A Christmas message from Paul McEldon, Chief Executive
Taking time to reflect is important. Particularly at this time of the year when we finally get a chance to shut down our devices and spend valuable time with those closest to us.
Over the past year, we’ve witnessed a lot of change as a business community, with a new government, new mayor and new rates and regulations impacting all of us in some way.
The physical world around us, particularly here in Sunderland, has also changed dramatically. We have new bars, offices and even a world-leading film studios on the horizon. Who’d have thought it, a film studio in Pallion? Or as many are now dubbing it, ‘Palliwood’!
This is why I decided to open up this year’s message by reiterating just how important it is to take time to reflect. It’s so easy sometimes to find yourself so focused on the day-to-day that you forget to take stock of just how much you’ve achieved. And I think we’re all guilty of that from time to time.
Afterall, this was our 30th year in business (which still seems bizarre until you remember Prince was top of the pops at the time) and over the last 12 months, we’ve adapted and flexed more than perhaps any other year in our history, which proves that you’re never too old to change.
Part of this has been changing the way we approach events. We have introduced the Growth Lab concept, which brings together businesses (however small or great their ambition) to hear from expert panels and those who have ‘been there and done it.’
Bringing together over 500 businesses across Darlington and Sunderland, the events have proven a real hit. So much so, they’ve also inspired their own spin-off series, with the launch of ‘Inspire Lab’ for start-up businesses.
We have realised the real value of collaboration, too. Over the past 12 months, we have worked with partners including Sunderland City Council, North East Combined Authority, Darlington Borough Council, Gateshead Council, Business Durham and DCMS to deliver business support programmes across the North East.
We have delivered a number of projects through the many external-facing organisations which are part of the BIC group, including NBSL, Sunderland Software City and TEDCO, as well as working collaboratively with North East Enterprise Agency Limited (NEEAL), a community of enterprise organisations working across the North East, which I am proud to chair.
This new approach to partnership working has provided lots of new channels to reach the many and diverse communities we work with. By reaching out to those in what are traditionally underserved communities, we connect with even more people while also opening up a world of possibilities.
By working with organisations such as Sunderland Bangladeshi Centre, Pallion Action Group, the King’s Trust, Back on the Map and many more, we have ensured no community or demographic is left behind. And when we have noticed gaps, we’ve opened our arms to those who can help us plug them. It’s been a real collaborative effort.
Again, this was an approach we have dreamed of for some time, but this year we finally made it happen (or ‘manifested’, as I was recently told Gen Z refer to it!) Our improved and increased support for veterans is another example of this. We’ve achieved Gold in the MoD’s Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) and have provided training to our staff on how best to support those in the armed forces community.
Achieving Gold in particular was a huge honour for the team, who over recent years have really gone above and beyond to help the region’s veterans understand how the skills, experiences and leadership ability they gained while serving could be channeled into helping them become the business leaders of tomorrow.
Our fantastic teams of social enterprise advisers and experts have also been helping set up and grow co-operatives, community interest companies and community trusts across the North East. By embracing Inclusive Entrepreneurship, we have successfully adapted to the ever changing world around us to make sure that no person, organisation, or business is left behind.
Yet none of this would have been possible had we not had the incredible backing of you, the business community, who have helped ensure that our 30th year in business has been yet another year of positive change.
Over a thousand of you who have supported our new events. The hundreds of aspiring and established entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs who have set up and grown. The scores of businesses to join our ever-growing BIC community. And of course, our fantastic partners who made all of this possible.
It may have been a year of change, but when you take time to reflect, this change has also left us with plenty to be thankful for.
Together, we’ve connected more as a business community, which has driven greater collaboration and generated new commercial opportunities.
We have seen new developments rise from the ground across the region, from Riverside Sunderland to the Treasury Campus in Darlington and new office developments across Durham, Newcastle, Sunderland and Teesside.
We have demonstrated, once again, that no matter what is thrown at us as a region, the incredible resilience of us North Easteners will always see us through.
And I think we have all discovered how, when we work in partnership as opposed to in isolation, we can achieve so much more.
So, as we tie up our loose ends before shutting down and heading in to 2025, here’s to another year of connecting, collaborating and championing our fantastic region!