November Business First

northern ireland’s business magazine 

BUSINESSFIRST 

INFORM CHALLENGE INSPIRE 

NOVEMBER- DECEMBER 2016 

Belfast Met 

PLANNING THE NEXT 110 YEARS 

COVER STORY 

Belfast Metropolitan 

College: continuing to 

lead our future generations 

to work. Page 12 

Thought Leaders 

It’s time to make Northern 

Ireland the entrepreneurial 

capital of Europe, says Tina 

McKenzie. Page 30 

Best Practice 

Anne Philipson of the 

Leadership Institute’s Seven 

steps to successful talent 

development. Page 22 

Round Table 

Along with TourismNI we 

brought together the main 

players to review the Year 

of Food & Drink. Page 19 

Can you help us find NORTHERN IRELAND’S RISING STARS? Page 7

Putting your 

Business First 

WHAT’S INSIDE YOUR ISSUE 

CONTENTS 

CLICK ANY PAGE TO BE TAKEN STRAIGHT THERE 

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP & COMMENTARY 

It’s time to make 

Northern Ireland 

entrepreneurial 

capital of Europe 

Tina McKenzie 

Staffline Ireland 

Page 30 

We’re making 

headway but 

there’s still more 

to be done 

Dawn Johnston, 

Chartered Accountants 

Ulster Society 

Page 40 

WIll Brexit put 

Data Protection on 

notice? 

Glenn Watterson, 

Mills Selig 

Page 46 

In the midst of 

Brexit is it time to 

rethink business 

support in 

Northern Ireland? 

Andrew Webb 

Page 62 

Business needs a united 

Brexit front 

There probably isn’t any such thing as absolute 

certainty, but if there’s one thing we don’t need 

right now it’s uncertainty and yet that’s what 

we’re being offered by our political leaders (I 

use the term advisedly). 

Back in June you and I might have voted to 

remain, but four months on we have a political 

landscape strewn wtih indecision and lack of 

leadership. 

So let’s start by deciding what is best for 

Northern Ireland and then go from there. 

Well for a start we need to acknowledge that 

we’re just that wee bit different to the rest of 

the UK and so while not necessarily due special 

status, we certainly should expect special 

consideration. Any thoughts of restoring a land 

border in any guise should be swept aside 

immediately and our politicians should engage 

willingly and immediately with their 

counterparts in the Republic of Ireland to 

ensure they are instep on this and other areas 

of common interest. 

Then we need to provide our migrant 

workforce a guarantee that they will be 

welcome to stay here for as long as it suits them 

as they provide outstanding service in both the 

public and private sectors. 

And finally we need to create a political and 

business powerhouse that will effectively 

represent our views at Westminster. At the 

moment we have no place at the Brexit decision 

making table and frankly the Secretary of State 

will be of little if any use to us in this regard. 

That will require Sinn Fein and the DUP along 

with the other major parties to work together 

and with business to present a united pro 

Northern Ireland front. 

See you on the frontline! 

Gavin 

Gavin Walker, Managing Editor 

LEADING FEATURES 

Year of Food 

and Drink 

Round Table 

with Tourism NI 

Page 19 

BEST PRACTICE 

On a Board? 

You just can’t play 

it by ear! 

Joy Allen 

Leading Governance 

Page 18 

Belfast has what it 

takes to be a 

big-hitter on the 

international 

conference stage 

Page 26 

Building Family 

Governance 

Maybeth Shaw 

BDO Northern Ireland 

Page 24 

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info@businessfirstni.co.uk 

www.businessfirstonline.co.uk 

Northern Ireland’s 

Most Inspiring 

Women 2016 

Page 35 

The tricky 

business of 

litigation funding 

in Northern Ireland 

Matthew Hawes 

Arthur Cox 

Page 28 

Great gadgets to 

improve the 

usefulness and 

effectiveness of 

your PC 

Page 60 

Personal 

development is 

key to success in 

business 

Carol Magill 

CIM Ireland 

Page 58 

In our Digital Issue you can click on any square to be taken directly to the article. Download it from businessfirstonline.co.uk 

YOUR BUSINESSFIRST TEAM 

Editor Gavin Walker 

gavin@businessfirstni.co.uk 

Sales Jenny Belshaw 

jenny@businessfirstni.co.uk 

Finance Margaret Walker 

margaret@twworks.co.uk 

Design Studio Tw2 

studio@twworks.co.uk 

N 


1

YOUR EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS 

Articles from some of Northern Ireland’s most influential business leaders that will inform, challenge and inspire your thinking. 

Iain Lundie 

UHY Hacker Young Fitch 


page 14 

Anne Philipson 

Leadership Institute 

page 22 

Matthew Hawse 

Arthur Cox 

page 28 

Tina McKenzie 

Staffline Ireland 

page 30 

Maybeth Shaw 

BDO 

page 24 

Katy Best 

George Best Belfast City 

Airport 

page 34 

Professor Simon Bridge 

Ulster University 

page 38 

Dawn Johnston 


Ulster Society 

page 40 

Roseann Kelly 

Women in Business 

page 42 

Glenn Watterson 

Mills Selig 

page 46 

Ian Laverty 

Ingenuity UK 

page 48 

Andrew Webb 

Economist 

page 62 

In our Digital Issue you can click on any picture to be taken directly to the article. Download it from businessfirstonline.co.uk 

2 www.businessfirstonline.co.uk

IN THE HEADLINES 

Martin McNaughton KBE named as 

Innovation Founder of the Year 

SSE Arena 

launches new 

suites 

C 

onnect has announced that Mr Martin 

Naughton KBE has been named the 

Innovation Founder of the Year. 

In 1973, Martin Naughton opened a small 

electrical manufacturing operation with just 

seven employees, making oilfilled radiators 

in Newry. Naughton’s company acquired 

partners and rivals including Dimplex, 

Morphy Richards and Bianella to become 

the world's largest manufacturer of domestic 

heating appliances. Glen Dimplex Group now 

employs more than 10,000 staff across 22 

manufacturing facilities spread all over the 

world. The business has annual sales of 

around €1.5 billion. 

Each year, the Innovation Founder award 

goes to a person who has achieved distinction 

in founding, leading or building a celebrated 

local science or technologybased business. 

Martin Naughton received his honour at the 

INVENT Award finals at the Belfast 

Waterfront. 

He joins an esteemed list of previous 

recipients including Brian Conlon (2015), Dr 

William Wright CBE (2014), Dr Peter 

FitzGerald CBE (2013), Tom Eakin (2012), Dr 

Hugh Cormican (2011) and Prof John 

4 www.businessfirstonline.co.uk 

Anderson (2010). 

“I’m humbled and honoured to join this list 

of founders, who have in their own ways 

changed the landscape of Northern Irish 

business,” said Martin Naughton. 

The Innovation Founder Award is 

sponsored by Bank of Ireland UK, Julie Ann 

O’Hare, Head of Strategy & Sectors, said, “Mr 

Martin Naughton joins an inspirational group 

of world renowned business leaders. 

“We congratulate him and thank him for 

accepting this award. The Glen Dimplex story, 

driven by “the desire to make the impossible 

possible” is rich in learnings for the 

entrepreneurs of tomorrow from start up 

through to global excellence.” 

Steve Orr, Director at Connect said, “Given 

the massive impact that our Innovation 

Founders have had on the local and 

international economies over the past several 

decades, this is our most important award 

each year. 

“I’m delighted Martin Naughton is being 

given a muchdeserved accolade for his 

contribution to NI’s innovation economy. He’s 

an inspiration to us all.” 

T 

he SSE Arena, Belfast, is launching three 

brand new luxury experience offerings 

for visitors: ‘Shared Suite,’ ‘Exclusive 

Suite Hire – per event’ and ‘Party Suite Hire.’ 

Shared Suite is a brand new initiative 

designed for those who would like to 

experience all the luxury of an evening in a 

suite but without the cost of purchasing a 

whole unit. For the first time ever, guests can 

share a suite, purchasing up to four tickets for 

an event and sharing the space with 

likeminded groups. 

Party Suite Hire enables a group to book 

out a whole suite for a special occasion such 

as a birthday, hen or stag party. It provides a 

larger group with a luxurious private space in 

which to celebrate in style. 

Exclusive Suite Hire – per event, where 

parties of 12, 16 or 28 guests can book an 

entire suite for just one evening, with the 

added benefit of catering options, allowing 

more people than ever to experience a night 

in a private hospitality suite. 

This offering has been designed with both 

consumers and organisations in mind. The 

three hospitality options offer all the benefits 

of a private suite: unmatched views of the 

action, a dedicated VIP entrance so visitors 

can beat the queues, spacious sofa areas 

where guests can relax before, during and 

after the show, a Hospitality Manager to 

ensure the experience is seamless, dedicated 

cloakroom and bathroom facilities, access to a 

rooftop smoking deck, a private bar and 

waiter service. 

The new offerings complement the current 

hospitality options of annual suite hire and 

lounge access, to one of two lounges: The 

Heineken Lounge and the West Lounge. 

Ooptions are available to book now and 

guests can avail of them at upcoming shows 

such as John Bishop, Status Quo and Olly 

Murs at ssearenabelfast.com/hospitality.

Belfast One unveils new brand 

elfast One – Belfast City Centre’s 

Business Improvement District (BID) – 

Brecently revealed their new brand with 

the strapline – “Belfast One – Different Days”. 

The new brand is part of the company’s 

strategy to promote Belfast City Centre as the 

number one destination in Northern Ireland 

to shop, eat, socialise and more. 

Clare Maguire, managing director at Belfast 

One, said “The overarching goal of our fiveyear 

marketing strategy is to drive domestic 

footfall into the City Centre by promoting the 

fantastic retail, leisure, culture and 

entertainment offering we have here and 

showcasing what a brilliantly unique city 

Belfast is. 

“Our new brand marks the first step 

towards this goal and it has been carefully 

developed to reflect the diverse people, 

experiences and places that make our City 

Centre a friendly, eclectic and vibrant place.” 

Belfast One’s new website also launched 

today, alongside a promotional social media 

video featuring firsthand testimonials from 

the people of Belfast stating what they think 

makes their city best in Northern Ireland. 

Clare continued: “We have also 

collaborated with Visit Belfast as part of their 

‘Find Your Belfast’ autumn campaign, which 

highlights the abundance of things to see, 

discover and experience in Belfast this 

autumn worldclass events and festivals, 

fantastic shopping and great food. 

“This has provided an excellent opportunity 

Chris Suitor John McDermott and Clare Maguire 

to increase our reach across our target 

audience with the common goal of promoting 

Belfast as a mustvisit destination. We are 

delighted that this has helped make our 

brand visible around Northern Ireland for the 

past number of weeks.” 

Clare concluded: “I look forward to 

continuing this partnership and the rollout of 

our fantastic new brand and campaigns in the 

weeks and months to come.” 

John McDermott, brand director at AVB 

Brand said: “I am delighted and very proud to 

have worked alongside Belfast One on the 

design and concept of their new brand. 

“From the outset it was imperative that we 

capture the ethos of Belfast One and really 

engage and excite the audiences with their 

vision for Belfast – this is an brilliant new 

company with a very exciting strategy for our 

capital city and we at AVB Brand are thrilled 

to be part of this journey.” 

Belfast Met launches The Linen Lounge 

B 

elfast Met launched its Linen Lounge, Scullery and 

Yard restaurants to the public at its flagship Titanic 

Quarter Campus on October 7. 

The event also saw the launch of the college cookbook 

featuring recipes from top local chefs Danny Millar, Niall 

McKenna, Simon McCance and Andy Rea (pictured). 

The names Linen Lounge and The Yard hark back to old 

Belfast’s booming linen and ship building industry and the 

stunning design concepts inside are also stepped in our 

capital city’s history. 

The Linen Lounge is the place to be for Fine Dining 

Thursdays from 6pm 7.15pm. Food exactly as you imagine 

from a culinary training ground and service that ensures our 

customers will have a fantastic experience while enjoying 

flavours from award winning local producers. On Twilight 

Fridays enjoy a bottle of wine, charcuterie and cheese 

platter with homemade breads and chutneys £20 for 2. 

The fullylicenced restaurants which are fully staffed by 

students offer the public a range of food and drink options 

to suit every palate. While the Yard and Scullery are 

casual eateries, the Linen Lounge offers a fine dining 

experience. Belfast Met has worked closely with 

employers to ensure each restaurant provides students 

with the necessary “real life” industry experience to make 

them as workready as possible and able to take up posts 

in any kitchen upon leaving the college. 


5

Top VA is a finalist for the UK-wide 

Virtual Assistant Awards 

L 

ocal business owner Michelle Shaw and 

her virtual assistant company Top VA 

have been shortlisted as a finalist for the 

UK wide VA awards. 

The awards are to recognise the high 

standards within the VA industry and to 

promote the value that virtual assistants 

bring in supporting business entities from 

entrepreneurs and startups to multinational 

companies and PLCS. 

Michelle is in the running for the Best 

Newcomer UK when the finals take place on 

Thursday 17th November at The Great British 

Business Show in London. 

Top VA was set up in September 2015 to 

provide expert marketing support for small 

business owners and entrepreneurs across 

the UK. 

Since its start up Top VA continues to grow 

and its client list includes a global training 

company, a national marketing company and 

various small businesses across a wide 

variety of industries. 

Working from her home office in Bangor, 

Michelle assists business owners throughout 

the UK with Social Media Marketing, Lead 

Generation, Business Development as well as 

the day to day admin needed to drive her 

clients marketing campaigns forward. 

Commenting on being shortlisted the Top 

VA owner says that “I am delighted to have 

reached this stage, these awards are highly 

New partnership to grow charitable giving 

wo Northern Ireland organisations 

dedicated to promoting charitable 

Tgiving have launched a new partnership 

to boost philanthropy over the next three 

years. 

Giving Northern Ireland and Belfast 

Charitable Society will be working 

collaboratively on a series of events and 

projects looking at ways to increase 

awareness of giving for both businesses and 

individuals. 

Belfast Charitable Society is the oldest 

philanthropic organisation in Northern 

Ireland while Giving NI is the youngest, 

started just three years ago. The new 

partnership brings together a shared skillset 

with the aim of driving strategic giving 

forward. 

Paula Reynolds, CEO of Belfast Charitable 

Society said: “The Society is delighted to work 

closely with Giving NI to help encourage and 

promote philanthropy in today’s world. 

“We have benefited hugely from others’ 

generosity since 1752, and in turn this has 

allowed us to help many others; from running 

the Poor House and Outdoor relief schemes to 

tackling disadvantage today. 


regarded within the VA industry and it is an 

amazing achievement to have been selected 

for the shortlist, 

“I am passionate about helping my clients 

grow their business and always give 100 per 

cent to any work I complete for them. 

“Im now looking forward to the finals and 

will be keeping my fingers crossed that I 

bring the award back to Northern Ireland”. 

To find out how working with Top VA could 

benefit your business, call Michelle on 0786 

730 9705 or email michelle@topva.biz or 

visit www.topva.biz 

Pictured with the Belfast Charitable Society’s minute book dating back to 1752 are Belfast Charitable 

Society Chairman David Watters and Giving Northern Ireland Chairman Gary Mills 

The partnership programme will include 

practical seminars and informative events 

about strategic giving. 

Due to austerity measures, in recent years 

there has been a major shift in the availability 

of government funding for charities; in the 

years to come this may be compounded by 

the effects of Brexit, with uncertainty 

currently on what this will mean to the 

George Best 

Belfast City Airport 

helps Shortcross 

take off worldwide 

G 

eorge Best Belfast City Airport has 

facilitated a relationship between one 

of the world’s leading travel retailers 

and a local distillery for it to supply its 

awarding winning craft gin to a number of its 

stores. 

Shortcross Gin has arrived on the shelves of 

World Duty Free in Belfast City Airport as 

well as further airport outlets across the UK 

including London Heathrow, the busiest 

airport in the UK and Ireland and one of 

busiest in the world, London Stansted, 

Gatwick, Birmingham, Manchester and 

Edinburgh. 

voluntary and community sector. 

Sandara KelsoRobb, Strategic Advisor for 

Giving NI said: “We live in changing times and 

so it’s increasingly important for charities to 

look for support from individuals and 

corporates and not to rely on public funding 

from government or the EU. This project 

between will allow us to really focus on 

private giving.”

is your company one of 

NORTHERN IRELAND’S 

RISING STARS? 

If so, you should enter the 

Rising Stars 2017 Awards. 

A simple, effective way 

to raise your profile 

within Northern Ireland’s 

business community. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION & TO ENTER 

www.businessfirstonline.co.uk/risingstars 

sponsored by 

The Rising Stars Awards provide a platform to showcase 

organisations that have solid rates of growth. In 2017, we 

open the Rising Stars awards to all indigenous Northern 

Ireland companies. The Awards programme is or any 

Northern Ireland company that: 

• is based in Northern Ireland 

• has shown growth over the past few years 

• would like to build its profile 

• wishes to inspire others to grow their enterprises 

ENTRY CRITERIA 

For participation in Rising Stars 2017 an applicant must: 

• Be a Northern Ireland enterprise 

• Exhibit growth in : turnover, profit and/or staffing numbers, 

digital statistics (eg usage, traffic, app downloads); 

AWARD CATEGORIES: 

1. STARTUP are businesses set up over the past 18 months. 

2. MICRO businesses are organisations with less than 10 full 

time equivalent staff and trading for at least the last two 

financial years. 

3. SMALL businesses are organisations with more than 10 

but less than 50 full time equivalent staff trading for at least 

the last three financial years. 

4. NOT FOR PROFIT / CHARITY businesses are 

organisations that are run as not for profit and/or have official 

charity status, trading for at least the last three financial 

years. 

5. PROFESSIONAL SERVICES businesses are 

organisations that are in the professional services sector 

trading for at least the last three financial years.

Clearpath Finance gives SMEs Choice 

new Belfast based lending solutions 

platform, Clearpath Finance, is set to 

Aaddress the need for alternative finance 

in the SME sector in Northern Ireland. The 

new company will draw down its first tranche 

of loans totalling £15m by the end of October 

2016, for a range of businesses across 

Northern Ireland. 

Clearpath Finance provides an alternative 

source of lending as a commercial finance 

broker working with a number of major 

lenders across the UK. The company has 

established excellent relationships working 

with a select number of peertopeer lenders, 

equity and mezzanine funders and private 

lending consortiums to go some way to solve 

the current liquity crisis in the local economy. 

Conor Devine MRICS of Clearpath Finance 

said; “The SME market has been seriously 

undersupported by the main financial 

institutions over the last ten years mainly due 

to legacy debt and balance sheet problems 

facing the local banks. We identified an 

opportunity in the market to provide third 

party lending to businesses and organisations 

looking for additional financial resources 

through our comprehensive experience and 

research. 

“By bringing together a number of larger 

financial institutions that have the capacity to 

support the SME sector in Northern Ireland 

through Clearpath Finance, we will ensure 

that business lending for the SME sector is 

through a simplified, uncluttered and 

expedient path.” 

Small and medium sized businesses are 

vital to the Northern Ireland economy and it 

Whose data is it anyway, asks CIM Ireland 

N 

ew research released by the Chartered 

Institute of Marketing (CIM) reveals a 

shocking 96 per cent of consumers in 

Northern Ireland do not fully understand 

where and how marketers, brands and 

organisations use their personal information 

and data. 

CIM’s ‘Whose data is it anyway?’ study 

surveyed more than 2,500 consumers and 

marketers nationally to gain their insight into 

the use of personal data for marketing 

purposes. It shows data discrepancies and 

concerns to be worryingly prevalent across 

the board. 

More than half of all consumers in 

Northern Ireland reveal they do not trust an 

organisation to use their data responsibly – 

the biggest issue being that their information 

may be passed onto others without consent. 

The report questions whether enough is 

being done by brands to follow correct data 

marketing practices and reassure consumers. 

Chris Daly, Chief Executive of CIM, 

comments: "Customer data is essential for 

marketers to reach the right audience and 


James Gibbons and Conor Devine of Clearpath Finance 

has been a challenging trading period for the ‘loan to’ value, ensuring that SMEs have 

those organisations who wish to grow, 

the access to funds when they need it, 

support their business, employ staff and whether it is for additional cash flow, to fund 

procure additional materials as they have an extension, or to grow their business. 

found limited access to financial resources to “We have continued to make major 

do just that. SMEs are continuing to diversify investments in our portfolio of businesses 

their funding needs and Clearpath Finance is including establishing Clearpath Finance to 

committed to providing those SMEs who wish provide a new finance stream for businesses 

to grow with the support and solutions that across Northern Ireland.” 

they require. 

Clearpath Finance, fully regulated by the 

James Gibbons, Clearpath Finance added; Financial Conduct Authority and a member of 

“Many businesses in Northern Ireland are the NACFB, is a multifaceted finance brokerage 

being turned down by the main street banks specialising in property and business lending 

when asking for support for their business for to SMEs in Northern Ireland and the Republic 

one reason or another. From the hospitality of Ireland. The company is a viable alternative 

sector to renewable energy projects, 

source of lending and is committed to servicing 

Clearpath Finance, depending upon each the needs of the SME sector. 

individual case, can offer up to 70 per cent of 

Steve Woolley, CIM Head of External Affairs and Content, Julie McClean of PWC Research to Insight 

Team and Carol Magill, CIM Ireland Network Manager 

Find out more details about the ‘Whose 

data is it anyway?’ report by visiting: 

www.exchange.cim.co.uk/thoughtleadership/whosedataisitanyway

IN THE HEADLINES 

AMI announces 15 jobs and £1M investment 

Philip McMichael, managing director, AMI 

A 

MI, Northern Ireland’s leading secure IT 

retirement company, has announced 

that it will invest £1M and create 15 

jobs by 2018 as it grows its business and 

increases its team to 50. 

The investment is funded by the director. 

Available positions will include engineers, 

logistics personnel and warehouse staff as 

well as sales and business development 

professionals. 

The company plans to triple its Republic of 

Ireland business to £2.5 million over the next 

three years. 

AMI specialises in secure IT retirement 

services that can generate revenue back for 

customers from the safe disposal of older IT 

assets. 

It is among the world’s top seven 

companies for the quality of its secure data 

sanitisation processes, according to the 

world’s leading IT disposal standards body, 

ADISA. 

One quarter of 200 largest IT user 

organisations on the island of Ireland already 

have their old IT devices retired by AMI. 

A major factor in AMI’s decision to invest in 

growth at this time is growing concerns over 

data security, stemming from the GDPR 

regulation which could see companies being 

fined four per cent of their global revenues if 

they suffer data breaches. A strong increase 

in the need for AMI’s services from the fast 

expanding data centre industry in Ireland is 

also key. 

Philip McMichael, managing director, AMI, 

said: “We have grown by 20 per cent per year 

in each of the last three years, and while the 

recovering economy is part of this, a major 

factor is the volume of inbound multinational 

investment from industries where data 

security is critical. 

“These include data centres, financial 

technology, and medical technology 

companies. 

“We have also been retained by 

government bodies and a number of security 

specialists to manage IT disposal on their 

behalf. 

“We’re always looking to grow and 

innovate, and the expansion in the technology 

sector in Ireland presents a huge opportunity 

for us. 

“The IT retirement stage can leave data 

vulnerable if not handled correctly. The most 

security conscious companies choose AMI to 

be assured of the lowest risk of harmful data 

leaks from old devices. 

“We have invested heavily in being the 

most secure operator on the market, and as 

more companies become aware of the 

importance of security, AMI aims to become 

embedded within their businesses.” 

Faye Thomas, business manager, AMI, said: 

“AMI has achieved steady yearonyear 

growth since it opened its offices in Dublin in 

2008. 

“The larger team is to ensure that we can 

continue to deliver on our commitment to be 

the most service and customer focused 

company in the industry. 

“Our Irish operations currently account for 

35 per cent of our overall business, and 

within the next three years we expect it to 

account for the majority of our business. 

“We have already made a major investment 

in our data sanitisation technologies and 

systems so that we can securely process 

3,000 devices and wipe almost 200,000 GBs 

per day. 

“The focus now is now all about expanding 

our marketing and logistics capabilities to 

cater to customer needs.” 


Fitzwilliam and Fitzwilliam are business hotels of the 

year, says Georgina Campbell 

he Fitzwilliam Hotel Belfast and The 

Fitzwilliam Hotel Dublin have been 

Tnamed Business Hotel of the Year 2017 

at The Georgina Campbell Awards. 

The Georgina Campbell Awards are 

Ireland’s longest running and most respected 

hospitality awards, seeking out the best in 

food and hospitality. They independently 

assess and award a wide variety of fine dining 

and casual restaurants, accommodation, chefs 

and hosts to culminate the annual ‘best in 

class’ list. 

The Fitzwilliam Hotel, Belfast has won the 

prestigious accolade of Business Hotel of the 

Year for its first class facilities and service. 

Situated in the city centre, it boasts 130 

guestrooms and four stylish meeting rooms 

overlooking Howard Street and Great Victoria 

Street, all equipped with stateoftheart 

audiovisual equipment; some of the most 

contemporary meeting space in Belfast. 

General Manager at the Fitzwilliam Belfast, 

Cian Landers commented on the award: “We 

are so proud that the Fitzwilliam Belfast has 

been recognised as one of the rising stars in 

Belfast’s hospitality industry being named 

Business Hotel of the Year 2017. This 

accolade is a fantastic achievement and we 

are very proud of our team who work 

seamlessly together every day ensuring the 

quality of our product and the levels of 

professional service exceed all our guests’ 

expectations.” 

“Since opening in 2009, the Fitzwilliam 

Hotel has quickly established itself as the 

premier hotel in Belfast; this has been in part 

due to our exceptional location and our 

emphasis on providing warm hospitality, 

What’s the BIG IDEA at this years Pitch-Up event? 

