Case Studies
Business Training
Now I Can Put Theory into Practice
"Even though I only became employed by British Turntable three years ago, I feel as if I have been involved in the business my whole life. My father founded British Turntable nearly 50 years ago, but when he retired in April and I became Managing Director, it became evident that the business needed to revisit its strategy to match my vision of the future.
In my MBA I learned many tools and theories of management, but working for someone else I didn't always have the opportunity to apply them all. With the support of our Business Adviser from Business Support Solutions we identified that it was more than appropriate for me to attend the Director Development programme. I attended all five workshops where not only did I develop key skills to take back to my business, I was also able to meet with like-minded business leaders from across the North West. As a result, the programme has helped me to build on my existing knowledge and experience while allowing me to clearly define the priority path.
The Director Development Programme has given me the confidence to take on my new role as Managing Director with vigour. It has given me the tools to stand back from the daily operations side of the business and focus on my vision and the company's strategy."
Tim Entwistle, Managing Director
British Turntable Co Ltd, Bolton: movement technology across commerce and industry
www.turntable.co.uk
Business Improvement
We Can Compete with the Multinationals
"To grow our business, we wanted to expand our customer base. The electrical and mechanical repair industry is buoyant at the moment, because companies are repairing rather than renewing capital equipment.
We contacted Business Support Solutions and our Business Adviser came for a meeting to discuss our company issues in depth. With his help, we identified a way forward and he identified, sourced and managed a marketing specialist for us.
We wanted to see what our existing customers thought about us. Our marketing specialist contacted 20 of our existing customers to gauge their perception of us as a business.
We are a small business - me plus an army of six engineers - but our customers perceived us on a par with many of our larger multinational competitors, particularly in terms of service quality. They spoke highly of our engineers, and some said we were the only company that was truly 24 hours.
We were totally surprised. Now we have the confidence to go out there and compete with larger repairers. We are revamping all our marketing materials to look more professional. In time, this will help us to grow and take on more people.
Our next goal is to train up our team in skill areas where there is a shortage, so we can offer a better service."
Cheryl Lockley, Sales Director, DSL Engineering Solutions