Entrepreneur sees business and education partnership vision
A VISION of business and education working closely together to accelerate the economic success of the region has been outlined by a leading entrepreneur.
Amjad Pervez, founder of Yorkshire-based food group Seafresh, a member of the Leeds City Region LEP and president of the Yorkshire Asian Business Association launched the Eco-systems of Enterprise idea at an event at the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre at the University of Huddersfield yesterday.
The vision involves working at all stages of education and phases of business – from idea generation and testing, incubation, start-up and growth.
Pervez said: “The key purpose of this ideology, which will be delivered through the LCR Education Task Group, is to encourage risk taking and creative thought and to allow young people to come up with quirky solutions to problems. That is what entrepreneurship is all about. It about giving a license to take risks.”
Eco-systems of Enterprise has been supported by partners such as Microsoft, Barclays, DLA Piper, PwC, Grant Thornton and Irwin Mitchell, providing private sector commitment to the vision.
Professor Bob Cryan, vice chancellor of the University of Huddersfield, introduced Pervez, who took part in a panel discussion with Clare Barclay of Microsoft, Professor Liz Towns Andrews, CEO of the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre, Caroline Pullich, Head of Business Banking at Barclays and entrepreneur Henry Brew, whose business, Here2Grow, is based at the Innovation Centre.
“It is in the interest of the private sector to support my Task group as the failure rate of business start-ups (75%) was identified as a collective failure of support and a lack of understanding of what businesses and individuals need at different stages of the lifecycle of a business,” said Pervez. “A reduction to 50% would have significant economic and social benefits,” he added.
Pervez, also talked about how this enterprise support, in its broadest context, should be encouraged and embedded in all elements of the education system in order to support both entrepreneurship and key employability skills.
“The majority of most successful entrepreneurs don’t start businesses just to make lots of money, they are more interested in creating something and because they have found a better way of doing something and they like the idea of being in control of their lives,” said Pervez.