E 

ighteen of Northern Ireland’s most 

exciting startup businesses took 

centre stage at Titanic Belfast 

recently as part of the annual Invest 

Northern Ireland Propel Programme 

‘PitchUp’ event. 

Following months of intensive planning, 

networking and mentoring, the 

entrepreneurs had the opportunity to pitch 

their big ideas to an audience of high 

profile business investors. From ground 

breaking drone technology and worldleading 

healthcare innovation to artisan 

food and bespoke giftware, the diverse 

range of businesses pitched ideas of truly 

Titanic proportions in a venue honouring 

one of Northern Ireland’s most iconic 

exports. 

Tracy Meharg, Invest Northern Ireland’s 

Executive Director, Business Solutions, is 

pictured with the group as they prepared 

for the big pitch. 

good food and excellent service. There is 

definitely growing demand in Belfast for 

luxury accommodation in a stylish yet 

welcoming setting. This prestigious award 

will inspire us to continue providing 

exceptional service for all our guests.” 

Speaking at the awards ceremony on , Ms. 

Campbell commented; “Understated luxury is 

the hallmark of these city centre sister hotels 

in Belfast and Dublin, both of which are cool 

destinations for leisure guests thanks to their 

excellent locations, designled contemporary 

style, good food and outstandingly friendly 

and helpful staff. These same qualities plus 

thoughtfully designed guest rooms offering a 

comfortable inroom working environment, 

business back up services and highspec 

conference and meeting facilities also have 

special appeal for discerning business guests. 

Whether as a service for local businesses, or a 

residential destination for overseas 

businesses meeting counterparts in Ireland, 

these hotels also offer great downtime 

opportunities and are well placed for visitors 

to experience the best of their chosen 

destination. In short, they are just great 

places to stay, and to work.” 

The Five Star Fitzwilliam Hotel Dublin first 

opened its prestigious doors in 2001, and 

with a location that offers the historically 

imbued St. Stephen’s Green to one side, and 

Dublin’s most famous shopping destination, 

Grafton Street to the other, the hotel 

continues to attract the discerning 

international traveller and guest. 


11

COVER STORY - BELFAST MET 

BELFAST METROPOLITAN 

COLLEGE: LEADING 

FUTURE GENERATIONS 

TO WORK 

Belfast Metropolitan College has been serving Northern Ireland business for 110 years. With the opening of the Belfast Business College 

in 2017, it will position itself as a generator of talent for the next century 

Damian Duffy (Director of Development), MarieThérèse McGivern (Principal and CEO), Steve McKee (Marketing expert) , Beverley Harrison (Department of 

Economy, Frank Bryan (Chair of Board of Governors) 


S 

ince 1906, Belfast Metropolitan College 

has pioneered opportunity in Belfast by 

‘Leading the City to Work’. 

Established to answer the early 20th 

century’s growing demands for a workforce 

with skills relevant to Belfast’s emerging 

industries, Belfast Met has become 

synonymous with providing outstanding 

knowledge and innovation necessary for 

crafting the City’s workforce and contributing 

to the country’s economic success. 

Now, as the College celebrates its 110th 

anniversary, it takes inspiration from its 

iconic legacy in paving the way for the future. 

Putting it in context 

Belfast Met began as the Belfast Municipal 

Technical Institute in a year which also saw 

the opening of Belfast City Hall and the Royal 

Victoria Hospital – two other inherently 

Belfast institutions. 

1906 was at the height of the City’s 

industrial revolution and the aim of the 

College was to provide the skills necessary to 

propel vital trades forward. 

Courses offered included engineering, ship 

building, textiles, general manufacturing, and 

many more, earning the College the 

reputation of providing the ‘workforce of 

tomorrow’ – people with the skills needed to 

meet job demand. 

And skills weren’t limited to men – the 

college offered courses for everyone, to 

ensure that the entire community was 

equipped, prepared and ready to work. 

Where we are now 

110 years later, the focus of Belfast Met 

remains the same. Headquartered at the TQ 

building in the thriving Titanic Quarter and 

led by Principal MarieThérèse McGivern, the 

College provides full and parttime 

programmes that are accessible, flexible and 

industryendorsed, with strategic links and 

partnerships to the local business community 

and employers, to help provide a ‘ready to 

work workforce’ – and maintain the college’s 

slogan, ‘Leading the City to Work’. 

Coordinated with the Northern Ireland 

Economic Strategy, the College’s curriculum 

is developed to match the identified future 

economic growth areas and support them by 

providing highquality courses required to 

equip a modern workforce. 

Roadmap to the future 

The College’s new Corporate Plan (2016 

2020) does just that, and foresees a period of 

great change in the wider government, 

economic and technological landscapes in 


To accommodate this, the College will 

launch its new Belfast Business School in 

March 2017 – the first of its kind in the UK. 

Students celebrate Belfast Metropolitacn College’s 110 years of service to Northern Ireland 

Led by a team of industry experts, the 

Business School will feature a packed 

prospectus designed to provide students with 

the skills to compete in a demanding 

corporate market. 

There will also be insightful masterclasses 

and workshops hosted by industry experts 

who have experienced emerging business 

developments firsthand. 

Based in the e3 building at the Springvale 

Campus, the college is spending over £1m 

upgrading its teaching and training facilities 

to help execute the wide range of digitallydelivered 

professional short courses that the 

Business School will offer. 

Belfast Met continues to expand delivery of 

its Assured Skills Academy programme – a 

unique set of training programmes run in 

partnership with the Department for the 

Economy and Invest Northern Ireland. 

The College works collaboratively with 

companies to identify skills needs and in turn 

develops a bespoke training academy to suit, 

with the aim of providing an upskilled 

workforce to facilitate new inward investors 

and provide existing employers with the 

skills required to enable business expansion. 

Since launching in August 2013, Belfast Met 

has delivered 30 training programmes, 

working with companies such as Deliotte, 

PWC, AMS and Fintru, amongst others. 

Most recently, Belfast Met has been 

recognised by winning a prestigious Northern 

Ireland Chamber of Commerce Education and 

Business Partnership Award. 

Over 110 years, Belfast Met has grown to be 

a £60m business, employing over 1,000 

QUOTABLEQUOTE 

Over 110 years, Belfast Met has 

grown to be a £60m business, 

employing over 1,000 people 

and enriching the minds of over 

20,000 students every year. 

people and enriching the minds of over 

20,000 students every year. 

These students graduate with vital skills 

that not only ready them for joining the 

workforce, but have the ability to transform 

their lives and directly contribute to the 

success of Northern Ireland’s economy. 110 

years after first opening its doors, Belfast 

Met’s dedication to this mission has not 

shifted and today the College looks to the 

future of creating leaders, engaging 

businesses and ultimately, ‘Leading the City 

to Work’. 


13

BEST PRACTICE 

Banking on Intellectual Property 

the underappreciated asset 

by Iain Lundie, partner at UHY Hacker Young Fitch Chartered Accountants 

he World Intellectual Property 

Organization (WIPO) defines 

Tintellectual property as “creations of the 

mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic 

works; designs; and symbols, names and 

images used in commerce.” 

Unfortunately, when we look to valuing 

creations of the mind, accountancy does not 

help much and intellectual property value 

tends to be a balancing figure which denotes a 

business value that cannot be explained by its 

tangible assets alone. Your business is worth 

more than the sum of its touchable parts. 

The problem of undervaluing and 

underappreciating this value cannot be 

overstated. The issues involved in valuing 

and appreciating intellectual property across 

the full range of Business Owner issues, from 

Banking and Finance to decision and policy 

making through to taxation. 

In 2013 the UK intellectual property office 

released the study "Banking on IP? The role of 

intellectual property and intangible assets in 

facilitating business finance" 

The study reported findings on how 

effectively Small and Medium Enterprises, 

described as “The lifeblood of the economy”, 

are able to use their IP assets to secure the 

finance they need for company growth and 

whether there was more that companies and 

financiers could do to leverage the IP assets. 

The context of the report was the findings 

of the 2012 Breedon Report which estimated 

that shortage of finance for SMEs was 

between £84 billion and £191 billion and 

that, according to recent research published 

by BIS: 

"If the situation is not resolved, output, 

investment and employment will be lower 

than would otherwise be the case, with 

adverse effects on economic performance in 

the short and longer term." 

The study found that IP is an "underappreciated 

asset class" and is, in effect, 

"unbankable". However, the report noted that 

IP and intangibles are valued highly by equity 

investors and commercial lenders. 

A 2006 ACCA report stated that "intangible 

assets provide the basis of superior profits 

and enterprise value beyond that determined 

by competitive market conditions". 

However, IP was not considered the asset of 

first choice. Nevertheless, a high proportion 

of commercial lenders "felt more could be 

done with them to improve control, inform 

appetite, or both" 

As we all know, finance, remains one of the 

key issues in maintaining the SME sector and 

the issue of identifying and valuing 


intellectual property 

needs to be 

improved so that the 

routes to finance can 

follow. 

This is a process by 

which businesses 

must be educated in 

identifying and 

valuing intellectual 

property, primary 

funders must see the 

reliability and 

repeatability of these 

values and be able to 

bank this part of the 

business. 

A further issue in 

undervaluing and 

underappreciationg intellectual property is 

that it is then left unprotected. It is crucial 

that your business is able to identify, value 

and protect its intellectual property. 

This definition can encompass many areas 

of your business, such as its name, logo, 

designs, inventions works of creative or 

intellectual effort or trademarks. 

Each of these make your business unique 

and in order to protect this ability to generate 

commerce the issue must be understood and 

protected where possible. 

A simple example of where this may 

cause issues is with your website, a 

good question is “who owns it?” 

This seems simple but reality may be 

different. You rent the domain name, you 

may own the visual design if you created it 

but if this is more of a theme amended to 

work for your business you may not own 

much of the look and feel. 

You may own the source code of the site but 

be aware of some agencies who will claim 

ownership of this as well. You almost 

certainly won’t own the platform that the 

website runs on and you won’t own the web 

server database or browser. 

How can you protect this intellectual 

property? 

This should form part of your inhouse 

procedures and processes. Identifying areas 

which can be legally protected, ensuring that 

registrations are regularly checked and risks 

are identified. 

There should be action plans in place 

should you need to change provider or look 

to make changes and upgrades to your 

website. 

This is an example of something which may 

be outsourced cheaply but can cause many 

issues. 

It would be remiss not to discuss the tax 

reliefs which are available to those involved 

in generating intellectual property. 

In line with the UK strategy of developing 

the “Knowledge economy” there are a myriad 

of reliefs available including: 

• Research and development tax credits 

• Creative Industry corporation tax relief 

• Tax relief on investment into IP focussed 

companies 

• Reduced Capital Gains Tax for Directors 

and employees 

• Business Property relief for inheritance 

tax 

• Capital Gains Tax deferral 

• Patent box corporation tax relief. 

It is important to understand, harness, 

value and protect intellectual property rights 

in order to exploit these government reliefs 

and ensure that the maximum value of your 

business is being achieved. 

MOREINFORMATION 

If there is anything in this article 

that you find of use or if there is 

anything that we can assist with 

please do not hesitate to contact 

either Iain Lundie 

i.lundie@uhy-uk.com) or 

Michael Fitch 

m.fitch@uhy-uk.com) 

on 028 9032 2047.

BEST PRACTICE 

ON A BOARD? 

You just can’t play it by ear! 

by Joy Allen CDir, managing director of Leading Governance Ltd, and Lead Tutor with IoD in London. She has specialised in board 

review and development processes for 14 years. 

very time we turn on the news, there 

seems to be another governance 

E 

scandal. Whether its Volkswagen, 

Tesco, BHS or Sports Direct, there are 

frequent reminders of the need for company 

directors to be alert, engaged and trained for 

the job. 

Continual learning is essential in the 

modern boardroom if risks are to be spotted 

and managed, and if strategic goals are to be 

achieved. 

The most capable directors understand the 

relevance of the Chartered Director 

qualification, and the importance of 

continuing development. 

The legal duties of directors are clearly 

enshrined in law, including in the Companies 

Act 2006. 

We are required to exercise ‘care, skill and 

diligence’, which means we need to know 

what we’re doing! How many directors have 

a really good induction when they’re 

appointed? 

Most get a tour of the premises, 

introduction to key staff, and maybe a pack of 

papers to read through. Very few, in our 

experience, get structured training in their 

legal responsibilities, and support to spot 

strategic opportunities and key risks. 

A good director induction will 

include: 

• Familiarisation with the governing 

documents – Articles of Association, 

Shareholder Agreements, etc 

• Previous Annual Reports & Accounts 

• Strategic Plan, Business Plan 

• Strategic Risk Register 

• Pen portraits of fellow directors 

• Role Descriptions for the board, board 

members, chairman, company secretary, 

MD 

• Details about the delegation framework – 

in a formal setting, there will be a Schedule 

of Matters Reserved to the Board and a 

Scheme of Delegation. In a less formal 

business, people at each level should be 

clear about what decisions they can make 

(including spending limits) and what they 

need to bring to the next level up. 

Induction is just the start 

If the company is to maximise success and 

minimise the risk of failures, then induction 

for board members is just the start ongoing 

training is also vital. 

Most of us come to the boardroom through 

the executive route, promoted through the 


Alan Taylor of Arthur Cox and IoD NI Director Linda Brown (seated) with Briege Bradley and 

Sheila Donaghy from Ulster Bank at one of the Institute’s Effective Board sessions 

ranks of management, and familiar with the 

detail of day to day business. 

Investing in continuous professional 

development helps directors to raise their 

heads out of operational detail and think in a 

more strategic way about how best they fulfil 

those duties. 

The complexity of the role means that 

directors need to be well informed and 

energised in their role. 

The UK Code of Corporate Governance 

guides the board to provide entrepreneurial 

leadership within a framework of prudent 

controls. 

Both of those aspects require director 

competence and a board that shows clear 

leadership. The culture of the company 

should be led by the board, which should set 

the tone for everyone else. 

By investing in development of the board 

and its members, a clear signal is sent that the 

organisation values continual learning, and 

guards against complacency. 

That will encourage staff to continuously 

learn and develop, creating a vibrant learning 

organisation that will be the envy of 

competitors. Really effective directors are 

committed to continually developing 

themselves and growing in their role. 

They lead by example, recognising that 

even experienced executives have more to 

learn. 

Professionalising the board 

The mantra of the Institute of 

Directors is ‘Better Directors, Better 

Businesses, Better Economy’. Having a 

board that believes in continuing professional 

development is at the core of creating the 

Better Directors, who build a Better Business 

that leads to a Better Economy. 

The IoD main objective is to help directors 

and business leaders to access professional 

development opportunities and so offers a 

wide portfolio of one, two and three day 

courses as well as the Chartered Director 

Programme, which can lead to the award of 

the Chartered Director qualification as well as 

the Certificate and Diploma in Company 

Direction. 

The next Programme starts in January 2017 

and anyone interested in this can contact the 

IoD at iod.northernireland@iod.com for 

more information. 

In Northern Ireland, the Competent 

Director Series has been developed to meet 

the needs of local business leaders with 

support from Ulster Bank and Arthur Cox. 

The Competent Director Series provides an 

accessible mix of half day workshops on 

topics such as finance for board members and 

the role of a nonexecutive director, 

interactive boardroom sessions, the New 

Director Boot Camps, and for 2017, a new 

programme of workshops on The Competent 

Chair, covering all aspects of Chairing a 

company and its board. For information on 

this activity, go to www.iodni.com/events

What do we consider the 

achievements of the year to 

date? 

Naomi Waite, Tourism NI 

There are several strands from a 

communications and PR angle: part export 

sales, part extending the reputation of 

Northern Ireland as destination. We set 

ourselves the target of generating £10m of 

positive PR and at half way point we’ve 

achieved £30m of positive PR with 61 

international media visits. 

The launch event at Ulster Hall was a real 

success setting the scene for collaboration 

across the sectors. But it was the 

development of the monthly calendar of 

activity with Food NI that has proven to be 

the best way to focus our efforts. 

We’ve had numerous international 

successes, not least a nine page spread in 

Food Canada. Alongside filming at Foyle 

Maritime Festival and St George’s Market, and 

great social media levels of engagement, we 

can confidently say that the year is shaping 

up to be an outstanding success. 

John Hood, Invest NI 

The food and drink sector accounts for 25 

per cent of Northern Ireland’s export sales 

with 70 per cent of food production exported. 

Year of Food and Drink 

Round Table with Tourism NI 

Year of Food and Drink is delivering strong partnerships and PR across Northern Ireland and beyond. We gathered a 

cross section of the sector at Tourism NI’s offices to gauge its success and look at potential next steps. Howard 

Hastings, managing director of Hastings Hotels and past chair of Tourism NI sets the scene. 

A 

fter the success of the Giro d’Italia and 

the Irish Open we needed to create a year 

long programme of indigenous events. 

Food and drink has capacity to do that and 

we wanted to build awareness of our food 

and drink sector locally and use it as a 

tourism driver while also developing the agrifood 

industry. 

The idea was to build food trails and 

festivals, dialup existing food based events 

and revive the tired ones. 

In 2014 we decided that we would make 

2016 the Northern Ireland Year of Food and 

Drink. It was an ambitious timescale as we 

needed to create the delivery platforms and 

grow civic pride to the point of high 

engagement. 

It was complicated because of the diversity 

of the sector which required buyin from 

ministers of Economy, Agriculture and the 

then Department of Environment plus the 

new Councils along with involving Tourism 

Ireland to take the project internationally. 

Back Row: Michael Jackson, Food Standards Agency: John Hood, Invest NI: Caroline 

Wilson, Belfast Food Tours: Glynn Roberts, NIIRTA: Niall Mckenna, James St South: Gavin 

Walker, Business First (chair): Howard Hastings, Hastings Hotels. Seated, John McGrillen, 

Tourism NI: Sharon Machala, Food NI: Naomi Waite, Tourism NI 

Of that, 97 per cent is consumed within the 

European Union and the Republic of Ireland 

is by far our biggest market accounting for 16 

per cent of exports. 

But ours is a competitive market and it’s 

hard to make profit, so the most important 

aspect of the Year of Food and Drink for us 

has been the enhancement of our reputation 

outside of Northern Ireland. 

Where we have recognised a weakness, 

however, is that Northern Ireland doesn’t 

have a brand. Scotland plays on the Soltaire, 

tartan and thistle, and Wales is developing a 

brand around the Dragon. So we need to find 

our own identity. For us it revolves around 

three ideas: Purity: Natural: Quality. 

We have a food fortress which guarantees 

food purity. Our natural environment is 

recognised across the world, and recent 

successes in awards such as the Great Taste 

Awards means that our quality has been 

measured independently. 

In a recent Retail Grocer ninepage article 

the headline read: Northern Ireland Food and 

Drink is UK’s Best Kept Secret – but that’s 

about to change. The export dimension is an 

important aspect of the legacy of Year of Food 

and Drink. 

Food and Drink creates employment 

opportunities across Northern Ireland and we 

have to make the sector more attractive to 

local people. 

Sharon Machala, Food NI 

There’s no doubt the Monthly Calendar 

helped to focus industry and had their buyin. 

The calendar was based on existing festivals 

and has gradually gained momentum, with 

retailers like Tesco and Lidl getting onboard. 

Councils and Invest NI have also been very 

involved so the year has allowed us to 

connect the dots and we look forward to 

continuing that in 2017. 

Caroline Wilson, Belfast Food Tours 

I wouldn’t be here and my business 

certainly wouldn’t be as successful as it is 

without Year of Food and Drink. 

I’ve noticed in particular the focussing of 

minds with the industry, retailers and the 

public. 

Economic confidence in the sector is also 

growing with diversification and new 

businesses being set up across Northern 

Ireland. And that confidence is spreading to 

our students who are now convinced that the 

industry – food and tourism – has a future as 

a career choice. 

Michael Jackson, Food Standards 

Agency 

Our job is to ensure that locals and tourists 

both enjoy a secure and healthy experience 

and we have continued to see an increase in 


19

ROUND TABLE 

John McGrillen, Howard Hastings and Naomi Waite 

levels of compliance within the industry. At 

this point we have 97 per cent of businesses 

rated at least three on the Food Hygiene 

Scheme which is the highest in UK. 

The Year of Food and Drink as provided us 

the opportunity to promote healthy eating 

and diet choices and the Calendar has allowed 

us to align the Eat Well Calendar with the 

Year of Food and Drink. 

Niall McKenna, James St South 

There has been a definite uplift in business 

from around UK and a positive mentality 

from restauranteurs for collaboration and 

development. 

Staff retention is also so much better and I 

have more international staff wanting to 

work in Belfast. Not only that, staff are now 

going to festivals to find out more about what 

is available locally and becoming more aware 

of the produce available to them. It’s been 

notable and impressive. 

we both know that a successful town centre is 

a mix of retail and hospitality: happy 

restauranteurs equals happy retailers as they 

both feed footfall to each other. 

John McGrillen, Tourism NI 

We’re all in the economic development 

business but sometimes we get stuck in our 

silos. What the Year of Food and Drink has 

done is allowed us to work together to meet 

our individual objectives but with an eye to 

the overall success of Northern Ireland. 

There is a real opportunity to develop new 

businesses outside of the cities with 

development of businesses such as Kilmegan 

Cider in Newry. 

These create real opportunities for smaller 

communities to become sustainable which 

makes for a better tourist experience and all 

of this feeds into the success of the sector. 

When we work together we get results. To 

some extent this isn’t a surprise to us. We had 

experienced it from the feedback from the 

organisers of the international events such as 

the Giro d’Italia who have all been impressed 

by the level of cooperation across all 

agencies and sectors to deliver a great 

experience for the client. 

So we knew it could be done, and it’s great 

to have the success of our own Year of Food 

and Drink to put all of that to our advantage. 

Tourism is an export business. We create an 

income of £500m per year. But more 

importantly we provide jobs across the 

country and in places like Belfast where over 

35 per cent of the population is economically 

inactive and who are not being served by the 

FDI successes that require high level skills 

that these people don’t have. 

At the same time there are always new 

destinations and tourism products being 

developed internationally and so while we 

have a great product in place, we can’t be 

complacent and must continue to invest in 

tourism infrastructure and marketing. 

Howard Hastings, Hastings Hotels 

The success of the Year is hopefully 

showing politicians that they need to review 

the way they approach economic 

development. 

Historically it is often the highpay jobs that 

are transitory, lasting only until the 

machinery or technology becomes obsolete. 

Contrast that with the reality that while the 

hospitality industry might not create as many 

high paying jobs, they are more sustainable. 

So when we create jobs within places like 

Titanic Belfast, those jobs are going to be 

around for 50 or 60 years. That married with 

the fact that we are becoming better able to 

grow our domestic economy and grow the 

euro and dollar economy and you can see that 

Glyn Roberts, NIIRTA 

As a result of the focus on food and drink, 

retailers have become more encouraged to 

source locally. 

We now have more food processors as 

members and we are enthusiastic partners in 

the year. 

But it’s all about the legacy of the year. Can 

we develop more indigenous businesses and 

increase the skills level to serve the 

expanding sector. 

It’s great to see so many different players 

getting involved. Success will be measured by 

how many new businesses we’ve created, 

how many new visitors we’ve attracted and 

how many businesses have seen an increase 

in turnover and profit. 

Hopefully the legacy of the year will be a 

greater development of our town centres. We 

work closely with Hospitality Ulster because 

Niall McKenna, James St South and Glyn Roberts, NIIRTA 


the tourism pound is better recycled within 

the economy. You can see that from the new 

jobs and businesses that are being created. 

It’s clear that when you are marketing 

tourism within Northern Ireland you are also 

selling Northern Ireland as a great place to 

live, study and invest. This is an exciting time 

for a new Programme for Government to reimagine 

their industrial policy and we have 

demonstrated how investment in tourism 

reaches so much further than within the 

sector. 

So when the Year is finished, 

what will be its legacy and what 

are the Next Steps? 

John McGrillen, Tourism NI 

We need to engage with tourists who are 

‘culturally curious’. Typically they are welleducated 

and focussed on the quality of food, 

heritage and culture. 

We are perfectly placed for that sector and 

we can present ourselves as a food 

destination. It might not be the sole reason 

for visiting, but it provides an important 

addedvalue to these tourists. 

The business to business and incentive 

market is growing in importance to us as 

well. They are looking for an integrated 

experience and we have proven that we can 

provide that. As a result, they are prepared to 

pay premium prices therefore making an 

even greater contribution to the local 

economy. 

Howard Hastings, Hastings Hotels 

I get really excited when the Scottish Food 

and Drink Society asks, ‘What are you guys 

doing right’. Or when the Restaurants 

Association of Ireland put in their preelection 

manifesto that they want a Year of 

Food and Drink. The awards recognition for 

food and drink providers is exciting and the 

decision of the BBC Good Food Show to come 

to Northern Ireland is a significant event that 

would have been inconcievable only a few 

years ago. 

We are demonstrating a new selfconfidence 

and that is the really positive 

narrative coming out of the year. We’re just in 

the foothills of where we can take this and we 

need to be sure to drive on into next year and 

the year after that. 

Opportunities are extensive and exciting. 

John Hood, Invest NI 

This year we have enhanced our image and 

reputation giving us access to new markets. 

The most important thing now is to drive 

additional sales for our local food and drink. 

This year we are looking for a £30m 

increase in sales and our next step is simple: 

drive sales of our quality produce. 

Sharon Machala, Food NI 

We are focussed on having a collective 

approach through strategic partnerships. We 

have linked in with so many organisations 

and agencies to enhance Northern Ireland’s 

reputation for food and drink and we want to 

continue building on that. 

