Business Eye February March 2022 by Buckley Publications

Issue 212 Feb/March 2022 £2.50 Voted best Business Magazine in Ireland 2005 and Magazine of the Year for Northern Ireland

Barclay Communications Growing For The New Future Features:

Action Cancer Celebrating 50 Years

Tourism NI - New Online Sales Offensive

NIE Networks Business Eye Family Business Awards Are Launched

Electric & Hybrid vehicles can bring a lot of benefits to your business. Find out more about our emotive offering... fleetfinancial.co.uk/emotive

Contents 14

FinTrU In Fast Growth List For Second Year

For the second year in a row, FinTrU has been announced as one of Europe’s Fastest Growing Companies by the Financial Times. It’s more recognition of the achievements of the Belfast & Derry based company which has continued to add to its headcount throughout the Covid era.

Big Data Returns 18 To The ICC With adoption of data-driven technologies continuing to grow exponentially, Big Data Belfast makes a welcome return as an in-person event at Belfast’s premier venue, the ICC, on 25th May, with support from headline sponsor EY.

Barclay Communications Growing For The New Future

The Covid pandemic has been a period of continued growth and expansion for Belfast-based Barclay Communications. Managing Director Britt Megahey talks about changes in the business landscape and how his team is adapting to help business clients face a new future.

Action Cancer – 50 Year 28 Anniversary For Unique Charity Richard Buckley visits Actiob Cancer’s Belfast headquarters and reports on a unique Northern Ireland charity preparing to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its establishment. It’s a charity which has innovated since its early days and continues to lead the way in cancer diagnosis and the holistic treatment of patients.

Feb/March 2022 ISSUE 212

Equity Deals On The Rise

Here in Northern Ireland the investment value of equity deals was 226% up in the first three quarters of 2021 compared to the equivalent period of 2020, according to the British Business Bank. We take a look at the bank’s detailed finding on the equity market.

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Serviced Offices Lead The Post-Covid World

In the wake of the Northern Ireland Executive’s decision to remove all COVID-19 restrictions, Donna Linehan, Client Services Director at VenYou, claims that the serviced office sector will lead the way forward in a post-COVID business world and that it is essential for the wider economy that businesses return to the office.

Tourism NI Links With Tourism Exchange To Drive Online Sales

Tourism NI has partnered with Tourism Exchange GB (TXGB) to offer tourism businesses here much improved access to all-important online sales channels and will utilise the technology to make their own website and campaigns bookable. We catch up with Tourism NI Marketing Director Naomi Waite and TXGB’s James Berzins.

NIE Networks Business Eye 53 Family Business Awards The brand new 2022 NIE Networks Family Business Awards in association with Harbinson Mulholland have been officially launched at the Culloden Estate & Spa. Entries are now open across 14 different award categories, celebrating the very best of family business across Northern Ireland.

Tech Eye – 67 Tech News In A Nutshell From the social role of broadband to 10-minute grocery deliveries and from crypto assets to the battle for tech talent, Tech News in association with Nitec brings Business Eye readers a concise fourpage update on the latest tech news from across the UK and beyond.

It’s A 73 Family Affair Harbinson Mulholland has held the second in its series of Female Leaders In Family Business events with a lunch at the Europa Hotel and an insightful interview with leading entrepreneur Mairead Mackle hosted by Sarah Travers.

Editor Richard Buckley Commercial Director Brenda Buckley

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Photography Press Eye 45 Stockmans Way Belfast, BT9 7ET Tel: (028) 9066 9229 www.presseye.com

When it comes to business and economic life here in Northern Ireland, sometimes you really couldn’t make it up.

Comment

“While DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson traipses around Northern Ireland trying to drum up some enthusiasm for his anti-protocol fight, the health service will suffer, infrastructure will suffer and economic development will suffer.“

ere we all are, coming out of a two-year long global pandemic which has had a profound effect on how we all lives our lives and run our businesses, which has devastated some and impacted on just about every enterprise. Just as we do so, our system of devolved government has been brought to a halt by one party and its fixation with one issue. The result? A Budget can’t be set and it’s a situation which will impact on just about every area of life here, not least the health service, as our Health Minister has continued to point out. But, as has been highlighted in recent weeks, it also impacts on Invest NI and its economic development efforts. It’s a scandalous state of affairs that one party is able to do this because it doesn’t like the Northern Ireland Protocol. Ironically, it’s a Northern Ireland Protocol that has delivered significant benefits to the economy here and could continue to do so, a fact (and it is a fact...) highlighted in successive reports recently, not least from the influential Chartered Accounts Ulster Society. While DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson traipses around Northern Ireland trying to drum up some enthusiasm for his anti-protocol fight, the health service will suffer, infrastructure will suffer and economic development will suffer. To make matters worse, we’re heading into several weeks of limbo as we coast gently towards yet another election on the 5th of May. Nothing, or very little, will happen in the coming weeks outside of the petty party bickering that makes for political life here.

Richard Buckley EDITOR Irish Magazine Editor of the Year 2005

Will the DUP, as is widely expected, take a bit of a pasting at the polls? Will we have a Sinn Fein First Minister post May 5th? Will they survive and even increase their vote? Will Doug Beattie present a real threat? Or are we heading inexorably towards more political stalemate and some form of crisis? A betting man or woman might be likely to back the latter horse. Still, if Northern Ireland businesses can survive a global financial crisis followed by a global pandemic, and we spot of war in Eastern Europe thrown in, we can probably survive another dull as dishwater local election campaign and a wee political crisis. What with Covid and the Ukraine on its plate, not to mention simmering scandals, the UK Government doesn’t seem to be too interested in what’s happening here in Northern Ireland. Secretary of State Brandon Lewis pops up every now and then, but he’s clearly keeping his head down hoping that we might go away. Unfortunately for the man from Essex, we won’t. We never do. And, if Sinn Fein comes out on top on May 5th, he’ll have a bit of mess to sort out. Good luck with that, Brandon. Meanwhile, business will get on with doing business. At least we won’t have Covid, lockdowns or restrictions to worry about. And, for that, we’re truly thankful.

Survive, revive,

Thrive

Is your business in the tourism and hospitality sector? Then the Tourism Enterprise Development (TED) programme is here to accelerate its post-Covid recovery.

Support and advice The TED programme comprises of a range of workshops and webinars supported by toolkits, instructional videos, best top tips, tools, tactics and action plans to ensure the future recovery and development of your business is as smooth as possible. Expert mentors are at hand to guide and give meaningful advice at the right time for you at whatever stage your business is at. Tourism NI can also update you on the latest research to enable you to make key business decisions. Keep an eye out for upcoming events and webinars covering the following areas • Customer service and sales programmes • Food, drink and outdoor experiences • Digital support • People and recruitment

To be the first to hear about all the programme’s events and features, sign up now to our mailing list at tourismni.com/ted

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Tech Consultancy Finyx Establishes NI Base

outique technology advisory firm Finyx, is expanding its operations into Northern Ireland, creating 20 new jobs. Finyx, which is headquartered in London, provides digital services and advice to central government departments and large organisations such as financial institutions. The company’s Northern Ireland team will be based in the Urban HQ building in Belfast city centre, providing its new employees with access to health and wellbeing services, catering, and a roof top bar, as well as state-of-the art technology. NI Directors Alasdair Frazer and Matt Price, who both originally hail from NI, will head up the local team and say Finyx’s decision to open a Northern Ireland office was based on the region’s wealth of skilled and experienced resources. Speaking about the launch of its Belfast office, Finyx’s Matt Price said, “Northern Ireland has a ready-made pool of skilled consultants and digital experts, who can help contribute to

our growth which is based on a practical, problemsolving approach for clients. Finyx’s philosophy of autonomy and team spirit sets us apart and we’re excited to bring this vision to consultants locally.” Alasdair Frazer added; “After working across the globe for over 10 years, we’re proud to be back home, bringing with us high-value career opportunities. These roles will allow people to enjoy the best of both worlds – the fantastic culture and vibrancy that NI has to offer, while also working on projects that are strategically vital to UK. We are delighted to take up residency in the distinctive Urban HQ building, and we look forward to bringing our ethos to NI which emphasises recognition and reward, ownership and flexibility.” Finyx was established in 2006 and currently employs 85 people. Its expansion and investment into Northern Ireland follows double digit year-on-year growth at the firm. Clients range from law enforcement services, central government departments, utilities and leading media brands to retailers, insurers and investment banks.

