Think Enterprise May 2018

Think Enterprise Publication | May Edition

READ INSIDE

IOEE ACADEMY IN...

SICILY

CELEBRATING ENTERPRISE

WINNERS

ANNOUNCED

SPOTLIGHT ON...

ZOE EGLIN

MENTORING

CASE STUDY

ANDY & HAYLEY

Vol. 19

MAGAZINE May Edition Vol. 19

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SARAH TROUTEN, IOEE CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Hi, and welcome to our May edition of Think Enterprise! This month has seen our annual awards event at the Houses of Parliament and what an amazing day it was with so many talented and inspiring people in one room. I’d like to say a wholehearted congratulations to everyone who was shortlisted this year. It was no mean feat as we were absolutely inundated with applications. I’d also like to say a huge thank you to all of our sponsors which included ISBE, IAB, IOSCM and Marstons Telecoms. A special thank you goes to Lloyds Banking Group, our headline sponsor, who has been a strategic partner for many years and is committed to supporting small and micro businesses across the UK through the hugely successful enterprise mentoring programme which has provided vital free support to small and micro businesses for the last 6 years.

This month we hear how one of our IOEE Academies is reaching out to Europe in a project to support entrepreneurial students over in Sicily with great success, read all about the project on page 24.

I was delighted to attend the launch of the eagerly anticipated Enterprise and Entrepreneurship framework at Advance HE in York where our very own Leigh Sear gave a key note speech and presented the new framework. More about the day and the new framework can be found on page 26.

You should by now have heard about, or at least noticed, your inbox being bombarded by emails detailing GDPR! This is due to the new EU regulations for organisations storing and processing data. Fines if you’re found to be in breach can be huge and the new regulations came in to force last week so if you’re not already on to this then you need to be urgently - start by reading our guide on page 28.

So enjoy this month’s Enterprisingly Me (with a bit of Springtime blooming!) in the sunshine if it’s lasts that long! x

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Contents 06 National Employability Day with Novus

08 Celebrating Enterprise Award Winners

20 Mentoring Case Study: Andy & Hayley

22 Spotlight Learner: Zoe Eglin

24 IOEE Academy visits Sicily

IOEE Academy Visit

25 TheBigPitch

26 Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Framework launched at the Advanced HE Employability

28 GDPR

30 Enterprisingly Me x

32 Government Framework

Novus is joining forces with Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) to celebrate National Employability Event on June 29 at a ground-breaking North West Conference. As part of the unique event, we are bringing together employers, prisons and those that support us to highlight how working with ex-offenders can help organisations grow their business and contribute to a safer society.

The North West Conference follows the success of our inaugural event at Wembley Stadium in March, which saw a wide range of businesses enjoy talks and demonstrations showcasing the benefits of employing ex-offenders and ease of working with prisons. Special guest Fred Sirieix, of popular Channel 4 programme First Dates and General Manager of the Michelin-starred restaurant Galvin at Windows in London’s Hilton Park Lane Hotel, also delivered a keynote speech about the impact of meaningful employment opportunities for offenders and his own experiences of transforming people’s lives through learning and skills.

Now our sights turn northwards as we prepare to demonstrate the value of recruiting ex-offenders and promote the real opportunities available to help fill the skills gaps in organisations. A range of experts will also be available on the day to discuss how easy it can be for employers to welcome a fully trained, work ready, loyal candidate to their team.

Research tells us that having a stable job is a critical part of an offender’s journey back into society. Employment provides an offender with independence, status, earning power, a structured routine, social contact and a sense of purpose and direction. It has a direct effect on reducing reoffending,

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cutting the number of crimes committed in our communities.

Helping ex-offenders into employment has a significant and lasting impact on both the level of crime and the cost to society, a cost estimated at around £60 billion in England and Wales. Around 18% of that is due to re-offending by recent prisoners. This puts the bill for the UK at around £13 billion per year, with each reoffending former prisoner potentially costing the criminal justice system an average of £65,000.

Each year, in England and Wales, approximately 66,000 exoffenders will return to society after their sentence. At least three-quarters of them will be unemployed and almost twothirds will reoffend within two years. Imagine being able to make a positive impact on those figures.

At Novus, we know that most employers want to do the right thing – for their business, their customers and for their employees. Now they also have the chance to do the right thing for society and for their own community - by opening their doors to an ex-offender.

Barbara McDonough, Chief Operating Officer at Novus, said: “We know that offenders are much less likely to commit further crimes if they are able to enter the world of work when they leave prison. By working together we can transform the lives of people in custody and equip them with the knowledge and experience they need to succeed.”

With the average cost of recruiting and training a new employee estimated at £5,000, we can help to create a recruitment pipeline that benefits everyone – employers, offenders and the community. We can even train offenders in the specific skills needed by an employer, and this is already happening in industries from catering and hospitality to construction. If we can better understand employer’s needs, we can work inside prisons to help offenders gain the skills they need before they’re released.

The conference is a real opportunity for us to develop new partnerships with organisations and support them in fulfilling their skills needs. If you’re an employer, you’re welcome to join us at our event. Get in touch and find out how working with an ex-offender can help you to succeed.

