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The underlying theme of our first series of Tourism Business Chat, was reflection. The guests looked back on 2020, and how the sector was weathering the COVID-19 storm. Series two launched as we were approaching the road map into recovery, so naturally, presenter, Chris Scargill, noticed a subtle shift towards a refreshed optimism, and guided the conversations around other aspects of working in the sector.

The series finale is a chat with Karen Hester, Chief Operating Officer of Adnams brewery in Southwold. Karen describes her story as ‘from mop to top’ – starting her career at Adnams as a cleaner, she’s now an award winning, glass ceiling breaking COO. This is the story of Karen’s personal journey into the world of business, and of her successes along the way; from suing the Ministry of Defence for sexism, to her supervision of the ground-breaking, multi-million pound, sustainable rebuild projects at Adnams.

Chris also chats to Geoff Bligh, co-owner of the hugely popular Hank’s Deli and Pub in Ipswich. Geoff left his successful career in the City to bring his passion for vegan food to Ipswich and was taken aback by the demand! Now with a supermarket, two take-aways and the region’s first fully vegan pub, Geoff speaks honestly about how they were able to turn the initial worries of lockdown into opportunities to expand.

Oliver Brown, from Wivenhoe House Hotel in Essex, discusses the role that Hospitality Action plays in supporting those with mental health issues and why their work is more important than ever. They discuss the Edge Hotel School, and how its students have overcome the challenges that the last 12 months have put on the shoulders of those studying hospitality, and indeed the hotel, whose job it is to train them, with no customers!

We also get a behind-the-scenes look at Thursford, home of the famous Christmas Spectacular. Brothers, George and Charlie Cushing, talk about how they set about creating a new theatre-esq show for 2020. Their enthusiasm is not just for Thursford itself, but in supporting the local economy, which relies on their thousands of visitors to the area, as well as the arts industry, within which so many professionals rely on them for seasonal work.

Judy Randon, a customer experience director from insight6, speaks clearly about what businesses need to be doing now in order to protect their brand, which is at risk coming out of lockdown. She also gives great advice on what businesses need to focus on and prioritise, including a re-evaluation of their values.

“I have found so much inspiration in these podcasts, listening to experts within the industry who have spoken so openly with Chris about their experiences” Judy said; “whether you’re interested in learning about strategy, culture in the workplace, planning for growth or the impact stay-cations will have, there is so much covered!”

There’s so much inspiration in this series; whether you’re interested in learning about strategy, culture in the workplace, planning for growth or the impact stay-cations will have! By the time we return for series three, businesses will be opening up again, and we can’t wait to hear how they are coping and, hopefully, thriving!

You can find Tourism Business Chat on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or you can listen online, just visit www.larking-gowen.co.uk/tourism-insights

Howes Percival are celebrating being named Corporate Law Firm of the Year in Insider Media’s Central & East Dealmakers Awards 2020. Howes Percival was also shortlisted for two deals in the ‘Deal of the Year (above £10m)’ category and for another two deals in the ‘Deal of the Year (below £10m)’ category.

The annual awards recognise high-quality work from the top professional services firms in the central and eastern region – corporate finance firms, banks, funders, private equity houses and individuals – who have excelled in dealmaking over the past year. The awards are judged by a panel of independent experts, each with in-depth knowledge of deals processes and structures. This year’s awards ceremony was cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions, and the winners were announced online.

Howes Percival was named ‘Corporate Law Firm of the Year’ for its involvement in deals across the whole region and praised for its proactive and client-focused services. The judges highlighted the sale of Metrol Springs to Lesjofors AB and the acquisition of Norfolk Broads Holdings by Craft Leisure.

In the category ‘Deal of the Year (above £10m)’ Howes Percival was shortlisted for the acquisition of Norfolk Broads Holdings by Craft Leisure, where the other advisers included MHA Larking Gowen; Barclays; Lees Accountants and Leathes Prior and the sale of Innotrade to The Libman Company, where Howes Percival worked with Grant Thornton.

Howes Percival was also shortlisted in the ‘Deal of the Year (below £10m)’ category for the sale of Metrol Springs to Lesjofors AB with Grant Thornton, Harris and Co Accountants, PM+M, FMGS Law and the sale of Digital Post Solutions to The Mailing Room, with Fortus and Bevan Kidwell.

Andy Harris, Corporate partner at Howes Percival, commented, 

“We are thrilled to have been named Corporate Law Firm of the Year and to have been shortlisted for four deals in total. We aspire to be the ‘go-to’ firm for corporate, commercial, and banking work in the Central and Eastern region and this prestigious award and the shortlistings show not only that our team is more than capable of handling some of the most complex and high-profile deals in the area, but also that the team is being recognised for doing so.”