Boutique technology advisory Finyx is expanding its operations into Northern Ireland, creating 20 new jobs. NI Directors Matt Price and Alasdair Frazer (pictured) will head up the local team and say Finyx’s decision to open an NI office was based on the region’s strong talent pipeline.

HENDERSON RETAIL RECEIVES GOLD INVESTORS IN PEOPLE ACCREDITATION Henderson Retail, the company which operates 101 SPAR, EUROSPAR and ViVOXTRA stores and supermarkets in Northern Ireland, has been awarded Gold accreditation against the Investors in People Standard.

old accreditation means Henderson Retail, part of the Henderson Group, has been recognised by Investors In People as not only having significant policies in place, but more than that, it means the entire workforce takes ownership for making them come to life. Henderson Retail employs over 3,500 people from its headquarters in Mallusk, to the retail staff working throughout 101 stores and supermarkets across towns and villages in Northern Ireland. The past two years have seen the majority of its staff become frontline workers, ensuring people in their communities were stocked with essentials throughout the different restrictions and lockdowns. Group Human Resources Director, Sam Davidson says their workforce has

been a huge driver in the company’s growth over the years, and they are highly motivated to be part of the journey. “We are extremely proud to have achieved Gold accreditation for Henderson Retail for the second time. This is a significant achievement in what has been a very challenging period.” “We are one of the biggest employers in Northern Ireland and ensure every opportunity to develop fantastic careers is afforded to our employees, as is the very culture of the Group to put our people first.” Investors in People is the international standard for people management, defining what it takes to lead, support and manage people effectively to achieve sustainable results. Underpinning the Standard is the Investors in People framework, reflecting

Henderson Group’s Retail Director, Mark McCammond and Group Human Resources Director, Sam Davidson are pictured with the gold accreditation plaque from Investors In People which has been rewarded to Henderson Retail.

the latest workplace trends, essential skills and effective structures required to outperform in any industry. Investors in People enables organisations to benchmark against the best in the business on an international scale. Paul Devoy, CEO of Investors in People

added; “We’d like to congratulate Henderson Retail. Gold accreditation on ‘We Invest in People’ is a fantastic effort for any organisation, and places Henderson Retail in fine company with a host of organisations that understand the value of people.”

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Hastings Hotels Announces New Chairman And Managing Director Hastings Hotels has announced that its longest serving Director, Edward Carson (right), has retired as Chairman and is succeeded by Howard Hastings.

ames McGinn (left), who has worked for the leading collection of hotels for 25 years, as Operations Director and General Manager of the Europa Hotel, has been appointed as the new Managing Director. Edward Carson has retained his Board membership as a Non-Executive Director. Following these changes, Andy McNeill, who is currently the General Manager of the Culloden Estate & Spa and is returning to the Europa Hotel, where he started his career in hospitality, as the new General Manager. Niall Burns, who previously worked for Hastings Hotels as the Deputy General Manager of the Slieve Donard Resort & Spa, and most recently as the General Manager of Lyrath

Estate in County Kilkenny, will replace Andy at the helm of the Culloden. Howard Hastings said: “As we emerge from the pandemic, Hastings Hotels is confident that it does so with a very strong team. I would like to thank Edward Carson in particular for his lifetime of dedication and commitment to the company and am delighted that he will remain on the Board. I am also thrilled that we are able to acknowledge and harness the talents of individuals who have come through the ranks to attain a senior status in the company, and while it is “welcome back” to Niall Burns at the Culloden Estate, my fellow directors and I wish him, Andy McNeill at the Europa and James McGinn as Managing Director, our very best wishes as they take on their new roles.”

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All island growth supported by business loan tastes like success for Tom & Ollie Belfast-based artisan food production company Tom & Ollie is one of 191 companies in Co Antrim to avail of support from the Northern Ireland Small Business Loan Fund since 2013, making the total allocated to businesses in the county over £4.3 million.

he Fund is managed by Ulster Community Finance Ltd (UCF) on behalf of Invest Northern Ireland and delivered in partnership with Enterprise Northern Ireland. UCF is a subsidiary of the social enterprise organisation Community Finance Ireland (previously known as UCIT Ltd). Small businesses, sole traders and partnerships keen to develop their business can avail of loans up to £100,000, while start-up businesses can obtain initial loans of up to £15,000. Tom & Ollie (Tomato and Olive) was established in 2014 by friends Seamus Mullan, Hugh Cushnan and Fergal McGrainne from Broughshane. The business has its roots in local artisan and farmers markets across Northern Ireland, with a regular stall

at the weekly St George’s Market in Belfast. Tom & Ollie is a SALSA approved artisan producer of pesto, tapenades, hummus and sun-dried tomatoes along with specialising in cheese and charcuterie. In 2017, the team undertook extensive R&D and product development work, aimed at expanding their wholesale & retail offering. This resulted in new ranges for the retail and food service sector and the business has acquired high profile customers including Aldi Ireland, Lidl, Sheridan Cheesemongers & Pallas Foods. To support this ongoing growth and associated working capital requirements, in 2020 Tom & Ollie accessed £45,000 from the Northern Ireland Small Business Loan Fund.

L-R, Shay Mullan, Director, Tom & Ollie, William McCulla, Invest NI’s Director of Corporate Finance, Fergal Green, Director, Tom & Ollie and Ulster Community Finance Ltd Chief Executive, Dónal Traynor.

Ulster Community Finance Ltd Chief Executive, Dónal Traynor said: “Tom & Ollie is a forward-thinking business that has made the most of the demand for high quality, local artisan produce. The fast and flexible finance that the Northern Ireland Small Business Loan Fund offers, perfectly suited their growth ambitions and it has been impressive to see the expansion in their high-profile customer portfolio. “As well as food production, sectors which have benefitted from the Fund to date include manufacturing and, renewable energy. The fund is open to organisations throughout Co Antrim who are interested in learning how financial support of up to £100,000 could further their business ambitions.” Fergal Green from Tom & Ollie said: “The NISBLF team recognised our ambitions for the business and coupled with our previous success and robust business plan, could see how accessing working capital would support our growth. The finance helped allow us to realise those

ambitions. We now manufacture over 65 lines in Belfast. Recent business developments include a new online delivery service with over 300 market fresh products available for next day delivery in Ireland.” The NI Small Business Loan Fund is part of Invest NI’s Access to Finance suite of loan and equity funds. William McCulla, Invest NI’s Director of Corporate Finance, said: “We’ve worked closely with Tom and Ollie since 2019, offering practical business advice and support to expand its team and build its sales in the GB market. “The Northern Ireland Small Business Loan Fund has also contributed to the company’s success. The Fund’s financial support has helped it to maximise the commercial opportunities available, and to grow its product range as its customer portfolio has expanded. I’m pleased to see the positive impact the Fund has had on Tom and Ollie’s business growth, and its continued assistance to SMEs across Co Antrim and Northern Ireland.”

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Tax Incentive Specialists Secure £8.5million For NI Businesses In One Year

Ross Davidson, Andrew Smythe and Jamie Watts from Amplifi Solutions.

