Forward eBulletin - May 2010

On the same day we welcomed our new Chairman, Graham Nicoll of Barclays Wealth who brings a new level of enthusiasm and commitment to the role and shares my passion to capitalise on our success without becoming complacent as to the challenges faced by our members. Graham has been joined by Jackie Hendley of KPMG as Deputy Chair and together they create a strong alliance at the top of our Board.

As another year passes we would like to pay tribute to our outgoing Chairman, Sue Lewis of Eversheds who, during a busy year, really helped to get us back on the international scene both though a series of trade missions to New Delhi, Bahrain and Chicago and thorough her support for our developing Ambassadors programme.

The AGM also saw some directors step down either as a result of having served their maximum term or because of other business circumstances. We express deep gratitude to Christine Braddock, Richard Edwards and Martyn Finnigan for their diverse but extremely valuable inputs.

Since the AGM our colleague Callum Girvan has also resigned as he finds himself no longer working or living in Birmingham. The work of our voluntary directors should not be underestimated, without them and their generous time commitment we would not be able to function. Thank you all.

We have finally found the name for our AWM Hub project – West Midlands Knowledge. The project is now gathering momentum and we have held our first event and launched our website.

We are finalising the core areas of activity and will shortly be holding a series of sub regional events to explain more clearly how your firm can engage and benefit. For now you might want to look at the website to get a better understanding of the opportunities – www.wmknowledge.co.uk

Over 170 business leaders of the past, present and future attended a recent lunch to celebrate 20 years of the city’s most prominent business and professional services organisation, Birmingham Forward.

The celebratory lunch, held at the city’s council house, took a retrospective look at the organisation’s achievements over the last 20 years with a keynote speech from Sir David Bell, chairman of national charity Crisis.  Newly appointed chair Graham Nicoll set out his theme for the year which is ‘collaboration’ both within Birmingham Forward and the local and international community.

Sir David Bell, speaking on behalf of Crisis said: “it’s phenomenal how much Birmingham has changed over the last 20 years.   But then who could have predicted how technological change would have impacted on our business relationships and the pace of change.  The economic axis is shifting east. 

“In the next 20 years in the Middle East alone, we need to make 60 million jobs for all those who have been born.  What keeps me awake at night is the risk of a two speed society where the poor are looking through the gates at the rich.  Chamberlain wanted Birmingham to be the best-governed city in the UK.  I suggest education is the key – it will either be our secret weapon or our undoing and it is a great start that there are so many good universities around Birmingham.”

Photo: 20th Anniversary Lunch at Birmingham City Council 

Work Inspiration (www.workinspiration.com) spearheaded by Business in the Community and chaired by Sir Stuart Rose is a national business-led campaign for employers of all sizes in all sectors across the UK to provide better quality and more inspiring work experience for young people.

Compelling research has revealed that work experience can be pivotal to young people's future aspirations. In a study from the b-live Foundation, almost two thirds of all teachers said that the strongest tangible benefits to students come from work experience. Second, but a long way behind, are open days and enterprise initiatives at 7%. This matched the opinion of employers – when asked what would make a candidate most employable, 73% cited relevant work experience followed by work placements at 51%.

To this end a launch event took place on 15th September 2009.  The event  - the Big Conversation - marked the start of a business-led movement of employers across the UK pledging more and better work placements.  100 chief executives, representing most of the FTSE 100, met with 100 young people.  They pledged to improve dramatically the work experience their companies offer young people every year.

The Big Conversation, an invitation only event is now coming to the West Midlands and will be held on 24th May 2010 at the ICC in Birmingham.  Over sixty one chief executives of West Midlands top companies (e.g. Advantage West Midlands, PWC, NEC Group, Lloyds Banking Group and BT) are to meet 100 young people in one-to-one conversations to hear what they want from work experience and to understand how they can improve what they offer.

Birmingham Forward and Future members have cited passion, commitment and a willingness to get things done as the top three most desirable traits in a BYPY winner, according to our latest membership survey.

The questionnaire was sent to every member of both organisations to gauge opinion on leadership in the city and this year’s Birmingham Young Professional of the Year awards later this month.

Both junior and senior professionals alike felt that mentoring should be a top priority for business and professional services leaders in Birmingham, with corporate social responsibility and ambition not far behind.

Half of the Birmingham Forward respondents quoted strategic thinking and enthusiasm as the most admirable traits in business leaders, while over 50 percent of Birmingham Future members felt that dedication was the most important quality in leadership.

Entrants to this month’s survey went into a prize draw to win one of three £75 meals for two at Birmingham’s Jamhouse – congratulations go to Jenifer Reynolds of Cyril Sweett, Madeleine Edge of the Oval Group and Oliver Martin at Key Personnel.

Tickets for BYPY are still available after working with the ICC to extend capacity. Get in touch with Claire Hawkins, Claire@birminghamforward.co.uk, to order your ticket.

At this year's Birmingham Young Professional of the Year (BYPY) we are proud to once again be raising funds for The Birmingham Future Foundation. This charitable trust, established two years’ ago, is our way of giving back to the Birmingham community. Last year, over £4,000 was raised at the BYPY awards for the Birmingham Future Foundation.  With your help we hope to smash that target this year.

