The team has won the Team of the Year Award at the Inspire! Adult Learning Awards, which celebrates the hard work of enterprises throughout the country.

Headed up by Ferenc Blizsko, and supported by Vicky Williams and Gemma Perman, the Grow Enterprise Wales team has achieved a 41% success rate in helping young people into full-time employment.

People as old as 55 who were unable to find work have secured jobs through the scheme, and many of those who have completed placements are now employees at Grow Enterprise Wales.

Head of learning Ferenc, 53, who got his first degree aged 40, said: “We are thrilled to win the award and it’s great to be recognised.

“Many of the young people who come through our doors live in households where there isn’t a working role model and some come from families who are in their third generation of unemployment.

“Our work goes beyond moving people into employment; it changes lives. There is a lot of talk of regeneration in the Valleys at the moment, but it all starts with people. It is people who make communities and we encourage them to take pride in earning money and making a difference.”

It’s a myth that every portable electrical appliance in the workplace needs to be tested once a year – and what’s more it’s a costly one.

Misleading advice and advertising, often by companies who offer the testing, is contributing to low-risk businesses such as offices, shops and hotels paying unnecessarily for over-the-top maintenance regimes. Read the full article

The Mon FM Soul Team and DJ’s Vaughan Evans and Derek Bagnall are hosting the night at the Wellmans Sports Social Club, Industrial Estate Road, Cefni, Llangefni. Doors open at 7.30pm to 1.30am. All proceeds will go to Kiddyland Nursery Community Interest Company. Tickets cost £5 on the door.

Our economy is dependent on SME’s and Micro businesses. In Wales our business owners stay with their businesses longer than other owners anywhere else in the UK. If business owners do not have a robust exit strategy in place, they may find that the only option remaining to them when the time comes is to close the company and make their employees redundant.

According to the Federation of Small Businesses research, business owners in Wales have owned or co-owned their businesses for an average of nearly 16 years and 29% of businesses have been owned by the same owners for 21 years or more. This suggests that business owners in Wales see the growth and nurture of their businesses as a long-term commitment and devote a large proportion of their lives to it. However, it also suggests that there is a massive proportion of business owners approaching a realistic retirement age.  With approximately 99% of businesses in Wales classified as SME’s or micro-businesses, it is apparent that these business owners succession plans have more than just the successful continuation of their companies dependent on them.

29% of small businesses in Wales equates to somewhere in the region of 15,000 owners who could be looking to leave their business in the next couple of years (See footnote). In an economic climate which makes trade sales difficult for most owners and in a country where the vast majority of businesses are too small to consider public listing, the effect of poor or non-existent succession planning on the Welsh economy cannot be underestimated.

If 15,000 business owners closed theirs shops, factories and warehouses tomorrow, where would that leave the Welsh economy?

Media focus lately has been on business start-ups, inward investment and the dramatic reduction in employment in the public sector currently occurring in Wales. Yet, with the implied need to find replacement employment from the home grown, domestic private sector, very little concern has been raised about the approaching issues of an ageing owner manager population.

Who will ensure these existing businesses survive, grow and flourish?

Our report published today looks at these issues in detail; it identifies issues with the traditional approaches of family succession and trade sales and offers employee ownership as a viable and sustainable alternative which benefits both the business owners and the employees.

The report, which has been endorsed by the Federation of Small Business in Wales and written by the Oxford Centre for Mutual and Employee-owned Business at Kellogg College, Oxford University suggests that there is a need for

•          Further awareness of the need for earlier succession planning and for businesses to allow a reasonable amount of time to manage an exit strategy effectively

•          A one-stop shop that integrates the knowledge of Wales Co-operative Centre, Federation of Small Businesses in Wales, Finance Wales, Co-operative and Community Finance and the Employee Ownership Association for owners contemplating an exit strategy.

•          An equity fund to help facilitate more employee buy-outs

•          More extensive research on the topic to gain a clear focus on the risks and precise costs that bad business succession strategies have on Wales. 

Employee ownership schemes, employee buy-outs and support for the development of worker co-operatives could all contribute to a more stable economic future for Wales – but the work needs to be undertaken now.

