De Montfort University appoints new Pro-Chancellor
Jenny Cross, CEO of Leicester-based marketing agency Cross Productions, has been selected as the newest Pro-Chancellor of De Montfort University Leicester (DMU).
Vice-Chancellor Professor Katie Normington wrote to Jenny just before Christmas inviting her to become a Pro-Chancellor after the local businesswoman was voted through an open nomination process by DMU staff who described her as a “distinguished friend of the university.”
Jenny will act as an ambassador and advocate for DMU, supporting its work, particularly in the business community championing entrepreneurship. She takes on the role with immediate effect joining 14 other Pro-Chancellors at DMU and will be officially welcomed as Pro-Chancellor in January’s graduations ceremonies, taking place at Curve, 23 to 26 January. DMU’s Pro-Chancellors are invited to preside over graduation ceremonies. They are the member of the platform party to whom graduands ‘doff their cap’ as they cross the stage.
Jenny, who is a Virgin Start-Up mentor and East Midlands Chamber patron, graduated from DMU herself with a PGCert in Professional Coaching and has since embedded a coaching culture at Cross Productions. Jenny became an entrepreneur in residence at DMU in 2018 and has gone on to develop a training role working on the university’s flagship Crucible start-up incubation programme supporting graduates and alumni with marketing masterclasses and business mentoring.
In 2020, she joined the Business Advisory Board of DMU’s Leicester Castle Business School, advocating for the university in the business community. She is also a guest lecturer on DMU’s marketing degree course and keynote speaker on DMU’s MBA programmes.
As well as founding Cross Productions, which publishes Niche Magazine and runs the Real Entrepreneurs’ Club, Jenny is also the founder of the Amira Forum supporting female entrepreneurship, working with Dr Glynis Wright MBE and Leanne Bonner-Cooke.
Jenny Cross, CEO of Cross Productions and DMU Pro-Chancellor, said: “This is a big deal for me and my team at Cross Productions and I’ve been so excited to share that I’m now a DMU Pro-Chancellor. I am DMU through and through having graduated there myself from the professional coaching course, which has been instrumental to the success of Cross Productions.”
Pro-Vice Chancellor at DMU, Katie Normington, said: “Jenny’s work with our business school and as a mentor for dozens of start-ups through our Crucible programme has been inspiring and we are delighted that she will become our newest Pro-Chancellor.
“Our Pro-Chancellors serve as ambassadors for the university and play a crucial role in helping DMU connect to the communities we serve in Leicester and the region. Jenny is warmly welcomed into a group of distinguished friends we are proud to call our Pro-Chancellors.”
Driving business success in the East Midlands: exploring new technological avenues
In business, staying ahead means staying updated with technological advancements. As businesses in the East Midlands, it is vital to recognise how these changes directly impact your operations and growth opportunities. Technology is not just about the latest gadgets; it is a crucial driver for efficiency, innovation, and customer satisfaction.
Whether you are running a small enterprise or a large corporation, the adoption of new tech can revolutionise the way you operate. It is about keeping pace with competitors, setting new standards and exceeding customer expectations. Your business’s ability to adapt to these technological shifts will play a pivotal role in shaping its future success in the East Midlands and beyond.
The digital transformation in the East Midlands
The digital age has revolutionised the way your business operates, offering new opportunities to streamline processes and connect with your customers. In the East Midlands, the adoption of digital technology is not just a trend; it’s become a necessity for maintaining a competitive edge. Your approach to digital transformation can redefine customer experiences, making interactions more efficient and personalised. Imagine a world where your customer service is not just reactive, but proactive, predicting customer needs before they even arise.
This digital shift also offers opportunities to optimise internal operations. Tools that analyse data in real time can inform your decision-making, ensuring that your business stays ahead of market trends. It is about creating an ecosystem where every part of your business communicates seamlessly, reducing operational costs and improving productivity.