“2020 was a breakthrough year for us, with what is still a relatively new team. We’ve invested heavily in the last couple of years and expanded our services significantly. As a result, we’ve also started 2021 with a real bang, completing 32 deals in the first quarter, with a combined value of £263 million. We are becoming known as a team to talk to in relation to larger transactions and are receiving more referrals from existing customers and other advisers. We’re confident that 2021 will continue to be a very busy year for us.”

For more information on Howes Percival’s corporate advisory services visit: https://www.howespercival.com/services/corporate/

Rostrons are very excited to be one of the first accountants in Norfolk to launch a mobile taxapp.

We are always thinking of ways to supportgrowing businesses in the region and and make their lives easier.The new Rostrons App will help you in a number of ways.

Information at your fingertips The App is packed full of really useful tax tables, calculators and important dates. You can access the Appfor free, anywhere you have an internet connection on your iPhone, iPad or Android phone.

Special Rostrons’ App features will save hours of your time:

• Never lose a receipt again with the receipt manager
• Track your daily, weekly and monthly income using the inbuilt income tracker
• Manage your mileage on the go with the GPS mileage tracker

For Rostrons’ clients the App has the added bonus of giving direct and secure access to your financialrecords and key financialinformation at any time.

How do you download the App for free?

We are listed in the Apple and Android stores under Rostrons and you can find more information and links on our web site on https://www.rostrons.com/useful-info/

We have enjoyed overwhelminglypositive feedback about the App from our clients and professional contacts who are finding the information it provides invaluable. We think it will benefit many growing businesses in Norfolk. We would like to share it with you and please do recommend it to anyone you think may find it useful.

As part of the ongoing recognition of the importance of equal opportunities in the workplace, Howes Percival has produced a new strategy to help ensure equality and diversity remain ‘key strategic and business priorities’ and are given renewed focus going forwards.

The firm has appointed three partners – Jahid Ali, Katharine Danks and Alex Payton – to lead the new initiative. In addition, these leaders are supported by a dedicated Equality & Diversity Committee, which is made up of employees from across the firm.

The initial focus of the committee will centre on race and ethnicity, gender and gender pay and social mobility, although the firm will continue to recognise and deal with the full spectrum of issues and challenges related to diversity and inclusion.

Under the renewed strategy, the firm will also seek to undertake a comprehensive equality and diversity survey and review all of its processes and policies, including recruitment, promotions, appraisals and equality and diversity training, to ensure that they continue to align with its aims.

Equality and diversity partner, Jahid Ali said, 

“While the firm has shown its commitment to equality and diversity for many years, we recognise that we need to constantly review what we do and double-down on our efforts to ensure this remains a top priority. We believe we can attract the best talent by recruiting from a diverse pool and we want Howes Percival to be the place where all talented individuals can flourish. By announcing our renewed strategy, we are holding ourselves accountable to achieving our aims and we will continue to challenge ourselves as the strategy develops.”

The committee has already taken forward a number of employee-led initiatives including celebrating Black History Month, launching a book and film club, initially focusing on race and ethnicity issues, and taking part in International Women’s Day in March. 

Work with us to build the workforce of the future – Laboratory Science placements

East Norfolk Sixth Form College, based in Gorleston, has been at the forefront of preparing students for the future for nearly 40 years.

We offer the widest curriculum to ensure our students have the skills and knowledge in a range of specialist areas and to meet the needs of your workforce.

From September we will be offering T Levels, the first provider East of Norwich, and we are ready to work with you.

We are looking to collaborate with businesses that can offer work placements in a laboratory setting to support the delivery of our T Level in Laboratory Science & Metrology.

This course has been developed in collaboration with health and science employers so the content meets the needs of industry.

In return, we can offer you access to 1600 high calibre students, opportunities to gain direct access to your future workforce and promote your business.

If you want a passionate, skilled young person on work placement with you, contact us to find out more about supporting the next generation into your sector.

Get in touch with Amy Lerpiniere today:

[email protected]

01493662234 ext 713

Commenting ahead of the European Council meeting, where Prime Minister Theresa May is due to address other EU leaders tonight (Thursday), Dr Adam Marshall, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:

“While businesses won’t get the clarity and certainty they had sought from this European Council meeting, a new sense of momentum and drive is needed from both sides so that a breakthrough can be reached in the coming weeks.

“Uncertainty is knocking business confidence and preventing many businesses from developing future plans. Far too many investments have quietly been delayed or side-lined, by both SMEs and major corporates alike.

“Businesses of all sizes expect the UK government to stop the public bickering and business-bashing, and demonstrate unity and purpose as it negotiates with the EU27. European leaders, in turn, should give their negotiators more leeway to make a pragmatic deal with the UK that’s in the interests of all parties.

