Help to Grow

• eight facilitated online 2-hour sessions
• four practical and interactive case study workshops
• one-to-one support from a mentor, providing you with personalised support to develop your business growth plan
• peer networking, including peer group calls that give you the opportunity to share experiences with a small group of other small business leaders
• access to the Alumni Programme featuring events with inspirational speakers, business clinics and networking events.

The programme offers 50 hours of support over 12 weeks. It is intended to be manageable alongside full time work. Participants must be able to attend all sessions.

The programme will cover key areas of leadership including:

• strategy and innovation
• growing national and international markets
• leading for high performance
• building vision and brand
• engaging and inspiring teams
• creating customer value
• adopting digital technology
• adopting responsible business practices
• financial management.

The programme cover key areas of leadership and is delivered in 4 parts, each with 3 modules. Each part has two facilitated online 2-hour sessions followed by a face-to-face practical and interactive case study workshop.

Part 1 - Strategies for Growth and Innovation 

This focuses on what your business does and how you want it to develop in the future. We look at your business’s strengths and core capabilities, your opportunities, and your current and potential markets, and how innovation, digital adoption and new market penetration can be key drivers of productivity and growth.

• Module 1: Strategy and Innovation
• Module 2: Digital Adoption
• Module 3: Internationalisation and Winning New Markets

Part 2 - Engaging with Customers 

We focus on why you do what you do, how you connect with your customers and how you effectively convey your values and purpose in your brand. We look at building demand, segmenting your markets, and achieving a targeted and strategic approach to marketing.

• Module 4: Vision, Mission and Values 
• Module 5: Developing a Marketing Strategy
• Module 6: Building a Brand Case Study

Part 3 - Building a Sustainable and Agile Business 

This part focuses on creating a suitable organisational structure to deliver your goals, and adopting good practice in the leadership and management of teams. We look at leading people through change and supporting the wellbeing of staff, as well as developing your people and introducing agile ways of working.

• Module 7: Organisational Design
• Module 8: Employee Engagement and Leading Change 
• Module 9: High Performance Workplace Case Study

Part 4 - Operations and Financial Strategies 

We focus on what happens in the business to create outputs, how you monitor progress and use information to inform decision-making. We look at a strategic approach to operations, financial management and options to f inance growth, and how everything comes together in the implementation of your Growth Action Plan.

• Module 10: Efficient Operations 
• Module 11: Finance and Financial Management
• Module 12: Implementing Growth Plans Case Study

Business eligibility

• UK businesses from any sector that have been operating for more than one year and have between 5 to 249 employees are eligible
• charities are not eligible.

Applicant eligibility

• you must be a decision maker or member of the senior management team within the business, such as Chief Executive, Finance Director, Operations Director etc
• you must commit to completing all sessions.

The programme is 90% funded by the Government. The fee payable by participants is £750.

Julie Cook. Julie teaches on a range of business and management programmes in Brookes. She also provides consultancy services in relation to people and change matters; business transformation and new ways of working especially in relation to using global communications.

Dr Surja Datta. Surja’s research interests include innovation, and creativity. His current research is focused on understanding and explaining the 'creative milieu' phenomenon and his most recent book explores how firms attain achieve competitive advantage in a fast-changing business landscape.

Dr Paul Jackson. Paul’s areas of expertise include digital strategy and leadership, e-Business, information systems and systems thinking, with a particular focus on the management of innovation involving AI and machine learning. Paul has previously worked as a consultant to national e-Government projects.

Dr Kate Ringham. Kate is a Chartered Accountant with a consultancy and academic specialism in Corporate Social Responsibility in addition to financial and non-financial reporting. Kate is the academic lead for the Help to Grow programme.

Jeff Stewart. Jeff is an experienced academic and marketing practitioner, specialising in digital and social media marketing, analytics and product marketing.

Prof Tim Vorley. Tim’s research and publications are predominantly in the fields of entrepreneurship, enterprise and regional economic development. He works extensively with a number of central government departments and agencies, as well as with Local Enterprise Partnerships and local government bodies.

Dr Nick Wilton. Nick is an experienced consulting academic, working and publishing widely around the themes of labour markets, employability, and career decision-making. Clients have included TUC Commission on Vulnerable Employment, Department for Education and Skills and European Social Fund.

Nick Wake. Nick is a Chartered Marketer, lecturer and facilitator. His 25 year's plus of experience covers a variety of contexts including FTSE top 100 client side and international business services. He works with SMEs to solve their temporary marketing leadership challenges and provide creative marketing services.

Dr Karla Zimpel-Leal. Karla is an experienced practitioner, academic and facilitator. Her research interests are multidisciplinary and include disruptive care models, healthy ageing, business model innovation and knowledge transfer.