The digital landscape opens up new channels for marketing and sales. Your ability to engage customers online, through tailored content and interactive platforms, can elevate your brand’s presence and drive growth. As East Midlands businesses continue to explore these new technological avenues, the focus is on how digital tools can enhance both customer engagement and operational efficiency. This is not just an era of technological adoption, it is an era of digital integration; shaping the future of your business.
Boosting logistical efficiency and reducing carbon footprint
In the world of logistics and transportation, staying ahead means optimising every aspect of your operations. GPS fleet management is a key area where technology is making a significant difference. Advanced GPS fleet tracking systems are now a cornerstone for businesses, helping to achieve logistical efficiencies that were once out of reach.
Imagine having the ability to track your fleet in real-time, gaining insights into vehicle locations, routes, and driver behaviour. This level of oversight enables your business to make informed decisions that streamline routes, reduce idle times, and improve overall fleet efficiency. The benefits extend beyond mere operational improvements; they contribute significantly to reducing your carbon footprint. By optimising routes, you not only save on fuel costs but also contribute to a greener environment, a concern that resonates deeply across the East Midlands and beyond.
Incorporating GPS fleet tracking into your business model doesn’t just enhance operational efficiency. It represents a commitment to sustainability and responsible business practices. Tools like these become invaluable as we continue to seek ways to reduce environmental impact. Consider exploring options here for more insights on how GPS fleet tracking systems can benefit your business.
Sustainable technology practices for businesses
Your business in the East Midlands has the power to make a real difference in the community by adopting sustainable technology practices. This commitment goes beyond just following trends. It is about making impactful decisions that benefit your business and the environment. By incorporating eco-friendly technologies, you are not just reducing your carbon footprint but also setting a standard for others to follow.
Consider how renewable energy sources can be integrated into your operations. Solar panels or wind turbines, for example, can significantly reduce reliance on non-renewable energy, cutting costs and emissions. Moreover, adopting green practices can enhance your brand’s reputation among environmentally conscious consumers.
Sustainability also means efficient use of resources. Technologies that promote recycling and reduce waste contribute to a healthier environment and can also lead to cost savings. Your efforts in sustainable practices are good for the planet; they resonate with your customers and the wider community. By showing that your business cares about its environmental impact, you create a positive image that attracts like-minded clients and partners. As businesses across the East Midlands move towards greener solutions, your role in this shift can make a lasting impact.
Your journey through digital transformation is not just about adopting new technologies. From enhancing operational efficiency to embracing sustainable practices, each step you take towards technological integration speaks volumes about your commitment to progress and responsibility.
This path sets your business apart and contributes positively to the wider community. Your efforts to stay ahead in this technologically driven market will define the future success of your business in the vibrant and dynamic East Midlands business landscape.
CEO “pleased” with 2023 trading at Team17
Team17 Group’s new CEO is “pleased” with how 2023 trading closed, finishing the year with positive momentum across the games label’s portfolio.
In a trading update for the twelve months ended 31 December 2023, the business, with offices in Nottingham, Manchester, and Wakefield, noted that all parts of the Group performed well over the key Black Friday and festive trading periods.
As a result, management continues to expect FY 2023 adjusted EBITDA to be at least £28.5m.
Steve Bell, CEO of Team17, said: “Having joined the business in September 2023, I am delighted to now formally take over as Group CEO, having spent the last four months fully immersing myself across the Group, with our people, portfolio of games and developers.
“I am pleased with how FY 2023 trading closed, finishing the year with positive momentum across the portfolio. I am extremely excited about the prospects for the Group in 2024 and beyond.”
Weak USA performance drives revenue dip at Dr. Martens
Third quarter revenue has declined by 18% at Dr. Martens, the Northamptonshire footwear brand, according to a trading statement for the three months ended 31 December 2023.
In line with expectations, this was driven by a weak USA performance. Dr. Martens said: “Given the weak consumer backdrop, the performance of our Americas business was challenging, as expected. We recorded a double-digit decline in DTC revenue, with softer ecommerce and low footfall. Wholesale revenues broadly halved year-on-year as continued caution from wholesale customers resulted in a weak order book.”
