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Entrepreneurial organisations meet Economy Secretary to discuss roll out of Scottish Government’s economic strategy

Economy Secretary, Kate Forbes MSP met members of the Can Do Collective this morning to discuss the roll out and adoption of the recently launched National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET).

The group identified areas of common ground within the Entrepreneurial People and Culture Programme of Action, where ecosystem partners and government can work together; they discussed what obstacles need to be cleared to allow for better collaboration and how the ecosystem can support this.

The Can Do Collective, funded by the Scottish Government is an all-sector approach to enterprise and innovation support; the group of more than 80 organisations aims to create powerful societal and economic change in Scotland by putting collaboration and community at the heart of all activity.

Today’s meeting with the Cabinet Secretary is the first of many planned activities by the collective, including round tables, leadership training and events which will focus on garnering widespread support and adoption of the economic strategy across all parts of Scotland’s business community.

Commenting on the first stakeholder meeting since the launch of the strategy, Sean McGrath, Chief Executive Officer of Entrepreneurial Scotland said:

“This is an ambitious strategy built around innovation, inclusivity, and entrepreneurship and if we make this work, it has the power to transform our economy.  The Scottish Government cannot do it alone; we certainly cannot do it without them.

“We need the First Minister now to use her platform and profile to promote Scotland’s business to the world. We also need her to show the same leadership that saw us through the Covid crisis to now put the full weight of her government behind the transformation of our economy placing business success at the top of the Scottish Government’s agenda.

“Scotland has huge potential – talent and people are at the heart of what is now the 4th Industrial Revolution; this is a pivotal moment and key opportunity for Scotland’s organisations to change with the times and look at more innovative, sustainable ways of growth, driven and underpinned by an entrepreneurial mindset.”

Finance & Economy Secretary Kate Forbes said:

“Scotland has enormous economic potential and one of the key transformational programmes of NSET is to establish Scotland as a world-class entrepreneurial nation, with a culture that encourages, promotes, and celebrates entrepreneurial activity in every sector of our economy.

“It was great to meet with members of the Can Do Collective to share ideas, perspectives and experiences on the best way of delivering our ambition so we can shift the dial to make our economy fairer, wealthier, and greener.

“This is a national endeavour that requires every one of us to contribute, and continue working together over the next decade.”

Hazel Jane, Convener of the Can Do Collective said:

“This morning’s meeting was a important milestone for us in terms of updating the Cabinet Secretary on the scale of the work our organisations are delivering as a group in line with the government’s economic strategy.  It also gave us the opportunity to learn more about the Scottish Government’s plans for wider engagement with NSET across Scotland’s business community.  Much work is to be done; the Can Do Collective will host a wider forum this Spring with more of its partners and the Economy Secretary to explore further opportunities to deliver the vision and objectives of NSET.

ENDS

Written by Mhairi Clarke

For media enquiries, please contact:

Mhairi Clarke
Director, Shine PR
Email: mhairi@shine-comms.com
Tel: 07809 558 375

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Welcome Q+A with Janet Robertson, EQFM

New Can Do Partner, Janet Robertson, European Foundation for Quality Management (EQFM), joins us to discuss her role within the organisation and her attraction to collaborative communities…

Hi Janet, welcome to Can Do! Can you tell us a bit about yourself?:

I’m Northern Ireland born, long-time Edinburgh based.  Like many folk, both are “home”.  My background is in Housing gradually transitioning to Business Improvement.  I’ve been with EFQM, the European Foundation for Quality Management, since April 2021.  My role is focussed on developing the EFQM community in Scotland, supporting organisations across sectors and of any size, to perform better.  I’ve been working with the EFQM Model myself, since about 2010, when I introduced it in the organisation I was working with at the time, to make sense of all the performance and improvement activity we were undertaking.  So I know it works!  Since then I’ve had the privilege of being a trainer, and also an assessor for organisations going through EFQM Recognition.  There are always opportunities to learn by sharing, and I want to continue to help organisations to do that.

EFQM is hosting an event in Edinburgh on Thursday 24th March 2022, and we are looking forward to welcoming new faces as well as EFQM members, colleagues and friends.  If you are curious, you can find out more and book here.

About EFQM?

EFQM helps organisations perform better.

We are powered by the EFQM Model, a globally – recognised framework for organisational change and performance improvement.  We create data-driven insights backed up by industry experts, to fit your priorities, your purpose, and your people.

Through our integrated and carefully designed portfolio of products and services, we work side by side with leaders as they manage cultural change and digital transformation to deliver positive performance and meaningful benefits for all their key stakeholders.