“Businesses want an end to uncertainty and a deal that supports trade between the UK and the EU27 – and it’s time for the government to deliver.”

Steadfast Training offer a comprehensive package of pre-employment and in-work support, including non-accredited training and accredited qualifications in Employability; ICT and Social Media; Customer Service; Business Admin; Warehousing; Health Care, Mental Health & Wellbeing; LGBT in the Workplace, as well as Team Leading & Management.

All training we deliver to support young people develop their skills in the workplace is fully funded and comes at no cost to the employer.

Training can be offered as block provision (Monday – Friday) or 1 day per week over several weeks

For more information please open the PDF below for our full leaflet or please contact us on 0845 223 2401 or email us on [email protected].

Expert service solutions and personnel provider CPower Energy have embarked on a journey to position themselves at the heart of the Offshore Energy Industry, and are celebrating this by appointing energy industry expert, Martin Dronfield – Director of Opergy and Chairman & Director of the East of England Energy Group (EEEGR) – to their board of Directors.   CPower Energy are gearing up for exceptional growth in the offshore wind industry, and Martin, who has 39 years’ worth of offshore energy industry experience, has worked closely with the Colchester-based company to look at how their business can further flourish in the sector.   With an estimated $2.75 trillion being invested into offshore wind by 2050, the appointment of Martin as a Non-Executive Director and Chairman could not have come at a better time. Combining his extensive expertise from almost 4 decades in the Offshore Energy Industry with CPower’s excellent track record, there are huge potential benefits as they strive to develop innovative solutions for the sector.   Martin says, “From working with Peter Jorgensen and his team at CPower Energy over the past 4 months, I’ve been impressed not only by the company itself but the ethos of Peter. There is an exciting multitude of opportunities to harness, and I’m looking forward to working together with CPower to maximise the benefits.”   “As the industry picks up speed and begins to return to full pace, the opportunities for niche service providers such as CPower are fantastic. Following a successful initial advisory phase, I’m really looking forward to formalising my connection with CPower by joining the board and continuing to work together with Peter Jorgensen to make sure we’re doing what we do really well.”   Managing Director of CPower, Peter Jorgensen, echoed his sentiments: “During Martin’s 4-month advisory period with us, we developed such a strong connection that we wanted to continue our relationship by bringing Martin on board as Chair of the Board – and we’re delighted that he has accepted the position.”   “Extending Martin’s connection to CPower will bring even greater value to us as a company, allowing us to look at how we operate from a different perspective. As we look to grow CPower and offer our expert solutions to support and grow the offshore wind sector, Martin’s insight will be invaluable in this,” he finished.  

We hope you have had a great bank holiday weekend, we are so pleased to see the sunshine!

It is going to be another busy week here at Shield Health and Safety but we felt it important to take the time to welcome officially, David Goosey to the team

David has worked with Shield for a number of years on a part time subcontractor basis.

He joins us as a fulltime employed instructor and brings a great depth of training knowledge and customer focus to the team.

EACH are seeking Auction and Raffle prizes for the their Charity Golf Day in memory of Stanley McLean on Friday 2nd July at Royal Norwich.  The online auction will run in the lead up and on the day to ensure we can raise as much money as possible.  East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH) provides care for children and young people with life-threatening conditions across East Anglia and supports their families. The pressure of the pandemic means our vital services are more important than ever and we continue to offer our outstanding care giving a life-line to families at an unimaginably difficult time. We need support from local businesses now more than ever.  Please contact [email protected] if you are able to help.

Gareth John of First Intuition details how employers can help young adults get their foot in the door.

The pandemic has had a number of dramatic and long-lasting impacts on the labour market and employment landscape. Evolving and reskilling in accordance with these changes will be essential for businesses and their staff to successfully build on the coming recovery from both COVID-19 and Brexit.

However, a potentially greater issue than any other is one that has not even hit our workplaces yet; the impact that COVID-19 has had, and is still having, on the young adults that employers across the region will be recruiting and onboarding during 2021 and 2022. This is an issue that is in danger of being overlooked, but an increased volume of entry level candidates on the job market, coupled with fewer organisations hiring, means that it is important businesses acknowledge this problem and act to ensure a generation of young adults is not left behind.

For over 25 years I have been training young adults at the start of their careers, as well as maintaining long-lasting relationships with schools and colleges across East Anglia. In the last twelve months I have been closely following the impact of the pandemic on the next cohort of school and college leavers, and the challenges raised for recruiting for entry level positions in 2021 and beyond. This article, along with the CBI’s In Discussion with Matthew Percival, Director of People and Skills event on 7 June, will offer some insight into what employers can expect from young adults during the recruitment process, and more importantly what they can do to help their transition into the workplace.