Americas revenue was down 31% reported, or 26% constant currency, however the business said that “the new Americas leadership team continue to take action, particularly in marketing execution and ecommerce trading capabilities, to drive revenue and grow the brand.”
Kenny Wilson, Chief Executive Officer, added: “Our Q3 performance is in line with the updated full year guidance provided in November. Q3 DTC revenue declined by 3% (constant currency, “CC”) and wholesale was down 46% CC, resulting in Group revenue down 18% CC. This was driven by a weak USA performance, as expected.
“Trading in the quarter was volatile and we saw a softer December in line with trends across the industry. Whilst the consumer environment remains challenging, we are taking action to continue to grow our iconic brand and invest in our business. We remain confident in our product pipeline for AW24 and beyond.”
2024 Business Predictions: Adam Gilbert of AG Corporate Law
It’s that time of year, when Business Link Magazine invites the region’s business leaders to offer up their predictions for the year ahead.
It has become something of a tradition, given that we’ve been doing this now for over 30 years.
Here we speak to Adam Gilbert of AG Corporate Law.
Clients that we speak to continue to report increased cost pressures and supply chain issues regardless of sector. They do however remain quietly optimistic.
Whilst inflation has eased from the highs we saw in the early part of last year, suppliers continue to try and pass on higher costs which ultimately results in either reduced profits or those costs being passed to the end customer. With the current issues regarding shipping in the Red Sea, my clients that rely on products and/or raw materials from the Far East look set to continue to experience those challenges throughout 2024.
Despite the above and the habit of many commentators to focus on the “doom and gloom,” with a tendency to almost talk the market and economy into a self-fulfilling prophecy, M&A activity remains strong in the East Midlands and more widely. Much of the negativity in 2023 about the state of the economy did not play out.
Retirement sales dominate our workload at AG Corporate Law, and we continue to see management teams stepping up and agreeing deals to take businesses forward. I don’t see this changing in 2024. The needs of a seller to “get out” present opportunities for those management teams or competitors and which tend to outweigh other factors or timing issues.
I continue to see price expectations (on both buy and sell sides) cooling and resetting to more sensible levels but ultimately good businesses will always sell regardless of the market.
2024 Business Predictions: Jason Hercock, Andrew McFarlane Holt and Trevor Wells, Wells McFarlane’s Directors
It’s that time of year, when Business Link Magazine invites the region’s business leaders to offer up their predictions for the year ahead.
It has become something of a tradition, given that we’ve been doing this now for over 30 years.
Here we speak to Wells McFarlane’s Directors: Jason Hercock, Andrew McFarlane Holt, and Trevor Wells.
Offices – Jason Hercock
I expect the office market to get progressively better in 2024. The gradual take-up of stock is likely to continue as interest rates stabilise, especially as most businesses now seem to have recalibrated their working practices post-Covid and identified long-term requirements. Offices in popular locations such as market towns and semi-rural business parks are the most desirable, and this is where most activity is happening. Well-advised landlords, with properties that are modern, energy efficient, well-connected and with somewhere to park, are capturing tenants and this is where the market has migrated. Those with draughty, cellular layouts and low EPC ratings will stagnate if not upgraded so we’re advising landlords of these properties to seek urgent advice from your agent about how best to market.
Industrial – Andrew McFarlane Holt
There is a significant supply/demand imbalance that I don’t see correcting itself quickly in 2024. Smaller industrial units are highly sought after; for every unit we have available at this end of the market we could probably let multiple times over. Unfortunately speculative development isn’t the answer alone. The sector needs urgent local or government intervention to free up the planning process to facilitate further development in this sector and the wider commercial property market.
Land, Planning & Development – Trevor Wells
One of the main considerations for 2024 is the mandatory requirement that from January, all new housing, commercial and infrastructure developments are required to deliver 10% Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG), resulting in more or better quality natural habitats than pre-development. These must also be maintained for at least 30 years. Now, not all BNG gains will be able to be made on-site, so there are options for developers to buy off-site units or credits to compile the 10%. Through our sister company, The Habitat Bank, we’re working with landowners and developers to facilitate this process and expect this to be a major shift in how development is planned and delivered.