For example, Skye Instruments in Mid Wales produces electronic instruments used to monitor the impact of micro-climate  variations on crops. The owners came across the idea of employee ownership via the Wales Co-operative Centre and were attracted to the possibilities for using it to secure the businesses location in Mid Wales. After initial difficulties in finding accessible and clear advice on how to approach the process the owners presented several options to their staff who voted for an employee benefit trust. This was set up in 2009 and 40% of company shares are now in the trust. The remaining 60% of the shares will be sold to the trust over the next 6 years and whilst the owners will have exited financially, the hand over process will be on-going and they will retain involvement in the business.

Installing employee ownership mechanisms and developing and engaging staff takes specialist knowledge, time and effort and the work needs to be undertaken from the moment the owner starts considering succession – not from the moment the owner starts trying to sell their business. At the Wales Co-operative Centre, we have been involved with employee ownership and worker co-operatives ever since we started 30 years ago. Our specialist Business Succession Team offer advice and support to business owners and employees taking their first steps down the road to employee ownership. They can help provide advice on suitable employee ownership models, look at how vehicles such as Employee Benefit Trusts and Share Incentive Plans can be used to support the transfer process, and provide support with finding finance, business planning, management and governance issues.

So is it too late to defuse the Business Succession Time Bomb in Wales?

No, it’s not – but to avoid a massive drain on the Welsh economy over the next few years it is essential for politicians, business advisers and business owners themselves to consider all sorts of plans for viable and sustainable business succession including the benefits of employee ownership and to ensure support and assistance for those businesses is provided as and when they need it. There is every reason to believe that long-term succession planning leads to long term success but that planning needs to be implemented and the available options discussed now.

The report ‘Employee Ownership: Defusing the business succession time bomb in Wales’ can be downloaded from the Wales Co-operative Centre’s website here.

The Wales Co-operative Centre’s Business Succession Team is running a series of business succession roadshows in Swansea, Caerphilly, Bangor and Ruthin. Further information and ticket booking facilities are available on the website here.

Footnote

Figures taken from Welsh Government’s ‘Economic Renewal: A New Direction’ http://wales.gov.uk/topics/statistics/articles/economicrenewal/?lang=en

In 2009 there were 53,205 active SME’s (1 – 249 employees) in Wales. Federation of Small Business Research suggests 29% of Welsh Businesses have had the same owner for 21 years or more.  29% of 53,205 is equal to 15,429 small businesses.

The Public Services (Social Value) Act requires local authorities and other public bodies to look at the social value of competing tenders as well as best price when awarding contracts. It is hoped that this will help social enterprises and charities to compete more fairly with larger firms for public sector contracts.

The Bill has a limited scope in Wales as Welsh public bodies that exercise wholly or mainly devolved functions are excluded from its remit. However, Welsh Social Enterprise Coalition Chief Executive, John Bennett, said that social enterprises in Wales should welcome the news.

He said “Whilst its application in Wales is limited, the passing of the Public Services Bill is certainly a step in the right direction. Across the UK, many social enterprises have been overlooked when bidding for public sector contracts but this legislation means that the added value social enterprises offer, in terms of the social impact they have, will be recognised in the tendering process.”

As businesses that exist primarily for a social or environmental purpose, social enterprises are well positioned to offer the best overall value when awarding contracts. Profits are pumped back into the community and into its social mission rather than concentrated in the hands of shareholders or owners.

Whilst a number of local authorities in Wales already factor in community benefit into the tendering system, many don’t. Progress is being made through a series of initiatives including the Welsh Government’s community benefits approach, which has been used in over £3 billion worth of projects across Wales, helping to sustain and create jobs and generate other opportunities for local communities.

Policies to increase the numbers of contracts being awarded to Welsh companies, widening the advertisement of lower value contracts and the simplification of the pre-qualification process (PQQ) are helping to break down the barriers to public contracts for Welsh social enterprises but there is still a lot more to do.