Caroline Wilson, Belfast Food Tours 

Building on the support that’s going to 

producers and tourism providers on the 

North Coast and Derry will hopefully be 

extended across Northern Ireland. There is 

massive corporate demand for tours outside 

Belfast and I hope we will build on that. 

But perhaps the most important next step is 

the development of a Made in Northern 

Ireland brand that makes us stand out from 

our competitors. The consumers want it and 

so we have to educate our locals and tourists 

of what is available locally and celebrate that 

uniqueness. 

Michael Jackson, Food Standards 

Agency 

We have demonstrated that we can have a 

different dynamic that can drive the whole 

industry forward. We’re working to provide 

information to help people make a more 

informed choice when it comes to their food. 

John McGrillen, CEO, TOurism NI 

Niall McKenna, James St South 

The Calendar was a brilliant innovation for 

the Year. Now if we could look at the 

possibility of bringing some of the events 

closer together so visitors will have more 

than one event to visit once they are here, 

that would be a great next step. 

Less fragmentation will encourage a longer 

stay and that can be set alongside theatre and 

the arts so visitors aren’t left saying ‘that was 

great, but what’s next.’ 

Glynn Roberts NIIRTA 

The legacy of the Year will be economic 

development and confidence but next steps 

are about connectivity with skills needs and 

provision. We need to get the right skills sets 

in place to serve what is obviously an exciting 

and growing industry. 

Naomi Waite, Tourism NI 

I think there are a number of great areas we 

can drive on from here. We can build the 

relationships with international media. The 

calendar is a real success and we should 

continue to build on that. Visitors are looking 

for more information and the new 

collaboration will allow us to provide that. 

We have developed a library of images, 

recipes and other collateral all available to 

journalists. New food trails for the visitor 

who wants a fully immersive food experience. 

Caroline Wilson, Belfast Food Tours and Michael Jackson, Food Standards Agency 


21

BEST PRACTICE 

7by Anne Phillipson, Programme Director, William J Clinton Leadership Institute, QUB 

L 

STEPS TO SUCCESSFUL 

TALENT DEVELOPMENT 

eaders spend a lot of time thinking about 

the future. Without a crystal ball to 

assist them, they have to make an 

educated guess as to what the market will 

look like, how their customers’ demands will 

have changed, and how the entire 

environment they operate in will have 

shifted. Once they have stepped into the 

future, they have to return to the present and 

make a plan. 

That plan has to involve developing the 

bench strength of their people, so that they 

have the talent to deliver that future. 

Be honest, how many of you reading this 

article have invested in a meaningful talent 

development process so that you can state, 

with confidence, that you know who you want 

in key roles in the future and those 

individuals are working a personalised 

development plan to help them be ready 

when the time comes? If your answer is less 

than a ‘absolutely, yes’, then read on. 

The risk of not having a development 

strategy is similar to not having a business 

strategy. There’s always a slight chance that 

you will be okay without it, but is that a 

chance you really want to take with your 

organisation’s future? 

Wouldn’t it be better to assess your current 

talent, identify the critical roles that can’t be 

filled from the outside without a huge learning 

curve, and develop your own people now? 

And what a positive message to be able to 

share with your team; we have great plans for 

you, we want to grow and develop you to be 

ready to take on greater responsibility, and 

we are investing in you. Retention; tick. 

Engagement; tick. Successful transition; tick. 

Large organisations usually have a 


structured talent development process. But 

for medium or small enterprises, it doesn’t 

have to be costly process and you don’t need 

to hire consultants to do this for you. 

In fact, it’s much easier for SMEs to review 

their talent pool, since the relationships and 

connections across the organisation are much 

closer and so there is a real depth of 

understanding of the current performance 

across the entire team. While HR partners can 

help facilitate the process, managers must be 

central to the talent review. 

1Assess current performance. 

Review how people are doing in their 

current role. This assessment is not 

just about whether they got the job done, but 

HOW did they get the job done. 

Do people want to work with them again, or 

do they hit their targets but leave a path of 

destruction behind them. The WHAT and the 

HOW are important considerations in 

assessing current performance. Performance 

discussions should include asking people 

about their own desire for future roles in the 

organisation and their aspirations. 

2Assess potential 

When you review each individual, you 

will know how they are doing in their 

current role based on this year’s performance 

review, but you must also consider their 

potential. Can you see them getting to the 

next level? 

What about the level after that? It’s okay to 

be a solid performer that won’t go any further 

up the ladder; in fact, you need people like 

that in most organisations. 

That doesn’t mean they won’t get further 

development, they will. It will just look 

different than those who are expected to 

move into roles with greater responsibility 

and scope. 

3Assess Readiness 

Think about when the individual might 

be ready to make that move to the next 

level. In 12 months? 24 months? The length of 

time will influence the development plan, so 

think about the ideal timeframe. 

4Assess Flight Risks 

Is this individual likely to get poached? 

Are there signs that they might be 

looking elsewhere? This information should 

be known, so that you can take steps to keep 

your top talent, let them know you have big 

plans for them, and engage them in their own 

development to mitigate against flight risk. 

5Identify Critical Roles 

Which roles in your organisation are 

critical to your success? Which roles, 

where if the current postholder left, would 

make you vulnerable? Which roles is it almost 

impossible to fill from outside without 

waiting months for the new start to get up to 

speed and perform? 

Which roles do you not have time to wait, 

where you need performance from day one? 

6Identify Successors 

For those Critical Roles, you need to 

identify one, two or even three people 

to be on the bench. If it would take an internal 

candidate 1224 months to be ready, what do 

you need to be doing now to begin that 

process? 

The answer will be different for each of 

your potential successors, depending on their 

individual starting points, but that’s where 

the targeted development plans come in. 

7Targeted Development Plans 

Once you know where people are now, 

what their potential is, which roles 

need succession plans in place, and who could 

potentially fill those roles, you can then 

design bespoke development plans. 

Those plans may include leadership 

development, training, secondment, 

mentoring, travel, extending networks, 

temporary assignments or strategic projects. 

Whatever is required to give the individual 

the skills, competency and confidence to step 

into that future role. 

And don’t overlook those individuals that 

aren’t going up to the next rung on the ladder. 

They also need development, but they might 

be spending more time doing the mentoring 

than being mentored! 

A thorough talent review takes time, but it 

is an investment in your organisations’ future. 

And isn’t that what leadership is all about; 

futureproofing.

FIRST TRUST BANK 

Speed is of the essence in 

business loan approvals 

hat if you’ve found the perfect 

business opportunity and you need 

Wto move fast – to secure a new 

customer or take forward an expansion plan, 

but you don’t have the finances in place? 

Whether it’s in fashion, hospitality, IT or 

manufacturing speed increasingly provides 

the competitive edge needed to succeed in 

modern business. It’s a fact of life today that 

we are all programmed to demand and expect 

things more quickly and the business world is 

no different. 

On the other side of the coin, the banking 

sector would not traditionally enjoy a 

reputation for swift decision making when it 

comes to approving finance. But even that is 

changing. 

Experiencing a significant increase in 

demand for business credit and a growing 

appetite among the business community for 

expansion, First Trust Bank recently 

announced a market first in Northern Ireland. 

Targeting both new and existing customer 

they have given a commitment to make 

decisions on new business loans and overdraft 

requests up to £25,000 within 48 hours. 

According to the Bank they are often in a 

position to beat that commitment following 

receipt of all required information to 

progress funding applications. 

Speaking about the move Brian Gillan, Head 

of Business Banking, First Trust Bank said; 

“With over 118,000 SME businesses active in 

Northern Ireland, the ability to support their 

ambitions is vital to growing our economy as 

a whole and our latest 48hour commitment 

is designed to do just that. 

“In truth we often are able to beat that 

deadline if our customers can deliver all the 

required information for the applications. 

We have a very broad client base across a 

Blend and Batch based in Banbridge, County Down owned by 

husband and wife team Peter and Marion Fairbairn 

range of business sectors 

and we see firsthand just 

how critical a quick 

funding decision can be. 

“It can sometimes be the 

difference between being 

first to market with 

something or securing 

new customers. It is also 

vital to take account of 

seasonal fluctuations, be 

they good or bad. 

“We have been very 

pleased with the response 

to the commitment 

already which goes to 

prove that speed can be 

everything in today’s fast 

paced world.” 

Blend and Batch Coffee Shop 

Two companies who have benefited from 

the quick decision making are fashion retailer 

Spoilt Belle Boutique and contemporary 

coffee shop, Blend and Batch based in 

Banbridge, County Down which is owned by 

husband and wife team Peter and Marion 

Fairbairn. 

When the selfconfessed coffee lovers, saw 

a clear gap in the market for a coffee shop 

which would not only serve top quality coffee, 

batch baked produce and made to order food, 

but would also become a popular meeting 

point for the local community, they needed to 

move swiftly. 

Emphasising the value of the quick decision 

making from his Bank, Peter said; “We 

spotted the opportunity to open a coffee 

shop/ kitchen in Banbridge which had a 

prominent location on the edge of the town 

centre. We needed a Bank which not only 

bought into our overall vision for the place, 

but which also understood 

the need for speed in their 

response. 

“With First Trust Bank’s 

help we were able to move 

quickly to establish Blend 

and Batch as a 

contemporary and 

welcoming coffee shop in 

the town – and create a 

shared space for the local 

community. 

“Today we also deliver 

an appetising food range 

based on local sourcing 

and seasonal produce, to 

go with our top quality 

Spoilt Belle Boutique owned by Rachel Shivers 

coffee which is roasted by 

38 Espresso on the Ards 

Peninsula. We believe in the value and 

strength of ‘local’ and it is comforting to have 

a local Bank that shares our passion.” 

Spoilt Belle Boutique 

Spoilt Belle Boutique is a clothing outlet 

aimed at fashion forward women. With a 

keen eye for the latest fashions and the need 

to stay on trend the owner Rachel Shivers 

wanted to expand from her well established 

shop in Magherafelt and continue the growth 

of its online presence. She needed money 

quickly to support the opening of its second 

store in Coleraine, an expansion which also 

created seven new jobs in the process. 

Rachel explains how the quick turnaround 

was vital to her expansion plans; 

“Given the fastpaced nature of fashion 

retail, it’s essential that businesses like mine 

have access to a flexible cash flow or we risk 

losing out on opportunities. 

“We were given our decision by First Trust 

Bank well within the 48 hours which helped 

accelerate our growth plans so I’m thrilled to 

have opened our new store in Coleraine and 

create jobs in the local area. While having an 

increased physical presence in Northern 

Ireland is important, much of our growing 

customer base is also owed to our online 

presence across social media platforms; in 

particular Snapchat and Instagram. 

“Having the support of a Bank who took the 

time to understand the quick nature of retail 

and the evolving needs of fashion conscious 

consumers helped fast forward our expansion 

plans.” 

Further details about the 48hour decision 

commitment can be found at 

www.firsttrustbank.co.uk 

First Trust Bank is a trade mark of AIB 

Group (UK) p.l.c. (a wholly owned subsidiary of 

Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c.) 


23

BEST PRACTICE 

Building Family Governance 

by Maybeth Shaw, BDO Northern Ireland 

R 

ecently, we have witnessed the formal 

announcement of the Government’s 

intention to trigger the UK’s exit from 

the EU by March 2017. 

The announcement was met with mixed 

economic reaction with the weakening of the 

pound, but the stock market strengthening 

from the increased certainty, at least in terms 

of the formal timetable, for Brexit. 

It is evident that strong government, and 

indeed strong governance, will be required to 

steer the country through the turbulent 

economic and political tides of Article 50 of 

the Lisbon Treaty. 

The need for clear strategic direction, as 

well as the internal processes that support 

this, will be important not only in terms of the 

Government and its strategy for the country, 

but also, for businesses up and down the 

country, which will need strong leadership 

and governance to mitigate any fallout from 

Brexit. 

In working with family owned businesses, 

we have come to realise that they have to 

learn to successfully manage two facets of 

governance: 

(a) Corporate governance, covering the 

direction of business operations; and 

(b) Family governance, providing a 

framework of rules that define family 

members’ roles and responsibilities, and 

how the family interacts with the business. 

This duality is complicated because in most 

family businesses, individuals will often have 

several roles. It is often not possible – or 

indeed desirable – to eliminate all personal 

interests or conflicts of interest, but family 

governance systems make it easier to identify 

and address these with reasonable 

objectivity. 

Our experience in working with family 

businesses has shown that family governance 

needs to evolve to take account of 

developments, within both the business and 

the family circle. 

Family firms become more complex over 

time as the business expands, the family 

grows and ownership dilutes. 

What used to work for an entrepreneur and 

their nuclear family – i.e. informal governance 

based on understandings and assumptions – 

is less likely to serve the interests of a group 

of secondgeneration siblings (and their 

spouses). 

As a result, it makes sense to organise 

governance early, while the family enterprise 

is young and the family group relatively small 

– and at a time when family relations are 

peaceful, while big issues like succession 

remain a distant prospect. 

The aim is to generally change from a 

system of informality to an environment 

where there are rules, procedures and 

structures in place. 

At BDO, we have also come to appreciate 

that a strong sense of shared purpose among 

owners and the wider family is a source of 

competitive advantage for family businesses. 

Each family needs to work through how 

this sense of belonging and teamwork will be 

reflected in their family governance system. 

However, it is clear that there is no “one size 

fits all” and no two families or businesses are 

completely alike. 

Family governance systems work best 

when they are tailormade – shaped by the 

age, size and culture of the business, the 

family’s degree of involvement, and the 

personal dynamics amongst family members. 

A formal framework and written rules of 

governance make it less likely that 

personality issues will divide the family and 

interfere in the business. 

Through the mechanisms of family 

governance, families aim to build trust, 

ensure clarity and manage stakeholder 

expectations. 

We have found a number of family 

governance documents and structures that 

can go some way towards supporting this 

goal. These can include: 

A family constitution documenting 

• the family’s vision and objectives for the 

business; 

• key policies – for example, those relating 

to family members’ employment, 

management succession, and the 

ownership and transfer of shares; 

• a code of conduct governing how family 

members should treat each other; and 

• the role of family governance bodies and 

their relationship with corporate entities 

like the board of directors. 

A shareholders’ agreement 

Often codifying certain provisions of the 

family constitution, such as listing the types 

of decisions that owners are entitled to make 

(as opposed to the board), rules on share 

transfers and how shares are to be valued. 

Family governance bodies 

Including a family assembly, open to all 

family members, and a family council, formed 

of chosen representatives of the family. The 

council will typically set policies to balance 

family and business, and will act as the 

conduit between shareholders and the board 

of directors. These bodies provide family 

QUOTABLEQUOTE 

Family governance systems work 

best when they are tailor-made – 

shaped by the age, size and 

culture of the business, the 

family’s degree of involvement, 

and the personal dynamics 

amongst family members. 

members with a forum for discussion and 

help them develop a coordinated family 

approach. 

Family council committees 

Working to foster family education, 

information, communications and social 

cohesion. 

A family office 

Providing centralised wealth management 

services to the family, acting as an 

investment, liquidity management and 

administrative centre. 

We have seen the benefits of these formal 

structures in practice with several of our 

family owned business clients. 

It is clear that they can prove invaluable in 

keeping the needs of the family and the 

business separate while also helping foster 

internal processes that aid in the future 

running of the company. 

It will be important that businesses review 

their internal governance procedures and 

ensure that these are robust enough to cover 

both the strategic direction of the business, 

particularly in the current uncertain 

economic climate, and the expectations and 

ever changing needs of the family circle. 


BUSINESS FIRST MEETS 

BELFAST HAS WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A 

BIG-HITTER ON THE INTERNATIONAL 

CONFERENCE STAGE 

With the addition of 7,000m 2 of conference space at Belfast Waterfront, the plethora of award-winning restaurants, the 

coming on-stream of world-class hotels and expanding air connectivity, are we ready to take on Paris, Barcelona and 

Berlin in the conference market? Belfast Waterfont and Ulster Hall Limited’s recently-appointed managing director 

Catherine Toolan thinks we are. Here she tells Gavin Walker why she’s prepared to bet £100 million on it. 


I 

n our house planning a dinner party for 

eight seems to be a major exercise in 

logistics. So the idea of providing full 

conference facilities and three meals a day for 

5000 (the maximum the newly expanded 

Belfast Waterfront can facilitate) seems quite 

daunting. 

But after spending eight years in China with 

international facilities management company 

Aramark during which time she was 

responsible for their delivery of the Beijing 

Olympics the biggest peacetime feeding 

event those 5000 seem quite manageable. 

So it’s all a matter of perspective and an 

understanding that whether you’re handling 

a meeting of 10 or a major international 

conference of 1000, the principles of success 

are the same: communicate your 

requirements to your staff: ensure you have 

the right people in the right place, and set the 

level of service bar very high. 

With that philosophy in place and the 

experience to make it happen, Catherine 

Toolan is confident that the new Belfast 

Waterfront is about to make a major impact 

on both Belfast and across the Province. 

“Belfast City Council has been visionary in 

its commitment to the expansion of the 

Waterfront,” Catherine began, “and I believe 

the five year, £100 million economic impact 

target is challenging, but achievable. And 

when we achieve that, the value of the 

investment for both Belfast and the rest of 

Northern Ireland will be quite 

transformational. 

“At the moment each international 

conference delegate spends around £400 

daily. So one conference of 1000 delegates for 

three days creates around £1.2 million of a 

spend on hotels, food and entertainment. 

“Multiply that by many, many conferences, 

and you start to get a sense of how much of 

an impact this new market which the 

expanded Waterfront has made possible for 

Belfast will affect our economy. 

“Now add on a two or three day extended 

stay in Fermanagh or the North West, 

perhaps, and you begin to see how additional 

spending can be generated across Northern 

Ireland. 

“We already have a brilliant product in 

place, but with the addition of new hotels and 

airroutes, that can only get better.” 

Of course, it helps to have a stateofthe art 

facility to sell, and Belfast Waterfront is 

certainly that. 

“Combined with the original facilities, the 

new space provides us with the scalability we 

need to work with international conferences 

of up to 5000 from across the world,” 

Catherine explained. 

“A lot of time was spent ensuring that the 

new space allowed for an easy flow of people 

throughout the building, and behind the 

beautiful space is stateoftheart technology 

QUOTABLEQUOTE 

Belfast City Council has been 

visionary in its commitment to the 

expansion of the Waterfront and I 

believe the five year, £100 million 

economic impact target is 

challenging for Belfast Waterfront, 

but achievable. And when we 

achieve that, the value of the 

investment for both Belfast and 

the rest of Northern Ireland will 

be quite transformational. 

that can meet and very often beat, any 

competitor. 

“For example, we recently tested the wifi 

system and had no difficulty hosting 2000 

devices online at the same time! That’s 

impressive and it’s only one of so many 

technological features of the building that 

simply wow visiting conference planners.” 

Selling Belfast 

Catherine believes Belfast is now well 

positioned to takeon some of Europe’s 

leading conference destinations. 

“Starting with the Lonely Planet Guide, 

Belfast has been feted as ‘one to visit’ by 

many commentators and publications. Add to 

that research that shows the city to be one of 

the safest in Europe, an international 

following for the Titanic and Game of 

Thrones, ease of access, affordability as 

compared to other European destinations, 

and English as the first language, and you 

have the makings of a very attractive package. 

“More importantly, we have a culture of 

collaboration in Belfast with Visit Belfast and 

TourismNI working closely with us to create 

a business tourism strategy that brings 

immediate access to all the best aspects of the 

destination right to the conference planner’s 

finger tips. That’s important and it helps us 

stand out from the competition. 

“And other seemingly small things like 

potentially having the Lord Mayor of Belfast 

open or address your conference, means a lot 

to a conference planner. That’s not the kind of 

access they will get in too many other 

destinations!” 

Working with Belfast 

The arrival of a facility the size of Belfast 

Waterfront creates a demand for new skills 

and job opportunities and Catherine hopes to 

see these maximised. 

“This larger business tourism market 

creates a demand for people with specific 

skills and we want to work with the colleges 

to help them deliver the training to fill the 

demand. We’ll need more people with good 

language skills and training and experience in 

event planning, production and facilities 

management, for example, as well as staff to 

fill the new positions that will be created 

from the new hotels, restaurants and other 

services this market demands. 

“I believe the success of Belfast Waterfront 

will help create many thousands of job 

opportunities across Northern Ireland, and I 

look forward to being a part of this new 

exciting phase in Northern Ireland’s 

economic development.” 


27

BEST PRACTICE 

The tricky business of litigation 

funding in Northern Ireland 

Matthew Howse, Litigation and Dispute Resolution Partner at leading law firm Arthur Cox, explains the nuances of 

litigation funding in Northern Ireland. 

or professionals such as company 

financial directors, who deal largely in 

Fthe ‘black and white’ of numbers, the 

risk and uncertainty associated with pursuing 

a legal claim can often be difficult to justify 

when evaluating the costs of running a case to 

conclusion. 

The availability of third party funding to 

help meet litigation costs can often be 

something that is welcomed by those charged 

with keeping a steady hand on the tiller of a 

company’s finances. 

That is certainly the case in England and 

Wales, where the growth in the use of 

‘litigation funding’ products has been fuelled 

by changes to the legal position, and by large 

corporates and their representatives making 

active use of these changes. 

Risk 

Traditionally, a party to litigation funds its 

own legal costs, either on an interim basis as 

the case progresses or at the end of the case. 

A party who has a lawful interest or some 

other close connection to the litigation – 

shareholders or creditors, for example – can 

legitimately fund a party’s case, although they 

should be aware that they risk being made 

liable for the costs of the litigation if the case 

is unsuccessful. 

So what are some of the alternatives to the 

traditional funding model available in 

Northern Ireland? 

Professional third party litigation funding is 

where a commercial organisation, 

unconnected to the litigation in question, 

funds the litigation with a view to making a 

profit. 

Integrity 

Traditionally, such funding fell foul of the 

ancient rules relating to ‘champerty’ and 

‘maintenance’, designed to uphold the 

integrity of the litigation system – namely to 

prevent trafficking in litigation for profit, and 

to prevent people with an improper motive 

influencing litigation. 

In England and Wales, those rules have 

been substantially relaxed over time. And in 

the Republic of Ireland, a case has been 

appealed to the Supreme Court (likely 

hearing early 2017) which will address the 

question of whether the existing prohibition 

on third party litigation funding in the 

Republic should be lifted. 

In Northern Ireland, reported cases are 

scant, largely because the statutory 


framework is not on all fours with that in 

England and Wales. 

Whilst in England and Wales there is an 

Association of Litigation Funders, established 

in 2011 to regulate the conduct of its 

members, there is no such body in Northern 

Ireland. 

Reforms 

This is because there is simply not an 

established market in Northern Ireland, for 

the legal and technical reasons mentioned 

above, as well as other factors including 

cultural reasons (“if I can’t afford to bring a 

case, I won’t bring it”); the legal aid system in 

Northern Ireland (although subject to intense 

review and reform, legal aid still remains 

more widely available than in England and 

Wales); and for other, less tangible reasons. 

The “no win, no fee” system (conditional fee 

agreements), which TV adverts are fond of 

promoting, is legal in England and Wales 

(although greatly scaled back of late), but is 

not currently legal in Northern Ireland. 

The recent ‘Access to Justice Review Part 2’ 

report has, however, shown support for 

introducing this practice in certain cases in 

Northern Ireland and time will tell how far 

these reforms go. 

Finally, after the event insurance (ATE), a 

type of insurance enabling plaintiffs to insure 

against the risk of having to pay a defendant’s 

legal costs, and cover their own 

disbursements such as barrister’s fees, is not 

only legal in Northern Ireland, but also 

increasingly common and there are providers 

offering these products. Existing insurance 

policies should be checked for the existence 

of preexisting insurance cover for legal 

claims. 

It remains to be seen whether support for 

alternative methods of funding litigation in 

Northern Ireland will grow. 

What is clear is that there are changes on 

the horizon – at Arthur Cox we will give you 

all the guidance you need on this sometimes 

complex area. 


The Litigation and Dispute 

Resolution team at Arthur Cox is 

well positioned to advise on the 

emerging trends in the civil 

justice system in Northern 

Ireland. Please call 028 9023 

0007 for further information from 

Matthew or your regular Arthur 

Cox contact.

Mastering the tools of marketing 

in a digital age 

Valerie Ludlow has recently joined the 

Board of ASG Ireland as Deputy CEO. This 

is after only six years with the company, 

most recently heading up the agency’s 

advertising and digital marketing client 

service, as Director of Strategy. Here she 

talks to Gavin Walker about the economic 

landscape, ecommerce, and why the 

company decided to work with external 

partners. 

e’re all working in a slightly fuzzy 

economic environment at the 

Wmoment. One in which uncertainty is 

the name of the game and there’s no sign of a 

clear way forward for 18 to 24 months. 

So it was a pleasure to find that, as far as 

ASG & Partners recently appointed 

director, Valerie Ludlow, is concerned, 

there are still a lot of good news stories 

filtering through to her office. 

“After some lean years, we were 

beginning to see confidence returning in 

late 2015 early 2016,” Valerie explained. 

“And although we had some fears of the 

fallout from the result of the referendum 

in June, so far they have been unfounded.” 

Valerie reports more calls for pitches 

where the agency is called in to bid for new 

business. Add to that good news from her 

retail customers particularly retail parks 

in the border area who are reporting more 

Republic of Ireland registered cars in their 

car parks and there is a positive picture 

coming from many corners of our 

economy. 

And of course the new economic realities 

of a weak pound opens up new markets for 

exporters. 

“We are working closely with Linwoods 

and a lovely company in Magherafelt called 

Bloc Blinds to raise their profiles in 

international markets. And the beauty of 

ecommerce means that small companies 

like Bloc can venture into exporting at 

minimal risk and without having to send 

personnel across the globe seeking out 

new customers.” 

