MARKETING? WHAT ARE YOUR OBJECTIVES FOR NETWORKING? It is my primary method of marketing. I have not yet got a website up and don’t advertise elsewhere. It does work remarkably well.

Mike Flannery Risk Management in the Built Environment mike.flannery@frm.co.uk WHAT NETWORKS DO YOU ATTEND? I used to do a lot of networking events. Now I’m much more choosy. I want to know what sort of people and what organisations are going to be attending. I also like to know how long it has been going for. I regularly attend the Sussex Enterprise Construction forum. This is

DO YOU UTILISE OTHER MARKETING OPPORTUNITIES VIA THE NETWORKS YOU ATTEND? I do give presentations to a wide variety of groups. My specialism is industry-wide in its application, so I do get asked to present to a fairly wide variety of bodies. I’m happy to present or speak ad-hoc on my subject, and that can be useful. I have done some very low-level sponsorship.

DO YOU PREFER A PARTICULAR FORMAT OF NETWORKING EVENT? (EG LOCK-OUTS AND

STRUCTURED MEETINGS VS MINGLING AND CHATTING?) I like the lock-out format since you can build strong relationships, but I still get great value from industry-specific events where I am a speaker or do more open networking with people in that sector.

WHAT SUCCESS DO YOU HAVE WITH NETWORKING? HOW LONG DID IT TAKE TO GET BENEFITS FROM IT? ANY TOP TIPS? Almost all of my business derives from networkbased contacts. The benefits can take time as mine is a big-ticket purchase. A recommendation of any value only comes when some level of respect and relationship has been achieved. So it’s an investment in planting and tending an orchard rather than picking ripe fruit. Timescales are similar.

ANY OTHER BONUS BENEFITS OF NETWORKING? I have established a terrific network of experts I can call on for advice or to recommend someone onto. This is tremendously valuable.

LIST OF BUSINESS NETWORKING EVENTS IN SUSSEX Check out www.pearcemarketing.co.uk/marketing/blog/business-networking/ 111

{ SECRET SUSSEX }

SECRET SUSSEX LET’S RACE “The USP here is that these are real simulators. Not the type to be found at amusement arcades, but the real thing, as used by many an F1 driver to learn the intricacies of a given track”

C

o-incidence can be a wonderful thing.

Whilst in possession of the F-Type Jaguar, as reviewed in this issue, l was invited to Lets Race in Horley to sample their wares.

Lets Race have the first commercially available Formula 1 simulators in the country, and that was an offer that could not be refused.

The setup is very well designed, with their

purpose-built building including everything the petrol head could possibly want. And you don’t need to be a petrol head, as their busiest sector is that of companies visiting to enjoy a team building or incentive day out, challenging each other in wheel to wheel duels over just about every F1 circuit there is.

The USP here is that these are real simulators.

Not the type to be found at amusement arcades, but the real thing, as used by many an F1 driver to learn the intricacies of a given track.

After the professional briefing, the racers are shown into the darkened simulator room; that immediately gets the nerves going, as you see the 10 simulators all lined up and awaiting their drivers, along with a raised seating area for spectators.

As with the real thing, you have to remove the steering wheel before slipping deep into the belly of the car, there to be faced with an HD wrap around screen. No helpful on-screen guides here as you are expected to remember the layout of the track from the briefing. The lights dim further and the race marshal calls all

59 Brighton Road, Horley, Surrey RH6 7HJ www.letsrace.co.uk Tel: 01293 826800 112

{ SECRET SUSSEX }

“It really does make you realise that F1 drivers are supreme athletes”

racers to attention for the qualifying laps. The lights run through the reds until green shows and we are off. The engines scream, the wheels spin and the simulated crowd in the grandstand flash past as you race into the first corner at 130mph, hit the anchors and spin off into the crowd, no doubt killing a clutch of them, were this the real thing. This is not easy and really takes a bit of time to get the hang of, but after 5 qualifying laps, it starts to come together and you quickly learn not to brake when turning. The steering wheel is not straight. All too quickly, the qualy laps are over and by some hand of unbelievable fate, I am second on the grid.

We then gather in the briefing room to look at the telemetry details, which are professionally printed out for each racer, and the marshal goes through the problems of where you are breaking too early, which apex has been missed and in my case, how many people l killed on the first corner. A quick drink at the fully stocked café and bar and we are back into the sim room for the duel to the death. After 20 laps l am exhausted, with burning arm muscles and a throbbing head

from the laser like focus required to get the best out of the drive. I end up in 3rd place, and feeling a bit of a twit, l have to stand on the podium for pictures and begrudging applause from my fellow racers.

After my heart has stopped racing and the burning in my arms abates, it really does make you realise that F1 drivers are supreme athletes, as not only are they doing it for real, with the possibility of death at any moment, but they race for 2 hours non-stop. No wonder their work out routine is so intense and the likes of Jensen Button is a highly acclaimed triathlon competitor.