Play your part in a safer society and book your North West Conference place at NovusWorks@novus.ac.uk

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CELEBRATING ENTERPRISE AWARDS 2018 WINNERS

ENTERPRISING LEARNER OF THE YEAR WINNER: HAYDAR ALI-ISMAIL AWARD SPONSORED BY

Ali was diagnosed with a sight condition called retinitis pigmentosa from birth and by the time he was nine his condition severely affected his vision eventually leaving him blind. Learning about his environment without sight was a difficult challenge for him. After securing a place at Manchester Metropolitan University he wanted to do more as a role model for the visually impaired community. In his final year of his degree he saw how entrepreneurship could be a vehicle to support the visually impaired community he wanted to help.

A significant enabler for Ali was his walking stick, however mislaying the stick led to a high degree of anxiety and loss of confidence. Ali with fellow students developed a cane finder device linked to a smart phone that is of particular interest in the visually impaired community. Ali is no ordinary student, his dedication and thirst for knowledge is second to none. He has undertaken a range of extra curricula activities to widen his knowledge and continues to learn as he completes his final year of his degree programme.

ENTERPRISE EDUCATOR OF THE YEAR WINNER: SHERALEE FIELDMAN AWARD SPONSORED BY

Sheralee is employed as an Enterprise and Business Start-up tutor based at HMP Wealstun. Her experience as both an academic and running her own business has proved to be a valuawble and powerful resource when delivering a whole range of enterprise education and qualifications.

She strives to get the best out of her learners encouraging them to realise that they are already enterprising and helping them to direct their skills into more positive outcomes. She spends her own time researching on behalf of learners given the restrictions imposed by being in custody, encouraging offenders to turn their dreams into reality post release.

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ENTERPRISING LEARNING PROVIDER OF THE YEAR WINNER: LONDON SOUTHBANK BUSINESS SOLUTIONS CENTRE AWARD SPONSORED BY

The Business Solutions Centre is a free drop in service for small businesses led by a group of trained Student Advisers from London South Bank University’s School of Business. The trained Student Adviser’s provide advice to businesses and entrepreneurs on subjects such as business planning, marketing and social media, small business finance and accounting and company formation. The students receive training to develop their entrepreneurial mindset, team working, communication, business writing and consultancy skills.

The Business Solutions Centre is an example of how the whole of the University is investing in enterprise and entrepreneurial development helping all students to develop transferrable skills along with external recognition from IOEE.

ENTERPRISE SUPPORT CHAMPION WINNER: SHEILA MCFEE AWARD SPONSORED BY

Sheila is employed by Yorkshire Housing which is one of Yorkshire’s largest social housing providers. Sheila has been with the employment and enterprise team since day one as an enterprise coach for the West and North and is a SFEDI accredited business adviser and trainer. She not only has demonstrated that she has the knowledge and skills to support clients to plan, review and implement their business dreams but she also has the heart, drive and passion to go alongside her knowledge and skills. Sheila’s creativity and drive to ensure customers can be the best they can be has helped them to both start and develop their new businesses through building their confidence and supporting them throughout their business life.

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IOEE MEMBER OF THE YEAR WINNER: DAVID MORGAN

David became involved in enterprise and entrepreneurship education 10 years ago after working in the private sector, spending the first three years working as a Business and Enterprise Tutor for Macclesfield College and the University of Derby. David is now the Novus Enterprise Lead where he champions enterprise within prison establishments working closely with SFEDI and the IOEE in creating curriculum and supporting the development of a range of enterprise learning resources.

David continues to promote enterprise learning within the justice sector and is currently setting up an Enterprise Forum for Novus which will share enterprise resources and best practice across the whole company.

INTRAPRENEUR OF THE YEAR WINNER: LISA SODERMAN

Lisa Soderman is the Business Development Manager for the Dolphin Centre, a Darlington-based leisure centre which is part of Darlington Borough Council.

She has led a pioneering approach to intrapreneurship whilst securing the status of an IOEE Enterprise Academy. With over 20 years of experience working in the Dolphin Centre, Lisa realised the importance of being able to adapt and change within both the industry and the leisure market in order to succeed by encouraging all staff to become intrapreneurs, like herself. Over the past 10 years Lisa has worked tirelessly to create an outstanding work environment and positive culture shift, where all staff have an opportunity to shine and feel valued as part of their One Outstanding Team.

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SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARD: THE DOLPHIN CENTRE ACADEMY AWARD SPONSORED BY

The Dolphin Centre is a Darlington based leisure centre and part of the local authority. Recent years have seen many changes within this landscape with many organisations closing doors or making redundancies, however the Dolphin Centre has embraced commercialisation, maintaining its positivity to ensure it not only survived but is absolutely thriving.

The Dolphin Centre has undertaken a pioneering approach to develop and nurture entrepreneurial mindsets right across the organisation. They have created a culture whereby staff are fully supported and actively encouraged to behave entrepreneurially – responsibility, passion and drive are key characteristics that are displayed in all employees. Part of the Dolphins Centre journey has been it’s successful approval as an IOEE Enterprise Academy, the status has been used to create structure, recognition and support to ensure they could develop into the entrepreneurial organisation they wished to become. A range of qualifications have been created specifically for the Dolphin Centre Academy, ensuring all staff develop the intrapreneurial skills necessary to help the organisation to survive and thrive within an extremely challenging environment.

H I G H LY C O M M E N D E D : C L A I R E B A I R D Claire has worked passionately in Enterprise Education for Manchester Metropolitan University for 12 years, being a core member of the Centre for Enterprise and leading international, regional and national projects supporting start ups. Claire has and continues to demonstrate an enterprising approach to developing and delivering enterprise and entrepreneurial learning and skills.