The realities of digital 

For Valerie and ASG, digital marketing 

can be an important tool for some of their 

clients, but it is only a part of the 

marketing toolbox and not the be all and 

end all it was heralded as less than a 

decade ago. 

“When I joined ASG we had a serious 

conversation about whether or not to 

create our own inhouse digital team. 

“There were good arguments for and 

against, but in the end we decided that 

digital specialists are just that: specialists. 

Whereas if we were to have our own team 

they would be required to be generalists 

and that would probably not satisfy either 

them or our clients.” 

So instead ASG actively sought out digital 

specialist companies that reflected their 

ethos of putting the client at the centre of 

everything they do, and create a 

partnership. 

“ASG Ireland became ASG & Partners 

when we teamed up with Loudmouth and 

Origin Digital both specialists at what 

they do. So now we can work with our 

clients knowing that we are able to provide 

a full suite of marketing that best suits 

their needs.” 

And Valerie knows of what she speaks as 

her experience in digital marketing has 

meant a number of digital firsts for 

Northern Ireland. She’s been responsible 

for more effectively integrating social 

media strategies and technologies – 

including app development – into client 

marketing campaigns. 

Gazing into the crystal ball 

It’s nigh on impossible to get anybody in 

business to make predictions about what 

the next 12 to 18 months might bring and 

Valerie is no different. 

“Regardless of how things are stacking 

up at the moment, we know there is 

uncertainty in the marketplace and none of 

us can be sure of what the next year will 

bring,” Valerie said. “But one thing I do 

know is that clients are asking agencies to 

be more of a partner in their business. 

“Not simply coming in and making a 

pitch for business, but taking time to 

understand what their problems and 

aspirations are and helping them develop 

strategies to address them. 

“I think that will be a growing factor 

within our industry. After the challenges of 

2008/09 when many businesses simply 

turned off their marketing taps, they have 

learned that that is not a good strategy. 

“Rather they need to ensure that they 

have a robust integrated communications 

plan in place and that’s where we and our 

partners come in. 

“Working with hopedfor aspirations and 

realtime budgets, we can help clients 

maximise their impact within the 

marketplace using the right marketing 

tools for the job.” 


29

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP 

It’s time to make Northern 

Ireland the entrepreneurial 

capital of Europe 

Women’s Entrepreneurship Day is November 19th so how are Northern Ireland’s women 

doing on the global statistics asks Tina McKenzie, Managing Director of Staffline Ireland 

T 

his year I have the privilege of being the 

European Ambassador for Women’s 

Entrepreneurship Day. The event is 

celebrated on the 19th November across 144 

countries globally; empowering women to 

foster their entrepreneurial spirit and help 

their local communities thrive. 

The mission of Women’s Entrepreneurship 

Day is to alleviate poverty around the world. 

An ambitious goal, I admit. 

However the real power of encouraging 

entrepreneurship is the trickledown effect on 

local communities. 

In the context of Northern Ireland, I believe 

we have the potential to become the 

entrepreneurial capital of Europe. 

We’ve had some wonderful entrepreneurs 

in Northern Ireland. Sir James Martin, who 

revolutionized the idea of the ejector seat 

throughout the 1930s. John Stewart Bell, the 

man from Tates Avenue who proved Einstein 

wrong. Professor Frank Pantridge, who 

developed the life saving defibrillator in the 

1960s; to name just a few. 

But entrepreneurship isn’t just about 

invention. Brett Nelson, Executive Editor for 

Forbes Magazine has said entrepreneurs are 

‘in the purest sense, those who identify a 

need any need and fill it. 

It’s a primordial urge, independent of 

product, service, industry or market.” 

So if you lead a business, you are an 

entrepreneur. If you started a charity, you are 

an entrepreneur. If you have the relentless 

spirit to do something new and innovative to 

solve problems, you are an entrepreneur. 

When entrepreneurs are successful, 

communities and economies thrive. Increased 

entrepreneurship also helps to provide 

political stability, which is crucial in a postconflict 

society such as ours. 

The Council on Foreign Relations has found 

that a 10% increase in labourrelated 

spending is directly associated with a 10 per 

cent decrease in violence, largely by 

addressing the underlying causes of conflict. 

The economic benefits are clear. For 

women in particular, we know that one in five 

who start a business or move into selfemployment 

were previously unemployed, 

increasing economic activity and production; 

key challenges for the Northern Ireland 

economy. 

The Northern Ireland Composite Economic 

Index reported a fall of 2.2 per cent in the 

Public sector index, with 1.6 per cent growth 

reported in the private sector over the same 

period from Quarter 1 2015 to Quarter 1 

2016. 

The Civil Service voluntary exit scheme and 

restructuring of the Government 

Departments has went some way in 

rebalancing our economy, in mind if not yet in 

numbers; but there is still a long way to go. 

Shifting reliance from the traditional public 

sector jobs by encouraging entrepreneurship 

is the only way in which we can grow our 

private sector and create jobs. 

According to the Enterprise Research 

Centre, more small firms in Northern Ireland 

hit the “magic milestone” of £1m in revenue 

within their first three years in business than 

anywhere else in the UK around 10 per cent 

compared with six per cent in England. 

2015 saw over 13,000 new start ups in 

Belfast, up 32 per cent on the previous year. 

In March 2015 there were 68085 businesses 

operating in Northern Ireland registered for 

VAT and/or PAYE, the first increase since 

2008 (albeit just by 0.6 per cent). 

Northern Ireland is a great place to start a 

business, but we need to support our 

entrepreneurs to get business ideas off the 

ground, to make them sustainable, and foster 

them into the global brands of the future. 

So how can we encourage our 

budding entrepreneurs? 

Studies have shown that people who have 

undergone some sort of enterprise training 

are twice as likely to be engaged in 

entrepreneurial activity. 

Organisations such as Invest NI are 

important for providing support for new 

businesses, but more needs to be done to 

target entrepreneurial potential. 

Funding streams from government, 

councils and local Chambers of Commerce 

should be better advertised, and have an 

efficient application process. 

Entrepreneurs should remember that 

corporate sponsorship shouldn’t be 

overlooked as a great way to get a new 

business off the ground. 

With Brexit now looming, there is concern 

that foreign investors will move jobs to the 

Republic of Ireland. 

However FDI is not a reliable foundation on 

which to build our economy. Putting a 

renewed focus on entrepreneurship will 

minimise our dependency on foreign direct 

investors, reducing uncertainty because local 

business owners tend to be loyal to their 

home nation; riding out the economic dips 

and turns out of love for their country. 

Our market is small in Northern Ireland, so 

we have to work to our local strengths but 

think global. We must support and develop 

our local entrepreneurs and build stronger 

links with our European neighbours, 

regardless of Brexit. 

We have everything it takes to be the most 

entrepreneurial region in Europe. As the 

European Ambassador for Women’s 

Entrepreneurship, I will be working hard to 

encourage entrepreneurial values and 

pushing Northern Ireland to the forefront of 

the world business stage. 


BEST PRACTICE 

Automatic 

Enrolment 

YOU CAN’T 

IGNORE IT! 

All Northern Ireland employers have legal duties relating to workplace pensions. Charles Counsell explains how The Pensions Regulator 

is helping more than a million small employers meet their duties. 

T 

he first workers were automatically put 

into a pension scheme by their 

employers four years ago. 

Since then, we’ve continually reviewed and 

updated the information we provide to make 

the process as smooth as possible for 

employers who may have little or no 

knowledge of pensions. 

In excess of a quarter of a million 

employers have already completed their 

workplace pensions duties. This includes 

completing a declaration of compliance so we 

at TPR know what they have done to comply 

with the law. 

In Northern Ireland over the next two years 

more than 24,000 employers will need to take 

action to comply with the law. 

If you're not sure whether you have to put 

any of your staff into a pension scheme a key 

first step is to use the Duties Checker on our 

website. This tool will help you to understand 

exactly what you need to do and when. 

It will take you around five minutes to work 

through the Duties Checker and to get 

tailored guidance that is right for you. 

I know that choosing a pension scheme for 

your staff can seem intimidating but we have 

guidance to help you make the right choice 

for you and for them them, including a list of 

schemes who have said they are available to 

all employers. 

Automation and communication 

Many payroll providers already provide a 

module or an addon for automatic enrolment 

that will help you to work out who to put into 

a pension scheme, which earnings to assess, 

and how much you and each member of staff 

needs to pay into the scheme. 

Payroll software can help with your ongoing 

duties such as monitoring age/earnings of 

existing staff, and enrolling/writing to them as 

needed, as well as assessing new starters and 

processing leavers. 

Our communications approach which 

includes letters and emails, work with trade 

associations and business networks, as well 

as a national advertising campaign in 

partnership with DWP is proving successful. 

Compliance rates are consistently at the 

higher end of our expectations. We do not want 

to fine employers and we know that most 

want to comply with the law – but we do have 

enforcement powers and are using them. 

This month in addition to contacting small 

employers to tell them when they start their 

AE duties, we are contacting more than 5,000 

medium employers with their first letter to 

tell them about their reenrolment duties. 

Re enrolment happens every three years. 

Medium employers who want to quickly 

understand what reenrolment entails can 

find step by step guidance on our website. 

Plan ahead 

November and December can be 

exceptionally busy months for some 

businesses, especially those involved in retail 

and hospitality. The festive period can mean 

admin tasks are put on hold. 

I’d urge businesses to plan ahead of the 

holiday season and make sure not to miss a 

deadline to complete automatic enrolment 

duties and to submit your declaration of 

compliance to us in good time. No one wants 

to start the New Year with a £400 fine 

because you forgot to complete your 

declaration. 

We want to ensure business people across 

Northern Ireland have the information you 

need to help you comply and to give staff the 

pensions they are entitled to. 

If you haven’t done so already, make sure 

you understand how the law affects you. We 

can help, so visit our website. 

Charles Counsell is Executive Director of 

automatic enrolment at The Pensions 

Regulator 


BELFAST CITY AIRPORT 

Successful year for 

Belfast City Airport 

Katy Best, Commercial and Marketing Director at George Best Belfast City Airport, reflects on what has been a very successful year so 

far at the airport. 

networks, and will be a fantastic opportunity to 

showcase the region to more than 100 airlines. 

F 

ollowing an extremely strong summer 

across both domestic and European 

routes, we are looking forward to a 

similarly busy winter period at Belfast City 

Airport. 

In 2015, Belfast City Airport reported a 

more than five per cent increase in annual 

passenger figures, with almost 2.7 million 

people using our airport for both business 

and leisure purposes. A further increase in 

passenger figures is expected for 2016. 

Operating profit, before exceptional 

expense, at Belfast City Airport grew by 40 

per cent in 2015 to £3,331,000 from 

£2,386,000 according to accounts filed at 

Companies House. Turnover at the airport 

also increased five per cent in 2015 to 

£20,799,000 up from £19,801,000 in 2014. 

There was one exceptional expense which 

was due to professional fees of £412,000 

relating to the Public Inquiry into the 

airport’s seats for sale restriction, the 

outworkings of which are still ongoing. 

The commencement of the KLM daily 

service to Amsterdam and Flybe’s new 

services to London City and Liverpool 


witnessed passenger numbers steadily 

increase across our route network in 2015. 

Looking Ahead 

Once again we expect 2016 to be a strong 

year with passenger numbers set to rise once 

again with the arrival of Brussels Airlines, the 

uplift in the Aer Lingus summer routes to 

Palma, Faro and Malaga and new Alicante 

service, plus our nine times daily service to 

Heathrow with British Airways and Aer 

Lingus. 

Belfast’s appeal as both a tourist and 

business destination has grown considerably 

over the last number of years, with the region 

hosting worldclass events and attracting 

investment from international corporations 

which have set up bases in the city. 

The reenergised interest in the region 

attracted the attention of the Routes Europe 

organisers who selected Belfast as the host 

city for the April 2017 conference. 

The event, which will see 1200 delegates 

descend upon Belfast for at least three days, is 

the largest European forum for aviation 

professionals to decide on future air route 

International Passenger Record 

Smashed 

Quarter 3 of this year saw the airport smash 

our annual international passenger record. 

By the end of August we had transported 

200,977 passengers on our direct European 

routes, compared to 171,270 in 2015. 

There has been fantastic feedback on our 

new routes to Amsterdam and the Belgian 

capital with airline partners KLM and 

Brussels Airlines, and this has been reflected 

in their strong seat sales. 

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, which began its 

Amsterdam Schiphol service from Belfast City 

Airport in May 2015, has reported an 

increase in monthly booking figures of 7.3 per 

cent and 4.4 per cent in July and August 

respectively from the previous year. 

Meanwhile, almost 48,000 passengers have 

taken advantage of the sunshine routes 

operated by Aer Lingus which operate for the 

summer months. 

These positive passenger figures across the 

board reflect our plans to further grow our 

European route network and they very much 

illustrate the public demand for such direct 

services from Belfast City Airport. 

Ongoing Success 

Despite the success across our European 

network, our core focus remains on the 

domestic market, with services operated by 

Aer Lingus, British Airways, Flybe and 

Citywing. 

Flybe, our longest standing airline partner, 

reported three months of consecutive growth 

this summer with all routes to and from 

Belfast City Airport showing growth of 4.5 per 

cent, 3 per cent and 5.1per cent in June, July 

and August consecutively. 

Within the terminal, we have welcomed 

Starbucks to the Departure Lounge creating 

25 new jobs and further catering to the 

demand of our passengers. 

We will continue to work closely with 

existing and potential new airline partners to 

ensure the route network from Belfast City 

meets the needs of the business and leisure 

travel market in Northern Ireland. 

Improving the customer experience further 

is always high on the agenda and over the 

next 12 months we will continue to invest in 

our infrastructure with significant capital 

investment planned in the facility.

Northern Ireland’s Most Inspiring 

Women revealed and celebrated 

he names of the muchanticipated 

Business First Northern Ireland’s Top 

T20 Most Inspiring Women were 

revealed at a Gala Lunch held at the Malone 

Lodge Hotel in Belfast. 

Open nominations were gathered in June 

with public online voting at 

businessfirstonline.co.uk resulting in 10,192 

votes cast by the date of closing in early 

August. 

After independent adjudication, the wellkept 

secret was revealed to a hushed 

audience by Business First managing editor 

Gavin Walker who had kept the golden 

envelope locked in a bank vault for the 

preceding two weeks. 

“Unlike many awards, the Business First 

Northern Ireland’s Top 20 Most Inspiring 

Women was driven by the Northern Ireland 

public,” Gavin explained. 

“From the start we – along with Awards 

sponsors MGMPR Ltd – wanted to give men 

and women from across Northern Ireland the 

opportunity to vote for the women they felt 

were the most inspirational based on their 

own experiences. 

“The result is a fascinating mix of well 

recognised names like Mary Peters, Sinead 

McLaughlin, Chief Executive of the 

Londonderry Chamber of Commerce and 

Louise Kelly, Partner at Grant Thornton, and 

other equally as inspiring, but perhaps less 

well known women such as Estelle Wallace – 

Pure Wellness or Julie Ann Muldoon from The 

New You Plan.” 

Speaking after the event Eleanor McGillie, 

director of Northern Ireland's brand 

journalism agency, MGMPR Ltd, said; “This 

has been a wonderful event to be involved 

with. 

“Women are now such a major force at 

every level and driving every aspect of 

Northern Ireland society so it’s a pleasure to 

be able to celebrate those women who are 

inspiring others to do something different or 

believe that they can achieve even more. 

"Every woman nominated will have a great 

story to tell and this was an opportunity for 

those stories to be shared." 

The Keynote Speaker at the Awards was 

Dorothy McKee, Senior Associate Lecturer at 

Ulster University Business School and 

principal at Dorothy McKee Consultants. 

She spoke on the need for Mental 

Toughness but concluded by encouraging 

women to be strong in the conviction that 

they are special and that every one of the 

guests can be inspiring by believing that ‘I am 

who I am, because I am who I am.’ Dorothy 

presented the Award Certificates. 

Business First Northern Ireland’s Top 20 Most 

Inspiring Women as voted for by Northern Ireland public 

Charlene Bradley, Northern Health Trust 

marie Lacy, Belfast Community Gospel Choir 

louise Kelly, Grant Thornton 

Estelle Wallace, Pure Wellness 


35

Northern Ireland’s Top 20 Most Inspiring Women 2016 

Sharon Porter MBE, Bide a While 

Dame Mary Peters, MBE, Mary Peters Trust 

Janine Walker, Rink A Dink 

Brenda Shankey, Jason Shankey Salons Group 

Deborah McCann, Queen Bee 

Nuala Campbell, Titanic Creative 

Ciara Daley, Ciara Daley Make Up 

Jacqueline Evans, Cafe Vic Ryn 


Northern Ireland’s Top 20 Most Inspiring Women 2016 

Sinead McLaughlin, Londonderry Chamber of Commerce 

Lorraine Nelson, Baker Tilley Mooney Moore 

Karen O’Rawe, History Hub Ulster 

Sinead Fox Hamilton, McKinty Associates 

Stephanie Reid, ORTUS 

Cathy McCann, Fujitsu 

Michael Muldoon on behalf of Julie Anne Muldoon, New You Plan 

Barbara McKeown, Fairy Tales Weddings 


37


THE 

RESPONSIBILITY 

OF BUSINESS 

Would you rather 

be a golfer or an 

exporter? 

by Profesor Simon Bridge 

iam Fox has suggested that many 

business owners would rather play golf 

Lthan export and he appears to regard 

this as deviant and unacceptable behaviour. 

This is not, I suspect, because he subscribes 

to the unfashionable, but possibly correct, 

view that a game of golf is a good walk 

ruined. Instead he clearly thinks that 

businesses leaders have a responsibility to 

spend all their time maximising the export 

earnings of their businesses. 

Liam Fox is currently (at the time of 

writing) a minister in the UK government and 

governments and those leading them 

generally want businesses to employ more 

people and grow their profits because that 

will provide more jobs and more taxation 

revenues – and governments want businesses 

to do it by exporting because that will bring 

income into a country, whereas domestic 

growth may be at the expense of other 

domestic businesses. However, because that 

is what they want, governments appear to 

have come to believe that businesses want it 

also. 

Indeed there does seems to be an 

expectation clearly established in many 

people’s minds that there is some sort of onus 

on businesses to make money and therefore 

to grow in order to make more money. 


Thus many government schemes 

promoting business growth seem to treat it 

as a natural and inbuilt imperative which is 

sometimes constrained and which therefore 

can best be facilitated by reducing those 

constraints. 

This belief that businesses exist to make 

money was famously reinforced by Milton 

Friedman when, in contributing to the debate 

about social responsibility, he stated that ‘the 

social responsibility of business is to increase 

its profits’. 

Actually he said a lot more. 

He pointed out, for instance, that there is a 

lack of rigour in discussions about business 

‘responsibilities’ because, as he put it, while 

people can have responsibilities, businesses 

are only artificial people and can only have 

artificial responsibilities. 

The people who are responsible are the 

people who own and/or manage a business – 

not the business per se. Hired business 

managers are responsible for carrying out the 

wishes of the business’s owners, provided of 

course that is within the law. 

And it is a business’s owners who 

determine its objectives and task its 

managers to achieve them. In a company 

limited by shares the owners are the 

shareholders, of which there may be very 

many or very few but it is they who decide. 

But on what basis should they 

decide? 

Should they direct their businesses to 

achieve their aims – or just to deliver what 

we or our governments want? Businesses do 

not have to focus solely on profit. Indeed 

businesses evolved essentially for mutual 

benefit. 

Early huntergather lived in very largely 

selfsufficient family groups where the group 

did everything necessary for their own needs 

and with little or no exchange with others. 

However, once agriculture become 

established, we started to develop areas of 

specialisation in which people could 

concentrate on what they were good at, or 

well provided for, and exchange some of their 

produce for what others were good at. 

Thus businesses evolved in which those 

concerned produced mainly not for their own 

consumption but to trade with others in 

exchange for the other things they needed. So 

businesses were about both sides benefitting 

from deals, not one side trying to maximise 

its take at the expense of the other. 

Of course this involved an element of trust 

but, as Francis Fukuyama explained in his 

book Trust, it has been in relatively high trust

societies that business economies have best 

flourished. Therefore, for their longerterm 

benefit, business owners should want a fair 

exchange for everyone. 

But that does not really address Lima Fox’s 

point. Should business owners concentrate 

on exporting rather than playing golf? Often 

business owners appear to want money – but 

not for the money itself but as a means to an 

end. Usually money is desired for what it can 

buy – but sometimes it appears to be sought 

an apparent score for how well the business 

is doing. 

Money may not buy everything but it can 

buy a lot – and in particular it can help to 

satisfy many needs and wants. Needs, as 

Maslow explained, can range from basic 

survival requirements for food and shelter, 

through providing for one’s family and/or 

retirement, to esteem and selfactualisation. 

Wants can also include enjoyment which 

itself can come from satisfying needs or just 

indulging senses. 

Who is to say that golf is not a legitimate 

form of enjoyment and even, for some, a 

source of achievement? 

In Northern Ireland we want to promote 

golf tourism by encouraging relatively 

wealthy people to come here to play golf. 

Therefore it does not behove us to suggest 

that business people should not indulge in it. 

If you are in business and earn enough to 

survive and provide for yourself and your 

employees, what’s wrong with wanting to 

relax a bit instead of earning more money 

than you need and, strange as it may seem to 

some of us, relaxation can include playing 

golf. 

Governments want more taxation revenues 

in order to deliver more services to us, 

presumably to make our lives safer and/or 

more fulfilling. But if we earn enough to 

provide for our own needs (and not to have 

to depend on the government for handouts) 

what is wrong in also indulging in some 

enjoyment on our own initiative? 

While businesses need to make money in 

order to sustain themselves, that does not 

have to be their overall aim. Of course a 

business should try to make enough money to 

survive and deliver its owners’ targets but 

those targets do not have to be about making 

more money. 

Many people actually have businesses for a 

wide range of purposes other than personal 

profit maximisation: including to support 

them and/or their families, to continue an 

inherited family business, to have a relatively 

independent economic existence without a 

QUOTABLEQUOTE 

Should business owners 

concentrate on exporting rather 

than playing golf? Often business 

owners appear to want money – 

but not for the money itself but 

as a means to an end. Usually 

money is desired for what it can 

buy – but sometimes it appears to 

be sought an apparent score for 

how well the business is doing. 

direst boss, to test and develop an idea, or to 

compete with others – and they might move 

from one reason to another or have a 

combination of reasons. But I suggest that 

few do it solely as the best way to make more 

money for themselves. 

But is Liam Fox suggesting that that is 

wrong and that, in essence, we should live in 

order to work rather than work in order to 

live? Of course the government would like 

there to be more work in order to provide 

more tax revenues – but businesses are not 

mirror images of government. 

So – to go back to Friedman – should 

business, or rather their owners, 

acknowledge social responsibilities? As 

Doone famously wrote: ‘no man is an island’. 

We are both mutually dependent on others 

and mutually influenced by them. Our 

businesses exist in human society and 

humans are a very social species. So I suggest 

that for our longer term mutual benefit we 

should recognise and address this 

responsibility – but there are other ways of 

doing it than foregoing golf. 

Underlying this is there another clash of 

perceptions? On the one side there is the 

traditional economic view that people 

essentially make rational decisions – and can 

therefore be viewed as behaving rather like 

clocks in that, once the mechanism is 

understood, the result can be predicted 

because they always behave consistently and 

logically. 

On the other side there is a recognition that 

human beings are very susceptible to social 

influence and often behave, not as 

independent individuals, but as crowds or 

even clouds which are neither consistent nor 

predicable. According to Rowson and 

McGilchrist: 

‘The notion that we are rational individuals 

who respond to information by making 

decisions consciously, consistently and 

independently is, at best, a very partial 

account of who we are. 

A wide body of scientific knowledge is now 

telling us what many have long intuitively 

sensed – humans are a fundamentally social 

species, formed through and for social 

interaction.’ 

This has been summed up by Earls in the 

observation that: ‘independent thinking is to 

humans as swimming is to cats – they can do 

it if they have to’. 

The trouble is that once we adopt one view 

of how we behave it is that hard to switch to 

another – and the more embedded a 

perspective is the more it acts 

subconsciously. As a result we don’t realise 

the assumptions we are making. So we 

assume both that businesses make decisions 

and that they act rationally to maximise their 

profits – instead of seeing them as creations 

of people who are subject to a wide variety of 

influences, many of which are not rational. As 

Kahneman puts it in explaining theory 

induced blindness: 

‘Once you have accepted a theory and used 

it as a tool in your thinking, it is 

extraordinarily difficult to notice its flaws. If 

you come upon an observation that does not 

seem to fit the model, you assume that there 

must be a perfectly good explanation that you 

are somehow missing. 

‘You give the theory the benefit of the 

doubt, trusting the community of experts who 

have accepted it. ... Disbelieving is hard work’. 


39


We’re making headway but 

there’s still progress to be made 

Dawn Johnston, Chairperson, Chartered Accountants Ulster Society 

J 

ust before the curtain came down on 

September, we were hit by a welter of 

Government statistics ranging from 

household average income and cancer 

waiting times to the age profile of our 

population and the numbers killed and 

injured on our roads. 

Behind the blizzard of numbers lay stories 

of hardship, pain, suffering and survival. I was 

drawn to one particular report not simply 

because it made me smile, but because it 

painted a picture of a society moving 

inexorably in the right direction. 

The report was from the Executive Office 

with the curious title of ‘Good Relations 

Indicators: 2016 Update Report’. In addition 

to telling us about hate crime levels, it also 

gave us a glimpse into more positive 

Protestant/Catholic relations. 

I’m not going to bamboozle you with 

everything that was reported in the update, 

but a few stats merit specific mention. 