EFQM works with a broad and diverse number of organisations, locally and globally, and across sectors, from large multinationals to small and mid-sized companies, supporting them through Training, Insight and Recognition.

What motivated you to become a Scotland Can Do Partner?

I’m drawn to communities that believe in sharing – with a common Purpose, through collaboration, we can achieve much more and do it better.

How do you contribute to the Scotland Can Do ambition; for Scotland to be the most entrepreneurial and innovative society for all?

In an increasingly complex world, I think people and organisations have to continually challenge themselves, to reflect with purpose and structure, on what they are doing and how well they are doing it.  That applies to innovation and transformation as much as to incremental change.  The EFQM Model framework helps organisations to do that in a holistic way, with a shared language, more conscious of the impacts that changes in one part of their ecosystem can have on another, or on their stakeholders, for example.

Just for fun… can you tell us your favourite coffee spot and what your got to order is?

I don’t have a favourite coffee spot as I like trying out different places, but the order is usually a double espresso and cake!  I’m especially fond of Cannoli from The Sicilian Pastry Shop in Leith.

If you are interested in the data-driven support that EFQM, then visit their website, or email: Janet.Robertson@efqm.co.uk.

Categories
Blogs News

Scotland Can Do Partners join cohort #2 of Resilient Leadership Catalyst

Resilient Leadership: What we ‘Can Do Collective’-ly

In November 2021, we were delighted to offer 10 Collective partners the opportunity to join the first cohort of the Can Do Resilient Leadership Catalyst, in partnership with Entrepreneurial Scotland and Babson College. This interactive, educational programme was designed for members of the Collective who were ready to use their influence in leadership roles to amplify impact and positively influence their organisations, the entrepreneurial ecosystem and Scotland. The programme takes place across two cohorts – November 2021 and March 2022.

Today, we are pleased to announce that 9 Can Do Collective partners will be joining the second cohort of the Catalyst Resilient Leadership Programme. This programme is an excellent opportunity for our partners to understand and utilise their role as a leader within the entrepreneurial ecosystem and where they can connect and interact with likeminded individuals within the Can Do Collective community.

The fully-funded programme features webinars led by Babson College, where participants are taught the fundamental concepts, methods and tools of resilient leadership; including how to find resilience in your daily routine and build a culture that supports high performing, resilient teams. The cohort are encouraged to deconstruct, apply and embed the learning within their own leadership, unlocking the potential of their organisation and the Collective. Taking place over three months, the Resilient Leadership Catalyst will be a combination of self-guided and structured education, including individual assignments, group work, discussion groups and case studies.

Meet the 2022 Can Do Cohort:

Andrew Barrie, Founder, Community Lab

Janet Black, Director of Operations, Entrepreneurial Scotland Foundation

Jo Chidley, Founder, Beauty Kitchen

Tom Craig, Senior Policy Executive, Scottish Government

Lyndsey Dougan, Geovation Scotland Delivery Lead, Geovation Scotland

Fiona Godsman, SME Strategy Specialist, Board Member, EIT Food/GCC

Susan Harkins, Head Of Innovation & Entrepreneurship, SOSE

Julie Nairn, Membership Officer, Association of Scottish Businesswomen

Michaela Turner, Enterprise Executive, Edinburgh Innovations

We hope that our Collective members enjoy their time over the three months, and it is great to share their excitement:

“I was over the moon to be accepted onto the programme and I am looking forward to being part of a great group of people who also want to learn more and challenge themselves.

Entrepreneurial Leadership is a really interesting subject and being part of this cohort will give me the opportunity to develop my skills in this area, and then share these skills in my role within SOSE.

The link to Babson College is also fantastic, it is the No. 1 school for entrepreneurship in the world for the past 25 years – and sets high expectations for participant engagement.” – Susan Harkins, Head of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, SOSE (2022 participant)

“It was exciting to meet my fellow participants and to learn a bit more about what they do, where they’re at and why exactly they wanted to take part. For myself, I was in entrepreneurship policy for eight years, during which time I got to know Scotland’s entrepreneurial ecosystem VERY well.  Certainly part of my reason for taking part is that I want to maintain that connection, and keep it fresh, so that I can use my network to benefit my current role in advanced manufacturing policy.  And any subsequent roles I may assume.” – Tom Craig, Senior Policy Executive, Scottish Government (2022 Participant)

Are you a leader keen to put collaboration at the heart of entrepreneurship in Scotland? Visit our Partnership page to find out more and join the Collective.