Be the Business is a government backed initiative designed to propagate and amplify business success. Their ‘North West Family Business Programme’  offers new ways for family firms around the region to collaborate, learn, share, build on their strengths and perform at their peak.

Be the Business appointed The Family Business Network as a delivery partner of the programme to help them to galvanise North West family businesses to become some of Britain’s best-run firms. To do that, the programme is piloting a range of powerful initiatives to unlock all the energy and potential held in our family SMEs. Some activities you can dip in and out of, others are more involved. All of them are designed to get family firms talking, sharing, learning and thriving.

The initiatives include business placements, open business days, peer learning opportunities, advisory boards and other Be the Business programmes.

The Advisory Boards are designed to give family businesses without a formal board structure the support of a non-executive board, made up of experienced business leaders for a period of 12 months, through four quarterly half day sessions. The Advisory Boards can be made up of leaders of other family SMEs or senior managers from larger businesses with specialisms such as finance, marketing or HR and they can offer a rich variety of objective input. Find out more information on the programme in the SME Advisory Board Flyer 

Helen Tonks, MD at Hydraulics Online, said of her programme participation: “Advisory boards are a superb opportunity to get joined-up thinking across the whole of our business over a 12-month period. Through this strategic level of support, we’ll be able to make some real changes and growth in our business.”

Lisa Smith of Ginger Bakers in Kendal said, “ This is a great opportunity to tap into the experience of some much bigger, longer established
businesses. Initially we’ve begun to focus on the marketplace and product development. I’ve also started thinking about areas like productivity and management of staff.”

We are currently recruiting for our next round of Be the Business Advisory Boards, so if you would like to take advantage of this fantastic opportunity, find out more or email [email protected] for an expression of interest form.

Equally, if you are currently in a senior role within a corporate or successful SME, having already experienced the challenges and ups of downs of leading a business and would like to challenge yourself as a leader, and gain board level experience, why not consider joining one of our Business Advisory Boards? For further information on this take a look at our Board Member Advisory Board leaflet or contact us at [email protected].