Entrepreneurial tax incentive specialists, Amplifi Solutions, has achieved significant growth in 2021, including increasing the size of their skilled team, the addition of new services and continued expansion in Scotland.

n 2021, R&D tax relief received by Amplifi’s Northern Irish clients was a significant £8.5million. And, whilst supporting their clients over the last 12 months against the backdrop of the pandemic, Amplifi has increased its team, hiring three key new staff members including Ross Davidson, a new regional manager for Northern Ireland. In 2021, Amplifi increased its Northern Irish client base by an impressive 25%. The biggest upturn came from engineering and manufacturing firms which accounted for 50% of new clients, followed by software companies

at 25%. These new clients join innovative, high-growth companies like RGM Vent, Connected Health and CattleEye in Amplifi’s base. As well as its continued expansion into Scotland, Amplifi has also added two additional tax relief services to its portfolio - Land Remediation Relief and Patent Box. This has allowed the firm to bring its services to more clients than ever before. Speaking about the past year, Jamie Watts, Commercial Director at Amplifi Solutions said: “2021 was a significant and exciting year for all of us at Amplifi. We saw a significant increase in

our client base, highlighting that the requirement for our services is continually being recognised. “Another big milestone was our continued growth in Scotland, something that we have been keen to do since the start of our R&D journey. We were also delighted to have been able to attract a group of talented people to our team in 2021, each bringing their own diverse skillset and wealth of knowledge to the company. “R&D tax credits is still our main service offering and something many companies consider, but never get around to. However, you might change your mind when you learn that in September 2021, it was reported by HMRC that Northern Irish businesses received £135 million in R&D tax credit relief in 2019/20.” Jeff Drennan, Managing Partner at Amplifi Solutions added: “In the last year we have seen our talented team and client base

continue to grow. We also became one of the first NI companies to be awarded the “Healthy Place to Work” certification, during a time when mental health and wellbeing has been more important than ever. “More and more entrepreneurs and innovators are understanding the benefits of our R&D tax credit service and we believe the addition of Land Remediation Relief and Patent Box services will allow us to provide even more value and growth potential to our clients. R&D tax credits and Patent Box benefit companies trying to solve problems with innovative solutions, while Land Remediation Relief helps companies clearing contaminated and derelict land. All these additional tax reliefs are provided by HMRC to incentivise UK innovation, redevelopment and to benefit the economy.

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Belfast Met and Citi’s Partnership Delivers Apprenticeship Success

Graeme Craft, Citi Belfast CSC Business Office Manager; Aidan Sloane, Head of Development and Digital at Belfast Met; Carla McGlynn Director, Markets Technology at Citi Belfast.

elfast Met’s partnership with Citi, the leading global bank, has demonstrated a longstanding commitment to creating employment opportunities and career

development pathways through the Department for Economy’s Apprenticeship NI programme. The College has collaborated with Citi as a Partner of Choice during a period of strategic growth and workforce development planning. Citi is offering ambitious people a life-shaping chance to succeed in an exciting career as part of its apprenticeship programme in partnership with Belfast Met. The partnership began with the provision of Citi’s ICT Apprenticeships with Belfast Met for its ICT Level 3 and 5 Apprenticeships. Building on the success of the ICT Apprenticeships, Citi and Belfast Met have worked together to expand their apprenticeship provision into their market operations department. This has seen the recruitment of new apprentices onto Citi’s Providing Financial Services Investment Operations Apprenticeship. There are also new exciting plans underway for further expansion into business administration and human resources apprenticeships. Taking an innovative and open-minded approach, Citi has worked closely with the College’s employer engagement and delivery teams to co-design curriculum content and delivery methods that best suit their apprentices and business needs. Citi shares the College’s values of supporting people to develop skills, ensuring that apprentices thrive in their chosen career pathway, and Belfast Met’s partnership with Citi fulfils the College’s ethos towards holistic learning, enabling apprentices to gain the necessary skills for career development. Aidan Sloane, Director of Development and Digital at Belfast Met, said: ‘At Belfast Met, we are delighted to be

a partner of choice for Citi. The College’s longstanding partnership with Citi has been an incredibly positive and rewarding experience for the College. We have worked in close collaboration with the excellent team at Citi to develop and embed innovative apprenticeship solutions that meets the needs of their business.’ “The College’s partnership with Citi enables employees to develop the requisite skills required to work in this exciting industry and demonstrates how an apprenticeship model can work for employees and employers, as they work together to develop new ideas and continue to introduce new talent into industry with a global company.” Graeme Craft, Belfast CSC Business Office Manager, confirmed: “Our apprentice programmes have grown since beginning in 2018. There are many career tracks available through Citi Belfast as we continue to give our people the opportunity to live locally but work globally, supporting businesses around the world. “From apprenticeships to mentorships to those returning to work, Citi continues to seek out bright enthusiastic professionals aspiring to build a career in financial services or find a supportive workplace environment to grow their potential. We want people to build a career here, not just apply for a job, and that’s what makes Citi Belfast different as an employer.” For details of Belfast Met webinars and Citi success case studies during Northern Ireland Apprenticeship Week 2022 please visit www.belfastmet.ac.uk

Colin Hughes appointed CEO for Four Star Pizza chain C olin Hughes has been appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Irish-owned pizza chain Four Star Pizza. Operating out of the company’s headquarters in Dublin, Colin will be responsible for the successful leadership and strategic direction of the Four Star Pizza brand, overseeing all of the chain’s operations and developing and implementing business plans to maintain and grow its overall performance in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Colin’s CV demonstrates a wealth of experience, having previously held senior executive positions for numerous hospitality-based companies including Subway, Pret a Manger, and Barburrito, as well as Marks & Spencer and Wyevale Garden Centres. A graduate of Queen’s University Belfast with a prize-winning Executive MBA from Cranfield University School of Management, Colin is looking forward to his new role at the helm of Ireland’s biggest indigenous pizza company.

“I am absolutely delighted to be joining the Four Star Pizza business at such an exciting time,” said Colin, who hails from Lurgan in County Armagh. “This is a terrific opportunity to lead the brand to greater things and we have ambitious growth plans to make this happen. “I’m really looking forward to meeting new colleagues and working together to support and deliver for our franchisees and customers,” he added.

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3T Power launches Instant Price Alerts to support local businesses in taking control of their energy bills

Shauna Forbes, Director 3T Power

As the wholesale energy market around the world continues to be volatile, Northern Ireland green energy supplier for business 3T Power has shared a new feature available for their customers aimed to help local businesses keep their energy bills under control.

T Power’s new Instant Price Alerts feature will allow customers to monitor the price of their electricity, identify spikes in rates, and make better-informed decisions to reduce the cost of their bills. With prices going as low as -35p/kWh where it pays to use as much electric as a business requires, to highs of £4/ kWh where it would benefit businesses to switch to a backup power source or make changes to operating schedules, 3T Power’s initiative has been designed to empower local businesses to make quick decisions about the best course of actions to reduce their energy bills, either by switching over to alternative sources, delaying a power-hungry production process, or simply being more aware of the spike for future budget planning. Commenting on the new offering

available to their customers Shauna Forbes, Director of 3T Power said, “Wholesale electricity prices have increased by over 300% in the past 18 months, leaving business customers weary of contracting to a fixed tariff at such elevated costs. Our flex tariff offers cost control in that businesses can decide when they want to buy power to manage market fluctuations. The Instant Price Alerts now make the flex tariff more financially sustainable for our customers. “Over the past year we have stood side by side with customers who have dealt head-on with volatile electricity prices and understand the struggle for many businesses when it comes to juggling planning and curbing out costs with meeting sustainability objectives. This past summer saw a ‘perfect storm’ for the all-Ireland electricity grid due to major power stations being offline

in the South of Ireland, a low-wind summer reducing the amount of electricity generated by turbines, and increasing global gas costs. Whilst 3T Power also felt the impact of these heightened costs, we understood the need to continue to support our clients as we weathered the storm together.” With 99.9% of businesses in Northern Ireland being SMEs, the team at 3T Power have acknowledged how hard many local businesses have been hit by fluctuating costs and felt compelled to help. 3T Power’s bespoke price alert service can also allow customers to automate their electricity, by sending signals to connected devices, telling them when to turn off or on in order to minimise monthly electricity bills while never hampering business requirements. “By developing this alert system we have helped our customers to take back some control in a challenging situation,” added Shauna. “The team at 3T Power monitors and records wholesale electricity prices in near real time and can send our clients instant price alerts via SMS or email when prices reach margins specific to their connection, ultimately allowing them to take action to

reduce or curb energy bills.” Established in 2017 by Thomas Kelso, David McElrea and Shauna Forbes, the team behind 3T Power have developed long-standing partnerships with local energy producers and corporate energy users which go beyond the traditional customer-supplier relationship due to their over two decades’ experience in the energy and renewables sectors in Northern Ireland. The company aims to provide bespoke, affordable renewable energy solutions to local businesses through its network of locally owned and operated renewable generators which harness the power of wind, rain, sun and waste to help local businesses across a diverse range of sectors including manufacturing, hospitality, corporate and even well-known attractions and venues meet their sustainability needs.