Claire has tirelessly worked with colleagues and other faculties to raise awareness of enterprise through the design and delivery of workshops. Claire actively seeks opportunities to raise awareness of enterprise and to support enterprising individuals who may not have access to support. Colleagues describe her as fearlessly supportive of the students, passionate, empathetic, professional and exceptionally well networked across and outside the University’s boundaries.

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PARTNERS We are proud to work with a range of partners who help bring our standards to life through the development of specialised enterprise related programmes, qualifications and learning resources.

Current partners include:

Anglia Ruskin University

Institute of Supply Chain

British Bankers Association

Management

Business Enterprise Group

Instructus

Business Mentors South West

ISBE

Centrepoint

LEP Network

Climate Change NE and SE

Liverpool City Region LEP

Cross Industry Construction

Lloyds Banking Group

Apprenticeship Task Force

London South Bank University

Dept of Business, Energy and Industrial

Manchester Metropolitan University

Strategy

National Apprenticeship Service

Durham University

New Anglia Growth Hub

East Riding of Yorkshire Council Business Newcastle University Business School Services

North East Local Enterprise Partnership

Enterprise Educators UK

NOVUS

Ethnic Diversity Alliance

Real Ideas Organisation (RIO)

Hewlett Packard

Skills Funding Agency

Higher Education Academy

SureTrax

InnovateUK

The Coaching Academy

Farming Community Network

The Professional Golfers’ Association

Government Equalities Office

TONI&GUY

Institute of Physics

University of South Wales

Institute of Professional Will Writers

University of Worcester

Institute for Small Business and

Waitrose

Entrepreneurship

Women’s Enterprise Scotland

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IOEE Honorary Fellowships awarded at Celebrating Enterprise ceremony

Each year, the IOEE’s Advisory Council carefully selects a number of key individuals for the distinction of receiving IOEE Honorary Fellowships. Representing the great and the good from the worlds of enterprise and enterprise support, every individual selected is an exemplar in their field. We took the chance to catch up with a few of our new Honorary Fellows.

This year, the Honorary Fellowships ceremony took place following the IOEE Celebrating Enterprise Awards event, which was held in the House of Lords on Wednesday 2nd May. With everyone gathered in PRIMO Bar close to the parliament buildings, Sarah Trouten CEO of IOEE, welcomed guests and announced the names of the thirteen people about to become Honorary Fellows.

“

At the event Sarah Trouten outlined those attributes and characteristics that the Advisory Council seeks when looking to bestow this most prestigious grade of IOEE membership.

Those who received the award are as follows:

• • • • • • •

Professor David Gibson OBE Emma Jones Pam Iannotti Margherita Bacigalupo Professor Roger Mumby-Croft Tim Rivett Jamal Edwards MBE

It is a great honour to receive a fellowship from IOEE an organisation that is leading the way in developing new frameworks to support enterprise educator development.”

David GIBSON OBE

“

It’s a great honour to be recognised by IOEE and a lovely spur to keep supporting people to start and grow their own business. Building a true Enterprise Nation will hopefully deliver benefit for all!”

EMMA JONES

“ M a r g h e r i ta BACIGALUPO

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It is a great honour to become a Fellow of the IOEE. As Celebrating Enterprise has shown, the IOEE does a great job in linking the different actors of the enterprise and entrepreneurs ecosystem. The award ceremony has brought together a broad variety of individuals and organisations each representing a thread of the entrepreneurial fabric. I am very grateful for this recognition.”

IOEE CEO Sarah Trouten with Honorary Fellow Jamal Edwards MBE

IOEE CEO Sarah Trouten with Honorary Fellow Professor Roger Mumby-Croft

IOEE CEO Sarah Trouten with Honorary Fellow Tim Rivett

IOEE CEO Sarah Trouten with Honorary Fellow Margherita Bacigalupo

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THANK YOU TO OUR 2018 SPONSORS

HEADLINE SPONSOR SFEDI and IOEE were delighted to welcome again Lloyds Banking Group as the headline sponsor for Celebrating Enterprise, Lloyds have been a long term strategic partner providing ongoing support to small and micro businesses through it’s Helping Britain Prosper policy. A range of stakeholders from Lloyds Banking joined the celebrations including Gareth Oakley, Managing Director of SME Banking who presented the Lifetime Achievement Award to Stelios Haji Ioanni and Special Recognition Award to The Dolphin Centre Academy.

“

Enterprise mentoring has been a key initiative for us since 2011, and the time that our colleagues spend with mentees is part of our ongoing commitment to invest 720,000 volunteering hours in communities by 2020. This is part of our 2018 Helping Britain Prosper plan.” - Gary Lapthorn, Head of Responsible Business, Commerical Banking, Lloyds Banking Group.”

Gary Lapthorn, Head of Responsible Business, Commercial Banking, Lloyds Banking Group

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AWARD SPONSORS

SPONSORED: ENTERPRISING LEARNING PROVIDER OF THE YEAR “The Institute of Supply Chain Management is delighted to be involved with SFEDI. Sponsoring the awards provides an excellent opportunity that enables us to show our support to the fullest extent.”

PHILIP CHAGANIS obe Chairman

SPONSORED: ENTERPRISING LEARNER OF THE YEAR “Supporting our up and coming entrepreneurs is essential for their futures and everyone else’s. Public recognition like this is a great place to start.”