John Bennett added: “The public sector in Wales spends over £5 billion a year on goods and services and if we truly want to make procurement work for the Welsh economy and our communities, we need to ensure that it delivers significant social as well as economic benefits.”

Source: Welsh Social Enterprise Coalition

They’re calling on you to nominate inspirational social entrepreneurs. If you know someone running a project or organisation that is having a significant positive impact on the community, we want to hear from you.

It could be someone who runs an educational club that takes young people off the streets and gives them a constructive and positive hobby or someone helping to provide local healthy food for the community by running communal gardens. We want to celebrate inspiring individuals who are coming up with innovative and enterprising solutions to help tackle social issues.

The winner of the competition will be featured in an interview published in The Sunday Times newspaper, be awarded £500 from Media Trust to further their work through digital media and receive a raft of professional media support from The Sunday Times*. The winner will also be showcased in a special episode of UK360 on Community Channel, a programme dedicated to sharing the most inspiring local stories from across the UK.

All nominees must be available for interview with The Sunday Times and Community Channel journalists, and for filming the UK360 episode, during the week of Monday 2 April 2012.

The closing date for entries is Wednesday 28 March 2012 at 12pm. Enter now!

Denbigh and Clwyd Angling Club is in early talks to set up a hydro power scheme

More local groups are trying to use hydro power to generate electricity and money for their communities.

In Denbighshire, anglers want to sell power generated from their river to raise funds to improve the ecology around their lake.

And talks are being held to use the site of an old water mill to power a village hall in Glyndyfrdwy.

The Welsh government said it wants community groups to set up more renewable energy projects.

By harnessing the latest technology, officials reckon sites that once used water to power mills and factories during the Industrial Revolution could come back into use.

One successful hydro power scheme running since 2006 is Talybont on Usk Energy in the Brecon Beacons which generates power at Talybont reservoir.

It sells the power on to fund community projects which include an electricity-powered and bio diesel car-sharing club.

Director Hilary Williams said the not-for-profit group raises about £20,000 annually from the energy produced and is always looking to plough profits into sustainable projects.

The latest idea is to collect used cooking oil from local establishments to convert to bio diesel for the car-sharing club.

However, it is still at the planning stages with the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority.

‘Making things better’

Now, the Welsh government wants more community groups to get involved in hydro power projects.

And in Denbighshire, rural development agency Cadwyn Clwyd has been helping community groups push forward their plans.

Among them is the Denbigh and Clwyd Angling Club where members want to use the River Clywedog, which feeds the Clywedog Reservoir, as a power and cash generator.

Chairman Colin Blythin said: “It is not a question of making the river easier to fish, it’s about making things better ecologically.”

He said the club had seen the benefits of spending thousands on improvements with the indigenous brown trout population doubling in size.

Mr Blythin said setting up a hydro power generator would “unlock funds” for the small club to pay for more river bank and habitat improvements.

The site of Nant y Pandy mill is being considered for a hydro power scheme
The group is still in talks with Forestry Commission Wales, among others, about developing its plans.

Another scheme also at the early stages concerns the site of the ruins of Nant y Pandy mill, Glyndyfrdwy, near Llangollen.

It used to process slabs of slate in the late 1800s and was served by a tramway from local quarries.

Financial help

Cadwyn Clwyd said a feasibility study had been carried out to assess the site’s suitability and talks had started about possibly using the electricity generated for the village hall.

Forestry Commission Wales, which manages Welsh government-owned woodland, has opened the door to expressions of interest from groups to run hydro power projects on its land.

The commission is working with the Energy Saving Trust, Environment Agency Wales and the Countryside Council for Wales on the project.

A total of 14.3% of Wales is covered by woodlands. Of this, 38% (126,000 hectares/311,000 acres) is owned by the Welsh government.

The commission is also talking to Ynni’r Fro – a European-funded community renewables project sponsored by the Welsh government – to ensure community groups can get technical and financial help to develop hydro projects.

Antony Wallis, head of the Forestry Commission Wales hydro team, said: “This project aims to bring about good quality hydro power projects which can help us to build a more sustainable future while offering meaningful community benefits.”