Twothirds of young people now regularly 

socialise or play sport with people from a 

different community background – and that’s 

up three per cent. 

Nearly nine out of ten people say they can 

be open about their cultural identity in their 

neighbourhood, and more than eight out of 

ten say the same about their workplace. 

Fewer people were annoyed about murals, 

kerb paintings or flags. Most Protestants and 

Catholics (80 per centplus) felt their culture 

and traditions added to the richness and 

diversity of Northern Ireland. 

So far, so good. These figures showed we 

were travelling in the right direction. Shared 

education has slipped back and there’s work 

to do on the CatholicProtestant relationship 

side, but I think that overall, as a society, we 

are more at ease with one another, more 

willing to engage, share and appreciate. All of 

this augurs well as we confront challenges on 

the way to rebuilding the economy. 

Happily, eighteen years on from the Good 

Friday or Belfast Agreement, tangible 

community progress is being made. We 

would dearly like to see it happen at a faster 

pace, but we have to be content that at least 

the graph is upward. 

Elsewhere in this fairly dry bit of data is 

something more troubling for our politicians. 

Less than a third (27 per cent) felt they had 

influence on local decision in their 

neighbourhoods. The figure slips to one in 

five (22 per cent) when it comes to decisions 

made in Northern Ireland. 

More worryingly, only nine per cent and 

seven per cent of young people believe they 

have a say at local and regional level. That 

means the overwhelmingly majority of our 

young people feel on the fringes of the 

decisionmaking in Councils and the 

Assembly. 

If young people feel marginalised, not 

listened to or valued, then our politicians 

have a serious, uphill battle on their hands. 

Politics has to be made relevant to young 

people and engagement lies at the heart of 

that. Our recent elections did return a bigger 

proportion of younger candidates, so 

hopefully this will strike a chord with 

younger members of our society. 

If nothing else, this report should set alarm 

bells ringing amongst Ministers and 

Opposition. Maybe the First Minister and the 

Deputy First Minister already realise the 

disengagement that there is, and perhaps 

that’s one of the reasons why they used the 

Royal Prerogative to appoint a new 

communications specialist. 

Northern Ireland Year of Food and 

Drink 

On a cheerier note, this is the Northern 

Ireland Year of Food and Drink – a 

celebration of what we produce and make, 

and the quality of what we sell. 

We have a lot to be proud of agriculture is 

our mainstay industry. We export more than 

£2 billion worth of produce to Great Britain 

and £708 million to the Republic of Ireland. 

Total exports to other markets are worth 

more than £600 million. 

These numbers are impressive but there’s 

ample scope to build on the success we 

already enjoy in agrifoods. We’ve seen 

massive growth in and development in 

poultry, largely at Moy Park. The company’s 

vertical integration with farmers is creating a 

massive supply base. The development of 

plants to deal with poultry litter will ensure 

growth is sustained. 

A similar model is being taken to the pig 

sector. Two factories have won approvals to 

export to China and just as in poultry, the 

potential for export growth is impressive. 

Getting our beef into the USA market is a 

workinprogress, all underpinned by strong 

traceability credentials. 

There are several exciting things happening 

in agrifoods, and one way the entire sector 

could be given a nudge forward is if we had a 

Food and Drink Marketing Body to promote 

Northern Ireland produce. The industry 

wants it and it’s an objective of the AgriFood 

QUOTABLEQUOTE 

If young people feel marginalised, 

not listened to or valued, then our 

politicians have a serious, uphill 

battle on their hands. Politics has 

to be made relevant to young 

people and engagement lies at 

the heart of that. Our recent 

elections did return a bigger 

proportion of younger candidates, 

so hopefully this will strike a 

chord with younger members of 

our society 

Strategy Board, but so far it hasn’t happened, 

which is a real pity. 

Tourism on the rise 

Another sector making headway is tourism. 

This July, we saw our Belfast hotels set a new 

record. We saw 97,000 rooms sold, 

something that is a remarkable turnaround 

when you consider that not too long ago, 

bedroom availability in July was anything but 

buoyant. In August alone, there were thirty 

cruise ships visited the city – eightythree so 

far this year, and they delivered 150,000 

visitors. 

As in agrifoods, much more could be 

achieved. That said, I think it’s fair to say that 

Northern Ireland has found its feet. Now, we 

must deliver jobs and business growth to 

cement the progress. 


BUSINESS FIRST MEETS 

RONAN MCGUIRK 

ASM CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS 

Ronan McGuirk is a Tax Director at ASM Chartered Accountants. and has been with the comapny for 18 yers. In this issue Ronan gives 

us an insight into his role at one of the top accountancy practices in Ireland. With six offices across Ireland, Belfast, Dublin, Dundalk, Dungannon, 

Magherafelt and Newry, the 160 strong team specialises in a range of accountancy disciplines including, corporate finance, insolvency 

services, forensic accounting, audit and accounting, consultancy services, internal audit, tax, hotel, tourism and leisure. 

The best thing about working for 

ASM 

No two days are the same. We have a very 

broad client base on both sides of the border, 

from the small oneman band to the large 

company working all over the world. 

By way of example, this week, I was 

advising one client on efficient set up in 

Belgium, closing a HMRC enquiry with no 

amendment, advising a small construction 

company on their Auto Enrolment duties, a 

large Irish construction company on Irish 

VAT and a high net worth couple on the cross 

border tax implications of a draft Will. 

You can see what I mean! 

What is your passion outside of 

work and family? 

Sport is my main passion. There are very 

few sports that I don’t like, but I am most 

passionate about football, 

As a long suffering supporter of Arsenal I 

have had my fair share of ups and downs. 

I also do a lot of reading…..mostly about 

sport! 

What is your accountancy 

speciality? 

I specialise in tax and work across all taxes, 

both sides of the border. Tax covers a very 

broad range and helps to keep my role 

interesting! 

What kind of clients do you look 

after? 

All types of clients in all types of industry, 

but the vast majority have one thing in 

common, they are family run business. 

We really enjoy working with family 

companies as their advisors. A lot of our 

meetings are held at kitchen tables all over 

the country! 

What is the latest thing in 

accounting at the moment? 

The latest thing in accounting at the 

moment is cloud accounting. This is a real 

game changer for the profession and 

something that we have invested a lot of time 

in recently. 

Cloud accounting will give business real 

time access to their records, saving them 

time, money and giving them valuable up to 

date information on their phone or tablet. 

It is a really exciting time for the profession 

which will see a move away from looking 

back and reporting on how the business has 

performed, to consultancy work which will 

shape the future of the business and 

ultimately improve the lives of the business 

owner. 

Has Brexit affected business at 

ASM? 

We haven’t seen the full effect of Brexit yet. 

To date the major effect has been on the Euro 

/ Sterling exchange rate, which although our 

clients are used to dealing with fluctuations in 

the currency, the post Brexit change has been 

sharp. 

The main issue with Brexit is the 

uncertainty that surrounds it at the moment, 

although we now know Brexit will be 

triggered by March 2017, no one really knows 

what the outcome will be. Uncertainty is not 

good for business. 

However, with all change comes 

opportunity, the trick will be to spot it, at 

ASM we are always looking out for the 

opportunity for our clients. 

How is business in Newry? 

Business in Newry is good. Newry has a 

long history of producing dynamic and 

adaptable businesses that are used to dealing 

with, and overcoming adversity. Brexit is just 

another challenge to be overcome. 

If you weren’t an accountant, what 

would you like to be? 

Something in sport, The next Arsenal 

manager maybe? 

ASM Chartered Accountants has grown 

rapidly since its launch in 1995 and is now 

one of the largest accounting and 

management consultancy firms in Ireland, 

with offices in Belfast, Dublin, Dundalk, 

Dungannon, Magherafelt and Newry. 

The 170 strong team comprises specialists 

in a range of accountancy disciplines and 

related skills that include: corporate finance, 

audit and accounting, internal audit, 

consultancy services, taxation, hotels, tourism 

and leisure, insolvency, and forensic 

accounting. 


To contact Ronan McGuirk, email: 

ronan.mcguirk@asmnewry.com 

or call 028 302 69933. 

Alternatively, visit 

www.asmaccountants.com 

for contact details. 


41


WILL DIVERSITY BE THE TOP KPI 

OF A SUCCESSFUL 

COMPANY? 

y goodness having harped on for a 

number of years about the 

Mimportance of Diversity; is it about to 

be recognised as the key indicator of 

companies current and future success? Will 

investors ask for diversity stats before the 

P&L? Yes, I believe so. 

Every week now there are articles about 

gender diversity in the mainstream media. 

Although most of these articles are still 

negative, and highlighting continuing 

problems, what has changed and what is 

positive, is that gender diversity issues are 

being regularly reported and clearly 

acknowledged as a problem. 

The recent Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) 

gender pay gap report revealed that women 

earn 18 per cent less than men on average. It 

also found that the gap balloons after women 

have children, raising the prospect that 

mothers are missing out on pay rises and 

promotions. 

The positive here is, they are measuring it, 

they are publishing it, and the media are 

reporting it! 

Put please could I ask for better quality 

reporting? What did a radio station do with 

this story? They followed the same format as I 

have observed on many occasions when it 

comes to “perceived “women’s issues. They 

brought together two women with differing 

views on the accuracy of the statistics, 

encouraging an argument! 

Seriously, does it matter if the stats differ 

from other reports; they all agree there is a 

pay gap! Positive, would have been a 

discussion with people who understand the 

problem, and who have solutions or who 

want to find solutions. 

Positive also was the article about Jeremy 


asks Roseann Kelly, chief executive Women in Business. 

Corbyn’s launch of a document detailing ten 

pledges to advance gender equality for 

women in the Labour Party. 

He did get into trouble though when he 

talked about banning after hours drinking as 

this presumed that childcare was solely the 

role of the mother. 

Labour MP Stella Creasy said while she 

agreed networking was gendered the answer 

was not ending after work drinks but for 

"fathers to do equal childcare so mothers can 

go out and enjoy themselves". 

Again I would say it does not matter whose 

solution is right or wrong, what’s great is that 

it is recognised as a problem and people are 

seeking solutions. 

Within a recent Sunday paper one found 

four stories related to gender (and this was 

without even looking in the magazines). First, 

Nicola Sturgeon spoke about the baby she 

lost, about how she was hurt by assumptions 

that she decided to put her political career 

before having children. 

Although intensely private she goes public 

as she is conscious of her responsibility as a 

role model she does not want girls to 

conclude that women must sacrifice part of 

their lives to climb the career ladder. 

Another story is on the success of the 

number of blogs and books celebrating the 

“imperfect mum”, the “Brummy instead of 

Yummy mum” and the new book due out” 

Hurrah for Gin” mum. 

It is right to take the pressure of all mums 

working, or not. If we took the pressure off 

trying to be the perfect parent (which is not 

possible, my kids inform me) then maybe 

more women would step up to higher roles. 

Another article talks about the radical new 

guidelines at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. 

In response to their 1916 centenary 

programme which featured just one woman 

in the lineup of 10 new playwrights they 

have committed the Republic’s National 

theatre to achieving full gender equality 

within the next five years. 

These new Gender commitments go beyond 

play wrights to include director, designers, 

actors, stage managers and more. 

And finally, the best one, on the front of the 

business pages no less “FTSE firms face 

targets for women in top jobs”. 

This is the one that confirms that the future 

of successful business is Diversity. It has been 

conceded by Sir Philip Hampton, chairman of 

Glaxo Smith Kline that companies will have to 

set tough targets if the campaign to put more 

women in top earning positions is to succeed. 

This campaign although supporting gender 

equality is really about successful business. 

The business case is driving the call for 

women at the top; the Future of Business is 

diversity.

BELFAST WATERFRONT 

The new 

Belfast 

Waterfront 

six months on 

Friday 28 October marked six months 

since Belfast Waterfront’s new 

7,000m 2 conference facility opened 

its doors. Over this time, the staff 

have hosted nearly 40 events and 

welcomed over 28,000 delegates. 

Thanks to the additional event space in the 

heart of the city, Belfast has seen a welcome 

rise in the number of visiting national and 

international conferences, not to mention an 

estimated £10m for the local economy. 

However, this is only the beginning… 

The big names keep rolling in 

In addition to delivering largescale gala 

dinners, awards ceremonies, exhibitions and 

business meetings for local organisations, the 

Belfast Waterfront team continue to build a 

robust pipeline of national and international 

events as far out as 2019. 

In the immediate future, the venue is set to 

welcome the Services for International 

Education Marketing Conference in December 

with many more prestigious events to follow 

including the Routes Europe Conference in 

2017 and the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) 

Annual Congress in 2018. 

An attractive destination for 

conferences 

The city is already reaping the rewards of 

the £29.5m expansion programme funded by 

Belfast City Council, Tourism Northern 

Ireland and the European Regional 

Development Fund, through the European 

Sustainable Competitiveness Programme for 

Northern Ireland, with the resultant influx of 

delegates. 

Capable of hosting a much wider range of 

events than ever before, Belfast Waterfront 

has seen the return of many events that had 

previously outgrown the facilities, as well as a 

boost in new business. 

The new stateoftheart conference facility 

along with Belfast’s exciting new offering 

have enticed many organisations to consider 

Belfast as a host city. 

Bhavnita Patel, General Manager of 

Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and 

Ireland (ASGBI), explains: “It had been 

traditional for the association to use a venue 

in the President’s home town. 

“John Moorehead is from Belfast, but we 

had been using three other conference 

centres in the UK on a rotating basis, as 

Belfast simply didn’t have anything that could 

accommodate us. However, we found that the 

enlarged Belfast Waterfront…had everything 

we required…It was an absolute success and 

the feedback from delegates was brilliant.” 

Likewise Dr. Frank Amoneit, Managing 

Director of Euro Fed Lipids highlights how 

having a new stateoftheart conference 

facility at the heart of the city’s proposal was 

a real game changer: “Belfast Waterfront’s 

new expansion put Belfast on the table as a 

confirmed host city for the 16th Euro Fed 

Lipid Congress in 2018. In addition, the city’s 

overall package of facilities, a good spread of 

hotels nearby the venue and an extensive 

network of flights made Belfast an attractive 

destination for our annual conference.” 

Accommodate a wider range of 

events 

Today the stunning riverside venue delivers 

a brand new event experience for up to 5,000 

delegates. It can cater for large business 

meetings, banquets for up to 1,000 guests, 

conferences with accompanying exhibitions, 

exhibitions with attendant meetings and 

conventions with separate breakout rooms. 

Two multipurpose halls, together 

measuring over 2,500m 2, 6 extra meeting 

rooms, and a stunning 660m 2 riverside foyer 

have greatly enhanced its existing offering, 

comprised of a 2,200seat auditorium, 360 

seat studio and 14 meeting rooms. 

New opportunities 

This may be a highly competitive 

marketplace but it is seen as very lucrative in 

today's business environment. According to 

the ‘UK Conference and Meeting Survey 2016’ 

(UKCAMS), the sector was worth an 

estimated £19.2 billion in venue and 

destination direct spend in 2015, and last 

year saw more business events being held at 

UK venues. 

With this in mind, the contribution of local 

ambassadors in securing conferences for the 

city as well as raising Belfast’s profile on the 

world stage will continue to be invaluable. 

Dr Sinclair Mayne, the local Visit Belfast 

Ambassador and Chair of British Society of 

Animal Science Organising Committee 

(BSAS), thanked the city for making the 67th 

Annual Meeting of the European Federation 

of Animal Science (EAAP) such a big success: 

“... EAAP is hosted in major European cities 

such as Nantes, Rome and Warsaw. Belfast is 

as good as any of these cities…it is a worldclass 

business tourism destination.” 


We’re ready to welcome you 

If you would like to book your 

next event at Belfast 

Waterfront, contact the sales 

team today: 

T: +44 (0) 28 9033 4400 

E: conference@waterfront.co.uk 

W: waterfront.co.uk 

@BelWaterfront / 

#BelfastWaterfront. 


43

TECH [2020] 

P2V Systems Provides Local 

Procurement of Global IT Brands 

electing IT services and solutions can be 

an overwhelming process if you aren’t 

Sclear on your requirements. And even if 

you know what you need, how do you go 

about finding it? 

P2V Systems aim has always been to offer a 

complete IT solution to our customers. With 

that in mind, the launch of our new eShop 

takes our service the extra mile. 

Our eShop offers businesses competitive 

prices & next business day delivery on over 

90,000 Hardware and Software items. 

Products include everything from Laptops, 

Tablets, Desktops, Phones and Peripherals, to 

Components, Servers, Firewalls and 

Networking equipment. The latest Security 

and Software programs are also available. 

With global leading brands available 

including Microsoft, Apple, Samsung, Dell, HP, 

VMware, Cisco, Lenovo, Palo Alto Networks 

and many more, it is a great resource for your 

IT and communications procurement 

requirements. 

Benefits for our Customers 

With 24hour access to the best technology 

solutions at great prices, the eShop will help 

businesses save time, money and resources. 

Our products fit the needs of businesses of 

all sizes, from large enterprises to SMEs. Our 

eShop provides convenient access to 

solutions for IT security, storage, backup, 

networking, communications and general day 

to day business operations. 

In addition to our competitive prices, our 

regular featured deals ensure there are 

always extra offers to benefit from. 

Our fast deliveries are sure to be a huge and 

welcome benefit to customers who can’t 

afford to wait for their order. 

And then of course, there is the security 

element. Customers can shop with peace of 

mind thanks to our secure online payments 

supported by Sage Pay, with flexible payment 

options available. 

As with any of the services provided by P2V 

Systems, great customer care from our eShop 

is a priority. 

Our local and personal customer service is 

another benefit our customers will love. Our 

inhouse Customer Service Team ensures 

orders and queries are dealt with efficiently. 

Customers will also love the userfriendly 

eShop platform itself. They can view pricing 

info, product specifications and availability. 

They can also view their order history and 

order receipts, access shipping details and 

update their delivery and invoice details, all 

on the secure system. 

The added convenience of these selfservice 

features allows customers to make faster 

business decisions by offering access to the 

relevant product information and eliminating 

unnecessary phone calls and emails. 

ISO Accredited Supplier 

Based in Lisburn, P2V Systems is an ISO 

9001 and 27001 certified IT Solutions 

provider to businesses across the UK and 

Ireland. So regardless if you are a local 

customer or are ordering from further afield, 

you can be assured of a great service from a 

company whose processes and information 

management policies adhere to industry 

standards. 

Visit shop.p2vsystems.com 

Whether you have any IT or 

Communications Hardware and Software 

requirements just now or not, check out our 

eShop at shop.p2vsystems.com and register 

as a user. 

Make sure you join our mailing list and 

follow us on Twitter @p2vsystemseshop to 

receive updates on our great offers. 


COMMENTARY 

WILL BREXIT PUT DATA 

PROTECTION ON NOTICE? 

by Glenn Watterson, Solicitor in Mills Selig 

hanges to the data protection rules are 

imminent which seek to improve the 

Crights of individuals in an increasingly 

digital age. Will they affect businesses in 

Northern Ireland if the UK leaves the EU? 

The new EU General Data Protection 

Regulation (GDPR) is scheduled to come into 

force on 25 May 2018, replacing the existing 

1995 Data Protection Directive, and will be 

directly applicable in all Member States 

without the need for implementing national 

legislation. 

These regulations aim to unify and expand 

data protection for individuals in the EU. 

They contain a number of new features – for 

example, the obligation to notify of a breach 

within 72 hours and the requirement for data 

portability. Fines and penalties for noncompliance 

are significantly increased. 

Will UK data controllers or 

processors be able to hide behind 

Brexit? 

Although the postBrexit picture remains 

unclear, it’s likely some if not all of GDPR will 

continue to apply in the UK and will affect an 

increasing number of businesses. 

• The GDPR will apply in the UK 

automatically from 25 May 2018 prior to 

the UK’s exit from the EU, which is now 

likely to occur in spring/summer 2019. 

• The GDPR will apply to UK businesses that 

have an establishment processing personal 

data within the European Economic Area 

and/or that process the personal data of 

individuals who are resident in the 

European Economic Area. 

• Many commentators believe the UK will 

leave the EU and join the European 

Economic Area thus remaining part of the 

single market. In this scenario, the UK 

would have to adhere to certain EU 

regulations which would include the GDPR. 

• The Secretary of State for Exiting the EU 

has stated that at the date of exit existing 

laws are likely to be adopted into UK laws, 

but with the power to amend or cancel any 

of these laws. 

• The UK Information Commissioner is 

advocating that the UK adopt all EU data 

protection and privacy laws including GDPR 

so as to ensure consistent standards on the 

use of data and its flow between the UK and 

Europe. 

It remains to be seen what approach will be 

taken, and there are two years of negotiations 

ahead, but it is clear that UK businesses need 

to be ready to comply with the new stricter 

regime of GDPR. 


How is GDPR different from the 

existing Data Protection Act 1998 

(DPA)? 

• Stricter obligations on both controllers 

and processors – but with separate 

responsibilities for each. Processors will 

have significantly more legal liability if they 

are responsible for a breach. 

• Obligation on controllers to ensure 

processors guarantee they will meet the 

requirements of GDPR. 

• Data processors will for the first time 

have direct statutory obligations including: 

(i) maintaining a written record of 

processing activities; (ii) appointing a DPO 

as required; and (iii) notifying a controller 

on becoming aware of a personal data 

breach. 

• GDPR contains suggestions as to what 

security actions controllers and processors 

should take – and if the approved code of 

conduct is followed, this will demonstrate 

compliance with the GDPR’s security 

standards. 

• Data breach notification requirements – 

even if the breach does not lead to loss of 

information that could be used for fraud or 

identity theft (as is the case in the US). 

• Data portability – the right for data 

subjects to transfer personal data from one 

data controller to another without 

hindrance. 

• Subject Access Requests must now be 

dealt with within one month rather than 40 

days. 

• The scope of a person’s consent has finally 

been explained in detail. A data subject’s 

consent to processing of their personal data 

must be as easy to withdraw as to give. 

Consent must also be explicit when 

processing sensitive data. A data controller 

must be able to demonstrate that consent 

was given. 

• Where personal data is processed for 

direct marketing the data subject will have 

a right to object. This right will have to be 

explicitly brought to their attention. The 

GDPR also provides a list of additional 

information that must be provided to data 

subjects. 

• Penalties for noncompliance are 

increasing: 

• breaches of the key obligations 

contained in the GDPR (including the 

basic principles for processing and 

conditions for consent will be subject to 

administrative fines of up to 

€20,000,000 or, in the case of 

undertakings, 4% of global turnover, 

whichever is the higher; 

• other infringements such as failure to 

keep records or implement technical or 

organisational controls are subject to 

administrative fines up to €10,000,000 

or, in the case of undertakings, up to 2% 

of global turnover, whichever is higher.; 

and 

• furthermore, the GDPR provides that 

compensation may be recovered by data 

subjects who are the victim of a breach 

of the legislation. 

What should Northern Ireland 

businesses do now? 

Businesses here should continue to prepare 

for GDPR. Consider what part of your 

operations may be affected by these changes 

and identify data flows from the EU to the UK 

as regardless of whether the UK adopts GDPR 

post Brexit, the Regulations will apply to that 

data flow 

The position will undoubtedly fluctuate 

over the next two years but harmonisation of 

data protection will likely remain a priority 

regardless of Brexit. 

For more information contact Glenn at 

028 90 243 878 or 

glenn.watterson@millsselig.com 

www.millsselig.com

SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT AS 

LONG-STANDING COLERAINE 

BUSINESS ACQUIRED 

Ulster Bank supports acquisition of Boyd and Logue practice on north coast 

Ulster Bank’s Leona McNicholl with new owners Chris and Ruth Bloomer, announces the couple’s investment to acquire the longstanding Boyd and Logue 

dental business on the north coast, which employs 20 people. 

A 

husband and wife team is investing a 

significant sum, supported by Ulster 

Bank, to purchase and grow a leading 

dental business on the north coast. 

Ruth and Chris Bloomer, who have a long 

trackrecord in the dental sector in Northern 

Ireland, are purchasing the Boyd and Logue 

practice which has surgeries in Coleraine and 

Portrush. Ulster Bank has provided finance to 

enable the deal. 

Boyd and Logue has operated on the north 

coast for almost 45 years and employs 20 

people. The Bloomers were associates with the 

practice and decided to purchase the business 

whenever Mr Boyd and Mr Logue retired. 

Chris Bloomer says: “With 20 staff, Boyd 

and Logue is a substantial practice in the 

area, providing dental services to thousands 

of patients through two surgeries. 

“Ruth and I are delighted to acquire such an 

established and wellrun operation, and see it 

as an excellent platform to further grow the 

business, particularly in Portrush, where our 

midtolongterm plan is to expand the 

surgery. 

“We are very grateful to Ulster Bank for 

their support and expertise in helping us 

make the acquisition.” 

Ulster Bank relationship manager, Leona 

McNicholl, says: “Boyd and Logue was a 

longstanding Ulster Bank client of more than 

40 years, and we were very pleased to 

finance the purchase of the business by the 

new owners. It is one of the biggest practices 

in the Coleraine area, and Ruth and Chris 

have a vision to further enhance and grow the 

business into the future.” 

For more information on Ulster Bank visit 

www.ulsterbank.co.uk 

For more information on Boyd and Logue 

visit www.boydandlogue.com 


47

INGENUITY 

PIPELINE OR 

WISH LIST? 

Ian Laverty, Managing Director, Ingenuity 

T 

he nature of the sales profession has 

changed significantly over the last 

couple of decades. In that time, it has 

been aided and developed by learning from 

behavioural psychology, NeuroLinguistic 

Programming, better customer research and, 

of course, technology. 

In the main these changes have been 

positive and have led to the sales person 

being seen as a recognised professional 

within the organisation. 