Mike McMinn Managing Director

SPONSORED: ENTERPRISE SUPPORT CHAMPION AWARD “The IAB is absolutely delighted to be a supporter of SFEDI and its awards. We share common values and ambitions to provide both better and greater support, learning and development for start-ups and micro-enterprise owners - and the awards rightly champion those who make major contributions toward this.”

janet jack Chief Executive

SPONSORED: ENTERPRISE EDUCATOR OF THE YEAR AWARD “ISBE is delighted to be a supporter of the SFEDI and IOEE awards. ISBE’s purpose is to enable excellence in small business and entrepreneurship across our research, policy, practice and learning communities. Therefore, we acknowledge that the awards highlight the importance of a strong small business and entrepreneurship ecosystem for the UK.”

P r o f. G I d E O N M A A S Chief Executive

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1. Haydar Ali-Ismail, 2. Guests Networking, 3. David Morgan - NW Enterprise Partnership Lead at Novus, 4. Gareth Oakley Managing - Director, SME Banking at Lloyds Banking Group presenting Special Recognition Award to Dolphin Centre Academy, 6. Andrew Griffiths MP, 7. Grimsby College, 8. Kingsley Omeihe, 9. Sarah Trouten CEO of IOEE presenting Honorary Fellowship to Tim Rivett, 10. Ruth Lowbridge MBE Chair SFEDI Group with all award winners

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Mentoring Case Study: Andy & Hayley

Hayley Anderson-Richardson is the owner and Managing Director of Families In Sync; an original and inspiring independent company that offers a full range of support services across all elements of family life. At the end of 2016 Hayley was matched up with mentor Andrew Barrett, an Independent Assurance Lead at Lloyds Banking Group. This month we chatted to Hayley and Andy about their mentoring journey, and how contrasting skill sets can be the key to success.

Hayley’s Story In today’s climate, such things as one-on-one therapy or couples counselling are familiar concepts in the field of lifestyle coaching, but it is a unique, innovative, and inspirational idea to be offering support to the whole family dynamic, and Hayley AndersonRichardson is making waves in the world of wellbeing with her family-focussed business.

Based in North Yorkshire, Hayley worked in health and social care for many years, but in 2014 she faced difficult challenges in her personal and professional life, which forced her to re-evaluate her work. Hayley says: “I had already set up Families In Sync as a side business, but I was in a very serious horse riding accident, which I have fully recovered from now, that changed everything. At the time I didn’t know if I was going to be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life, and when the company I worked for changed a few months’ later, I took a redundancy package and decided it was the time to really go for it with Families In Sync. I had three young children at home and my accident had changed my perspective, and I wanted to create something that would work for myself and my children, but that would offer support to other families out there too.”

Families In Sync offers a range of coaching, training and packages to give the highest levels of care and support for families, including such things as helping new mums with feeding, children’s behavioural issues, and helping parents to find the right work-life balance, as well as training healthcare and childcare providers in a

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range of family-focused issues. Its most recent offering is The Wild Tribe; a monthly subscription tribe for Mummas across the world to support each other, enabling you to lead a calmer and more balanced mindful family lifestyle and improve your child’s learning - all inspired by nature.

A year and a half into the business, a friend advised Hayley about the benefits of mentoring, and Hayley was subsequently introduced to Andrew through the IOEE. Hayley says: “Having a mentor is fantastic, and Andy is sort of my ‘voice of reason’ – he keeps me focused when I’m getting distracted by lots of shiny objects! I’ll have a million ideas a minute and get really excited about everything I want to do, and would just try and throw myself into it all and get really carried away – but Andy makes me slow down and stop and consider everything properly. He’ll get me to think about why I want to do it, what will it take, what’s the desired outcome and the potential pitfalls. Sometimes the idea isn’t worth running with at the time, but if it is, Andy will help me to set goals and targets and create a timeline. It’s exactly what I need.

“Andy is from a completely different industry to me, but I think that enhances the mentoring experience, as he’s able to be objective about my business. He’s also a parent too, and it’s really helpful to get that second perspective when I’m bouncing ideas around.”

In helping other families, Hayley’s business has also enabled positive changes within her own family life, and she explains how she feels she’s finally found that elusive work-life balance: “Creating Families In Sync means that I’ve been able to take control of work and home, and I’m now there for family events 99% of the time; school assemblies, plays, meetings, and such things that you sometimes have to miss when you’re less in control of your own schedule.

Having a mentor has helped me to create that balance.

“With Families In Sync I am essentially mentoring in a way - so even the mentors can do with mentors! Andy has played such a big part in keeping me focused, and I feel that everyone can benefit from

that support – without it, I’d just keep being distracted by all the shiny things!”

Andy’s Story As an Independent Assurance Lead at Lloyds Banking Group, Andrew works in a very different field to Hayley’s family-focused business, but he says that their contrasting skills are very complimentary: “I work at a bank and I’m used to framing things, using reference points, making a plan, setting targets and finding the right way to achieve them. Hayley and I are industries apart, but my experience enables me to offer her guidance in the elements of the business where she’s less experienced, and together that makes a strong team.

“Hayley’s a total ‘ideas person’. She’s got so much passion and energy for what she does and she always has something new that she wants to explore! What I do as a mentor is provoke thought, to get Hayley to think about the questions that she should be asking herself – why are you doing that, how will it work, what value will it bring? In my role at Lloyds it’s my job to answer questions and find solutions, but in my role as a mentor it’s important to guide the mentee to ask the questions and find the solution themselves.