Skills gaps in the ‘COVID-19 generation’

The last six months have made it clear that the UK’s post-COVID-19, post-Brexit future will require a huge focus on developing human capital at a time when relentless change makes choosing clear priorities extremely difficult. The new challenges businesses are facing due to the pandemic in managing hybrid working, motivating teams remotely, ‘talent flight’ from staff on lengthy periods of furlough, embracing emerging digital and green technologies, as well as shifting focus to mental health and workplace wellbeing amongst staff has been well documented.

The impact the pandemic has had on recruiting for entry level roles, however, has so far had little attention. Feedback from employers already underway with entry level recruitment for Autumn 2021 is that both the volume and the calibre of applicants they are seeing is higher than ever before. There are however concerning indications that whilst academic ability seems as strong as ever, there is evidence of ‘COVID-19 skills gaps’ in areas that recruiters normally take for granted. Many employers are also reporting that many applicants they are seeing left education in 2020 and have been in limbo since, raising the likelihood that there will be a greater imbalance than normal between the number of hopeful candidates and the number of available roles.

There is little doubt that COVID-19 has had an unequal impact on everyone, least of all on young adults who will have experienced very different responses by their schools, unequal access to remote technology and varying home situations.

What issues are impacting the COVID-19 generation?

• No formal exams: With widespread cancellation of exams during 2020 and 2021 there is growing ‘grade scepticism’ amongst employers who are unsure how reliable or consistent teacher-assessed results will be. Preparing for and sitting formal exams is a crucial way of learning the discipline of coping with workload, deadlines and pressure. Subsequent success in those exams is important for personal confidence and sense of worth.
• Loss of social and interpersonal skills: After spending the majority of the last year in their homes, many young adults have not had normal opportunities to develop communication and teamworking skills. Part-time jobs in customer-facing, dynamic environments where many basic life skills are learned have not been available. The skills that young people normally develop in these roles can be essential for boosting young adults’ professional confidence and help develop self-awareness.
• Articulating and evidencing transferable skills: It seems that many schools have done a good job of ensuring that home-schooling students have covered core academic curriculum content, but it equally seems that many extra-curricular activities such as organising plays and leading sports teams have understandably fallen away. This, coupled with the lack of part-time jobs, has made it hard for students to evidence transferable skills in their CV’s, applications and interviews.
• Lack of interview preparation: Employer engagement, careers insight and opportunities for mock interviews have been far harder to organise during the pandemic. Students have not been coached for interviews in the way they normally would be, and are proving to be unaware of what they can do to secure a role. For example, researching the organisation they are interviewing for, preparing questions of their own, and following up afterwards for feedback.

What you can do as an employer

Cambridgeshire-based Form The Future, who works to develop relationships between school students and employers, shared what they recommend employers should do to assist the COVID-19 generation into employment during a recent First Intuition Think Tank forum. Here are a few things employers can do and implement into long-term business planning to help overcome the issues faced by the younger generation:

• Virtual work-experience: Employers should offer more virtual work experience, career advice and careers resources to help young adults gain the employability skills they have been unable to get during the pandemic, specifically local schools in their area.
• More ‘scaffolding’ for applicants: Employers can assist candidates by giving them more information and stating what they are looking for in applications (scaffolding) to help students show what they are capable of. They can also give them interview tasks that let their natural skills shine such as practical or project assessments and role play.
• A more personalised approach to recruitment: Recruits should be considered on an individual basis as candidates will not have been impacted in the same way, this is especially true for disadvantaged students. Recruitment therefore may need a more tailored approach going forward with less focus on grades and more consideration for their situation at home, family responsibilities, and personal health.
• Mentor schemes for new starters: New employees can benefit greatly from mentoring and peer support in place to help them adjust to the workplace, particularly when paired with other young and relatable employees. This is beneficial for gaining new skills for both parties involved.

Take action and adapt to the changing world of work

The pandemic has created a rare and unique opportunity to positively change the workplace. It will be important for businesses to adapt to the new working world, one where HR is key to the future, and employers help candidates show their skills throughout the recruitment process. The skills gaps in the COVID-19 generation are a looming issue that should be acknowledged and addressed now, as the impacts of the pandemic are predicted to ripple through the education system for several years.

Join the CBI’s In Discussion with Matthew Percival, Director of People and Skills on 7 June to delve deeper into how the pandemic has impacted young adult’s preparedness for the workplace and what you can do to make a difference. Additionally, First Intuition will be hosting another talk discussing onboarding the COVID-19 generation on 9 June.