Previously it was often seen as a dark art 

and a poor relation to other disciplines 

(although I’m still at a loss as to why there are 

few, if any, recognised academic 

qualifications in sales to match the disciplines 

of marketing, business studies etc?) 

There is one area where sales professionals 

continue to struggle however and the 

consequences for organisations are often 

significant. Pipeline assessment and sales 

projections. 

You see, sales people by their nature are 

optimistic. They’re positive people – at least 

the good ones are. They have to be. They 

believe that every opportunity can be 

converted. They’re competitive. They talk 

themselves up. The size of a salesman’s 

pipeline is a measure of his optimism, hopes 

and wishes. 

Most sales people have a process for 

estimating future sales based on the 

opportunities in their pipeline. This starts 

with all those leads that enter the sales funnel 

at the beginning of the sales process and 

follows those prospects through until they 

become customers (or not). 

There’s usually an assessment of how likely 

they are to buy from us – often by way of a 

percentage estimate. Most sales CRM systems 

offer such a feature. You can then work out 

your ‘expected’ future revenue by adding up 

your weighted opportunities. 

For example, a lead worth £100,000 with a 

50 per cent chance of winning it will show as 

£50,000 in your future revenue stream. Of 

course you are likely to win all of it or none of 

it rather than £50,000 but if you have enough 

opportunities in your sales funnel then the 

system averages out and should be reflective 

of the overall situation. 

Except it rarely is. 

Projections of sales pipeline revenue are 

almost always overestimated. They’re 

inherently inaccurate and unreliable, and 

that’s dangerous for an organisation. If 


projections are being used to estimate future 

revenue streams and therefore decisions, 

then the business is going to find itself in a 

difficult situation. 

Why do fewer prospects filter 

through to the bottom of the funnel 

than we expect? 

The problem is that our estimating system 

is flawed. A simple one category estimate of 

‘how likely is the prospect to convert’ is too 

wide. It asks the sales person to weigh up too 

many factors to come up with a single figure. 

There is evidence of our overoptimistic 

sales professional right from the outset. 

We’ve conducted research on this over the 

last 12 months. When a new prospect arrives 

at the top of the funnel the sales professional 

often defaults to ‘50 per cent’ as the 

percentage chance of the opportunity being 

converted. This happened in 93 per cent of all 

cases. To exacerbate this, a sales person will 

rarely adjust an opportunity downwards after 

the initial assessment until it is lost whereby 

it is removed from the pipeline. 

Often we find that no opportunities are 

ranked lower than a 50 per cent chance of 

converting. If that was reflected in actual 

results, then one in two opportunities going 

into the top of the funnel would be coming 

out the other end as customers. 

The first thing we need to do therefore is be 

far more critical of our chances of converting 

a brand new opportunity unless there’s a 

compelling reason to look at it confidently 

(and 50/50 is optimistic for a brand new 

opportunity). 

Secondly, we need to introduce a set of 

more robust opportunity assessment criteria. 

These criteria should break down the 

elements of the sales process and quantified 

accordingly. 

1. How well do we know the prospect? 

2. How strong is our relationship with 

them? 

3. How well do we understand their 

business? 

4. How well does our product/service meet 

their needs? 

5. How well does the prospect 

know/understand our product/service? 

6. How well does the prospect know our 

business? 

7. What is our competition for this 

opportunity? 

These criteria should be scored and these 

scores should contribute to an overall 

probability of the prospect converting. 

There should also be room for an element 

of ‘gutfeel’ but that should be one of the 

criteria rather than the only criteria. 

A good assessment process will also guide 

the sales person as to the actions required to 

move the prospect through the pipeline – 

changing the wish list into an accurate 

pipeline. 

Ian Laverty is the Managing Director of 

Ingenuity, a sales and marketing training and 

consultancy organisation. Please contact Ian at 

ian@ingenuityuk.com or 028 9187 1314

W 

ith almost 40 per cent of UK business 

reportedly being targeted, 

ransomware threats are increasing. 

Organisations of all sizes are being attacked 

including universities and even NHS Trusts. 

How do you ensure your business keeps 

going when you are targeted by ransomware? 

Ransomware is a type of malware that 

prevents or limits users from accessing their 

systems. It does this either by locking the 

system’s screen or locking the user files. 

Information is usually, but not always, 

returned after the ransom is paid. The 

Are you prepared for the rising 

threat of ransomware? 

ransomware is delivered in various ways and 

often unspotted by the user coming via 

websites, clicking on links or emails. 

Comic Relief was a recent victim. The 

ransomware put the Comic Relief servers out 

of action for 3 days, with employees not able 

to access Internet services, email or their 

files. It isn’t just high profile organisations 

that suffer though, no business is too small to 

be hacked. 

At Atlas, we offer backup and disaster 

recovery services to help in the event of 

ransomware or other cyberattacks. Many 

companies we speak to recognise the threats 

but surprisingly few are seemingly ready to 

set up comprehensive defences against them. 

What can companies do to tackle these types 

of attacks? 

You should first assess the following three 

key factors; How sensitive is the data? How 

will your company profile be affected? Can 

you restore your data from another source? 

These factors may take time to consider 

which could cause problems if your company 

isn’t fully functioning in its day to day 

activities. 

Prevention is the best defence. With various 

layered defences available such as firewalls, 

antimalware and spam filters you can begin 

to lessen the threat. Vigilance is important, so 

staff training about the issue is critical with 

care taken over what emails and websites 

they open. Once the malware gets into your 

files, however, these measures become 

obsolete. 

Backups and disaster recovery services are 

the most reliable method for recovering 

infected systems. If you have a second copy of 

your data held somewhere else and 

untouched, damage can be limited. The 

question then is how quickly you can restore 

the data safely. Being prepared to react, even 

having an outline of measures to be taken 

helps organise your response. Having a 

disaster recovery plan in place will ensure 

that you will not lose considerable amounts 

of time and money trying to recover when 

ransomware strikes. 

Richard Simpson, Managing Director of 

Atlas Communications. Atlas provides inpremises 

and hosted data, network and 

telephony solutions to businesses across 

Northern Ireland and can be contacted on 

028 9078 6868. 


49

TECH [2020] 

Ward Solutions – using home-grown 

security solutions to fight cybercrime 

very day 1.5 million people around the 

world become victims of cybercrime. A 

Efrightening statistic, and one that serves 

to highlight the threat that cybercrime poses 

to the global economy, as well as the need to 

fight back against it. 

However, the increasingly sophisticated 

nature of security threats means that we have 

now arrived at a point where traditional 

approaches to cyber security are no longer 

effective. This highly evolved threat landscape 

means that it’s no longer a case of if but when 

your business will suffer a data breach. 

Cybercriminals are constantly working to 

develop more advanced attacks to cause as 

much damage as possible and maximise their 

potential payout. 

Today’s malware variants, for example, 

bear little resemblance to their original 

strains, having become increasingly complex 

and dangerous with each iteration. However, 

they still have a shared goal in common with 

the original versions of malware – the 

extortion of money from businesses through 

the use of social engineering and intimidation. 

In this climate, preventative approaches to 

information security can no longer keep pace 

with the latest techniques employed by 

cybercriminals. 

Organisations now need intelligent, 

integrated and automated security 

intelligence solutions to handle the everincreasing 

volume of events and ensure 

timely visibility into what is happening on 

their networks. 

Northern Ireland as a cybersecurity 

hub 

Over the past few years Northern Ireland 

has become a hub for information security 

and technology; two sectors which support 

many hundreds of jobs in the region. 

Solutions developed in Northern Ireland are 

helping to fight the growing threat of 

cybercrime and protect businesses both at 

home and all over the world. One example of 

a ‘homegrown’ security solution is QRadar, 

developed at IBM’s Belfastbased QRadar Lab. 

QRadar integrates security functions that 

have traditionally been disparate, including 

including risk management, log management, 

network behaviour analytics and security 

event management. 

The result is a complete security intelligence 

platform, and the most advanced security 

intelligence and event management product 

available (SIEM). Using real –time analytics 

QRadar eliminates blindspots in your business 

environment, spotting anomalies that may 

otherwise have been missed. 

Alan McVey, Northern Ireland business 

development manager, Ward Solutions, 

In order to help businesses to protect 

against and respond faster to cyberattacks, 

Ward Solutions recently partnered with IBM 

Security to deliver the advanced QRadar 

Security Intelligence platform to companies 

throughout Northern Ireland and Ireland. 

Utilising this bestofbreed technology has 

allowed Ward Solutions to build a highly 

innovative Security Analytics and Incident 

Response service to help customers to protect 

against cybercrime. 

Advanced managed service solution 

As a nextgeneration managed service 

solution Ward’s QRadarbased SIEM offering 

provides businesses with 24/7 incident 

detection and response, giving early visibility 

and allowing them to respond quickly to 

incidents that may be occurring within their 

environment. 

The service is delivered from Ward 

Solutions’ stateoftheart Security Operations 

Centre, in which Ward invested £1M just last 

year. This pairing of cuttingedge software 

with the best and latest hardware 

infrastructure available can provide any 

business with the competitive edge on 

cybercrime. 

QRadar and Ward Solutions holistic 

information security model 

Ward Solutions’ QRadar SIEM offering is 

specifically designed to integrate with its 

holistic information security model. This 

innovative strategy is based on research 

conducted by Ward Solutions that found that 

traditional ‘preventative’ approaches to 

information security are flawed and 

ineffective in the face of the sophisticated 

techniques currently employed by 

cybercriminals. 

To tackle this, Ward developed the holistic 

model, which focuses less on traditional 

preventative forms of cybersecurity and more 

on the implementation and lifecycle of five 

key stages: identify, protect, detect, respond 

and recover. 

QRadar augments the ‘detect’ and ‘respond’ 

phases of the lifecycle. Firstly, it helps to 

dramatically reduce mean time to detection 

(MTTD) by monitoring thousands of events 

and detecting anomalies that are not easily 

spotted by security teams as they search 

through system logs. This in turn enables 

businesses to respond quickly and effectively 

to potential incidents, stemming the flow of 

information and minimising resultant 

financial and reputational damage. 

Information Security is a journey, 

not a destination 

Organisations typically spend five to eight 

per cent of their IT budgets annually on 

information security, often ineffectively. 

Availing of a managed security service such as 

Ward Solutions’ QRadar SIEM offering can 

help your organisation to make the most of its 

limited resources. 

As a combined solution, QRadar reduces 

cost of ownership, cost of deployment and 

cost of operation, while also providing more 

accurate data at a granular level than other 

separate systems. Increased visibility and 

centralised control will give your organisation 

the advantage it needs to effectively combat 

cyberattacks that could otherwise put your 

business at risk. 

As the most advanced solution of its kind, 

QRadar is a brilliant example of Northern 

Ireland’s rightful status as an information 

security hub. The fact that such a highly 

technical solution can be developed here 

highlights the level of talent on hand across 

the region, and is something that won’t go 

unnoticed by prospective employers and 

inbound multinationals. Further investment 

will allow Northern Ireland to continue to 

lead the charge in the fight against 

cybercrime. 

Ward Solutions is currently offering a select 

number of companies a chance to win a 

QRadar trial worth £2,700, so if you’re 

curious about how QRadar can help your 

business to thrive in an age of increasing 

security threats there’s never been a better 

time to get in touch. www.wardinfosec.co.uk 


www.businessfirstonline.co.uk 51

CHRISTMAS 

The dos and dont's of the 

OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY 

W 

ith the office Christmas party season 

about to be in full swing, how do you 

survive the festive season without 

mishap? 

Tinsel, paper hats and cheap booze: the 

Christmas party season is underway 

Tinsel, paper hats and cheap booze: the 

Christmas party season is underway 

Dodgy dancing, loads of booze and loose 

lips: the office Christmas party is a minefield 

of potential embarrassing missteps and 

opportunities for demotion or getting fired. 

How do you go about navigating these 

treacherous waters? Here are dos and don'ts 

from some etiquette experts who know the 

proper way to behave. Whether you heed 

them is another matter... 

Stay away from office gossip 

Don’t gossip or spread rumours. Confessing 

your sins to colleagues or clients is never 

sensible. 

Keep small talk general. Be armed with a 

few social icebreakers, families, children, 

holidays. 

It’s far too easy to get caught up in the he 

said, she said conversations while having a 

good night with your colleagues. 

However, office gossip and alcohol is 

probably almost never going to end well. It’s 

best to stay away. 

Don’t drink too much 

The mistake that people make with office 

Christmas is that it is still a work event and I 

think a lot of people see it as, ‘Oh good, free 

booze, free food, well let’s be merry.’ 

Okay you can let your hair down but you 

are still being judged and watched by your 

superiors and your actions are still 

accountable. 

The smarter people use the office Christmas 

party to present themselves in the best 

possible light as opposed to getting 

completely and utterly drunk. 

Know your limit and stick to it, even if the 

boss is getting absolutely trollied, it does not 

mean that it’s acceptable for you to do that 

yourself. 

Alcoholfuelled romance is often in the air 

at holiday season events: according to a poll 


by blinkbox 20pc of staff admit to having 

kissed a colleague and 14pc said they flirted 

with the boss. One in 50 said they had quit 

their job at the office party. 

Dress appropriately 

The Christmas party isn’t the place to wear 

that ‘a bit too’ slinky black dress, or that illfitting 

suit that’s been gathering dust in the 

back of your closet. 

Just make sure you know what the dress 

code is and stick to it. If you are really 

worried speak to other people in the office 

about what they are wearing. 

Don’t trap people in very long 

conversations 

An easy trap to fall into is that you find 

someone you like who you want to talk to and 

you stay with them for the entire evening. 

Well, that person probably wants to talk to 

other people and other people probably want 

to talk to that person. 

Try not to hog people, ten or 15 minutes is 

fine.” 

Don’t leave too early 

Always stay for a reasonable amount of 

time, especially if there is a sitdown dinner. 

Leaving early may look antisocial or 

unappreciative. 

In most cases, a lot of time and energy has 

been spent planning the Christmas party. 

Don’t leave after the first hour. 

The Christmas party is the ideal place to let 

your hair down and unwind after what’s most 

likely been a stressful year of work. 

Do attend 

Although your attendance is optional, it is a 

good idea to make an appearance. 

Even if you despise the thought of spending 

of a whole evening with the people you work 

with everyday, making an appearance shows 

that you are part of the team. 

They’re great for company morale, and 

sometimes a great night out is all that’s 

needed to turn work mates into real mates.” 

Mingle 

You should use the opportunity to talk to 

people in the office, perhaps that are higher 

up, who you have been desperate to talk to 

for the whole year and haven’t been able to. 

Use it to social network and to make a good 

impression, rather than thinking I am going to 

bond with my colleagues. 

That’s marvellous but you can do that in 

your own time, this is perhaps the time to go 

and impress the bosses.” 

Always have one hand free to shake 

people’s hand 

You need to ensure you have one hand free 

all the time, don’t have plate and glass, and if 

you are being sensible you will hold your 

drink in your left hand so you can still shake 

with your right. 

It just looks rude if you don’t shake hands. 

Hopefully your host will have the foresight to 

make sure there are plenty of surfaces 

available for people to put stuff on. 

If the party is being hosted by 

someone at work, bring a gift and 

send a thank you 

If you are going to somebody’s party make 

sure you turn up with a gift, it does not look 

good to be empty handed. 

Avoid flowers that are uncut because it 

gives the hostess a job as she has to then go 

and put them in water. 

It doesn’t have to be a big present, a box of 

chocolates or bottle of champagne is fine.” 

It is wellmannered to send a thankyou 

email the following day to bosses and those 

who helped organised the party.” 

Don’t leave people standing on their 

own 

If you find yourself stuck with someone 

terribly dull and you want to get rid of them, 

it is impolite to leave them on their own. 

What I would do is pair them off with 

someone else by saying, ‘You know I have just 

seen someone I must go and talk to but have 

you met soandso and introducing them to 

someone else before you escape.

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Ground Floor, 96 High Street, Holywood BT18 9HP

ON THE MOVE 

Business First celebrates your success 

[1] Kirsty Scott has been appointed a 

Solicitor in the Corporate, Banking and 

Finance Department with Cleaver Fulton 

Rankin. She joined Cleaver Fulton Rankin in 

June 2015 having worked previously as a 

Paralegal in Manchester, London and in 

Holywood, Co Down. She became a fully 

qualified solicitor in July 2016. Kirsty advises 

on corporate finance, banking and commercial 

law, acting for public sector bodies, financial 

institutions and businesses in Northern 

Ireland. 

[2] Stephen Goddard has been appointed as 

IT Consulatqant with P2V Systems. He will be 

focused on project work in a team of IT 

consultants. Projects can vary as they are 

tailored to the customer’s solution, such as 

deploying a new cloud infrastructure for a 

client to installing a new firewall. Previously 

Stephen worked for B9 Energy O&M Ltd 

where he provided end user support, 

infrastructure setup and maintenance 

services. 

1 2 3 

4 5 6 

7 8 9 

Belfastbased marketing communications firm 

ASG & Partners has announced the 

appointment of three new Directors to the 

company’s Board. 

[3]Valerie Ludlow will join the Board as 

Deputy CEO, following six years with the 

company, most recently heading up the 

agency’s advertising and digital marketing 

client service, as Director of Strategy. 

Also joining the ASG & Partners Board are its 

department heads, [4 ]Vicki Caddy, whose 

career with the PR division of the company 

spans over 20 years and who takes up the role 

of Director of PR; and [5]Emma Murray, who 

has led the Recruitment Advertising division 

for 6 years, and is now appointed as Director 

of ASG Recruitment. 

[6] Fenix Solutions would like to welcome 

Chris Higgins to their business development 

team. Chris comes from a business 

communications and sales background with a 

wealth of experience within the 

Telecommunications Industry, having spent 

several years working as an account executive 

for a leading UK telecommunications provider 

where he was responsible for numerous 

corporate account sales. He also has a wide 

range of experience in developing tailored 

communications solutions, as well as 

providing IP, Digital and hybrid telephone 

systems to various clients in both the public 

and private sectors throughout Northern 

Ireland. 

[7] Grant Thornton NI has appointed 

Anthony McKibbin as Associate Director, 

Business Risk Services. A Chartered 

Accountant with considerable experience 

delivering internal audit and business risk 

services to both the public and private 

sectors in Northern Ireland, the Republic of 

Ireland and Scotland, Anthony has led the 

delivery of services to clients in sectors such 

as health, education, environment, 

transport, energy and financial services. 

[8] Davy McGerrity has been appointed 

Senior Security Consultant at Cyphra. Davy 

will be responsible for advising on 

information security risk management and 

compliance matters such as ISO27001, UK 

Government security and supply chain 

security. Davy joins Cyphra from BT Global 

Services where he was Head of Security 

Transition within BT Security 

[9] Ashley Morrow has joined Jago 

Communications. Ashley has been appointed 

as a Senior Account Manager following ten 

years’ experience in the PR and 

Communications industry. She has worked 

across a vast array of external and internal 

communication areas locally, nationally and 

globally for companies such as Caterpillar 

and Liberty IT. 

As Senior Account Manager, Ashley is 

responsible for developing and leading 

creative PR and communications campaigns 

across the UK, Ireland and internationally, in 

line with core business objectives and 

priorities of clients. 



Let’s talk about 

ENTREPRENEURSHIP 

by Sinead McLaughlin, chief executive, Londonderry Chamber of Commerce 

W 

e have a problem that we need to 

talk about. Enterprise. Quite simply 

we don’t have enough of it in 


Look at the statistics. The rate of early 

stage entrepreneurship in Northern Ireland 

according to the latest available figures is 6.7 

per cent. That compares to 9.1 per cent in 

England and 9.2 per cent in the Republic of 

Ireland. Surprisingly we exceed the rate in 

Scotland (5.4 per cent), while falling below 

that in Wales (7.1 per cent). 

But worse than that, the North West has the 

lowest rate in Northern Ireland – despite, or 

perhaps because of, the weak state of its 

economy and high unemployment and 

economic inactivity. 

While the rate in Mid Ulster is 6.6 per cent, 

in the Derry and Strabane council area it is a 

mere 4.2 per cent. This low level of 

entrepreneurship reinforces the weakness of 

our sub regional economy. 

While the proportion of women moving 

into entrepreneurship has risen, it is still 

disappointingly low at less than half the rate 

of men. 

Graduates in Northern Ireland are twice as 

likely as nongraduates to start their own 

business, which reinforces the argument of 

our Chamber that we need to increase 

undergraduate places. 

Culture is important. 

Knowing other people who have set up 

their own business can be vital. Self belief 

certainly is. There is a higher rate of 

entrepreneurship in some of our inward 

migrant communities than in the indigenous 

population. 

Fear of failure is another major factor, as is 

expectation of success: while a quarter of 

Northern Ireland’s nonentrepreneurial 

working age population in 2014 believed 

there were good opportunities for starting a 

business in their local area, the figure was 

36.8 per cent across the UK as a whole. 

The positive news, perhaps surprisingly, is 

that there has been much more training of 

school children and young adults in Northern 

Ireland to encourage them to consider 

running their own business than has been the 

case in the rest of the UK. For this, schools, 

colleges, universities and Invest NI deserve 

praise. 

Without a greater level of entrepreneurial 

activity it will be difficult to overcome two 

QUOTABLEQUOTE 

Without a greater level of 

entrepreneurial activity it will be 

difficult to overcome two other 

problems afflicting our economy: low 

productivity and low levels of 

exports. 

If our economy is merely servicing our 

own people without attracting 

revenues from elsewhere, then our 

population and businesses cannot 

generate wealth. Indeed, with the 

retail sector dominated by companies 

headquartered elsewhere, much of 

the locally earned income naturally 

migrates away from the city and 

region. 

other problems afflicting our economy: low 

productivity and low levels of exports. 

If our economy is merely servicing our own 

people without attracting revenues from 

elsewhere, then our population and 

businesses cannot generate wealth. Indeed, 

with the retail sector dominated by 

companies headquartered elsewhere, much 

of the locally earned income naturally 

migrates away from the city and region. 

The Brexit affect 

Brexit has added to the pressure to grow 

entrepreneurship. While the immediate 

negative impact of the referendum vote has 

been less than many feared, there are 

widespread reports that planned investment 

has been delayed or abandoned. 

Anecdotally we hear of businesses 

postponing investment decisions," admitted 

the Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip 

Hammond, discussing the Brexit impact on 

Radio 4’s Today programme. Given this 

predicted loss of inward investment, the 

focus on promoting entrepreneurship 

becomes even more important. 

When our former urban regeneration 

company Ilex commissioned an economy 

scoping exercise a few years ago, the shortage 

of entrepreneurship in and around the city 

was one of the issues raised by the 

consultants. Quite simply, if we are to 

economically transform our city in terms of 

wealth and job creation, then we must 

develop a culture and practice of enterprise. 

We in the Londonderry Chamber of 

Commerce are determined to do what we can 

to change the culture. 

Indeed, it will be a central theme of our 

activities over the next year. We have a series 

of workshops promoting entrepreneurship: 

looking at how to learn from others; 

observing best practice in innovation; how to 

lead; and being adaptable and flexible in 

business strategy. While we are short of new 

business entrepreneurs, Derry and the North 

West do have exciting, successful and 

growing businesses who are as keen as we 

are for others to learn from. 

But more than anything, we have to 

persuade people to become entrepreneurs. It 

is only by people having the ideas to start a 

business, to have the confidence to do so, the 

skills and the drive that our city and region 

will do well. We must all do better. 


BEST PRACTICE 

Personal development is your 

key to success in business 

by Carol Magill, CIM Ireland 

I 

n today’s fastpaced, competitive business 

environment, business people can be so 

busy fighting fires and dealing with short 

term goals that opportunities for personal 

development can be pushed aside. 

We are all so “busy” all of the time, 

answering emails, keeping on top of our 

organization’s social media, and making sure 

day to day projects are completed on time 

and on budget. But if we don’t step back, 

assess our own knowledge and build on it, 

then we will fall behind. 

In this everchanging digital environment, 

the business world simply moves too quickly 

for any of us to stand still. This is true in all 

industries and is something that CIM feels 

should be a priority for all marketers. 

Those who don’t follow the latest 

innovations in the industry will be unlikely to 

react to new opportunities and challenges 

and may find that the businesses they 

represent are losing out to more savvy 

competitors. 

To reflect changes in the industry, CIM 

(The Chartered Institute of Marketing) has 

recently made updates to its own continuing 

professional development (CPD) programme. 

MyCPD is a new online platform that 

enables members to do everything online 

from identifying what new skills they need to 

submitting their annual CPD record. 

It includes a directory of the learning and 

development resources available from CIM 

from professional qualifications, training 

courses to articles and webinars– everything 

to keep on top of the rapid changes in the 

industry. 

CIM continues to recognize those who 

consistently seek to improve their knowledge 

by awarding the Chartered Marketer status, 

which recognizes those marketers achieving 

the highest level in their profession. 

It demonstrates commitment to keeping up 

to date and is awarded on a combination of 

experience, qualifications and ongoing 

learning. 

I spoke to one of Northern Ireland’s 

Chartered Marketers about the new 

programme and the benefits of having 

Chartered status. She has welcomed the 

changes, which she believes will make CPD 

more streamlined and userfriendly. 

Nicola McCleery is Head of Marketing and 

Sponsorship at Danske Bank UK and has over 

18 years of marketing experience. 

She is enthusiastic about CIM’s new MyCPD 

programme: “Not only have the changes to 

the Chartered programme revitalised the 

award, but changes to the recording system 

and submission timings mean that the 

programme is more bespoke, user friendly 

and flexible, allowing members even more 

time to advance. 

“CIM’s development framework has 

enabled me to keep my skills up to date, be a 

good role model for my team and to feel 

energised that I am maintaining a competitive 

advantage over others through my ongoing 

studies.” 

