Cameron’s Silicon Roundabout will not be political “puff” that came to nothing. It will now become reality.
We can all see how technology is changing everything, disrupting the way we used to do things. In the past, big technology projects were often initiated by government who had the funding (those were the days!). These innovations would be picked up by large corporates who would commercialise them and, eventually, the benefits would flow down to SMEs and consumers in the form of new products and services.

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http://realbusiness.co.uk/martin_leuw/2011_adapt_plan_communicate

Yesterday’s announcement on migration caps feels like the UK government is still too bogged down in politics when the one thing everybody should be focused on is promoting economic growth. Sometimes compromise just isn’t enough.

Immigration policy is a prime example of being stuck in “political treacle”, and which is already damaging the economy, specifically private sector businesses requiring key skills to drive growth.

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Just to put this into context, the YPO (of which I am a member) is a not-for-profit global network of entrepreneurial chief executives focused on a shared mission of becoming better leaders through education and idea exchange. We have 17,000 CEO members in more than 100 countries.

Continue reading: http://realbusiness.co.uk/martin_leuw/european_ceo_confidence_on_the_rise

As the government announced the findings of its Spending Review, it was heartening to hear George Osborne address where UK growth will come from. Just the previous week, I was privileged to judge the Entrepreneur of the Year and Young Company of the Year categories for the Growing Business Awards, and much of what Osborne said truly resonated with me.

We need to back the winners and those who have the potential of becoming winners. The types of businesses which will drive the economy forward and create jobs aren’t typically large blue chip companies – it’s the “Young Ones”.

The SME businesses that we reviewed as part of the Growing Business Awards selection process had many of the attributes that should help revitalise our economy.

They’re the ones who are disrupting the old ways of doing things: they use technology innovatively, are driven by passion and vision, and create intellectual property that isn’t bound by geography. In fact, their products usually have great export potential.

Some of the businesses we judged were truly inspirational. I was particularly impressed by those that had started in the shadows of the credit crunch, and which, despite the usual obstacles, are quickly building sustainable, successful, profitable businesses in both existing and new emerging sectors (ie green energy).

But these examples are the top quartile: there are many more thousands of SMEs that, whilst not reliant on government, are being hampered by red tape. We recently ran a survey among our 60,000 SME customers and the findings – not unsurprisingly – showed that the government shouldn’t focus on what it thinks is right, but what businesses are saying is right.

More than payroll, statutory reporting, health and safety or any other area of business, the biggest source of frustration for employers is employment law. If the government is serious about reducing red tape for small businesses (particularly the very small ones), then it should start with employment law – and quickly.

Attracting foreign wealth creators is hugely beneficial to our economy, and we need to be very careful that immigration caps don’t stifle business growth. At the moment, there are simply too many signals pointing them elsewhere. They, too, have a role to play in Britain’s growth story.

A man with a very big personality, my four main breakfast takeaways from Ballmer were:

1. We are in the midst of a fundamental technological revolution resulting from the integration of PC, phone and TV technology. Ballmer showed a video of the new Xbox Kinect, which will launch pre-Christmas, where the screen can be controlled by voice and body movement. Amazing stuff. While it’s not in the workplace yet, the technology behind it is bound to be hitting offices soon.

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The brainchild of Saul Klein of Index Ventures, Skype, Glasses Direct and LoveFilm (among others), Seedcamp could be described as the X Factor competition for tech startups. An annual pan-European business competition to identify the very best entrepreneurs and help them take their businesses to the next stage, Seedcamp has attracted 2,500 applications over the past three years. More than 550 teams have been mentored and 22 investments have been made.

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Join the debate at  http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/aug/15/internet-brain-neuroscience-debate

The key point I think the article missed is that whatever role we are in, we can all benefit from mentors and coaching, as part of our personal development. I’ve been really fortunate to have had a number of people who have influenced me significantly, particularly when I was starting out. No one individual in particular – they’ve ranged from family, to bosses, to more experienced colleagues and others I’ve met who have kindly shared their experiences with me and challenged my thinking. It’s also true to say that you often learn as much from those role models you admire and want to emulate, as those you don’t  (e.g. particularly one or two whose behavior I don’t want to emulate!).

Yet, sometimes we can all forget that our personal development is something that only we are responsible for – without our drive, it just won’t happen.  I find this increasingly as I get more involved in mentoring and coaching others within IRIS, as it is something that increasingly comes up. To move your personal development forward, there are occasions when you have to search out that person or people whose “coat tails you need to hang on to” to learn new skills (e.g. by making it known you want to get involved in new projects). Believe me, if you ask, they’ll very rarely say no, but if you say nothing, there is always a danger you’ll be neglected.

A great mentor will:

1. Challenge, motivate and inspire you
2. Share their experiences, offering alternative perspectives
3. Just listen
4. Be honest with their feedback

Surely, this is something we can all benefit from? What are your views and experiences?