For more information on how 3T Power is partnering with Northern Ireland businesses to help them meet their sustainability goals through locally-generated sustainable energy, visit www.3tpower.com

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St Mary’s University College Belfast joins forces with Young Enterprise NI

t Mary’s University College Belfast joins forces with Young Enterprise NI to introduce a trusted and valued entrepreneurship programme to our business studies students at the College. Our students have quickly put practice into theory with four friends formulating a company “Sip Secure” and creating a product designed to protect your drink on a night out. So impressed were the Trade Fair judges with our BEd Year 3 Business studies that they were awarded the ‘Best Start-up’ award for the creativity in creating a product with a high market application. The judges were highly complementary of the St Mary’s team, “Very impressive young men who are both highly engaged and knowledgeable.” John Brolly, Marketing and Communications Manager at St Mary’s University College Belfast said, “This is the first step by St Mary’s in what will be a strong partnership with

Young Enterprise to develop the entrepreneurial skillset of our students. I would like to congratulate our Business Studies students who have shown incredible energy, creativity and speed of thinking in developing a business plan as well as delivering a product that deals with a significant issue in our society.” Carol Fitzsimons MBE, CEO of Young Enterprise NI said: “Young Enterprise is delighted to have St Mary’s University College on board with us this year for the Start Up programme. As the future teachers in the classroom, having the students participate to develop both their own enterprise skills, as well as understand the value for the young people they will teach in future, has been great to see. The students were enthusiastic at the Trade Fair with their product, which deals with a current social issue, and it is great to see them getting fully involved in the project.” Francis McVeigh, Associate Lecturer, Business Studies St Mary’s University

Pictured with the winning team of Peter Carty, Cahir McNeill, Adam Henderson and Darragh Hamill are John Brolly Marketing and Communications Manager at St Mary’s University College Belfast, Carol Fitzsimons MBE, CEO of Young Enterprise NI and Francis McVeigh, Associate Lecturer, Business Studies St Mary’s University College Belfast.

College Belfast “Students have put into practice theory taught in business lectures; shared in the vision and developed a business idea which is close to their hearts. The students involved are good friends, turned business partners, who have developed many transferable skills but most importantly students have experienced something

special, memorable, and enjoyable. The entrepreneurial spirit is very much alive and vibrant within the Business Studies Department at St. Mary’s, and we know that these fine young student teachers will become beacons in the future as they introduce similar Enterprise Programmes, in their own respective teaching career pathways.”

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FinTrU named in Financial Times Europe’s Fastest Growing Companies for the second year in succession

Darragh McCarthy (FinTrU Founder & CEO)

For the second year in a row, FinTrU has been announced as one of Europe’s Fastest Growing Companies by the Financial Times.

he Financial Times, in partnership with Statista, sought to identify the 1,000 European companies with the strongest growth between 2017 and 2020 to feature in their annual FT1000 Europe’s Fastest Growing Companies League Table. Commenting on the recognition, FinTrU Founder & CEO, Darragh McCarthy, said “It is truly an honour for FinTrU to be named in such a prestigious league table for the second year in succession. It is a testament to our

people and the commitment, hard work and ambition with humility they have displayed ever since FinTrU was first founded in 2013. Their high quality of work with our clients has led to our employees achieving this global award. Our client partnerships are very strong and we are excited for what the future holds as we continue to expand our product offering on an ever-increasing global scale.” FinTrU is a multi-award-winning technologically enabled Regulatory Solutions company, specialising in the areas of KYC, Compliance, Legal, Risk & Controls and Operations. Working with Investment Banks around the globe, FinTrU designs technology-enabled solutions to help their clients meet their regulatory obligations. FinTrU Chief of Staff, Katrien Roppe, added “As FinTrU expands into further global markets,

Katrien Roppe (FinTrU Chief of Staff)

these consecutive awards are a fantastic mark of recognition for the company and our people. During 2021, FinTrU opened additional global offices in Dublin and Maastricht to further expand our global reach and market footprint. This is an exciting time for FinTrU and I am very proud of our people in achieving this highly respected global award. Ever since our founding, we have considered ourselves to have a fundamental social purpose to create high-quality professional employment. This is something we continue to maintain and are very proud of.” FinTrU currently employs over 1,000 people worldwide across Belfast, Derry/Londonderry, London, Dublin, Maastricht and New York.

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Volunteers Called on to Reach Waste Removal Target of 1,000 Tonnes

Community and civic pride initiative, Live Here Love Here, is delighted to announce Belfast Harbour as the sponsor for the 2022 Big Spring Clean. Together, they are encouraging businesses across Northern Ireland to get involved with the initiative, which is Northern Ireland’s largest community clean-up campaign.

his year’s initiative, which runs 01 March until 31 May, will see participants across the country engage in one of three ways. They can take part in a clean-up, organise their own clean up, or add a signature via the Live Here Love Here website to join the growing movement of people who support the campaign. Since 2009, the annual initiative has seen hundreds of groups and thousands of individual volunteers collectively remove 800 tonnes of waste. This year, both Live Here Love Here and Belfast Harbour are encouraging businesses across Northern Ireland to take part and help realise the ambitious target set of at least 1,000 tonnes of waste removal over the coming months. Helen Tomb, Manager at Live

Here Love Here, comments: “We would like to thank Belfast Harbour for sponsoring this year’s Big Spring Clean. Each year, thousands of environmental heroes across Northern Ireland get involved to help make the Big Spring Clean a success and this year we hope that they will help us to reach our target of removing 1,000 tonnes of waste. “Litter can be fatal for wildlife and harms both human health and biodiversity, and the Big Spring Clean volunteers make a real difference both to the environment and to the wellbeing of their communities by tackling this very important issue. “I would strongly encourage businesses across Northern Ireland to visit our website for a list of organised clean ups that they could take part in,

Rosalind Skillen of Live Here Love Here, Jenni Barkley of Belfast Harbour and Chris Murray of Live Here Love Here

or to create a profile, register an event and arrange a clean-up of their own!” Participants who organise their own clean up between 01 April and 31 May and register it on Live Here Love Here’s website before 30 March, could receive a free starter kit containing a high-visibility vest, a pair of gloves and rubbish bags to support their clean up. Large groups can borrow litter-picking equipment for their clean up by contacting the Live Here Love Here team. Jenni Barkley, Communications and Corporate Responsibility Manager at Belfast Harbour, adds: ”We are proud to sponsor this year’s Big Spring Clean, as we continue with our ambition to be a Green Port. The initiative has made an impressive impact as Northern Ireland’s biggest volunteer clean up, with over 800 tonnes of waste removed to date and we hope that this year, volunteers across the country will get involved to help increase this to at least 1,000 tonnes.

“Our support for the initiative aligns with our Clean Air, Clean Water and Biodiversity agendas, which endeavour to reduce the use of single use plastic and to improve the water quality in Belfast Lough. “Our collaboration with Live Here Love Here on the Big Spring Clean is hugely important in realising these green ambitions.” In addition to the Big Spring Clean, budding litter pickers can register for Live Here Love Here’s Adopt a Spot scheme, which allows families, community groups, youth groups, schools and sporting associations across Northern Ireland to apply to adopt and care for an area that has been neglected. Free Adopt a Spot litter picking kits can be requested via the Live Here Love Here app, which can be downloaded on the Play and App stores for Android and iOS devices by searching Live Here Love Here.