With farming incomes suffering from the loss of BPS payments, and the introduction of delinked payments at a reducing rate, opportunities for landowners to use suitable land as a Habitat Bank site may offer much-needed additional revenue. We hope that government guidance on Agricultural Property Relief and general taxation for Habitat Bank sites will be positive so landowners can plan ahead. It looks to be an interesting time!
Administrators appointed to construction company
Tim Bateson and Ryan Grant from Interpath Advisory have been appointed Joint Administrators of Enrok Construction Limited.
The company is a family-run business specialising in the design, build and project management of residential and commercial developments. Its has offices in the East and West Midlands.
Over recent months, the company has faced several challenges including the insolvency of a key supplier along with delays to key contracts that has led to increasing cashflow pressure. In view of this, the directors concluded that insolvency was unavoidable and as such, took the decision to seek the appointment of administrators.
With the company no longer able to trade, the joint administrators made seven of the eight company employees redundant immediately following their appointment.
Tim Bateson, director at Interpath Advisory and joint administrator, said: “The building and construction sector continues to face a number of headwinds, including persistent cost inflation and material shortages which have had the effect of eroding the thin margins that are so often seen in competitive fixed price contracts.”
He continued: “Our intention is to assist the employees that have unfortunately been made redundant whilst we seek to realise the assets of the company, including exploring any interest in the company’s live contracts.”
Manufacturers cut back investment as output and orders weaken
Sentiment within the manufacturing sector stagnated in the three months to January, as output volumes fell unexpectedly, according to the CBI’s latest quarterly Industrial Trends Survey.
Output is expected to rise slightly in the three months ahead, but the share of firms citing weak orders or sales as a constraint on production rose to its highest in three years, with total new orders falling at their fastest pace since July 2020.
Growth in average costs accelerated in the quarter to January, putting pressure on margins. The pace of growth in domestic selling price inflation was unchanged, but export selling prices rose over the quarter.
Investment in tangible assets (buildings, machinery, equipment) is expected to fall sharply in the year ahead, with investment in innovation also expected to weaken. However, manufacturers expect to increase spending on training & retraining amid lingering concerns over shortages of labour.
The survey, based on the responses of 246 manufacturing firms, found:
- Output volumes fell in the quarter to January, after being unchanged in December (balance of -10% from 0% in the three months to December). Firms expect volumes to rise marginally in the next three months (+7%).
- Total new orders fell at their fastest pace since July 2020 (balance of -13% from +2% in October) and manufacturers expect orders to remain unchanged over the next three months (-1%).
- Growth in average costs per unit of output accelerated in the quarter to January, with the pace of costs growth standing well above average (balance of +43%, from +29% in October, long run average of +18%). Cost growth is expected to remain elevated in the quarter to April (+43%).
- Domestic selling prices were reported as broadly stable over the three months to January (balance of +2%, from +5% in October), the weakest balance in over three years and matching the long-term average. Export price inflation accelerated from October (+14%, from +10%) and stands above the long-term average (-4%). Domestic price growth is expected to pick up in the next three months (+9%), while export price growth is expected to ease (+6%).
- Investment intentions for the year ahead were mixed. Manufacturers expect to raise spending on training & retraining (+6% from +5% in October). Investment in product & process innovation is expected to fall (-5%, from +6%, the weakest since the quarter to January 2021). Investment in tangibles is expected to fall rapidly, including buildings (-29% from -31%) and plant & machinery (-15% from -11%, also the weakest since January 2021).
- The main constraint on investment was uncertainty about demand (cited by 58% of manufacturers, the highest since January 2021). Other factors include: inadequate net return (40%, the highest since July 2020); the cost of finance (22%, the highest since January 1991 – excluding the pandemic period) and labour shortages (20%, down from a record 37% two years earlier – excluding the pandemic period – but still above the long-term average of 11%).