Having achieved Chartered status for over 

two years, she fully recognises the benefits of 

achieving and maintaining this professional 

standard. She says that Chartered status acts 

as tangible evidence that you, as an 

individual, are committed to being the best in 

your industry. 

“Our accelerating world means that 

marketers have to work harder than ever to 

be relevant, add value to consumers’ lives and 

be able to champion the customer’s voice in 

our respective organisations. 

“The CIM CPD framework on which 

Chartered Marketer status is based enables 

me to identify, plan and fulfil any gaps within 

my marketing knowledge; it makes me 

accountable that the new knowledge I have 

acquired is being applied to improve my 

marketing capabilities and helps ensure that I 

strike the right balance of core and technical 

standards required to carry out my marketing 

role successfully. 

“Maintaining your Chartered status also 

nurtures your ongoing relationship with CIM 

and all the associated benefits such as access 

to a wide range of marketing knowledge, 

expert support and, for me, our local 

marketing community. However, the single 

most important benefit is the personal 

payback at the end of each CPD year, when I 

take stock of my new skills and assess how 

they have benefited my ability to do an even 

better marketing job and bring value to my 

organisation.” 

To find out more about becoming a Charter 

Marketer go to: 

www.cim.co.uk/charteredmarketer 


When Mona Lisa is looking at your laptop 

The province’s only accredited and award-winning matchmaking company, Soirée Society NI, can confirm what we all suspected – Work 

can get in the way of Love! Founding owner and professional matchmaker Claire Hughes explains more… 

M 

any of my clients, particularly men, 

blame long working hours for the lack 

of love and romance in their lives. 

And ironically the lack of a partner leads 

them to undertake more work than they 

would otherwise wish to tackle. 

In my earlier career in Banking, I recall that 

my first training course when I was promoted 

to Bank Manager was a talk with the 

interesting title 'There is no Tonight'. 

A senior manager talked about the 

importance of work/life balance and advised 

us on good time management techniques. 

One of the things I remember most was his 

advice that when faced with a heavy 

workload and multiple tasks it was best to 

focus and complete the most important things 

first. 

He said many people fell into the bad habit 

of doing the small less important things first 

and often consigned the larger more 

important tasks to the brief case to be done 

'tonight' extending the working day and 

leaving little time for relaxation, friends, 

family and romance. 

I remember him saying that a laptop 

wouldn't keep you warm in bed on a cold 

winter’s night or be a good companion in 

your old age! 

Despite the advice, I too was often seen 

carrying home the briefcase bulging with 

important lending applications that I 

intended to complete 'tonight'. 

Without being irreverent, it came to the 

point that I gave my briefcase a name and 

referred to it as 'the Sacred Heart of Jesus' 

because just like the holy picture that 

adorned so many Catholic homes at the time, 

(or alternatively think of the Mona Lisa) it 

gave the impression that the eyes moved and 

followed you no matter where you were in 

the room. 

So in addition to the already busy and long 

working day, I could feel the 'eyes' of my 

briefcase glaring at me (even if in another 

room) making me feel guilty if it was left 

unopened. It stressed me out if those big 

important tasks didn’t get done that night as I 

would be in arrears the following day even 

before it started. 

The situation certainly wasn’t conducive to 

a healthy work/life balance. 

Now as a professional Matchmaker, I 

interview many unattached professionals 

who are similarly 'married' to their 

work/careers. 

It's often the 'chicken and egg' situation of 

having a long day travelling and being too 

busy with work to have the time or the 

energy to date and find a partner. It is also the 

case where people state that the reason for 

the breakup of their marriage or relationship 

was due to one or both of the partners 

prioritising work over spending quality time 

together. 

It is also clear that not allowing adequate 

time for the important things in life, like 

relaxation, relationships, friends, family, 

nutrition, health and fitness leads to a decline 

in quality of work as the pressure mounts and 

stress leaves people less focused and less 

effective. 

I find it is most prevalent with men, as they 

tend not to have as large a circle of friends as 

women and don’t have the same 

opportunities to go out socially or to have 

someone to talk to about how they are 

feeling. 

In addition, many of the same people who 

are too busy for love also find that being 

single leads to them taking on additional 

work, which creates a vicious circle as often 

more is expected of them, leading to even less 

time for the relationship they long for. 

It's great to know the theory but not that 

easy to put into practice! To break a habit and 

to step of the wheel requires not only change 

but most importantly a reason to change. 

For me it was to leave the briefcase at work 

and to spend the time connecting with family 

and friends and on more healthy outdoor 

activities like walking the dogs. 

I found I was less stressed, healthier, slept 

better and became more productive at work 

as it made me focus and prioritise the most 

important things while in the office, and the 

even more important things when away from 

work. 

It has been wonderful to work with some of 

our clients to be the spanner in the works as 

it were – helping them to reflect on better use 

of their time out of the workplace, and 

matching them with someone able to bring 

about the positive change they were seeking 

in their life. 

It’s a bit like people outsourcing work that 

is going to bring about an improvement in 

their situation where someone else is going to 

work with you and for you – e.g. hiring a 

personal trainer to improve health and 

fitness, employing an accountant to save time 

and ensure you benefit fully from tax 

allowances. 

We work with and for our clients to help 

find them that compatible partner to bring 

love and romance into their lives giving 

them that reason to work less and live more. 

We’re what you could call a recruitment 

agency for relationships, helping people to fill 

that vacancy in their lives and allowing our 

clients to have a more appealing pair of eyes 

following them around the room in the 

evening! 

Soirée Society are also planning some 

exciting singles events, see Facebook and 

Website and Twitter for details 

soireesocietyni and 

@soireesocietyni 

For more information,please visit 

www.soireesocietyni.co.uk 


59

INSURANCE 

Towergate Insurance Brokers joins 

push to protect SMEs from 

underinsurance risks 

owergate Insurance in Northern 

Ireland has joined an industry 

push to warn SME Twide owners 

that they could be at risk of 

underinsurance. 

The issue could affect up to 80 per cent 

of business owners, who could receive 

far less than they need to restore their 

business when they need to make a 

claim, leading to potentially devastating 

results. 

Towergate is today issuing advice for 

business owners who could have false 

confidence in their policies, highlighting 

issues such as the absence of business 

interruption cover or uptodate risks 

like cyber attacks. 

An alarming degree of 

underinsurance 

According to a study conducted by the 

Building Cost Information Service, part 

of the Royal Institution of Chartered 

Surveyors, up to 80% of small 

businesses in the UK could be without 

adequate cover. 

The Financial Conduct Authority’s 

study in claims made by SMEs * found 

what it termed a “significant number of 

instances” of cover being too low. Some 

20 per cent of the claims over £5000 

which it examined did not provide 

enough cover for the actual loss the 

business had suffered. 

The British Insurance Brokers Association 

has described the situation “an alarming 

degree of underinsurance.” 

Commercial property owners are also 

thought to be underestimating the cover they 

require by a considerable amount. A study of 

underinsured businesses in 2015 revealed 

that more than four out of five underinsured 

their commercial property by an average of 

£486,000. ** 

Meanwhile government has found that only 

37per cent of businesses have some form of 

cyber security insurance ***, despite the fact 

that twothirds of large UK businesses had 

been hit by a cyber breach or attack in the 

past year. 

The average cost of a cyber attack to a 

business with more than 250 employees in 

the UK is some £36,500 with the most severe 

attacks costing millions. For smaller 

businesses of between 50 and 249 staff, the 

average cost of a cyber breach was £847. 

Advice from Towergate 

Worried you’re underinsured? Towergate 

has issued these five pieces of essential 

advice for SMEs on how to protect themselves 

from risk. 

Get your business assets valued by a 

professional appraiser 

It costs more to pay for a formal evaluation, 

but it’s crucial to get rid of any room for 

mistakes on your policy. Towergate 

Insurance Brokers can assist with 

introductions to a professional valuation 

company. 

Check your insurance policy is up 

to date especially if your 

property has been altered 

Make sure your premises is 

insured for its full uptodate sum 

of a rebuild cost, not its original 

market value. 

Account for any extra fees for 

reinstatement 

This includes paying architects 

and planning experts, site 

clearance, or the need for heavy 

plant machinery. 

Remember to update the total 

worth of your asset 

If you have higher stock levels, 

new equipment or additional 

locations since you began trading, 

be sure this is added to your policy. 

Review your existing business 

interruption cover and ensure 

you discuss adding this cover 

urgently, should you not have 

any 

One in five SMEs surveyed said 

they had problems getting back to 

normal business trading after a 

disruption, but fewer than a third 

had business interruption cover.* 

Factoring in planning permission, 

rebuild time, sourcing specialist 

equipment and the time it takes to 

win back customers, Towergate 

recommends business interruption cover of 

at least 24 months. 

“As one of the biggest corporate and SME 

insurance brokers in the UK, we understand 

the devastating consequences an inadequate 

policy can have on an SME,” says Hugh 

McKinty, Area Managing Director (Towergate 

Dawson Whyte). “If you’re not sure if your 

existing insurance covers all your assets, we 

can recommend professional valuation 

experts and help you take stock through our 

trusted local team and network of experts.” 


Deep RiverRock Belfast City Marathon 

registration now open! 

E 

ntries are already coming in for the 36th 

Deep RiverRock Belfast City Marathon 

following the successful 4th Deep 

RiverRock Belfast City Half Marathon which, 

started and finished at Ormeau Park, just over 

two weeks ago with 3,000 competitors. 

The 2017 Full Marathon event will be held 

on May Day Bank Holiday, 1st May 2017 and 

was launched this morning (Tuesday 4th 

October) by David Seaton, Chairman of the Deep 

RiverRock Belfast City Marathon at the new 

Mencap Centre, Belfast, home of Mencap NI, the 

official charity partner of this year’s race. 

Technical Race Director, David Seaton said 

“In the past number of years, we have seen 

our participant numbers grow as there has 

been a resurgence of running in the local 

community and further afield. 

“Whether it is the full marathon distance or 

a leg in the relay event, many more people are 

signing up to get involved and more 

importantly get fit.” 

“Following the success of our secondary 

event, the Deep RiverRock Belfast City Half 

Marathon on the 18th September 2016, we 

are confident that entries for the Main 

Marathon Run will increase, as entrants will 

want to push themselves to tackle the 

26.2mile distance and set themselves a goal.” 

Assisting the Chairman to launch the 2017 

event at the new Mencap Centre, Lord Mayor 

of Belfast, Councillor Brian Kingston said: “36 

years ago Belfast City Council took the 

decision to stage the first Belfast City 

Marathon and, over the intervening years, the 

event has gone from strength to strength. 

When other marathons fell by the wayside, 

Belfast continued to grow. 

“Now, with the resurgence of interest in 

running – especially as a free and efficient 

way of getting and staying fit – we are 

benefiting from record entry numbers each 

and every year.” 

“While the marathon is undoubtedly a 

serious business, especially for competitive 

runners, it is also about having fun and 

enjoying yourself – whether you are a serious 

runner, or taking part in the relay with a team 

of friends or just cheering the runners along. 

“Belfast, quite rightly, is regarded as one of 

the world’s friendliest marathons, and 

runners from near and far are always 

encouraged by the warmth of the support 

they find in all four corners of our city. 

“Once again, I would urge the people of 

Belfast to turn out and support the runners 

on May Day – whether it be by offering a glass 

of water or a slice of fruit, or merely an 

encouraging word,” concluded Councillor 

Kingston. 

In addition to the Deep RiverRock Belfast 

Miss Northern Ierland, Lord Mayor Councillor Brian Kingston and Olympian Kerry O’Flaherty 

encourage people to hurdle to the finish line 

City Marathon being the biggest single 

participatory sporting event in Northern 

Ireland, it is also one of the biggest 

fundraising events, with almost every runner 

or walker taking part to benefit charity. 

“I’m delighted to announce that, in 2017, 

we will again be supporting the magnificent 

work of Mencap, as our officially nominated 

charity,” announced David Seaton. 

Margaret Kelly, Director of Mencap in 

Northern Ireland, said; “We are so excited to 

once again be the official charity partner for 

the Deep RiverRock Belfast City Marathon. 

“Last May we raised an amazing £125,000 

and we are calling on everyone across 

Northern Ireland to help us raise even more 

in 2017.“ 

You don’t have to be a champion runner to 

take part on Marathon Day – anyone can get 

involved, whether that’s signing up a relay team 

or bringing the kids along to the Fun Run. No 

matter what the event, we encourage everyone 

to run or walk in aid of Mencap this year.” 

Margaret continued “Funds raised from the 

marathon will go toward a number of 

initiatives including our soontobelaunched 

Family Support Programme, which will 

provide bespoke, oneonone guidance for 

families with a young child with a learning 

disability. 

“This innovative initiative is a first for our 

charity and we are launching it this autumn 

thanks to the money raised by the marathon. 

However, we still need funds to help us 

extend this programme over the next few 

years and reach even more children and 

families who urgently need our help. 

“We encourage everyone to ‘Step up for 

Mencap’ this year and we can’t wait to see 

everyone on Marathon Day!” 

Also celebrating the 11th year as title sponsor, 

Deep RiverRock’s Sponsorship Manager, Rob 

Crabbe said: "As Northern Ireland’s favourite 

water brand with its roots in Tullynacross, Co. 

Antrim, Deep RiverRock is delighted to continue 

its long standing partnership with Belfast City 

Marathon in 2017. 

“With a shared vision to encourage more 

people to lead active and hydrated lifestyles, 

Deep RiverRock’s partnership with Belfast 

City Marathon is a perfect fit. Deep RiverRock 

is proud to be associated with such a world 

class event that resonates so well with the 

local community and as a company we are 

honoured to have played a part in the success 

of what is now a key event in Northern 

Ireland’s sporting calendar.” 

David continued, this year are giving 

participants an option of receiving their packs 

via post (standard or special service) or at 

one of the many race pack collection dates, 

which can be found on 

www.belfastcitymarathon.com. 

This will enable us to ensure everyone 

receives their pack ahead of time allowing 

participants to dedicate 100% to their final 

few weeks of training and preparation. On 

completion of the event all entrants will 

receive their new finisher’s pack containing 

their race tshirt and a number of goodies. 

“We are delighted with these plans for Race 

Day as it sees us fitting in line with other 

main races in the UK and Europe. We want to 

create a celebrative atmosphere on Race Day 

with the assistance of all our sponsors and 

official charity, so will be making the 

entertainment at the finish area bigger and 

better, an event not to be missed.” David 

Seaton commented 

Entries now open at 

BelfastCityMarathon.com 


61


In the midst of Brexit is it time to 

rethink business support 

in Northern Ireland? 

asks Andrew Webb, an independent economist and Managing Director of Webb Advisory Ltd 

I 

’ve followed and supported the calls for a 

Corporation tax reduction in Northern 

Ireland for over a decade. And whilst I 

haven’t wavered in supporting a reduced NI 

rate of Corporation tax, I have started to 

wonder if it could be used in a different, more 

targeted way. 

My thinking here has begun to crystallise 

since Brexit, and questions over whether 

inward investors will want to come to 

Northern Ireland if we leave the single 

market. 

I also recently conducted research for 

NICVA, looking at the range of financial 

supports that are currently available to 

businesses in Northern Ireland, and just how 

effective this support is. 

It will come as no surprise that there are 

significant levels of business support 

provided from public funds. Some estimates 

suggest there are 2,000 business support 

programmes and 200 providers. 

These range from business start 

programmes, support for exporting, grants 

for undertaking research, leadership 

programmes, green energy programmes or 

grants for locating here. 

On top of that, the tax code is a maze of 

capital gains tax reliefs, investor reliefs 

business owner taxes and allowances, etc. 

How effective are our support 

programmes? 

From my research, it’s clear that the focus 

of business support interventions is, rightly, 

on programmes that align to Northern 

Ireland’s economic ambitions of a more 

innovative, outward focussed economy. 

In and of themselves, they can all claim 

some success and yet we still don’t create as 

many local businesses as other UK regions 

and we remain less productive than other 

regions. 

That said, the needs of businesses and 

awareness of supports have been assessed 

through a recent comprehensive study 

undertaken by Ulster University on behalf of 

the Federation of Small Businesses Northern 

Ireland. 

Across 200 businesses, the study queried 

the barriers and obstacles impacting on 

growth and what role government could play 

in addressing these barriers. 

Almost half of respondents noted that cash 

flow/getting paid was the biggest obstruction 

to growth while profit taxes and competition 

made up the rest of the top three. 

Twenty seven per cent of respondents 

noted a lack of suitable business support as 

being a significant barrier to their business 

success. 

Several consultees in my research noted 

that there is far too much support but that 

small businesses do not know where to look 

for it. 

Indeed, the FSB/Ulster University survey 

found that one in ten survey respondents did 

not know where to seek support. 

What are the gaps in support? 

There was a broad consensus that topics 

such as R&D and export have been a focus of 

business support. 

A contrasting view offered during my 

research was that there is a gap in provision 

in the startup capital stage and at the 

growth/scale up stage. 

What’s clear from this research is that there 

will be an ever present need for people who 

wish to start, grow or maintain their business 

to need external advice and support to assist 

them. 

Government has an important role to play 

to not only deliver but to enable, provide 

information, improve ease of access to nongovernment 

support and address market 

failures. 

Is it time to overhaul our business start 

support? 

People moving from employment to selfemployment 

often do not have sufficient 

savings to see them through the initial 

trading period or being able to make the 

initial investment required to establish. 

So, two potential policy responses suggest 

themselves here as a means to overcoming 

these hurdles and contribute to Northern 

Ireland’s policy ambition to be a more 

entrepreneurial economy. 

The Startup Refunds for Entrepreneurs 

(SURE) is a tax relief incentive in Ireland 

where new business owner operators can 

apply for an income tax refund on up to 

€100,000 of income in the previous six years 

to the value of the investment made in 

establishing their business 

In addition, Startup Company Relief 

provides relief from corporation tax for new 

startups for the first three years of trading. 

QUOTABLEQUOTE 

I also recently conducted 

research for NICVA, looking at 

the range of financial supports 

that are currently available to 

businesses in Northern Ireland, 

and just how effective this 

support is. It will come as no 

surprise that there are 

significant levels of business 

support provided from public 

funds. Some estimates suggest 

there are 2,000 business support 

programmes and 200 providers. 

As with all taxes, there are eligibility 

criteria and exemptions but if Northern 

Ireland’s policy aim is to create a more 

entrepreneurial, private sector led economy, 

this may well be as effective, or more 

effective, than reducing the headline rate of 

corporation tax to 12.5 per cent. 

Andrew Webb is an independent economist 

and Managing Director of Webb Advisory Ltd, 

an economic research advisory practice based 

in Belfast, specialising in sector studies, 

appraisals and impact assessments. 


FAMILY FRIENDLY AWARDS 

Belfast Trust is Northern Ireland’s 

most family friendly employer 

T 

his year’s most family friendly employer 

in Northern Ireland is the Belfast Health 

and Social Care Trust. The organisation 

scooped the award amid a field of more than 

40 entries. 

The Belfast Trust employs more than 

22,000 staff and is one of the largest such 

trusts in the UK. 

Marie Marin, CEO of Employers For 

Childcare, says winning the overall award is a 

tribute to the dedication of the trust to its 

employees. 

“We are delighted by the Belfast Trust’s 

achievement,” says Ms Marin. “The judges 

faced a tough challenge as this year the field 

was tighter than ever. This in itself illustrates 

the degree to which employers are now 

committing to the highest possible standards 

and conditions of employment for staff with 

caring responsibilities, allowing them to 

strike a realistic and sustainable worklife 

balance.” 

Northern Ireland’s Family Friendly 

Employers’ Awards have revealed an ever 

growing number of firms and organisations 

who have faced the diversity and equality 

challenges in the work place head on by 

providing their employees with the best 

possible work life balances. 

In its sixth year, the Awards show the 

commitment being made by a broad range of 

small enterprises, public sector organisations 

and larger private sector companies to 

accommodate its employees. 

“Firm and organisations across Northern 

Ireland are increasingly aware of the need to 

make their places of work as family friendly 

as possible,” says Ms Marin. 

“It’s not just about being a decent employer; 

it makes commercial sense and secures the 

loyalty of staff better than many other 

incentives.” 

The Family Friendly Employers Awards 

were secured in five different categories. The 

winners of each category are listed below: 

Public Sector Organisation of the Year: 

Belfast Health and Social Care Trust 

Highly Commended: Armagh City 

Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council 

Education Sector Organisation of the 

Year: 

Queen’s University Belfast 

Highly Commended: Aisling Daycare & 

After School 

Small Medium Enterprise of the Year: 

Aisling Daycare & After School 

Highly Commended: Progressive Building 

Society and Catalyst Inc. 

Large Private Company of the Year: 

Allstate 

Highly Commended: Lagan Construction 

Group 

Social Enterprise/Charity of the Year: 

MACS 

Highly Commended: Northern Ireland 

Hospice 


63

BUSINESS IN COMMUNTY 

Taking your seat on the board….. 

nterested in getting involved with a 

cultural/arts organisation? Interested in 

Itaking the leap into the world of creativity 

and sharpening your business skills? 

Then Arts & Business Northern Ireland 

Board Matching Programmes could be for 

you. The programme has two initiatives: 

Board Bank and Young Professionals on Arts 

Board which place professionals from the 

corporate world onto the boards of arts 

organisations to enhance the development of 

both. 

These programmes place seasoned 

executives, strategic thinkers and young 

professionals (2130 yrs.), from local 

businesses onto the Boards of local arts 

organisations and help support cultural 

leaders. 

The benefit is mutual – the new Board 

members develop their leadership skills in a 

different environment, while the arts 

organisation taps into the specialist skillset of 

their newest member. 

Ryan Cornett, Associate Director, 

Investment Management, Cunningham 

Coates, shares his experience of participating 

on A&B NI’s Professional Development 

Programme and his involvement as Treasurer 

on the board of the John Hewitt Society. 

“I chose to get involved with the local arts 

sector as opposed to another voluntary 

position in a different sector because I have 

always had a personal interest in the arts. 

“However, after hearing more about how I 

could make a difference within the sector at a 

local Arts & Business NI event, I realised that I 

should get involved and wanted to find out 

how I could help. 

“I feel that it is important that the arts 

sector thrives and I am happy to play any 

small part that I can. 

“I first heard about Arts & Business NI’s 

Professional Development Programme 

through a colleague from the office who 

participated in the Young Professionals on 

Arts Boards initiative and he found it really 

beneficial. I then attended a few local events 

to hear a bit more and was thoroughly 

impressed. 

“Before taking on a board position, I felt 

that it was important to be fully informed of 

all the relevant information, such as the scope 

of my duties and responsibilities. 

“I really appreciated the information that 

was imparted to me on the training courses 

and it has helped me to effectively carry out 

my role now that I have a place on a board. 

“I have been on the board of the John 

Hewitt Society for almost two years now and 

I hold the position of Treasurer. 

“I am enjoying the experience so much that, 

if time allows, I hope to be able to consider an 

additional board position in the future. 


“As an individual there has been positive 

benefits participation on the programme and 

subsequent placement on an arts board has 

had for me. 

“Having completed the training programme 

I feel much better equipped to play an active 

role on a board, confidence in knowledge and 

abilities plays a big part in effectively 

participating around a board table. 

“I feel that my background in finance has 

helped not only with the numbercrunching, 

but also in terms of bringing some more 

structure and helping to formalise the 

business practices of the organisation. 

“Participation on the Young Professionals 

on Arts Boards initiative and in turn the 

introduction to the John Hewitt Society has 

had positive benefits for my career. Not only 

have I acquired new skills, but I have also met 

lots of new people and made some fantastic 

contacts. 

“As a young professional who hopes to 

eventually have a seat at the board table in 

my day job, I also feel that having some real 

‘hands on’ board experience is an invaluable 

asset.” 

Many local business individuals advocate 

the participation on A&B NI’s Professional 

Development Programme to include several 

different sectors, the quotes below showcase 

the positive benefits and returns gained by 

volunteering on an arts board. 

“It is all too easy to underestimate the work 

done in the Arts and their impact on our lives, 

environment, and community. The sector 

relies on folk from all backgrounds and 

experiences volunteering for positions on 

boards to support our local organisations. I 

have served on an Arts charity board for over 

a year and have been able to provide some of 

my expertise as an accountant while gaining 

great experience at board level and learning 

much about the vibrant sector and the artists 

here. It is a great way to widen your 

experience, raise your profile while 

contributing to the arts community.” James 

Fair, chartered accountant, Harbinson 

Mulholland 

“When you join the Board of an arts 

organisation, you are essentially joining an 

SME, even though it isn’t focused on profit. 

You may learn about marketing, debt 

management, social media, recruitment, local 

politics, fundraising, leadership, collective 

responsibility, public procurement… but you 

will definitely learn a lot about yourself.” 

David Hill, director, Hill Business Growth 

Consultants Ltd 

“Does Arts & Business NI work? The answer 

is yes, our business has been working with 

A&B NI for eight years and it ticks all the 

boxes. Do you want to develop your staff? Do 

you want to train them? Do you want to 

brand and market your business whilst 

getting your name out into your market 

place? 

“Then you need to work with Arts & 

Business NI and integrate the arts into your 

business. Our creative journey has been an 

eye opener for our business and I highly 

recommend getting involved now. The 

programmes are amazing and the results are 

second to none.“ David McClurg, practice 

manager, Edwards & Company, Solicitors 

Registration now open for 2016/2017 

Professional 

Development 

Programme both Board 

Bank and Young 

Professionals on Arts 

Boards. To find out how 

to get involved contact 

Arts & Business NI, T: 028 9073 5150, 

www.ArtsandBusinessNI.org.uk

2016 Responsible 

Business Summit 

The Big 

Education 

Debate 

Pictured (from left to right): Thom Kenrick, Head of Community Programmes, Royal Bank of Scotland; 

Richard Donnan, Head of Ulster Bank in Northern Ireland; David Knott, Safety and Environmental 

Manager, Belfast Harbour; Gillian McKee, Deputy Managing Director, Business in the Community; Nick 

Coburn, Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce; John Brolly, Marketing Manager, Irish News; Jorge 

Lopes, Country Director Diageo Northern Ireland. 