Our membership scheme seeks to develop a community of like minded individuals and businesses  who are passionate about the benefits of working co-operatively.

Centre membership will allow you to have your say in how the Centre is run, by attending and voting at our AGM and participating in our annual members’ survey. You will also have the opportunity to meet some of the organisations that we have supported.

2012 is a landmark year for the Wales Co-operative Centre and the Co-operative sector as a whole. As a member you will have the opportunity to be involved in a range of events to celebrate the Centre’s 30th anniversary and the UN International Year of Co-operatives.

Who can join?

Membership is open to anyone who is committed to co-operative principles and values and wants to be a part of an organisation that strives to achieve positive social and economic change.

To find out more please visit www.walescooperative.org/membership

This category is open to individuals working within a Social Enterprise that have a leadership role at whatever level.

The Awards are now in their eighth year, they seek to recognise and celebrate personal achievement in outstanding leadership and management in Wales.

Hosted by Real Radio, the Awards Lunch and Ceremony takes place on Thursday May 31st 2012 at the Hilton Hotel, Cardiff.

To complete your nomination form and to find out more information, please visit: www.leadingwalesawards.com/default.aspx.

Nominations must be returned (preferably via email) by 17:00 on Friday 9th March 2012 to leadingwalesawards@learningpathways.info
Gwobrau Arwain Cymru 2012: enwebiadau wedi agor ar gyfer y categori Mentrau Cymdeithasol

Mae enwebiadau bellach wedi agor ar gyfer y categori Mentrau Cymdeithasol yng ‘Ngwobrau Arwain Cymru 2012’.

Mae’r categori hwn ar agor i unigolion sydd â rôl arweinyddiaeth ar unrhyw lefel mewn Menter Gymdeithasol.

Mae’r Gwobrau yn cael eu cynnal am yr wythfed flwyddyn, a’u nod yw cydnabod a dathlu cyflawniad personol o ran arweinyddiaeth a rheolaeth neilltuol yng Nghymru.

Real Radio fydd yn croesawu pawb i Ginio a Seremoni’r Gwobrau, a gynhelir ddydd Iau Mai 31ain 2012, yng Ngwesty’r Hilton Caerdydd.

I lenwi eich ffurflen enwebu, ac i gael rhagor o wybodaeth, ewch i:
www.leadingwalesawards.com/default.aspx.

Rhaid dychwelyd enwebiadau (trwy e-bost os oes modd) erbyn 17:00 ddydd Gwener 9fed Mawrth 2012 i leadingwalesawards@learningpathways.info

Today’s young tech entrepreneurs have inherited Yunus’ vision, and are changing the way we do business. Their space, “social business,” is nothing new, but these under-35s are attempting to alleviate global poverty, climate change, and even armed conflict through commercial enterprise.

There is no clear-cut definition, but most social entrepreneurs would agree that their overarching goal is to use business and business process to drive social or environmental impact.

Leila Junah, founder of Samasource

“There is a growing group in Silicon Valley that believes that social business and technology can change the world,” said Leila Janah. Janah, at 29 years old, is the founder of Samasource, which provides outsourced computer work to women and youth in the poorest pockets of the world, including India, Kenya, and Pakistan.

Impact investors, once a niche group, say they are now inundated by opportunities in this space.

“I was doing this in the mid to late 90s and I felt very lonely in that pursuit. There wasn’t even a language for social or mission investment,” recalled Stephen DeBerry, founder of Bronze Investments and partner at Kapor Capital. “But for young entrepreneurs today, it’s considered the right thing to do and is viewed as being cool.”

To illustrate the “straightforward business proposition,” DeBerry delves into a discussion about his firms’ energy efficiency strategy. In New York, schools are literally dripping mercury on children, he explains, with hazardous florescent lights from the 70s and 80s. “We pay to upgrade your lighting and make the money back over time as you realize the savings on your energy bill,” said DeBerry. Someone has to change these light bulbs, which in itself is a job creator, and there is no shortage of buildings. “We could do this for a long time,” he said.