These funds go to support education, employment and training projects in our city.  The most recent recipient of funds was the Birmingham Victory Youth Centre which received a grant of £3,500 from the Foundation to support the development of mentoring and training projects within the Mentor-IT Academy.

In order to win one of the fantastic prizes,  put a donation (minimum £10) into the envelope provided on your table at BYPY.  Seal the envelope and write your name and contact details on the front.  The envelopes will be collected during dinner and prize winners announced later in the evening.

For a full list of the prizes, have a look at the website.

We were delighted that The Redbox Group offered to demonstrate their commitment and support as the UK’s leading multi-platform video provider with their coverage of our 20th anniversary Luncheon (www.birminghamforward.co.uk). 

With luxury high-definition studios in Birmingham, Manchester and London, a wealth of major associations and a reputable seven-year trading history, the Redbox Group can help your business to thrive through digital and multimedia marketing.  For more information why not look at their website: www.redboxlimited.com.

Birmingham City University, an established Birmingham Forward patron, has organised a series of dedicated postgraduate open evenings, at venues across Birmingham, to offer prospective students the opportunity to find out more about its extensive range of courses - and with more than one hundred postgraduate and professional development programmes to choose from, there will definitely be something to suit all interests.

Taking place on 25th, 26th and 27th May 2010, the open evenings will cover a range of subjects from Construction to Media and provide visitors with an opportunity to meet key members of our postgraduate academic team, on an informal basis, were you will be able to ask all of those pressing questions, direct to the people who could be teaching your preferred course.

Birmingham City University is developing a unique reputation for its cutting edge and high quality postgraduate level learning experience.  Recognised in the RAE-2008 as a ‘rising star’ university, it combines excellence in research and teaching.

Last year the University was awarded a 107 per cent increase in research funding which was directly related to the excellent quality of work undertaken at the University, much of it world class. This was one of the largest increases in funding across the sector.

Log on to www.bcu.ac.uk/pgevents to register and discover which subjects are available, along with the specific event times and locations. Find out more about the University’s impressive portfolio of business services by visiting www.bcu.ac.uk/business.

Two innovative decades, one inspirational venue

On the 16th of July 2010 Hyatt Regency Birmingham celebrates its 20th anniversary in the West Midlands.  The hotel currently employs over 300 employees from 33 different countries, who speak over 25 languages.  The diversity and mix of cultures and personalities are what differentiate the hotel from many of its competitors, along with the employees’ aspiration to exceed every guest’s expectations and ensure superior customer service. 

To celebrate this milestone anniversary, the hotel is focusing its efforts on giving back to the local community, supporting local charities and thanking the people who have made Hyatt the iconic hotel that it is today.

To kick-start the celebrations, on Thursday ,1  July 2010, the hotel will host a charity ball in aid of the Edwards Trust, a local charity that supports bereaved families after the loss of a young family member. The hotel will donate all proceeds to the trust and hopes to raise over £6000.

In July and August, the hotel will turn back time and reduce room rates to match our original opening rates in 1990, offering  over 1220 rooms at just £20 per person for room only, based on two people sharing.  

Other promotions include, special 1990’s spa treatments, the waiver of the gym joining fee in July and August, and a 20 minute rapide two-course lunch for two priced from £20.

For more information, interviews, photo shoots or to get involved with our celebrations, please contact Joanne Brain, the hotels director of Sales and marketing on +44 (0) 121 643 1234 or e-Mail Joanne.brain@hyatt.com

Birmingham Forward is delighted to welcome the following new members:

Buro Four - Buro Four was established in 1985 by four founding directors who still remain active within the company. The company has grown organically and steadily to a compliment of over 120 staff by 2009 with a low staff turnover.

Buro Four's core service is project management and they have developed a complementary suite of services including programme management, design project management, strategic workplace solutions, change management and legal support. The Buro Four client base has always been strong with a range of best-of-brand names and significant levels of repeat orders.

Handelsbanken - Handelsbanken is a universal bank, in other words the Bank provides services in the whole banking area.

Founded in 1871, Handelsbanken is one of Sweden's leading banks with over 700 branches in 22 countries, and more than 10,000 employees. Handelsbanken commenced operations in Great Britain in 1982 and manages a decentralised network of over 70 branches across the country.

Thursday May 27th - Birmingham Young Professional of the Year (BYPY) 2010 at the ICC: Birmingham Young Professional of the Year (BYPY) is Birmingham Future’s flagship awards ceremony. This year is BYPY’s 10th anniversary and as a result tickets for this glitzy annual event are even more in demand than usual.

It is set to take place at the ICC on Thursday 27th May and promises to be the most spectacular BYPY to date. Guests will enjoy a three-course dinner as well as some special entertainment to mark the 10th anniversary. We are delighted to have The Cube as our main sponsor to assist with the celebrations.

Monday June 14th - Annual Roger Dickens Lecture at the ICC: Please join us on Monday 14th June 2010 at the ICC for this prestigious annual event. This year we welcome Sir Nigel Rudd as speaker who will provide us with his unique insight into the financial markets.

As Chairman of BAA, former Chairman of Boots, Pilkington and Deputy Chairman of Barclay’s Group, Sir Nigel Rudd will provide a real city insight to the challenges facing business internationally and an inside view on the turmoil of the financial markets over the past 2 years.