The Access Group makes appointments to lead on customer experience, people and sustainability
Loughborough’s The Access Group, providers of business management software for small and mid-sized organisations, has made three new senior hires.
Caroline Fanning has been announced as chief employee success officer, replacing Claire Scott who has retired from the business after more than six years leading the people function.
Before joining The Access Group, Caroline was chief people officer at Avanade, where she delivered a successful growth-orientated people strategy to support the company’s expansion, elevating employee experiences to attract, develop, reward and retain skilled talent.
Caroline joined Avanade in 2016 as Europe HR lead. In 2018, she assumed responsibility for global business HR, working with teams on initiatives such as using predictive analytics to manage attrition, organisational effectiveness and developing a consistent employee experience.
Mark Billingham has been appointed as chief customer experience officer. Mark previously held the position of managing director for Capita Experience UK where he looked after Capita UK’s portfolio of customers focused on CX transformation and providing positive outcomes for major blue-chip companies across multiple industries.
A six-month stint as interim CEO saw him successfully support the restructuring of the business and drive growth.
Mark’s previous roles include executive leadership roles at retailer Very, British Gas and Vodafone.
While he was CX leader at Very, it was recognised as industry leading, culminating in being recognised as “Best in Europe” at the European Customer Service Awards in 2021.
Leading on delivering The Access Group’s sustainability agenda, Carla Matthews joins in a newly created role as director of sustainability. Carla has more than 15 years of experience in leading change and embedding sustainability into core operations across technology, professional services and manufacturing sectors.
Working across various countries, she has helped firms identify opportunities and mitigate risks, improve cost-cutting programmes and influence buy-ins across multidisciplinary global teams.
She most recently worked at RWS Holdings plc where she led a three-year framework with four ESG pillars. The strategy included setting up a system to capture carbon emissions data and a carbon reduction plan in line with science-based targets, and client and investor expectations.
Welcoming all three new leaders to the business, The Access Group CEO Chris Bayne said: “These new hires each bring with them an impressive array of experience and track record of success that will be pivotal in supporting our teams as they continue to develop as we grow.
“We are committed to employee wellbeing, exceptional customer experience and sustainable practices across The Access Group. I am confident that Caroline, Mark and Carla will each play a vital role in delivering this as we start the new year.”
Over £475,000 set to be invested in Burbage and local area as part of new homes development
Davidsons Homes is set to invest over £475,000 to enhance the community facilities in Burbage and the surrounding area, as part of its new Sunloch Meadows development off Lutterworth Road.
As well as a whole host of improvements planned for healthcare and education provisions, the Leicestershire-based housebuilder has also pledged to retain sections of the ‘ridge and furrow’ earthworks – archaeological remnants of medieval ploughing – and to provide most of the 135 homes with charging points for electric vehicles.
Not only that, but Sunloch Meadows will also include a play area, footpaths and areas of green open space for the whole community to enjoy.
Simon Tyler, Sales Director for Davidsons South, said: “As part of our planning process, we were very keen to create homes in Burbage that will not only fit into their local surroundings, but will enhance them.
“With Georgian and Victorian-style homes being built, lovely areas of green open space for families to stroll through, a play area for children to enjoy and plenty of footpaths to walk the dog along, this development is going to offer a wonderful mixture of countryside and village living.
“Protecting the ‘ridge and furrow’ earthworks also constitutes a key part of our plans – we very much want to preserve links to the past and Burbage’s rich heritage.
“Alongside that, we are investing over £475,000 in the local area as part of our S106 obligations, which will improve facilities not just for our homebuyers, but the whole community.”
Over £84,000 is set to be paid to Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council for an offsite area of open space, offering people even more places to enjoy walking and spending time in the fresh air, with another £74,000 to be paid to maintain that space.
Local healthcare facilities will be boosted by over £83,500 and over £93,000 will be invested into education. Nearly £5,000 will be given to support the local library and £118,000 will be spent on travel packs, lessening the burden on nearby roads and encouraging the use of public transport.