Eye on News

Big Data Belfast Returns To The ICC

Big Data Belfast 2022 will return to the ICC Belfast on Wednesday 25th May 2022.

ith support from headline sponsor EY, this year’s conference will present the very latest insights into the world of data, with a variety of speakers and panel sessions across a range of topics including AI & ML, Environmental Sustainability and Governance, Digital Transformation, and Business Analytics. Now in its 8th year, Big Data Belfast 2022 is also supported by Aflac, Allstate NI, ASOS, Daily Pay, Invest NI, Magnite, MCS Group, Peak 6 and The Alan Turing Institute. In recent years, adoption of data-driven technologies has grown exponentially. Market intelligence agency Gartner predict that by 2023, overall adoption of data analytics will increase from 35% (2021) to 50%. The COVID-19 crisis has further

Launching this year’s Big Data Belfast conference at the ICC Waterfront are EY Director Shay Cullen and Analytics Engines MD Dr Aislinn Rice. BDB#22 is an all-day conference which takes place on Wednesday 25th May 2022.

accelerated the adoption of many of these technologies. A 2021 study by Google found that “32% of respondents accelerated or introduced initiatives around building out or improving the use of data analytics and intelligence” as a result of the pandemic. Big Data Belfast 2022 will be the ideal opportunity for organisations and individuals to connect with; and to learn from innovative business leaders from the technology sector and beyond. Attendees will discover how market leading organisations are adapting to the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. Analytics Engines MD Dr Aislinn Rice said: “We’re delighted to be bringing Big Data Belfast to the ICC this May. The conference has been a staple of the Northern Ireland tech event calendar

and it’s very exciting to be able to welcome delegates back to our event space after a very successful 2019 conference.” She added: “We’re also delighted to welcome back sponsors such as EY, Allstate, MCS Group and Invest Northern Ireland. Their continued support is a testament to the incredible impact of the event. We’re also pleased to welcome new sponsors ASOS, Daily Pay, Aflac, Peak 6, Magnite and The Alan Turing Institute and we look forward to working with them over the coming months. We have an incredible line-up of technology and business leaders speaking at this year’s event and we’re confident that this is one local audiences won’t want to miss.” Roger Eigenheer, Head of the UK&I Delivery Centre at EY, the event headline sponsor, said: “We are proud to support Big Data Belfast as headline sponsor for this

year’s event. Although the last two years have seen their fair share of challenges, it’s been remarkable to see how understanding big data and its applications has helped to keep communities and vital services connected in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. I have no doubt that this event will continue to bring brilliant ideas to the fore and we are delighted to work with the team at Analytics Engines again.” Shay Cullen, Director and Head of Data Platforms & Engineering EY, added: “The Big Data Belfast conference has established itself as high watermark both in terms of speakers and the quality of the event itself. We’re fortunate to have a host of pioneers in Northern Ireland across the full spectrum of tech disciplines, and this event is a fantastic opportunity to bring both local global minds together and we’re very excited to be supporting it as it returns to the ICC.”

Eye on News

Local hotelier ‘hopeful’ of green light for Portrush project

Andras Hotels, Northern Ireland’s largest hotel group, has submitted revised plans for its project in at the former Londonderry Hotel on Main Street, Portrush.

he updated scheme, designed by conservation specialists Consarc Architects, will provide 83 guest bedrooms and public areas which will include a cafe, bar and restaurant. Director of Andras Hotels, Rajesh Rana, said ‘We are excited at the prospect of moving towards a start date for this hotel. After lengthy discussions with the planners in the Department for Infrastructure, our architects have come up with a solution that marks a turning point in this story. ‘The designs they have submitted

are heritage-led and will make a genuinely positive contribution to this listed building. This sensitive intervention preserves the best of the remaining fabric of the building while providing much needed tourism accommodation for the North Coast. ‘The Londonderry Hotel is in fact one of two listed buildings that we will restore as part of the same project. The second building is the former Northern Bank, located just across the road, which will be converted into serviced apartments.’ The planning application was

approved by the Planning Committee at Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council in January 2019. Mr Rana acknowledged the support the project has received from the Council, saying ‘The Council have been supportive of this project from the start. The economic development team and elected representatives understand the need to restore these buildings, which are located at the heart of an area that has been designated as in need of regeneration by the Department for Communities. He went on ‘Our investment across the two buildings will total £10m and will create 48 jobs during the construction phase and a further 48 direct and indirect jobs when open and trading. ‘Our target now is to complete the project by the start of 2025 to

be ready for the return of the Open Championship. That sounds a long way off, but with a lengthy lead-in time for detail design and contractor tendering, and up to 22 months for site works, we really need to have planning permission granted this spring to hit that target. The Council voted in favour of the planning application 3 years ago. We are now hopeful that the Department for Infrastructure will give the go-ahead to this important project.’ Mr Rana concluded ‘We have a number of projects that are good to go in Belfast, but we are desperate to invest outside of the city for our first time. So many people have commented on how much Portrush and the North Coast need this hotel and I am optimistic we can soon deliver this for the area.’

Eye on Cover Story

Barclay Communications Growing For The New Future

Due to a period of continued growth and investment, Barclay Communications’ recruitment drive is surging. This month, Business Eye caught up with the company’s Founder and Managing Director, Britt Megahey, to find out how his growing business will accommodate the on-going demands of Northern Ireland’s B2B market.

Can you tell us a bit a bit about the continued growth you have experienced? “As predicted, there has been a rapid uptake in advanced technology. In such a short space of time we have experienced an enormous amount of customers looking to adopt more complex, technical products into their businesses. We have found that businesses in every sector are now expecting more efficient communication solutions. “With more complex technology its evident there is a greater reliance on providers and within these providers, the need for experts in their fields. “We continue to provide excellence in all our services and support. It’s easy to give customers a great product, what’s difficult is getting experienced staff who build, manage and maintain these products. It’s an area we’ve made significant investment in. Our focus is on offering the

full comms package and that includes on-going support from an expert level service team.”

What areas of expertise have you made investment in and how does this benefit the end user? “Mobile has always been our leading product, it’s how we understand our customers growing technological needed. Over the last 25 years we have been alert, ensuring the customer is always at the forefront. As technology advanced we needed to as well. “By having this experience, we have been able to apply the same customer centric approach to all areas of the business from our VoIP solutions (Voice over Internet Protocol) and broadband right through to a range of I.T solutions. “This year alone we have added over 20 staff in less than 2 months, all of which are deeply experienced and industry experts. We continue to add to our service

and customer support teams, however considerable investment has been added towards our I.T. and landline engineering teams. “Add to this a full-time Talent Manager with a background in technology and a multitude of qualifications that will help upskill and develop our staff, shows the longevity of our growth strategy. “As a business owner I completely understand how vital it is to have the right people looking after different areas of my business. Customers just want

“No matter the size of your business, the complexity of a solution or the level of support you need, our team are best placed to fulfil your requirements.”

to know they are in safe hands; that their business is cared for and their requests are actioned quickly. Taking this approach to our customers is essential. No matter the size of your business, the complexity of a solution or the level of support you need, our team are best placed to fulfil your requirements.” Barclay Communications announced a £2m investment to bolster its team, service offerings

and growth strategy. As part of this the company implemented a new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system and have recently completed a full office refurbishment at its Belfast HQ. Last year Barclay Communications won Family Business of the year and Britt explains how proud he is of this achievement. Britt Continues: “I’ve never been more impressed by my team and that award was for

them. We are a passionate bunch and I feel our customers really benefit from this. Many have been with the business for well over 10 years and this consistency and accountability is well received. “Being a family business and solely owned means we can make quick decisions. I’ve seen how this helps empower the managers to do the same, which in turn develops their teams. The only stakeholder’s we are responsible to is our

customers and that’s something I think everyone appreciates. “This was evident when we launched our Barclay Backing Business Grant offering 12 months of free landline services to businesses in Northern Ireland. A few months later we announced free broadband for life to new and existing customers. Both were well received in the market and we were the first Northern Ireland business to offer both incentives.”

