News: Event shows that Rotherham Means Business
Almost 500 delegates from businesses across Rotherham and South Yorkshire made their way to the main hall at Magna last week, for the borough's first enterprise event - Rotherham Means Business 2011.
Delegates were queuing out the door eager to visit the numerous exhibitors who were on hand to share their business expertise and offer help, advice and support to those who were already in business, looking to start up in business or looking to expand their business opportunities.
The packed seminar programme also proved very popular with delegates offering stimulating and thought provoking speeches on a range of business related subjects.
The keynote speaker BJ Cunningham (pictured above), a successful entrepreneur and thought leader in the field of branding provided a fantastic start to the day when he spoke with passion and humour about his varied career path and shared ideas and philosophies that have helped him along the way. Claire Young, an enterprise ambassador and finalist in the BBC's Apprentice in 2008, who has herself established a number of enterprises, shared her life lessons with the audience and provided a valuable insight into surviving business in troubled times. Delegates also went away with Claire's "Top Tips" for business.
The programme also offered a useful seminar from Liesel Whitfield, an associate solicitor at Irwin Mitchell - patrons of Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber who spoke about recent changes in employment legislation and George Elliott, a retail expert from The Source who gave a great seminar on just how vital good customer service is in business today.
Later in the day Gordon Bridge, director of leading Rotherham manufacturer, AESSEAL, lead a stimulating seminar on innovation and Peter Hoy, managing director of Dinnington-based Macalloy gave great advice on exporting into international markets.
The programme was then followed by the National Apprenticeship service who along with Claire Young spoke of the huge benefits apprentices can provide and how businesses can get involved. One of the exhibitors from the National Apprenticeship service said: "This is one of the best events we've ever been to!"
One delegate who attended the event said: "The event helped me to refocus and confirmed tasks that I need to complete. It was just what I needed to give me a boost and get my business mojo back, thank you!"
The event was developed and organised by Rotherham Enterprise Board and was sponsored by AESSEAL Ltd, UK Steel Enterprise Ltd, The Source, Rotherham Work & Skills Board, Business Link Yorkshire, and part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund.
John Wainwright, Chair of Rotherham's Enterprise Board, said: "The event really did show that Rotherham means business. To get 500 delegates is a testament to the enterprise culture that we are helping to develop in the borough and the feedback that we have received has been really positive."
The event was held in conjunction with the enormously popular annual Meet the Buyer conference, which gave attendees the opportunity to meet with a whole range of buyers from key public sector organisations that were on hand to give large and small businesses information on how to become a supplier and discuss potential opportunities.
The Meet the Buyer also ran a series of presentations and workshops to help local businesses to be in a better position to bid for public sector work. One delegate said that the difference attending the Meet the Buyer would make to their business was to "open up opportunities to tender and hopefully improve the company as a whole."
Rotherham Means Business website
Rotherham Enterprise Board website
Images: Rotherham Enterprise Board
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Delegates were queuing out the door eager to visit the numerous exhibitors who were on hand to share their business expertise and offer help, advice and support to those who were already in business, looking to start up in business or looking to expand their business opportunities.
The packed seminar programme also proved very popular with delegates offering stimulating and thought provoking speeches on a range of business related subjects.
The keynote speaker BJ Cunningham (pictured above), a successful entrepreneur and thought leader in the field of branding provided a fantastic start to the day when he spoke with passion and humour about his varied career path and shared ideas and philosophies that have helped him along the way. Claire Young, an enterprise ambassador and finalist in the BBC's Apprentice in 2008, who has herself established a number of enterprises, shared her life lessons with the audience and provided a valuable insight into surviving business in troubled times. Delegates also went away with Claire's "Top Tips" for business.
The programme also offered a useful seminar from Liesel Whitfield, an associate solicitor at Irwin Mitchell - patrons of Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber who spoke about recent changes in employment legislation and George Elliott, a retail expert from The Source who gave a great seminar on just how vital good customer service is in business today.
Later in the day Gordon Bridge, director of leading Rotherham manufacturer, AESSEAL, lead a stimulating seminar on innovation and Peter Hoy, managing director of Dinnington-based Macalloy gave great advice on exporting into international markets.
The programme was then followed by the National Apprenticeship service who along with Claire Young spoke of the huge benefits apprentices can provide and how businesses can get involved. One of the exhibitors from the National Apprenticeship service said: "This is one of the best events we've ever been to!"
One delegate who attended the event said: "The event helped me to refocus and confirmed tasks that I need to complete. It was just what I needed to give me a boost and get my business mojo back, thank you!"
The event was developed and organised by Rotherham Enterprise Board and was sponsored by AESSEAL Ltd, UK Steel Enterprise Ltd, The Source, Rotherham Work & Skills Board, Business Link Yorkshire, and part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund.
John Wainwright, Chair of Rotherham's Enterprise Board, said: "The event really did show that Rotherham means business. To get 500 delegates is a testament to the enterprise culture that we are helping to develop in the borough and the feedback that we have received has been really positive."
The event was held in conjunction with the enormously popular annual Meet the Buyer conference, which gave attendees the opportunity to meet with a whole range of buyers from key public sector organisations that were on hand to give large and small businesses information on how to become a supplier and discuss potential opportunities.
The Meet the Buyer also ran a series of presentations and workshops to help local businesses to be in a better position to bid for public sector work. One delegate said that the difference attending the Meet the Buyer would make to their business was to "open up opportunities to tender and hopefully improve the company as a whole."
Rotherham Means Business website
Rotherham Enterprise Board website
Images: Rotherham Enterprise Board
