SME in Brief: Managers get chance to improve leadership skills; Plastics firm launches awards scheme and more

A BUSINESS growth consultancy that teaches leadership development skills to SME owners is recruiting new members to its 2010 programme.

Yorkshire Business Growth Group (YBGG) provides marketing and business strategies to companies looking to increase sales and revenue.

YBGG is the brainchild of Harrogate-based business owners Denis Kaye and Greg Tunesi who specialise in leadership development and sales skills.

Eligible SME leaders can secure government grants of up to £1,000 towards the programme.

Mr Kaye said. “There are huge opportunities for local SMEs during a recession but, after cash flow, the most important thing is to be able to sell effectively.”

Member Mark Plummer, of Harrogate-based Platinum Print, said: “As a production director developing wider senior management responsibility I have benefited enormously from gaining an understanding of the sales process and the techniques required to adopt that process profitably.

“It is great to be able to share the learning with a group of senior people from different business backgrounds.”

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A PLASTICS specialist has launched a new awards scheme to celebrate the talents of designers, engineers and technology students at university.

Leeds-based Barkston Plastics has set up the Innovations in Plastic Awards, which are open to universities throughout the UK who wish to enter products made entirely from plastic.

The competition will be judged by representatives of Barkston and the wider manufacturing industry.

Items entered into the awards scheme can be stand alone products or parts of products and can be functional or simply aesthetic. They can also be new inventions or improved versions of existing products.

The winner will be see their product being manufactured and marketed through Barkston’s website.

Tim Kiernan, managing director of Barkston, said: “The idea behind the awards scheme is not only to recognise that we have a wealth of talent coming from our universities but also to celebrate the versatility of plastic.

“Many products that have been traditionally manufactured out of alternative materials are rapidly moving into production in plastic and this is great news for our industry and the future of British manufacturing.”

The scheme will also assist Barkston in fulfilling its pledge to develop 40 new consumer products during 2009-10, the company’s 40th year of trading.

Initial applications for the awards should be made online by February 1 and the final deadline is May 1. Judging will take place in June.

To enter visit www.barkstonltd.co.uk.

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 MORE companies need to invest in training managers, according to Yorkshire-based people and organisational development company Primeast.

That was the message from Clive Wilson, deputy chairman the Harrogate-based firm, at a landmark discussion at the launch of Chartered Management Institute’s (CMI) manifesto for a Better Managed Britain event in Parliament.

The session focused on how political parties should address the need to improve management and leadership across the UK.

Private sector organisations are being advised to maximise slack periods during the recession to better equip managers for the future and is lobbying the Government to lead by example in the public sector.

Mr Wilson said: “I am strong advocate of training and development, especially of managers. A well trained manager has the skills to tap into the talent of their people.

“Such initiatives directly impact on the bottom line of a company, bringing a tangible return on investment. Faced as we are with such a severe economic downtown, investing in developing the skills of managers is vital.”