Eye on Cover Story Where do you see the market moving to and the needs that come from it? “Reliability is key. When it comes to business communication, there is little room for downtime or error. “Mobile will always be the leading communication tool and as such has become a deeply mature market. The industry is settled, customers know what network they want and what handset manufacturer they prefer. “What has and will always continue to change is the Landline and I.T. sectors. I.T. especially is an evergrowing beast, as we continue to move everything online and to hosted environments. Customers I.T. has never been more vital and all the continuity measures that come with it. “This is why the right team and experience is key to not only manage the services but provide the right advice from the outset. We pride ourselves in being able to offer customers the largest, most experienced Northern Ireland I.T and engineering team in the telco sector, with our experts having, on average, over 15 years’ experience each. “The market will change drastically in these two areas over the next few years running up to the switch off of traditional copper lines and the ongoing cyber security threats. Many customers are still unaware of the impacts this could or will have on their businesses. The market hasn’t yet matured, meaning expert advice is a necessity.” How important is it to have rapid and effective response to customer’s tech queries? “I would say it’s critical, but it’s actually more than that. It’s the make or break. Businesses still want that personal connection to their suppliers, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. On-site visits is something we will continue to provide to customers. That’s why we are so set on investing in internal staff rather than outsourcing. Our staff see the value in building relationships with the customer and providing helpful, effective support.” Barclay Communications continues to lead the market, showcasing high profile and industry-leading customers adopting its technology. Recently it delivered the first contact centre on Gamma Horizon in Northern Ireland. This was for NI’s leading energy supplier Firmus. Britt: “I was really proud of this. We have

“We pride ourselves in being able to offer customers the largest, most experienced Northern Ireland I.T and engineering team in the telco sector, with our experts having, on average, over 15 years’ experience each.”

a great relationship with Firmus and throughout the pandemic we had been discussing new solutions with them as they were always keen on improving their infrastructure and customer experience. We were able to provide an omni-channel solution meaning customers can now communicate with Firmus via phone, smart call routing, and email, web-chat right through to text and WhatsApp via a state of the art contact centre solution. “We spent months working on the right solution and project management

planning. The first few weeks of the system going live we ensured our Product Management team were on premise to support. Working closely with our in-house engineering team allowed for a seamless adoption and we received fantastic feedback. We manage some of NI’s largest and most renowned businesses and this has continued throughout key wins in mainland UK such as Cambridge University or AG Barr (Irn Bru). “Our experience is what sets us apart and what will continue to drive the business for many years to come.”

Eye on News

Hughes Insurance Links Up With Air Ambulance For 2022 Hughes Insurance has announced that Air Ambulance NI will be its official charity partner of the year for 2022. The announcement sees a renewal of the relationship begun in 2021, as the organisation pledges to support the charity for another year.

he broker’s staff organised and took part in a variety of fundraising activities throughout 2021 to raise a total of £3,400 which was donated to the charity this month. Activities include walking challenges and a scavenger hunt. Air Ambulance NI works in partnership with the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, and

operates 365 days of the year to provide the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service across the region. On average, the charity responds to two individuals experiencing a serious or life-threatening situation every day. Each of the charity’s operational helicopters carries a crew comprising of a pilot, doctor and a paramedic, all of whom respond to traumatic

Grace Williams, Air Ambulance, Clive Stevens, HEMS Pilot, Emma Haughian, Hughes Insurance, Catherine Bell, HEMS Doctor, Caroline Bowles-Malcolmson, HEMS Paramedic.

medical incidents, delivering pre-hospital critical care. Emma Haughian, Senior Marketing Manager at Hughes Insurance, commented “We are delighted to announce Air Ambulance NI as our 2022 charity partner and to continue the good work begun supporting the charity in 2021. At Hughes Insurance, we’re committed to making a positive contribution to communities across Northern Ireland and Air Ambulance NI provides a critical service to people right across the province. We are tremendously proud of our staff for their commitment to this wonderful organisation and look forward to seeing their

good will continue in 2022.” Grace Williams, Area Fundraising Manager at Air Ambulance NI, added, “We would like to thank Hughes Insurance for their generous donation in 2021 and are excited to continue the partnership into 2022. Each day, it costs approximately £5,500 to keep our air ambulance service operational, equating to about £2 million a year so every penny counts. We would be unable to do this without support from the public and local businesses.”

Eye on News

Charles Hurst Creates 80 Jobs In New Sales Trainee Scheme Charles Hurst Group owner Lookers has launched a new employee trainee programme that will create 80 new sales roles – and prospective candidates from across Northern Ireland are being urged to register their interest.

he new, innovative six-month ‘Jump Start’ programme will include dedicated classroom and on-the-job training for every candidate keen to carve out a rewarding career in the thriving UK motor industry, appealing to individuals of all ages with previous experience in a customer-facing role. Mentorship will be a key component of the pioneering programme, with each candidate allocated a dedicated, speciallytrained mentor from the start, ensuring every recruit gets the best support and guidance available. Boasting an annual starting salary of £25,000 plus company car – and uncapped earning potential after training – Lookers promises best-inclass learning and skills development, as well as the opportunity to work with some of the world’s biggest

car brands including Jaguar Land Rover, Ford, Audi and more. The fast-growing motor retailer is investing heavily in its employees as part of its ‘people first’ strategy which underlines its commitment to promoting and nurturing talent and capability at all levels. Last month, Lookers confirmed its largest-ever intake of apprenticeships, with plans to take on a record 208 young people in maintenance, servicing and parts across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Steered by Danny Bishop, Lookers’ new Head of Learning and Development, ‘Jump Start’ has been designed to fast-track fulfilling careers in sales for ambitious people of all ages. “As one of the UK and Ireland’s automotive industry leaders, Lookers

Pictured launching the new initiative are (centre) Lookers’ Head of Learning and Development Danny Bishop with new trainees Asim Khan and Abbie Smith.

is roundly recognised for the quality, depth and range of car brands on offer and for the exceptional aftersales service we provide. We are also committed to leading in the provision of excellence in sales and customer service which is why we are investing in ‘Jump Start’, which has been carefully designed to recruit fresh, ambitious and friendly go-getters who recognise the importance of customer care.” In addition to a competitive kickstart salary and company car, Lookers is also offering a range of significant benefits to be a part of its growing sales teams, including access to its health and wellbeing platform ‘Smart Health’ which gives employees round-the-clock GP access and a range of support in wellbeing, fitness and nutritional advice. “The key to great customer satisfaction is to recruit the right people and offer them outstanding training with appropriate qualifications and continual personal development as part of an exciting and rewarding career,” Danny Bishop said.

The company also continues to invest in the development of its wider retail estate as part of its ambition to deliver outstanding working and sales environments for customers and staff. Welcoming the new recruitment initiative, Duncan McPhee, Chief Operating Officer at Lookers Plc, said: “The strength, passion and commitment of our people are behind Lookers’ success and I’m confident that our continued investment in learning, development, skills and training will continue to yield solid and sustainable results. Providing new opportunities, shaping great careers and supporting their careers is our top priority and I’m delighted that ‘Jump Start’ will help to spearhead new people with new energy to join us on the journey to even greater success.” One of the UK and Ireland’s largest and most successful automotive groups, specialising in the sale of new and used cars, vans and aftersales, Lookers operates more than 150 franchised dealers representing 32 manufacturers in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland.

