Businesses urged to prepare for period of growth

Fergus King, Partner of Shirlaws Group, is the keynote speaker at the first two of a brand-new series of four Dundee and Angus College events hosted by the Business Partnerships Team. The events aim to inspire and motivate business owners and leaders to take action as they embark on a new year, ensuring they are future-proof and ready to grasp new opportunities.

Historically, following an economic slump, a period of growth follows. Addressing delegates online on 25 January and 22 February 2022, Mr King will highlight the importance of them working ‘on’ rather than ‘in’ their business, allowing them to keep an open mind and maximise opportunities on the horizon. He will also explore the barriers to moving forwards and outline the steps they could take to progress, whether revenue or infrastructure-related, or cultural and behavioural change.

Mr King said, “Over the last couple of years, understandably many business owners have been stuck in their businesses, focusing on the day-to-day and survival, while others have been able to thrive

“No-one is disputing that businesses have had an extremely challenging couple of years, and there is understandably some hesitancy and caution as we embark on this new year. However, economic cycles traditionally dictate that, after any slump, whether it’s down to a drop in oil price, financial crash, a dot com crash or a pandemic, a period of growth follows. Energy may be down amongst some business leaders, but we’re rolling into a period of growth. Businesses need to ask themselves what they are doing now to prepare and maximise the opportunities.

“I often say to business owners, the model that got you to where you now are isn’t the one to take you where you want to be. What will you do differently to reach the next milestone? Is your business at the point where it can grow, or do you need to take steps to make that possible? Is the culture right for your business to grow? Yes, it’s tempting to focus on the operations of the business but it’s important to look ahead and make the most of the growth opportunities out there.”

In addition to these events, the Business Partnerships Team has teamed up with the Enterprise Team at Royal Bank of Scotland to run a series of workshops ranging from Mindset through to Sales. The first event of the series, Mindset in Business, takes place on 28 January 2022.

Caryn Gibson, Business Partnerships Manager, Dundee and Angus College said, “As a college, we firmly believe we have a role in supporting our economy to not only recover but to thrive and key to this is having an ambitious and resilient business community.

“Our focus right now is on reducing unemployment numbers across the region and closing the skills gaps that continue to emerge. To do that, we must ensure that our local businesses are supported and inspired to grow, develop and learn.

“These events, combined with our skills support provision through the Business Partnership Team, are key to achieving these goals and we are delighted to be working with partners such as Shirlaws Group and Royal Bank of Scotland as we kick off our new events programme.”

Full details of the range of support available through Dundee and Angus College are available at Business and Training.

As a partner of Shirlaws, a global community of business coaches, Fergus King is an investor, business owner, sought-after speaker and one of the most experienced business coaches in the UK. Over the last 18 years, Fergus has personally supported over 350 owner-managed businesses, helping them to be as profitable, valuable and enjoyable as possible. Addressing both commercial and cultural issues, Fergus will raise questions, share perspectives and inspire delegates to take additional action to complement what they are already working on.

To register for any of these events, visit www.eventbrite.co.uk

To contact the Business Partnerships team, email business@dundeeandangus.ac.uk or phone 01382 834874.