Lets Race is a brilliant concept and one that is catching on rapidly. For a company to either reward their staff with a fun day out, Christmas party or as a team building exercise, l am not sure it can be beaten. The Lets Race team will tailor make the event to suit company requirements, and the building is superbly designed, with a Scalextric challenge, a children’s area with smaller simulators, a podium for the first three and fully licenced bar serving food and a

range of drinks. The staff are cheerful and very professional, and all of them have spent hours on the machines, setting the fastest laps – lap times, I should add, that I got nowhere near.

If you don’t want to go there, they have a great full size simulator on wheels that they can take to any event or party, which, I am reliably informed, is usually the highlight of the evening for all those who have a go.

I have already booked to go back for the PBM annual bash but, and don’t tell them this, l am going to pop back a few times on the QT to master the track before we go. Cheat, moi?

Each month we will unearth a company in Sussex that you didn’t know existed; a company with a niche product or service, hiding their light under a bushel...

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{ WISE WORDS }

Words

Issue 8 Wise

By Clarence Mitchell clarence@clarence4pavilion.com

Clarence Mitchell was selected as the Conservative Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Brighton Pavilion in July 2013. He will be fighting to unseat the UK’s only Green MP, Caroline Lucas, at the 2015 General Election. Previously a journalist, he had a 20 year career as a BBC on-air News Correspondent, followed by a period as a senior Civil Servant in the Cabinet Office before moving into public relations in 2007. He lives in Brighton.

WHY DOES IT MATTER? A simple question but one often overlooked in the rush to voice instant opinion or pass judgement.

When I was a BBC News Correspondent, the best editors would send reporters out of the door on a breaking story with the injunction to “tell people why it matters” ringing in their ears. It made for considered, human reporting that connected with the audience so much more directly than mere fact recital. The same applies in politics. Any politician seeking to earn public trust must explain why they and their policies actually matter to people in the real world, rather than simply mouthing party platitudes which are instantly dismissed as empty rhetoric. Why, for instance, does the return of common sense Conservatism to Brighton matter? Because the Green experiment of the last few years has failed dismally through its disastrous, ideologically driven, but administratively naïve, period in office, often sustained by an instinctively high taxing, high spending Labour Party. Brighton should no longer be the city of protest with a powerless, lone voice MP at its heart. Rather, it should be once again the city of prosperity, progress and pride. That’s why.

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SHOW YOU GIVE A DAMN When a communications crisis hits, threatening personal or corporate reputation, the key to gaining breathing space in the 24/7 fully-on, social media world is to do just that: show you actually do give a damn. The days of the brusque corporate or individual “no comment” are now long gone. No longer can you directly control the narrative around any given situation, but you can influence it if you intervene swiftly. And show you actually, genuinely, care. If something

“Brighton should no longer be the city of protest with a powerless, lone voice MP at its heart” has gone wrong don’t be afraid to say so and, where legally possible, apologise. You then need to explain what is being done to rectify things.

People are understanding of accident or disaster.

They detest attempts to shift blame, dissemble or avoid responsibility. The media, rightly, are even less forgiving. As you’ll find out. Fast.

CHECK, CHECK AND, YES, CHECK AGAIN. For those in the public eye or, indeed, anyone communicating with the public, accuracy is all.

Before that political statement or news release

is given to the media, before that highly crafted speech is made, before that late night email, tweet or Facebook post is fired off, check it, check it and, yes, check it again. Your political opponents, business rivals and journalists will be only too happy to remind you in full social media technicolour of your permanently available transgressions. They will enjoy it. You won’t.

STAY POSITIVE AND KEEP IT CLEAN Politics is the battle of ideas and philosophies.

Or, to paraphrase Clausewitz’s famous dictum, the continuation of war by other means. The differences between left and right are real enough and discernible, never more so, in fact, than at the forthcoming General Election, where the Conservative and Labour platforms are now distinctly different, given Ed Miliband’s overt shift to the left. But to many people, those nuances aren’t obvious and politicians are still seen as “all the same”, childishly hostile towards each other, endlessly negative and allegedly “in it for themselves”. This dramatic loss of public trust and voter disengagement is a real failure of our political system and one that must be overcome by future Parliamentarians if public faith in our democratic process is to be restored, especially amongst the young. All campaigning should be positive, offering opponents respect for honestly held views, no matter how vehemently they may be opposed. Debates should be won by the power of argument, not abuse. It’s not naïve to say it. My campaign will be clean. Here’s to the other side agreeing.

VOTE CONSERVATIVE You know it makes sense.

PASSION APPROVING 8 OUT OF 10 BUSINESS LOANS

At Lloyds Bank we know the importance of supporting business growth. So not only are we saying yes to 8 out of 10 lending requests, we have more enterprise mentors than any other UK bank to help your business grow.

To find out how we can support your business in Gatwick & South London contact David Rawlance, Senior Manager, on 07970 566030 or visit lloydsbank.com/passion

Any property given as security, which may include your home, may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage or other debts secured on it.

All lending is subject to a satisfactory credit assessment.

8 out of 10 relates to period April 2012 – June 2014. More enterprise mentors than any other UK bank as at Oct 2014.

Calls may be monitored or recorded. Authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under Registration Number 119278. We subscribe to The Lending Code; copies of the Code can be obtained from www.lendingstandardsboard.org.uk

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