Eye on Construction

NI Construction Professionals Less Optimistic As Labour Shortages And Soaring Material Costs Bite RICS & Tughans NI Construction & Infrastructure Monitor Q4 2021

Construction workloads in Northern Ireland fell in the final quarter of last year and surveyors here are less optimistic about the outlook than their counterparts elsewhere in the UK as skills shortages and material costs bite, the RICS & Tughans NI Construction and Infrastructure Monitor has found. Jim Sammon

net balance of -13% of Northern Ireland respondents was recorded for workloads in Q4 2021, suggesting that construction activity here fell for the second consecutive quarter. This was in contrast to all other UK regions where a firm increase in workloads was recorded. Public housing was the only subsector in Northern Ireland where a rise was reported with other subsectors such as infrastructure and private commercial experiencing declines. Acute labour shortages and rising material costs are factors cited by NI surveyors as impacting on activity here. 76% of NI respondents said that they were experiencing shortages of quantity surveyors – more than any other UK region. 63% said that they were experiencing shortages of other construction professionals and 71% said that there was a shortage of bricklayers. Regarding the outlook, a net balance of just 6% of NI surveyors said that they expect workloads to be higher in a year’s time. This compared to a UK average of 45%. With material costs rising quickly,

NI surveyors expect profit margins to be squeezed in the next 12 months. The net balance for profit margin expectations in NI was -24%, indicating that more respondents expect profitability to be lower in a year’s time. Jim Sammon, RICS NI Construction Spokesman, said: “There is clearly a less upbeat tone to the feedback from Northern Ireland than elsewhere in the UK. The concerns around labour and in particular, skilled labour, are just not going away, and appear to be even more acute here than elsewhere. It is very concerning that NI surveyors are less upbeat about the year ahead than their counterparts elsewhere in the UK. “The reality is that with the newfound ability to work from home, many construction professionals can find better paying jobs outside of NI while living in the low cost of living environment here. This is a new and challenging development for the sector. “The long-term fix is to the skills challenge is to attract more younger people to the sector but that may be insufficient to address

Michael McCord

the immediate problem which significantly, is being reflected in expectations for a sharp uplift in wage costs over the next year. “There is also a need for government to support the sector through, for instance greater consistency in procurement and other measures. But first and foremost, we need stable government and ministers making decisions for the benefit of the economy.” Michael McCord, Senior Partner at

Tughans, said: “The conditions faced by the construction sector make it a very challenging environment indeed, with material shortages, rising costs and skills shortages impacting Northern Ireland severely. It is very concerning that local surveyors, unlike their counterparts elsewhere in the UK, expect workloads to stagnate over the next year and profit margins to be eroded. The latest political instability only adds further uncertainty for the sector at a difficult time.”

Eye on Law

Evolving Cities –

Creating a Sustainable Vision By Andrew Ryan, partner at UK law firm TLT

Sustainability has never been higher on the agenda and rightly so. With a large percentage of the UK’s carbon emissions coming from buildings, future-proofing our workplaces and minimizing the impact of business activity is vital if we are to meet the UK’s ambitious net zero targets.

ince the pandemic, there has been a recognisable increase in the number of employees working from shared spaces and home offices. In this rapidly changing environment, new challenges have arisen in terms of what employers, landlords and legislators can do to achieve the best balance for our workers, cities and planet. Employees opting for firms that offer environmentally responsible workplaces, shared offices, inclusivity policies and hybrid working show the way for companies considering the value of sustainability. Investors and clients are also placing greater value on ESG [Environmental, Social and Governance] criteria before associating with a business. There are many ways that employers can re-evaluate their working spaces to fit the new emerging culture of hybrid working, and this brings in a variety of considerations from lease terms to employment law and data protection. Similarly, landlords have the opportunity to review and repurpose their properties to make them more attractive to existing and prospective tenants. Planning law plays a key role in these issues, for example, if a landlord opens cafes or gyms in their premises does this require fresh

planning permission? There has been a major move in England to promote flexibility in planning and this is one area where offices, retail, restaurants and other leisure uses have become much less complicated from a planning point of view. For example, revised use classes allow for flexible uses to be introduced provided they are for exclusive use of occupants. But in Northern Ireland the position is less clear. A wholesale revision to the Use Classes Order in Northern Ireland would be welcome, since this allows for changes within specified classes to be made without planning permission. It is this type of flexibility that allows landlords to adapt and meet the changing needs of their tenants. This is just one area where regulation needs to catch up with demand. Transport is another key consideration. Increasingly employees are looking for more sustainable means of travelling to and from work, and this requires a co-ordinated approach by planning and transport authorities. The unstoppable rise of electric vehicles poses a particular challenge that cuts across many issues. Public access charging points remain in short supply and Northern Ireland is trailing far behind the rest of the UK. Car parks both

public and private will require charging points to be installed, but how are the costs to be met both for installation and potential upgrades in grid supply capacity? Will landlords be responsible for charging points in tenant spaces, and how will costs be apportioned between tenants? Conversely, as cities move towards better and more efficient public transport to tempt us from our cars, how is this balanced against individuals’ desires to use and charge their own electric vehicles? Policy makers have a vital role to play. Just as employers need to adapt to this new environment, so do our towns and cities, and inevitably new policy and legislation is needed to drive this. As local councils move towards finalising their new local development plans, it is vital that the plans incorporate flexibility to adapt to the new ways our towns and cities will be worked and lived in. No less than two climate bills sit before Stormont with ambitious targets that could

act as major drivers of positive change. Business innovation is nothing new to Northern Ireland, and there is a willingness and desire to capitalise upon opportunities, but the potential to re-shape our work, living and leisure spaces for the benefit of ourselves and the environment must not be lost through lack of clear policy direction.

Andrew Ryan is a Partner at TLT NI LLP, based in Belfast and specialising in Planning, Environment and Clean Energy. Tel: +44 (0)333 006 0967 andrew.ryan@TLTsolicitors.com www.tltsolicitors.com

Eye on News Pictured at the launch of the new NIE Networks Scholarships at Ulster University are NIE Networks Scholarship Graduate Shona Burns, Ailish McLaughlin, NIE Networks Network Access and Response Manager, Dr Bryan Gardiner, UU Associate Head of the School of Computing and NIE Networks Scholarship Graduate Kellie Cowan.

NIE Networks Puts Weight Behind Engineering Talent With £30,000 Scholarships NIE Networks is partnering with Ulster University to offer first year electrical and energy engineering students the opportunity to be awarded a scholarship opportunity worth over £30,000.

he newly established scholarship programme will offer students a one-year paid placement with a salary over £18,000, an annual bursary of £3,000 towards tuition fees and paid summer placements, amongst a host of other mentoring and career benefits. As the power sector aims to decarbonise by 2050, NIE Networks are embarking on what will be the most significant change to the electricity network since rural electrification in the 1960s and the successful scholarship students will be fundamental in helping Northern Ireland realise

that renewable energy vision. Speaking at the launch of the scholarships, Gordon Parkes, HR Director at NIE Networks, said; “There is a significant shortage of electrical and energy engineering graduates and the skills we need in the energy industry. Through our pro-active collaboration with Ulster University we are committed to finding and retaining the talent required to deliver a net zero carbon future for everyone. “These scholarships offer not only substantial financial support, but provide valuable hands on experience working on real life

projects and the highest calibre of mentoring from industry experts. “Building on the considerable success to date with renewable generation, the next decade will see a major and exciting shift in the adoption of renewables and the deployment of smart technologies on to the electricity network. The roles of the future will be highly specialised requiring the very best of our local engineering talent and we are delighted to partner with Ulster University to find it.” The scholarships will further bolster NIE Networks’ offering within the higher education sector, building on its existing training opportunities including its awardwinning apprenticeship programme. Since first launching scholarships in 2007 the company has already sponsored 70 students with 60% of scholars remaining in the business and taking up permanent positions. Professor Brian Meenan, Interim Executive Dean of Computing, Engineering and Built Environment

at Ulster University commented: “On behalf of Ulster University, I would like to thank NIE Networks for pledging to support students with financial scholarships as well as providing excellent mentoring and career support opportunities. “Building on our already wellestablished links with the company, these scholarships will help to break down the financial barriers that some students face in entering higher education and will allow them to pursue careers that address the electrical and energy engineering skills shortage by developing their knowledge and expertise in key areas such as renewable energy, thermal technologies and smart grids.” Students in their first year of studying BSc Hons Energy, BEng Hons Renewable Energy Engineering and BEng Hons Electrical and Electronic Engineering, are eligible to apply. More information can be obtained through the university.