H 

undreds of business people gathered at 

Belfast Waterfront Hall on Wednesday 

5 October for ‘Tomorrow’s World’ 

Responsible Business Summit. 

The event, sponsored by Ulster Bank, was 

Business in the Community’s third major 

conference in Northern Ireland. It explored 

the challenges and opportunities that 

businesses will face in ‘Tomorrow’s World’, 

and looked at how local firms can plan 

responsible and sustainable approaches to 

meet those challenges. 

Hosted by Financial Journalist and 

Broadcaster, Declan Curry, the event featured 

over 40 leading speakers and thinkers from a 

wide range of backgrounds. The day began 

with an exclusive CEO Breakfast Forum, 

delivered in partnership with the CBI. Over 80 

Chief Executives attended to explore the 

‘Question of Trust’ ahead of the main 

conference. More than 250 delegates were 

then given an insight into the key trends and 

megatrends predicted to impact on business 

in the next decade and beyond through a 

mixture of plenary and workshop sessions. 

Business in the Community’s Deputy 

Managing Director, Gillian McKee said: “In a 

world that is constantly evolving, it is vital 

that local organisations are ready and able to 

grasp opportunities as and when they arise. 

Anticipating the future isn’t easy, particularly 

as technological developments and changing 

business models continue to transform the 

business landscape at a tremendous rate. 

“This Summit provided the perfect platform 

for business people to discuss and debate the 

prospects and challenges that lie ahead, and 

consider how they can adapt to be sustainable 

and thrive in the future. 

“Events like this are the ideal opportunity 

for businesses to come together and learn, not 

only from leadingedge thinkers and 

speakers, but also from each other. I hope 

everyone found the event valuable and 

inspiring.” 

Richard Donnan, Ulster Bank’s Head of 

Northern Ireland, said: “We’re very pleased to 

support the Responsible Business Summit as 

a forum for engagement, new ideas and lively 

discussion about how business can innovate, 

adapt and thrive in a changing environment. 

“It’s a great opportunity for businesses to 

understand that a large part of their license to 

operate comes from their local communities, 

and the need to genuinely listen and engage in 

dialogue so that they can sustain themselves 

over the longterm.” 

The Summit was supported by a range of 

leading organisations, including ASDA, Belfast 

Harbour, Diageo and Carecall. 

Business in the Community also partnered 

with the NI Chamber of Commerce on the 

Summit to help reach a broader base of 

business opinion and ensure the delivery of 

its corporate responsibility and sustainability 

messages to a wider audience. 

For information on the Summit, visit 

www.RBSummitni.com 

W 

ith 55 per cent of businesses not 

confident that there will be 

enough people with the skills 

needed to fill their future jobs, an 

education system that is well informed 

and actively educating young people about 

changing economic needs, growth 

industries and alternative career pathways 

such as entrepreneurship is critical. 

Equally important however is employer 

understanding of the expectations of 

Generation Z, their future workforce. 

Qualifications are only one part of the 

armoury needed for the working world. 

Research shows that young adults who 

have greater levels of contact with 

employers whilst at school are 

significantly less likely to become NEET 

(not in education, employment or training) 

and can expect, when in fulltime 

employment, to earn up to 18 per cent 

more than peers who had no such 

workplace exposure. 

As part of the Responsible Business 

Summit, we invited more than 40 young 

people join us to present their ideas of the 

future workplace and challenge the panel 

with a range of questions. The session was 

interactive, with a voting response system 

used to reflect the thought of the future 

workforce. This is what we found: 

• 45 per cent of young people who 

attended believe their starting salary 

will be £10,000 £15,000 

• 41 per cent believe that the Northern 

Ireland education system is not effective 

in preparing them for the world of work 


65

BEST PRACTICE 

A WORKABLE SOLUTION 

work·a·ble 

(wûr′kə-bəl) 

adj. 

1. Capable of being put into effective operation; practicable or feasible: 

a workable solution 

2. Capable of being worked, dealt with, or handled: workable clay 

he dictionary definition of workable 

also applies to the world of 

Temployment. However, for nearly 300 

employees and 200 employers across 

Northern Ireland, Workable also means 

something else. 

Workable (NI) is a supported employment 

programme which assists people to continue 

to maintain their employment where there 

are barriers due to disability or health 

conditions. 

One of the providers of Workable (NI) is 

Supported Employment Solutions (SES) a 

partnership of locallybased disability 

organisations The SES partners are Action 

Mental Health, the Cedar Foundation, 

Mencap, NOW Group, the Orchardville , RNIB 

and Action on Hearing Loss. 

SES provides individualised support to our 

clients and their employers focussed on 

helping them to overcome employment 

related barriers. 

We help to identify ways of making a job 

more manageable, use technology to help 

employees with a task or enable an individual 

to make a successful return to work. 

SES, through Workable (NI), provides a 

variety of support, both on and off the job, 

that can be tailored to each individual 

employee with a disability, their coworkers 

and the company. 

Disability Awareness training for a staff 

team can also be very beneficial in dealing 

with any apprehension and stigma or to help 

the other employees understand a colleague’s 

disability. 

In our experience openness around the 

subject of disability can increase team morale 

and can provide good training for staff who 

‘I have been supporting a staff 

member through the Workable (NI) 

programme for the past six months. 

This has been an invaluable 

programme in getting my staff 

member back to work and sustaining 

her to stay in work. The level of 

communication, information and 

advice which I have received through 

the Workable NI have been of a very 

high standard’. (Large retailer) 

want to develop in their role. 

Supported Employment is all about 

providing support to people with disabilities, 

or other disadvantaged groups, to secure and 

maintain paid employment in the open labour 

market. 

A key part of this involves helping to create 

natural supports and promote reasonable 

adjustments in the workplace. 

This can include support from other staff 

members, a change in the working hours of 

the staff member or a policy amendment 

which suits everybody better. 

‘I have found the support through 

Workable (NI) to be invaluable both 

to the staff member and also at 

employer level. The combination of 

additional practical support and 

techniques has really made a 

difference to the staff member's 

confidence and ability to carry out 

their work role’. (Public sector) 

SES can provide an extensive range of 

support to meet the specific needs of 

employers and employers. 

For instance, with modern technology, IT 

resources and accessibility improving daily, 

why do we all not use the accessibility 

functions that technology provides? 

Specialist SES staff can provide support and 

advice on assistive technology such as speech 

recognition as well as how to customise the 

existing accessibility options on devices and 

software. 

Almost 50 per cent of longterm absences 

from work are due to mental health issues. 

SES Employment Officers provide support 

and guidance to members of staff and their 

employers in dealing with these issues. 

Workable (NI) programme looks at 21 ‘key 

behaviours’ where support may be required. 

These key behaviours can include ability to do 

the job, flexibility, confidence and time 

management. SES Employment Officers look at 

the job role and see how the individual can 

improve their reliability, adaptability and 

communication skills, while developing better 

team working and problem solving skills. 

Identifying certain key behaviours focuses 

the individual, the team and the organisation 

‘We are very happy to work with the 

SES programme it is great to see the 

development of individuals who need 

a little bit more help than some - 

keep up the good work’. (Local 

restaurant) 

to achieve better results. Breaking down 

tasks, dividing large tasks into manageable 

chunks and providing training can really 

enhance everybody’s working practices. 

We identify five or six key areas where 

support needs to be concentrated to help 

ensure the individual can carry out their job 

role effectively. 

This can involve a wide range of situations, 

for example, an individual may be struggling 

with workload, confidence may have been 

knocked, their ability to move between tasks 

needs worked on or their time management 

needs sharpening up. 

It may also that, be due the effect of a 

person’s disability, certain tasks need to be 

explained further or in a different format. 

The nature of a disability, how it affects the 

individual and the way they work will be 

different in every situation. 

Our Employment Officers are skilled at 

working closely with the employer to develop 

the best level of support. 

This can be delivered in a number of ways 

which best suit everyone, onetoone in the 

workplace, within group training or discreet 

meetings with line managers. 

Our Employment Officers work with each 

employee and employer to put in place and 

individual development plan which helps 

everyone to work towards and achieve 

agreed goals 

Local employers are very positive about 

Workable (NI) as the comments from SES’s 

most recent employer survey show. 

If you would like to discuss how SES can 

help you as an individual, or support people 

within your company, please contact Peter 

Wilson 07791 075921 or Heather Gillen 

07894 295246 to discuss or email 

workable@sesni.org.uk. 

The Workable (NI) programme is funded by 

the Department for Communities. 


BEST PRACTICE 

Research provides first 

report into race equality 

in Northern Ireland 

Workplaces 

Ulster University’s Dr Lucy Michael 

short study by Ulster University into 

race equality legislation in Northern 

AIreland has indicated significant work 

needs to be carried out to give employers 

more confidence in dealing with the issue. 

The research carried out for the first time 

on a small amount of Northern Ireland 

employers found that they overwhelmingly 

needed more support to raise awareness of 

racial bias, communicate the value of 

diversity and maintain a focus of equality. 

Funded by Business in the Community NI 

and CRAIC NI, the research is also supported 

by the Department for the Economy’s 

Northern Ireland Higher Education 

Innovative Fund. 

Of particular concern was the impact of 

English fluency on the ability of highly skilled 

migrant workers in low skilled positions, to 

maximise their contribution to the economy. 

However, of the small number of employers 

assessed most were able to identify at least 

one action which they could implement 

immediately to improve race equality in their 

workplace. 

In addition, employers who implemented a 

zero tolerance approach to discrimination 

and harassment reported success in 

producing a strong team environment and 

respectful work culture, even where there is 

no significant training on racial or other 

biases. 

Ulster University’s Dr Lucy Michael said: 

“This research is an important first step in 

understanding how people, however they 

might be identified, can participate in the 

workplace as equals. 

“Although a small cross section, the findings 

will now enable us to engage further with the 

private and public sector to gain even more 

insight into racial equality in the workplace 

and how we can help employers deal with 

any challenges they may face. 

“Employers should take great comfort that 

such a highly skilled workforce is available 

locally but they are unsure of how to 

implement race equality in the workplace and 

support migrant workers. They are seeking 

guidance on how to best implement it with 

positive effect, but they are afraid of getting it 

wrong. 

“The small cross section of employers we 

spoke with stated that they would welcome 

support and as such we have now developed 

a toolkit which we will develop further as we 

continue to engage with employers across 

Northern Ireland.” 

Business in the Community NI’s Denise 

Cranston said: "Progressive employers have 

for some time been integrating equality and 

diversity initiatives into core business 

functions, such as organisational strategy and 

talent management programmes. But this 

research shows that they need to do more to 

achieve greater race and ethnic diversity. 

Business in the Community fully supports the 

recommendations in the report and would 

call upon all employers to commit to taking 

action to take full advantage of the 

opportunity that migrant and ethnic workers 

present. " 

CRAICNI’s Maciek Bator said: “As someone 

who is from the Black, Minority Ethnic 

community, I am delighted to see this report 

being launched. It is very encouraging to see 

more and more local companies recognising 

business potential in the skills and 

experiences that migrant and ethnic workers 

are bringing to Northern Ireland. However, 

there is still space for improvement and a 

need for sharing good practice amongst 

employers. 

“At CRAIC NI, we are determined to 

promote race equality. A practical knowledge 

of how to manage diversity in a workplace is 

key to success, Therefore we are taking the 

lead on developing the Employer’s Race 

Equality Works training pack available from 

November. It is the right time to make Racial 

Equality work for Northern Ireland.” 

A full copy of the Race Equality Works for 

Northenr Ireland report is available: 

www.businessfirstni.co.uk/race equality 


The results have been used to develop a 

new toolkit for local employers, sharing 

steps they can take to improve race 

equality in the workplace, including: 

• Clearly communicating the value of 

diversity in an organisation 

• Committing to raising awareness of 

racial bias 

• Being aware of the wider context of 

high levels of racism in Northern 

Ireland, and that it is not the preserve of 

any particular group 

• Making sense of local demographics 

and the wider picture of race equality in 

Northern Ireland 

• Open and transparent communication, 

with consultation and feedback key to 

understanding how well established the 

message about diversity is 

• Being confident, knowledgable and 

comfortable talking about racial bias 

• Showcasing success creating visibility 

for diverse role models 

• Keeping equality on the table, 

considering how the value of diversity is 

reflected in business activities 


67

Luxury BMW 7 Series 

T 

he sixth generation of the BMW 7 Series 

is a true flagship of the BMW range, 

blending comfort, style, dynamic ability 

and cutting edge technology in equal measure 

to create an inspiring mode of luxury 

transport. 

The new BMW 7 Series is both stronger and 

up to 130kg lighter than its predecessor. This 

advanced construction is complemented by 

sixcylinder petrol and diesel engines taken 

from the latest generation of BMW power 

units. 

I drove the 740 LD MSport. The LD is really 

a long wheelbase version of the 7 series and 

yes it is big. The exterior is smartly designed 

and somewhat understated, which is exactly 

what buyers of this size of car like preferring 

not attract too much attention whilst they are 

driving or being driven about. The 7 series 

certainly has a strong road presence. 

The three litre, twin turbo diesel engine is 

quiet and eager, offering 320 Bhp it is capable 

of 155mph and sprinting to 60mph in 5.2 

seconds and it does just sip diesel using a 

gallon every 50 miles or so, after driving the 7 

series it loves munching miles with ease. 

The interior is superb, not one bit of black 

plastic to be seen. The balance of dynamics 

and comfort so central to the new BMW 7 

Series’ character is reflected in the design of 

the interior. 

Whether it’s the driving pleasure generated 

from behind the wheel, or the sublime sense 

of wellbeing when sat in the rear seats, the 

ambience of the new BMW 7 Series is both 

modern and luxurious. 

All the control and display elements share a 

new design that highlights their innovative 

functionality – such as the chrome buttons on 


the multifunctional steering wheel and centre 

console, and the touchscreen surface for the 

control panel of the automatic air 

conditioning with fourzone control. 

The controls on the centre console are – 

like the interior trim strip – framed by fine 

wood or aluminium surfaces. Both the trim 

strips and the instrument panel’s chrome 

surrounds which border them are made 

individually for each car; their dimensions 

are therefore matched to the nearest 

millimetre. 

The accuracy and quality of the interior – 

whether you are driving or being driven is 

top class. The amount of leg room and space 

in the rear feels like you are flying first class. 

The 7 series is a big car, but it is easy to 

by Ian Beasant, BUSINESSFIRSTMAGAZINE 

motoring correspondent 

drive and handles well, with options to set the 

car in Sport, Comfort or Eco mode – these 

adjust the suspension, engine and gearbox 

response. 

I found that Comfort was great and the 7 

series just floated over our bumpy roads 

without trying to deviate from the direction I 

had pointed it in. The size of the 7 series is 

not noticeable when you are on the road as it 

is agile and I only noticed the extra length of 7 

series when I was parking the. 

The BMW 7 series is as good as what is on 

the market in this luxury sector it is well 

equipped and full of technology, I think this 

latest 7 series will give the Mercedes Sclass 

some serious competition which previous 

BMW 7’s were not always capable of.

The BIGGER Tiguan 

ports Utility vehicles or SUV’S are 

amongst the best selling vehicles in the 

Smarket at the moment and drivers 

appetites for them shows no sign of abating. 

The SUV in many ways has taken the place 

of the estate car and in other ways the need 

for a second car. All of this leads to a very 

busy and ultracompetitive market, it does 

not seem to deter the car manufacturers as 

they continue to build them and introduce 

new models. 

The Volkswagen Tiguan in its previous 

form was only out sold by the Volkswagen 

Polo and the Volkswagen Golf. The new 

Tiguan is is a properly allnew product, 

featuring the latest MQB architecture, which 

replaces the Mk1 Tiguan – launched in 2007. 

This brings many benefits. For starters, 

there’s a raft of the latest technology available 

much of it familiar from VW stable. So you’ll 

enjoy niceties such as cablefree mobile 

phone charging, radar cruise control, wagglefoottoopen 

automatic tailgates and other 

lifeeasing gadgetry. 

But it also brings a degree of flexibility. 

Wolfsburg’s engineers can stretch the 

platform this way and that; hence you can 

expect a slightly longer, sevenseat version of 

the Tiguan in due course. 

I drove the Tiguan at its launch in England 

and also spent a week with the new model 

fitted with a 150bhp 2.0litre diesel engine 

and very sweet changing sevenspeed Dsg 

gearbox. 

The styling is fresher, crisper and sitting on 

its 19 inch alloy wheels a lot more sharper 

looking than the Mk1 and it's accompanied by 

a whole load of extra space. 

This car is 60mm longer and rides on a 

wheelbase stretched by 77mm no wonder 

there’s so much room for families and their 

luggage (the boot swells to 520 litres, or 615 

with the rear bench slid forward). 

One thing for sure there is no denying 

Volkswagen's advantage in interior quality 

remains intact. This is a surprisingly 

luxurious cabin and we remain enthralled by 

the intelligent touchscreen infotainment. 

There are a few harder plastics lower down 

the dashboard, granted, but it all feels well 

assembled and the switchgear operates with 

a satisfyingly welldamped action. The Led 

dash certainly adds to the premium feel and 

quality of the Tiguan. 

The new Tiguan feels surefooted and agile, 

but not especially sporty. Which is entirely in 

keeping with its purpose in life; it does feel a 

lot like a Golf in many ways which is no bad 

thing. 

The elevated seating position does offer 

great visibility and the 2.0 litre diesel does 

not disappoint, it is smooth and quiet and will 

propel the Tiguan to 60mph in nine seconds 

and at the same time offering 53 miles per 

gallon. 

The Tiguan's steering is light and relaxed. 

This is a hushed, refined place to sit, with few 

thrills. The fourmotion (four wheel drive 

system) keeps everything under control. The 

Tiguan does more or less everything well and 

it is a top quality vehicle. 


69

Style and Substance 

by 

T 

he all new Renault Megane released this 

year is a real head turner; sleek, sexy, 

and stylish with a very strong road 

presence. 

Renault has always done well in Northern 

Ireland and after driving the new Megane for 

Honda Magic 

he new Honda HRV is the latest entry 

into a rather bustling and yet still 

Tgrowing market for small SUV’S. Our 

appetite for these vehicles shows no sign of 

waning as small and medium sized SUV’s are 

in great demand both new and used. 

The HRV looks actually like a tall coupe 

with its dynamic lines, the rear door handles 

are recessed into the side windows, the roof 

swoops down at the rear it is a sporty 

looking vehicle and not one bit boxy looking 

like some of the vehicles in its class. 

The Honda HRV is offered in either diesel 

or petrol form. I drove the 1.6 DTEC engine 

model in the top of the range EX trim. The 

engine offered a wide range of torque was 

extremely well mannered and quiet; the 

manual sixgearbox suited the engine 

characteristics well. 

Performance was good both in 

acceleration and economy as the HRV will 

propel to 60mph in 10 seconds and return 

an impressive 60 miles per gallon. The 

Honda HRV is one of the better small SUV’S I 

have driven when it comes to tackling a 

twisty road as it handles crisply and neatly 

with just a hint of body roll. 

The interior is well made and well laid out; 


a week my mind has certainly changed as 

style was never in doubt and now the build 

quality is as good as any of the class leaders. 

Under the bonnet you have a choice of two 

petrol or two diesel engines. My Megane was 

the 110 dci engine model, and it has a 1500 cc 

there is plenty of room in the front for both 

driver and passenger. Rear space in the HRV 

isn’t quite as generous as it is in the front. 

The real magic and innovative design 

comes to the fore with Honda’s Magic rear 

seat function, which means it’s possible to 

not only split the rear seats in a 60/40 

configuration and fold them completely flat, 

but also raise the rear seat bases to leave a 

long, narrow space, between them and the 

front seat backs. It’s a useful space for 

Ian Beasant, BUSINESSFIRSTMAGAZINE 

motoring correspondent 

Turbo diesel engine mated to sixspeed 

gearbox driving the front wheels. 

This is the model that Renault believe will 

be their best seller and I reckon they are spot 

on. The engine is quiet and delivers its power 

very smoothly. The six – speed gearbox (oh I 

do love manual gearboxs) has ratios that 

work the engine perfectly and the whole 

package feels a lot more lively than the 

figures of 11 seconds to 60mph would lead 

you to believe. 

One figure I am sure about is the fuel 

consumption. Renault claims a combined 

usage figure of 76.4 miles per gallon but I was 

able to get 79 miles per gallon without trying. 

So much so, I was actually a little concerned 

that the fuel gauge was stuck! 

The interior is completely new and is very 

well equipped and all the controls feel to be 

just in the right place. You feel at home in this 

car. The quality of materials is super, right up 

there with best of its German rivals and 

maybe a little bit ahead. The new Megane will 

comfortably transport five people and all 

their bits and pieces about with ease and it 

does with style. 

Renault has made a great effort to put the 

new Megane up against the German models 

that usually dominate this market and I 

reckon they have succeeded in every area. 

This in my opinion makes the new Megane a 

very compelling allround package. 

carrying thin, tall objects such as bicycles. 

The front passenger seat can then be folded 

flat to allow long items to be pushed from 

the boot opening right through to the 

dashboard. This is simple and very practical 

to use. Behind the rear seats is a good size 

boot with a low loading lip and wide 

opening. 

The Honda HRV is a good allrounder with 

a nice bit of style and being a Honda it will 

never let you down.

The Final Word 

Look ahead to 

Legislation, 

Policy and Plans 

by Chris Brown, Director, MCE Public Relations 

Connect with Chris @CB_PAandPA 

rexit still remains allconsuming and 

the fact that the Programme for 

BGovernment is still out for consultation 

has left the local business community here in 

Northern Ireland asking lots of questions 

about how their interests will be protected 

and enhanced. 

We still won’t know until the UK Chancellor 

announces his Autumn Statement in late 

November just how much money we will 

have to play with for the next year. Many 

business people don’t have the gift of time to 

see how things go however. 

So what legislation, policies and plans are 

coming down the track that business needs to 

be aware of early in this new Assembly 

mandate. Here’s a brief overview of what has 

been outlined so far. 

Local Development Plans 

Local development plans are currently 

being advanced by each of the super councils 

to ear mark land in their relevant areas to be 

designated for development for up to the next 

15 years. This will set the policy for 

determining future planning applications and 

is a really important issue for the property 

development and construction sector. 

Preferred option papers are being brought 

forward by some Councils already, with draft 

plan strategies starting to emerge from early 

2017 onward. 

Northern Ireland Investment Fund 

The Finance Minister Mairtin O’Muilleoir 

MLA has stated that he is committed to the 

establishment of a Northern Ireland 

Investment Fund and sees it as an important 

lever in promoting economic growth. 

He has identified that the delivery of the 

Fund has been delayed due to uncertainty 

around the European Investment Bank role in 

advancing the Fund in the aftermath of the EU 

referendum, but that officials are currently 

considering alternative delivery models. One 

of the alternative delivery options is currently 

with the Office of National Statistics (ONS) for 

a classification decision. Once ONS has 

provided its determination, the intention is 

then to move to procurement of an external 

fund manager which is likely to take at least 6 

months. 

North West 

The leader of the SDLP Colum Eastwood 

MLA has stated that he is planning to develop 

a Private Members Bill to ensure that any 

new investment decisions made in the 

interest of Northern Ireland are ‘North West 

proofed’ so that the area has the best chance 

to compete for business. 

Organised Crime 

Justice Minister Claire Sugden MLA has 

stated that the review of the legislation 

relating to serious and organised crime in 

Northern Ireland is now underway with a 

view to introducing draft legislation to the 

Assembly in the current session. 

Officials are currently scoping existing 

legislative models and the Minister expects to 

be in a position to consult on policy proposals 

by the end of this financial year in order to 

determine the appropriate next steps 

regarding draft legislation. 

Regulatory framework for business 

The Economy Minister Simon Hamilton 

MLA has committed to improving the 

regulatory framework for business by 

reducing red tape and streamlining 

regulatory functions by taking forward the 

Better Regulation Action Plan. 

The plan seeks to develop a modern 

regulatory regime that will allow business to 

grow while ensuring that people, workers, 

consumers are appropriately protected. 

Employment 

Minister Hamilton is also expected to take 

forward early conciliation provisions under 

the Employment Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 

to enhance opportunities for resolving 

workplace disputes without the need for legal 

action, and making improvements to 

employment tribunal regulations to improve 

processes for those who do require a legal 

remedy. 

He has outlined that he will engage with 

Executive colleagues in consideration of 

policy options to tackle abuses in zero hours 

and nonguaranteed hours contracts. 

Insolvency 

In the course of the current Assembly, 

Hamilton will introduce an Insolvency Bill 

which will further modernise and streamline 

insolvency legislation for the benefit of 

creditors and the wider business community 

here. 

Apprenticeship Levy 

The introduction and collection of the 

Apprenticeship Levy is a reserved matter 

which will be imposed by the UK Government 

on employers with a paybill in excess of £3 

million. 

Whilst it will be a matter for the Executive 

to decide on the allocation of those funds, the 

Minister is currently considering how they 

might be best used for skills and 

apprenticeship training in Northern Ireland 

in support of our Economic and Skills 

strategies. 

He has stated that it will be his intention to 

issue a short consultation paper, which will 

primarily seek the views of the business 

community, on how any revenues available 

from the Levy might be implemented to 

support skills development in Northern 

Ireland.

November Business First

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