Chamber President Meet the president…

In December, Steve Harcourt was sworn in as the new president of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, following on from Tom Mongan, who served in the role for three years.

In this edition of C&W In Business, we caught up with Steve to find out about his ambitions as president and what drove him to take on the prestigious post in the first place.

CWIB: You said when you became president that it’s an honour, what did you mean by that?

SH: The Chamber has been going for 120 years and you just feel all of that tradition and history when you come into a post like this. There are still plenty of previous presidents either on the board or involved in the Chamber and it really is the great and good of the region.

So, it is a real honour.

The Chamber is an organisation that is here to assist businesses, to help them to grow and thrive, and that is all for the wider benefit of the region.

CWIB: When did you first get the burning desire to be president?

SH: I’d never really thought about becoming president. I’ve just tried to do the right thing all of the time for the business that I work in and then for the wider business community too. If local businesses are thriving, then my company can be successful too.

The inspiration came from Louise Bennett, the former chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, who asked me if I’d like to be on the board. I spoke to the directors here at Prime and they said it would be great so I went for it.

Being on the board, of course, helps to raise your profile and I’ve also got to know some incredible people and learned so much about what they all do and how they do it.

I’ve also learned more and more about what the Chamber does and the more you get to know about it, you realise what a fantastic organisation it is and want to be part of it and to help it thrive.

Tom had an extra year of presidency because the first year was restricted by Covid, but we were asked during his time who would like to step forward as vice-president, with a view to taking on the role as president.

When that was mentioned in a board meeting, I thought I’d put myself forward and one or two other people also came to me and suggested I do it. That was the confirmation I needed. It gave me the confidence that others thought I would be good enough to take on the role.

CWIB: What excited you about taking on the role?

SH: I’m really proud of the area. I grew up in Bedworth and have worked all of my life in Coventry and I saw it as a pinnacle of my career that I would be able to represent businesses here and throughout the region. When you look at the Chamber’s history, I just knew it was something I wanted to go for, especially as others thought I was good enough to do it. So, I put my name forward as vice-president and I was educated for the role of president.

I’ve got two years now to make my mark on the role and one part of that is trying to improve the way businesses and schools/ colleges work together across the region.

CWIB: How will you juggle your role with Prime Accountants Group and your role as Chamber president?

SH: It’s going to be a busy couple of years! Many of the events I’ll go to as president, I would have gone to anyway for professional networking. However, now I will probably need to do some preparation to say a few words or make an introduction to the events!

We are undertaking a Governance Review of the Chamber too and that’s taking up quite a lot of my time outside of work and rightly so, because it’s a really important piece of work. Of course, the day job always has to come first but I’ve had incredible support from the board here at Prime to help me to do what needs to be done. There’s also a great team at the Chamber who help to minimise the impact on my time to make sure I can focus on the elements they really need me to focus on.

CWIB: And how will it affect your family time?

SH: I told my wife that she won’t see me much for the next two years and she didn’t seem too bothered! That was a bit concerning!

My kids are grown up – my son is working and my daughter is doing her GCSEs so they are pretty self-sufficient now, other than the regular requests for Dad’s Taxi, there’s not so much need for me to be around in the same capacity as there was when they were younger. It will definitely take up a lot of my spare time, but it will be rewarding being more involved in Chamber activities and initiatives. I’ll make sure I plan and prepare so I can fit everything in.

CWIB: Tell us a bit more about yourself, where you live?

SH: I live in Nuneaton, having been brought up in Bedworth. That’s why I am so keen to help the local area and make an impact. It’s always on my mind that Nuneaton and Bedworth is close to my heart and I want to do my best for the people who live and work there, as well as the wider Coventry and Warwickshire community.

CWIB: And which leaders have inspired you?

SH: The chair of Prime Group, Kevin Johns, has been a big inspiration for me during my career. Then you look at the Chamber and you see the way Corin Crane, the chief executive, has come in with so much energy for the organisation, the staff and the region. I’m a big Coventry City fan and Mark Robins has obviously done a great job there!

I tend to take bits and pieces from different people really. There’s not one figure that I can say has inspired me but I take something from everyone I come in contact with in my life. Clive Myrie at the Chamber conference was very inspirational – there was definitely plenty to learn from him.

It’s going to be a busy couple of years! Many of the events I’ll go to as president, I would have gone to anyway for professional networking. However, now I will probably need to do some preparation to say a few words or make an introduction to the events!