I add structure to the idea, and with that combination the idea can thrive.”

When Andy discovered Lloyds’ Mentoring Programme he was keen to explore the opportunity, not only to support mentees, but to enhance his own working life too. Andy says: “The main reason I went for it was because I wanted to offer support for those people trying to set up a business or take it to the next level,

but I also wanted to expand my horizons too - to get a wider appreciation of what goes on outside of my day-to-day banking role.

What’s been especially interesting is the crossover of transferable skills. Aside from being a parent, I don’t have any experience in Hayley’s family-focused field, but that doesn’t matter in a mentoring relationship - there are many similarities in business, regardless of the area of industry.

“The bank is very supportive and we’re given time away from the business to dedicate to mentoring. Hayley and I talk regularly and meet in person every six to eight weeks, and we work together really well. Sometimes people don’t always know what a mentor is for, they think it’s business advice, but having a mentor isn’t free consultancy. It’s a mentor’s job to be a good listener and a sounding board and offer guidance and support. Hayley has evolved tremendously over the last year and a half, and I know she’s got even more ideas about where to go next!”

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Spotlight On...

Enterprising Learner

Zoe Eglin

Growth Lancashire Limited offers support and business expertise to aid economic development across the county. Zoe Eglin works as the company’s Principal Business Support Advisor, and is currently completing her SFEDI-accredited Level 7 Diploma in Professional Business and Enterprise Support Services, through Boost Business Lancashire’s Growth Hub. This month we chatted to Zoe about how she successfully balances the course with a full-time job and being a parent, and moving on to gain a full Master’s degree.

Zoe completed her first SFEDI qualification back in 2015, gaining a Level 4 Award in Understanding Business and Enterprise Support and Business Skills Support.

It was the first time she had studied since leaving college, and this realisation inspired Zoe to push herself even further, putting herself forward for the Level 7 Diploma last year. Zoe says: “I hadn’t really done any training since I left college - you just get out of the habit as life changes. I’m 39 now and have a two year-old girl, and so I was already balancing my job with being a parent before I even took on additional studying. When I did my Level 4 qualification I was actually pregnant, and had to complete

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the course in a month before I was due to go on maternity leave.

Then I came back to work and put myself forward to do this Level 7 qualification – I definitely don’t make things easy for myself!”

Growth Lancashire has been hugely successful on its mission to grow jobs, prosperity and skills across the county, having supported thousands of businesses, created over 4,000 jobs, provided £12m in grant support, and helping over 1,000 start-up businesses to launch over the last three years.

Last year Lancashire City Council decided to team up with a partner to deliver fully-accredited business support and training that would help numerous businesses to grow and thrive in the local area, and this led them to unite with Boost. Together they delivered learning and skills development programmes that would add further value to employees’ wealth of knowledge and expertise, enhance their understanding of their roles, and give them the skills and tools they needed to advise businesses to get the best results. Zoe is one of the employees who jumped at the opportunity to gain a new qualification. Zoe says:

“I’ve definitely learnt new skills through this Level 7 Diploma, especially when it comes to dealing with difficult situations with clients. I’m working on Boost Growth Vouchers, which is essentially working on grants, applications and funding, and with money matters there are always challenging conversations to be had with clients, and I’ve learnt new skills for dealing with those sorts of things.

“However, where I really feel like I’ve benefited is in my confidence within my job role. I’ve now got a qualification that’s specifically jobrelated. I left school, went to college and then started work, and I’ve worked in this area for over 15 years now, with nothing to prove that I’m actually really good at what I do. It can be easy to doubt yourself sometimes without that confirmation, and having this qualification proves that I have the knowledge I thought I did by being assessed in that formal way. It’s definitely boosted my confidence in my job role.”

The Level 7 course took the shape of several workshops, which acted as the foundation for a significant body of self-directed learning. There was a great deal of research to undertake, a lot of theory to learn, and a lot of self-reflection using the workshop inputs. The assessments mostly took the form of study workbooks, with seven pieces of work to submit – each comprising of around 10,000 words related to a specific topic, including: developing the client relationship, analysing support needs, accessing different forms of business and enterprise support, developing skills as a Business Support Professional, and reflecting upon your own knowledge, skills and learning. There were also practical assessments that were tailored to your specific job role. Zoe says: “Some people are out and about with clients in their job role, but in my position you are mainly dealing with clients on the phone, so there were observational assessments where somebody listened in to phone conversations and assessed how I dealt with different scenarios and situations. The course is difficult, but you’ve got to remember that you’re being assessed on elements of your role that you’ve been doing for a long time. Achieving the qualification at the end really does make you feel confident that you’re doing a great job.”

Now that Zoe is close to completing her Level 7 Diploma, she is looking to gain more qualifications to enhance her professional knowledge, skills and current position even further. Zoe says: “The course was hard work, but I really enjoyed it. I’m not only studying on top of a full-time job, but managing both of those things with being a mum to a little girl, and generally maintaining all of the elements of your personal life alongside your professional work. Now that I’ve finished the course, I do find myself lying in bed at night thinking, ‘oh, this is unusual - I don’t have to think about the million things to do tomorrow!’, but it hasn’t put me off. We’ve been offered the opportunity to continue studying and turn this qualification into a full Master’s, and I’m thinking that I might as well keep going – so no, I definitely don’t make things easier for myself!”