Nick Flores is a recent Stanford Graduate School of Business alumni who sources early-stage social businesses for the Investors’ Circle, a network of angel investors and venture capitalists that uses private capital to promote a transition to a sustainable economy.

Flores, the Director of Investor and Entrepreneur Services, said there should ideally be a “yin and yang” between social and financial returns. It is Flores’ job to locate small businesses that are capable of making a real impact in the world, and prepare them for a pitch at the firms’ biannual fairs. Investors’ Circle’s greatest success to date? “Zipcar reduces carbon emissions and has a really scalable business model,” he said.

After a series of successful acquisitions by Amazon and Motorola, Danny Shader, a serial entrepreneur, approached DeBerry with an idea for a payment system for virtual goods. DeBerry suggested that Shader focus on an under-served market, America’s low-income “unbanked” population. One in four households don’t use credit cards, and are locked out of electronic commerce as a result.

Shader founded PayNearMe, a Mountain View-based startup, in 2009. Although the company is profitable, it has a social mission at its core: enabling millions of people to pay for online goods and services with cash.

“I’d like to take some credit for mentoring him, but not all the credit,” said DeBerry of Shader. “Danny is a smart guy, and I pointed him in the right direction. He saw there was a huge market there.”

Zipcar and PayNearMe, which DeBerry terms “profit-aligned social businesses,” have caught the attention of the tech community.

“There was a great hubris in Silicon Valley to create huge, billion dollar companies, but that’s changing,” said Janah. The Harvard-educated entrepreneur owes the success of her nonprofit to traditional tech companies like LinkedIn and Intuit. These clients immediately saw the value in Samasource: They need people to sort through mountains of data, and there are bright, young, employed Kenyans who are more than capable of doing the work. “It’s really a no-brainer,” she said.

On the other end of the spectrum, social investors are taking on some of the world’s most complex problems. One example is The Portland Trust, a non-profit with a mission to promote peace between Israelis and Palestinians through economic development and fostering entrepreneurship. The Trust is in the process of establishing a Social Investment Task Force to reduce the social gaps in Israel through the private sector.

“What we’re seeing now is a movement of both investors and entrepreneurs to the massive spectrum of opportunity in between the charitable NGO’s and purely for-profit companies that solely care about their bottom line,” explained Ophir Samson, project manager at the Portland Trust.

Samson, an exceptionally articulate 20-something, said social investment is not fully developed but it is “getting there and is growing extremely fast. There’s a lot of money and talent from all sides of the market going into this.”

The movement has had its ups and downs; perhaps the most prevailing problem is that there is no unit to measure impact. Generally speaking, it also costs more to do the right thing. Social investment is not about making fast cash. It is often a slow-burning, high-risk process that will not make entrepreneurs millions overnight.

With 50,000 visitors to its website per day (higher than any other nonprofit with the exception of Wikipedia), Kiva is often cited as the premier success story in this space. Kiva’s President, Premel Shah, recently recognized as a young global leader by the World Economic Forum, said social investment involved “being more cognizant of how you consume and how you invest.”

Kiva provides loans to institutions around the world, effectively enabling ordinary people to become social investors. Every four days, Kiva raises $1 million. Shah likes to describe Kiva as “social investment meets Match.com.”

Kiva offers loans to institutions in far afield countries, including Palestine and Yemen, but also provides funding for small businesses in U.S. cities like Oakland. “These are places where there’s not a lot of commercial investment because the risk profile is too high. This is exactly where a social investor can step in and be a little bit more patient with their capital,” Shah explained.

One such investor is Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, who will soon announce plans to invest $1 million in small businesses through Kiva’s lending platform. “Kiva’s innovative use of technology as a tool for crowd funding empowers everyday people, companies and major lenders to be social investors,” said Hoffman.

Yunus had the seeds of the idea for the Grameen Bank in the 70s, but it’s our young generation, then in diapers, that is realizing the full potential of his vision. Thanks to their efforts, social enterprise is flourishing, and even the most traditional investors and entrepreneurs are on board.

As VentureBeat’s own Ciara Byrne put it: “What’s cooler than a million dollars? Changing a million lives.”

Source: Venturebeat.com