I am delighted to offer the Small Business Strategy Powerhouse as it answers two questions that I’ve been considering. First, how can I create something of genuine value to small business owners and leaders? And, second, how can I get more companies involved in the exciting and hugely rewarding work of SportsAid, a charity that supports the next generation of UK sporting talent?
The Small Business Strategy Powerhouse is a one-day event where I will design and lead a set of highly interactive and action-focused discussions that will help you and your leadership team craft and develop a compelling growth strategy for your business.
And here’s the even better news: I won’t be charging you for this service.
All I ask is that you support one of SportsAid’s highly-promising young athletes for a year. The cost of this support is just £1,000. For more information on SportsAid and its brilliant work, see the sidebar.
Obviously, I can only take on a few businesses and am limiting numbers to just six companies per year.
So, if you own or a run a business with annual revenues of £5 million or less, are looking to take your business to the next level and would like to support the development of British support, this is the solution for you!
What you get
- A full day of strategic advice, discussions and support with me. Stuart’s clients include Boots the Chemists, Greene King, GSK, Dunelm and DFS, as well as a wide variety of small and medium-sized businesses
- The ability to reflect on the future direction of your business, your goals and your plans, either on a one-to-one basis with Stuart or with your wider leadership team
- Greater focus on how your business can win and thrive in the future and greater clarity and commitment on the actions required to make that happen
- A set of prioritised strategic actions that will help you accelerate the growth and profitability of your business
- The opportunity to support a leading young British athlete for a full year
Here’s what our first Small Business Strategy Powerhouse client said about the experience:
“Stuart helped us to take a breath, have a look at where we are as a business and decide where we want to go next. He helped us reflect on what really want to achieve and shared examples of other businesses at similar growth stages and the options they had considered. We generated an action plan that we’ve already started on and committed ourselves to regular reviews to keep us on track. I strongly recommend Stuart’s practical approach, enthusiasm and wise counsel to other small businesses.” Sue Headaux, Director, Re-Think Productivity
How it works
- We will meet, Skype or call ahead of the session to discuss your specific needs and objectives and agree an outline agenda for the meeting
- I will set you some homework related to your specific circumstances and goals for you to bring to the meeting
- We will meet together at a location of your choice for a full day’s session. We will use but will not be constrained by our agenda. In short, we will be fully focused on achieving the specific strategic goals we have agreed upon
- You can bring any number of other managers and executives that you believe will add to the session’s success
- Following the meeting, we will organise a further call or Skype where we can reflect on the session’s outputs and agree how you should manage the implementation of your key actions
- In terms of your athlete sponsorship, SportsAid will suggest athletes that meet your own interests and, most likely, provide suggestions of athletes based in your own area of the country
What it costs
- The cost of sponsoring a SportsAid athlete for one year is £1,000, helping the athlete and their families cover the cost of coaching, equipment and travel to major events.
- What’s more, for the vast majority of these young athletes, this is the first external funding they have received. It marks an important point in their young athletic career: someone outside their immediate circle is telling them, “We think you have talent and potential!”
- Each athlete is nominated by their relevant sporting body, based on their association’s own talent pathway criteria. As you can see, from SportsAid’s alumni, you may find that you’re supporting a future British Olympian or Paralympian!
About SportsAid
Since 1976, SportsAid has supported tens of thousands of athletes by distributing over £50 million in awards. The charity’s extensive alumni stretches across the generations with Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill, Sir Mo Farah, Baroness Grey-Thompson, Dame Sarah Storey, Sir Steve Redgrave, Dame Katherine Grainger and Daley Thompson CBE, all stand-out names.
SportsAid helps young athletes to overcome the financial obstacles they face in their bid to become Britain’s next generation of Olympians, Paralympians and world champions. The cost of sport is one of their greatest challenges, and despite already representing Great Britain at competitions all over the world, most receive no funding beyond what the charity provides.
A SportsAid athlete and their family will spend over £7,000 each year in meeting the costs of their sport. Without the charity’s support, many of these young prospects, typically aged 12 to 18, would face a tough decision on whether to continue training and competing. They come from more than 60 sports – the majority of which feature in the Olympics and Paralympics.
Many are already representing Great Britain at age-group level and, if they can continue doing so, have the potential to go on and inspire the nation. These up-and-coming athletes are supported by SportsAid as they have been identified by their sport’s national governing body (NGB) as being ranked amongst the most talented within their discipline.
More recently, Laura Kenny CBE, Ellie Simmonds OBE, Adam Peaty MBE, Georgie Hermitage MBE, Joe Clarke MBE, Jade Jones MBE, Hollie Arnold MBE, Louis Smith MBE, Tom Daley, Lutalo Muhammad, Millie Knight, and Dina Asher-Smith have all received SportsAid awards within the last decade.
The charity’s impressive track record was highlighted at the Rio 2016 Olympics and Paralympics where SportsAid alumni managed to return a stunning haul of 150 medals collectively across the two Games. This included 46 of Team GB’s 67 medals (20 gold, 15 silver, 11 bronze) and 104 of ParalympicsGB’s 147 medals (44 gold, 28 silver and 32 bronze).
You can find out more about the charity at sportsaid.org.uk