For further information on Growth Lancashire visit http://www.growthlancashire.co.uk/

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IOEE Academy visits Sicily

IOEE Enterprise Academy Rocketeer have taken their programme to Europe and this month we find out how entrepreneurial students in Sicily have benefited from IOEE accreditation and membership.

Rocketeer have recently completed a ‘European Further Education (FE) Social Enterprise’ project with a Sicilian FE College, Leonardo Da Vinci College in Piazza Armerina in Sicily - http://www.iisdavinciarmerina.gov.it/. as well as with Stafford College. The project which was delivered by an innovative blended learning approach which saw the majority of the sessions delivered remotely from Stafford with Richard Wood from Rocketeer flying out to Sicily to deliver the final session in Sicily.

The programme has been a huge success with all students completing the programme and being presented with their IOEE certification and was even covered in the Sicilian press.

The programme is called the “Enterpreneuroship & Social Enterprise” a curriculum based project of the Institute Leonardo da Vinci in collaboration with three British organisations, the Rocketeer Enterprise,

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the NSCG (Newcastle & Stafford College Group) and the IOEE (Institute of Enterprise and Entrepreneurs) who are providing delivery and accreditation of the programme.

The course provides weekly online sessions, while a group of Leonardo da Vinci’s students have created a unique peer learning group with English students. The two groups have the chance to compare social and cultural problems and find possible solutions that can be turned in to employment opportunities. Welcomed with extreme interest from the school director Marinella Adamo, the course is led by the expert Richard Wood, owner of the “Rocketeer Social Enterprise” in collaboration with the native teacher Anthony La Pusata, creator of the project, helped by the prof. Giorgia Covato, Docent of English Languages.

The objective of the course – explained by the course leader La Pusata - is to teach and demonstrate to our youngsters how to go above what they think is possible, how to transform their passion in a successful start-up “socially enterprising” and ultimately to hold the reins of their future.

The Big Pitch is a business idea competition exclusively for undergraduate and postgraduate students at IOEE Center of Excellence Anglia Ruskin University across all campuses.

The aim is simple: to find passionate entrepreneurs with exciting, imaginative business ideas and give them the chance to pitch for the money and support they need to make it happen. Entrants do not need to be a business expert to participate; all they need is a good idea. The Anglia Ruskin Enterprise Academy (AREA) provides the business mentoring and support necessary as the competition progresses. The Big Pitch Grand Final was held in Anglia Ruskin’s new Science Centre on 2 May where six student’s went head to head in a Dragon’s Den style pitch.

The 100 plus audience were treated to an amazing evening.

Three winners shared the £10,000 pot: RECYCO is Andrea Luis Pereira’s idea to create a co-operative focusing on the collection of aluminium cans.

Student Computers, is an IT company run by students for students and is the idea of Christopher Mason. Eath App, a revolutionary app that allows you to organise cheap meals in a simple way by, Ignacio Gonzalez Alcalde and his team.

The Allia prize went to Brown Educates by Natalie Brown.

Natalie will create educational short films to help private sector tenants and landlords who are litigants in person (people representing themselves in court). And the Provide prize for an innovative solution to a social problem was awarded to Quirky Working by Mikaela Jenman and Harris Christison. Their initial aim is to host a co-produced collaborative festival using the medium of music to focus on mental health issues in society.

To find out more head over to: www.anglia.ac.uk/area, www. thebigpitch.co.uk or Twitter @thebigpitch2018

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Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Framework launched at the Advanced HE Employability Symposium On Tuesday 15th May an Employability Symposium was hosted at Advance HE in York and provided an opportunity to profile an enterprise and entrepreneurship education framework developed last year by a range partners including IOEE and SFEDI. The symposium offered a space within which to share experiences and discuss contemporary practice in enterprise education and employability and begin to craft a principled and evidence formed approach to devising subsequent support and guidance for change with regards to enhancing enterprise for employability in higher education.

The Symposium provided an opportunity for educators and employability professionals to reflect on practices and recent developments within their institutions and across a number of subject discplines ranging from biological sciences and mechanical engineering to music and dance. Across the range of speakers, there were a number of reoccurring themes and messages, particularly in terms of the need to build resilience, self efficacy, confidence and agility in our students to ensure they are equipped to survive and thrive in their future careers.

Stuart Norton, Academic Lead Employability, Advance HE commented “While debates will continue to be ongoing around (incomplete) LEO data, the value of degrees, the measure of what “success” is - through to whether data can really tell us what is going on in universities - the reality is that with increasing numbers in the graduate labour market they need to be able to compete – and let’s not forget those that wish to purse self-employment as a viable option.”

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Leigh Sear, CEO of SFEDI was the keynote speaker at the Symposium. Leigh reflected on what we know about enterprise and entrepreneurship education and identified a number of key areas of ‘need to know’ in terms of ensuring enterprise and entrepreneurship makes a difference. As part of his keynote, Leigh presented a framework recently co-created by Advance HE, ISBE, EEUK, IOEE, SFEDI and the QAA, explaining how it can be used to assist in addressing the key issues facing enterprise and entrepreneurship educators in providing an effective education experience and making a difference for different groups of internal and external stakeholders.

The framework provides a resource to connect the journey of the learner, to the role of the educator in facilitating the education experience and, in turn to managers with responsibility for processes and practices within the institution that enable the enterprise and entrepreneurship educator to deliver an effective experience to internal and external stakeholders.

The framework can be used in a number of ways including: •

Identifying the key “how to’s” associated with the design, delivery and documenting of different approaches to enterprise and entrepreneurship education, both in the curriculum and as extracurricular activity.

