Scan Magazine | Business | Column / Calendar
Coaching capital of the UK This is an unashamed plug for an organisation I used to be involved with – Coaching York – or at least for what it represents. York is a beautiful, historic city in the north of England with a population of about 200,000 and the sadly standard mix of prosperity and deprivation. About five years ago, a group of business and life coaches in York got together to create a network to make contact between coaches in the area easier, to share experiences and ideas, and to provide a common platform for the provision of coaching services. I was part of the steering committee. Out of this, Coaching York was born. It is now a thriving organisation that holds meetings, talks and practice sessions for members; and annually celebrates International Coaching Week with a programme of events that include free taster sessions for members of the public and lots more,
including one this year intriguingly entitled ‘Coaching with horses’. The initial impetus for all this was professional and commercial, but what quickly emerged was a strong social focus as well. We met with the local council, which was excited by the idea of bringing coaching to the city’s unemployed and socially disadvantaged. We talked to the city’s MPs, one of whom became greatly supportive once we had explained to him that we had nothing to do with buses. Members of Coaching York now offer a certain number of free hours per year as their way of giving something to the community. Coaching York aspires for York to be the coaching capital of the UK and to create a coaching culture across the city. They have not reached their goal yet, but they are working hard at it and I think it is a great aspiration. It could only do good for other British cities to compete for the ti-
Business Calendar
By Steve Flinders
tle and for similar competitions to start up across the globe. Everyone can benefit from coaching.
Steve Flinders is a freelance trainer, writer and coach, based in Malta, who helps people develop their communication and leadership skills for working internationally: steveflind@aol.com.
By Sanne Wass | Photo: DUCC
Scandinavian business events you do not want to miss this month Brexit Update: Where are we now? The Finnish-British Chamber of Commerce invites visitors to attend a vibrant discussion with industry professionals and speakers about Brexit and its implications. What will a future relationship between Britain and Finland look like? This question will be addressed by the keynote speaker, Tom Dodd, the British ambassador to Finland, followed by talks by Bob Doyle from London & Partners, Chandru Iyer from Kingston Smith, and Nicola Richards from Doyle Clayton. Date: 24 May 2018, 6-9pm Venue: London & Partners, 2 More London Riverside, London SE1 2RR, UK www.fbcc.co.uk
Nordic Next Investor Summit The Nordic Next Investor Summit was founded six years ago with the aim of strengthening the investor community and to celebrate entrepreneurship in the Nordic region. The event is described by the organisers as “24 hours with some of the greatest minds in technology and investing from the Nordics and beyond”, and an 98 | Issue 112 | May 2018
opportunity to connect with like-minded people, share ideas, be vulnerable, be challenged and build authentic, long-lasting relationships. Date: 4-5 June 2018 Venue: High Court, Malmöhusvägen 1, 211 18 Malmö, Sweden www.nordicnext.com
The Entrepreneurship Forum Hosted by the Swedish Chamber of Commerce for the UK, the Entrepreneurship Forum is one of the organisation’s biggest and most popular events of the year. Under this year’s theme, ‘Start, Scale, Fail?’, speakers will touch upon the various phases of starting and running a business: from start-up to growth and maturity, as well as the oftenneglected topic of failure. Among the speakers is Peter Popovics, a PhD researcher at the Stockholm School of Economics, whose research focuses on innovation failures. Date: 12 June 2018, 6-9pm Venue: Google UK HQ, 6 Pancras Square, London, N1C 4AG www.scc.org.uk
UK-Nordic and Baltic Trade Forum Every month, the Trade Bridge Group hosts international trade forums, bringing together entrepreneurs, business leaders, investors, trade bodies, policymakers and diplomats, with a view to help businesses develop the capacity to sell, invest or start up overseas. Hosted in partnership with the Oxford Business Group, the next event will specifically focus on the Nordic and Baltic countries. A panel discussion will be followed by a pitching session and networking. Date: 12 June 2018, 6.30-10pm Venue: RationalFT, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AB, UK www.eventbrite.co.uk