Enterprise Framework developed by: AdvanceHE, ISBE, EEUK, IOEE, SFEDI and QAA

•

Identifying how to create learning environments and resources that add value to the experience of the learner.

•

Reflecting on the impact of what you do with others, including learners, other staff and external stakeholders.

•

Providing you with a resource to reflect on your own practices and those of the institution in which you work.

Of the speakers we were delighted to see Lloyds Williams, Employability Development Manager at University of South Wales, an IOEE Centre of Excellence. Lloyd presented the approach being taken at USW and managed to include ice cream, Guinness and gin and tonic and don’t ask us how but it made total sense.

SFEDI & IOEE are actively welcoming feedback on the new framework, if you would like to contact us please email: leigh.sear@sfedi.co.uk

In profiling the framework, Leigh highlighted the importance of ownership by the community. To this end, the framework will be circulated shortly for comment and review prior to a formal launch later in the year.

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Is your business ready for GDPR?

With the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) effective date pinned at 25/05/18, the UK is gearing up for tougher fines and stricter regulations, across all industries. GDPR regulation for small businesses is a hot topic, but are you prepared for the changes?

Check products and services •

Check which of your products or services collect and process personal data.

•

Make sure you have a legal basis for the processing of personal data.

It’s a wide-ranging regulation designed to protect the privacy of individuals in the European Union (EU) and give them control over how their personal data is processed, including how it’s collected, stored and used.

It affects every company in the world that processes personal data about people in the EU.

•

Summary of GDPR for small business

•

Update your internal and external notices for GDPR compliance.

•

Ensure your customer contracts are GDPR compliant.

There are many aspects to GDPR, but it really boils down to being clear and ethical with the personal data you process – that means treating it as you’d treat something valuable of your own. Some initial practical steps you can take to get GDPR compliant are:

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Make sure you can comply with the obligations to your customers as set out in the GDPR (such as the right of access and the right of erasure).

Review notices and contracts

Assign responsibility •

Make someone in your organisation responsible for data protection and privacy.

•

Consider whether you need to appoint a Data Protection Officer – check out the ICO’s guidance for more info.

•

Provide data protection training for staff.

Take care over security

•

Ensure systems that collect, process and store personal data are secure.

By proving to potential and existing customers that your organisation is compliant with new laws that protect the rights of citizens just like you (and your customers), you could bring in more business.

No one likes having their data lost, stolen, damaged, misused or shared without proper consent, and doing everything you can to protect your customers and grow their trust could be a unique selling point.

So, from fines to compensation claims, there are certainly serious reasons to get GDPR-compliant. But on a real-world level, see it as being worth your while to get organised behind the scenes, earn your customers’ trust, and be the company that respects personal data, rather than letting it sit on a long-forgotten spreadsheet.

GDPR is complicated - why should I care?

It’s easy for small companies with a stack of to-dos to see the GDPR as a burden. But in reality, it’s something that can be used to your advantage, adding value to your business.

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‘Enterprisingly Me’ is a monthly feature where you can follow my entrepreneurial adventures. Names have been changed to protect the innocent but everything you read really happened.

I hope my story inspires you to take your first steps, or if you already have, then it lets you know you’re not on your own. Starting and running a successful business isn’t about being perfect. It’s about loving what you’re doing, learning from your mistakes and keeping the faith!

We’ve moved! Everything went without a hitch and were now settled in our new office suite and feeling quite proud of what we’ve achieved in a relatively short space of time. Obviously it’s a risk to our cash flow but its made me work even harder to make sure that the business keeps coming in.

We’re about to advertise for some more new staff so a bit nervous about adopting my ‘canny bairn’ approach to recruitment and thinking I should probably be a bit more objective about how I identify what we want a new member of staff to do and what type of person would be best suited to the ro It’s the first time I’ve actually had an office of my own and although it makes me feel mega important I feel a bit cut off from the rest of the staff. There are only four of us but we are now in different parts of the new building.

I thought it was the right thing to do but now having second thoughts – not really encouraging us to work as a team and distancing me away from the people who are helping to make this little business work. So I do an about turn and move all of the desks into the same office leaving us with a lovely meeting room as well as a very swish reception area and a good sized training room.

I love the furniture – its amazing how different it feels walking into a smart office suite with lots of fancy lighting and an inviting reception area. My speculate to accumulate theory has got to work as we’ve spent an

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obscene amount of money on furnishings – maybe it’s a bit frivolous but it really does make me feel good when I unlock the door and turn the lights on to see such an attractive environment to spend my time in. I’m spending so much of my time at work and so I’ve justified spending a little too much money on things that are pleasing to the eye as well as creating a welcoming place for my team to work in. We’ve surrounded ourselves with inspirational posters, lots of leafy plants (which of course we’ll forget to water as we’ll be so busy..) and the subdued colour palette which I’ve read acts as a calming influence when things get tough. I’m sure we’ll need more than a subdued colour palate if and when things get really tough which I’m fully expecting to happen at some point in the future.

I’m so happy with the way things are going at the moment – we’ve landed a really interesting new project which involves recruiting and training 50 owner managers over the next twelve months. The programme will help them to review their own business and look for ways of improving the way they approach things. Its amazing how this type of training also encourages me to review our own small business and give me a chance to share experiences with a group of people who are going through the same type of challenges as I am.

I do believe that its only when you’ve been there and done it and got the T shirt that you can fully understand the journey a business owner takes when setting up and

running their own business. It reminds me of when I was younger ( quite some time ago, I know ) when there wasn’t as many cars on the road. My father owned a Ford Cortina, which was quite a status symbol back then, and every time he passed another driver of a Ford Cortina he would nod as if to say, we’re in the same club!

It’s the same with small business owners, its as if by starting a business they have joined a club where each of us understands exactly what the other is going through on a day to day basis. Obviously depending on the type of business being run and the stage in the business lifecycle there will be different challenges however each individual will at some point in their business life have experienced: · Euphoria · Self doubt · Success · Failure · Challenging situations arising from everyday encounters with staff, customers, suppliers and funders · Moments of regret · Moments of extreme happiness So we’re facing two types of recruitment – we need some customers to undertake our owner manager programme in order to earn some money and we need some staff to help us deliver the programme which will cost us money. Hopefully the two will reap good rewards in attracting the right types of owner managers to make an interesting peer group and the right type of trainers to be able to provide an excellent experience for those attending the programme. Its so hard getting the right balance between professionalism and fun.

We were lucky to find Arlette who is not only good with our customers but also fits in with our team – its so important to have the right mix of people in the team and Arlette brings with her the experience of working in

a corporate environment which can bring its advantages and disadvantages.

For example, Arlette likes to do everything ’properly’ however we sometimes fly by the seat of our pants which I know isn’t perfect but its been a bit of needs must. I know its important to do things properly and I’m looking forward to working with Arlette to identify where we need to develop our systems and processes to help make us more efficient. Its really frustrating for both of us as we try to find a middle ground – I’ve always been so focused on taking advantage of opportunities and earning money that I haven’t always given a lot of thought to the legalities that come with premises and people. I’ve still got a lot to learn but Arlette is helping us through it with common sense and a lot of patience.

Oh no – just when we were gloating in our perfect new office we get a visit from a very unhappy new customer.

We had forgotten to tell her that we had changed premises and she had gone to wrong building for a meeting we had arranged with her some weeks ago. Oh dear she was not pleased and threatened to take her business elsewhere.

How could we have forgotten to tell her? Because the meeting had been arranged weeks ago and because she wasn’t an existing customer she had slipped through the net… another reason why we should review our systems and processes to ensure this kind of thing doesn’t happen again. Its so easy to create the wrong impression – it took lots of groveling and some delicious cupcakes to ease the situation and I think we are back on an even keel. Note to self – must buy ample stocks of cupcakes in case of future blunders. I’ll keep you informed as to whether we actually get the new business but it definitely seemed promising – or maybe she just liked the cakes.

Me x

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Business Productivity Review: Call for evidence Raising productivity is one of the government’s key priorities and core to the UK’s Industrial Strategy.

As part of the approach to improving the business environment, the Industrial Strategy white paper announced that the government would launch a review of the actions that could be most effective in improving the productivity and growth of small and medium-sized businesses. This review is focused on improving the productivity of businesses with lower productivity, sometimes described as a ‘long tail’ that lags behind the leading firms and underperform relative to domestic and international benchmarks.

This call for evidence will inform the review. It seeks evidence relating to firm-level factors that may impact productivity – these are decisions that are controlled by and / or taken within individual businesses.

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The review will build the government’s understanding of how firm-level interventions, by public and private sector actors, can support growth and improve productivity for the long tail of low productivity businesses. It aims to: improve our understanding of high and low productivity businesses, and the practices driving the performance of each improve our understanding of the market in which interventions operate explore which interventions by the public sector and private sector are effective in improving the practices that drive business productivity, including the ways in which information is communicated IOEE would like your views on this, go to https://beisgovuk. citizenspace.com/business-growth/business-productivityreview-call-for-evidence/consultation/intro/ and complete a short survey to ensure small businesses are heard. IOEE will also be holding a number of round table discussions, look out for further information on where and how to get involved.

THE IOEE

MONTHLY MEMBERSHIP FEE Thinking of joining the IOEE or upgrading your membership level?

You can pay monthly for your IOEE membership or you can pay annually and get two months free!

Visit http://ioee.uk/become-a-member/ to find out more about IOEE Membership and the payment options available.

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A developing Agenda for Collaboration in the Creative Industries Entrepreneurship Research The event aims to identify an agenda for the next phase of research on creative industries entrepreneurship. It aims to continue the discussion on collaboration among researchers, practitioners, entrepreneurs, and policy makers. In this event academic leaders and policy makers will share their vision, strategies and tactics for developing collaboration within the field of Creative Industries and how to navigate the challenges of carrying out meaningful, impactful and publishable research.

Who should attend This workshop is appropriate for anyone with an interest in the theory and/practice of creative industries, including: • • • • •

Academics and Researchers in creative industries and entrepreneurship, Postgraduate and doctoral students with an interest in creative industries, Entrepreneurs in Creative Industries, Practitioners and consultants engaged in creative industries, Artists with an interest in entrepreneurship.

Benefits of Attendance • Sharing research findings, and understanding the evolution of the impact of creative industries in contemporary business society • Developing and reflecting on creative industries entrepreneurship, your research and how to disseminate and publish it.

• Networking with fellow academics and developing collaborations

Birmingham City University - 15th June 2018 ISBE Members - Free Non ISBE Members - £35 For more information and to register visit: http://isbe.org.uk/cie-jun18/

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MAGAZINE May Edition Vol. 19

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