Eye on Charity

Action Cancer – 50 Year Anniversary For Unique NI Charity

Eye on Charity To describe Action Cancer simply as a local charity is to do it something of a disservice. The organisation is a whole lot more than that. Yes, it raises muchneeded funds to help cancer patients on the ground, but it’s also a carer, a friend, a helping hand and a crucial community resource.

“I

really don’t think most people realise what we do here at Action Cancer, unless they’ve come into direct contact with us,” says the charity’s Chief Executive, Gareth Kirk. “We’re very much part of the local community, and we’re right on the front line of helping thousands of cancer patients on their journey every year.” Most people also don’t realise that Action Cancer is a home-grown Northern Ireland charity and not part of a UK-wide organisation. And few know much about its history or its proud record of innovation. Despite the fact that, in a sobering statistic, one in two of us will be touched by cancer at some stage in our lifetime. Founded in 1973 by Dr. George Edelstyn, an oncologist at the old Belvoir Park Hospital, the charity set out both to fund research and support patients and their families. But, by 1978, it had gone a whole lot further and introduced breast cancer screening, a first for Northern Ireland and the UK as a whole. These days, 25,000 local people each year engage with Action Cancer services, 8,000 women

are screened for breast cancer and the Action Cancer Big Bus makes 200 visits around the region to allow patients to be screened. “So we’ve always worked to innovate, to bring fresh thinking to the battle against cancer and the care of cancer patients,” adds Gareth Kirk. The charity moved to its base at 20 Windsor Avenue in 2018. It’s a deceptive building. From the road, it’s a large period mansion typical of those built for the great and good of Belfast back in the Georgian and Victorian eras. This one was home in the early 1900’s to one Thomas Andrews, the naval architect of the Titanic and who went down with the ship in 1912.

The front doorway he stepped through for the last time in 1912 to join the ship remains, as does a grand staircase (not unlike the Titanic’s in miniature) and a wonderful stained glass window behind. The back of the building is modern and entirely different. While the old house accommodates Action Cancer’s management and fundraising staff, the rest of it is home to the charity’s screening unit and its growing range of complementary therapies and health checks delivered daily to cancer patients and their families by a dedicated team. “We’re proud of the fact that 80p in every pound raised is spent on

those services and only 20p on administration. We don’t receive any regular government funding. ” says Dougie King, Head of Fundraising & Communications and one of the most respected charity fundraisers anywhere in Northern Ireland. “And we’re also proud of the fact that we have a number of longstanding relationships with the corporate sector here - Musgrave Retail Partners NI - SuperValu and Centra, Gordons Chemists and Marks and Spencer.” The organisation generates income of around £4 million a year, about a quarter of that coming from its network of retail shops around Northern Ireland, the rest from corporate partnerships, legacies, charity events and donations. Action Cancer - to a large extent maintained its services to the public despite the obvious challenges of the Covid pandemic. “We had to shut our doors in March of 2020 but we were back open again in August of the same year and could start to work our way through a backlog of 800 or so women waiting for breast screening.” Geraldine Kerr, Head of Professional Services, heads up what might be called the services and care team at Action Cancer’s Windsor Avenue. Calm and concise, she’s the embodiment of all that’s impressive about the care professions. Those qualities are reflected in those working at Windsor Avenue.

Eye on Charity

“This is a safe place, a place to come for care, a place to come to talk, part of a patient’s coping strategy, if you like,” she says simply. “But it’s also a place that can offer a lot of different ways to help make a patient or his or her family feel better and cope better.” The range of counselling and complementary therapies on offer has been developed over recent years and nowadays includes aromatherapy, reflexology, meditation and emotional freedom technique (EFT), often known as tapping.

“So we have a toolbox of therapies and treatments which we can use to help our patients to cope and to relax and we know that these are very much appreciated by the patient, whether it’s someone who has just received a diagnosis or someone in palliative care. “Our message to them is that it’s important to live life now, not to go back to the past with regrets or to worry about what the future holds. That’s the key and that’s what we build our therapies and services around. Cancer can be very lonely, even if you are surrounded by friends and family

and we’re always here to help. It’s clear that nothing is really off the agenda when Action Cancer’s team members talk to patients. “There are the obvious things,” says Geraldine. “Lots of people talk to us about their fear of dying, for example. On the physical front, we can help them with scar therapy, another major concern in post-operative patients. But nothing is off limits. We’re here to talk and we’re here to help them to live their best life.” “We’re talking to people. We’re helping people. Cancer is just one aspect of those people. It’s definitely not what defines them. “We’ve been inundated during the pandemic,” she says. “Cancer patients like everyone else have struggled to get access to the medical care that they need and we’ve had to step into the gap in any way that we can. But demand is very definitely outstripping supply.” That isn’t stopping Action Cancer from continuing to innovate and extend its services. It’s currently preparing to introduce a brand new skin cancer early detection service, reflective of the fact

that skin cancer is increasingly claiming the lives of more people here in Northern Ireland. Chief Executive Gareth Kirk is glad to see Northern Ireland, and the charity, moving out of the pandemic era. “It wasn’t easy. Most of our staff agreed to take a 20% pay cut in the early days of Covid, and we had to survive for a while on virtual counselling rather than face to face meetings. Working from home wasn’t something a lot of our people could really do. “Then there was the fact that charity events didn’t take place and public donations were way down from the levels that they usually would be. So it brought plenty of challenges for the charity sector, ourselves included. “But we’ve continued to innovate and the new skin cancer investment is a great example of that. As an organisation we’ve never just done the things that others do. We’ve never been scared to do it the way we think it should be done. “That’s not our most important message, though. It’s simple enough. Support Action Cancer and trust us to spend your donation well.”

Eye on News

Danske Bank moves into the UK’s Top 100 Large Companies to Work For

Danske Bank has been named as 39th in the UK’s Best Large Companies to Work For, 2nd in the Best Northern Ireland Company to Work For and 4th in the Best UK Financial Services Company to Work For, in the recently announced Best Companies league tables for the first quarter of 2022.

he Bank has also retained its two-star ‘Outstanding’ Place to Work accreditation. The Best Companies survey celebrates the very best in workplace engagement. Accredited organisations have the chance to appear in up to four quarterly lists of the Best Companies to Work For, culminating in a celebration in November. Caroline van der Feltz, HR

difference, who help shape the culture and make this organisation a great place to work. I’d like to say thank you to all of our colleagues, both for their engagement in this survey and for their dedication and support through what have been a challenging few years supporting customers through a global pandemic. “The real value of this survey is the feedback it gives us from our colleagues in terms of how

Director at Danske Bank said: “We are delighted to have been included in Best Companies league tables nationally, geographically and in our sector, to have moved into the Top 100 Large Companies for the first time. “It’s our people who make the

they think and feel about their work and on areas like leadership, personal growth, wellbeing, and giving something back. The detailed feedback shines a light on the areas we’re doing well in, but also the areas in which we can do better. We’re committed to helping our

Danske Bank HR Director Caroline van der Feltz.

colleagues thrive and will be working closely with colleagues right across the business to develop action plans and help make Danske Bank an even better place to work.” Last week Danske Bank was recognised for its commitment to LGBT+ inclusion in the workplace, attaining a Bronze Award in the Stonewall Workplace Equality Index and bringing the company into the second quartile of all companies taking part. Earlier this year Danske also announced it had achieved the highest level of Business in the Community’s CORE Standard for Responsible Business.

Eye on News

Early career architects invited to pitch concepts for Storylines Design Competition

Ciarán Fox, Director of the RSUA, Wendy Langham, Belfast Stories, Councillor Ryan Murphy, Chair, Belfast City Council’s City Growth and Regeneration Committee and Ciaran McConnell of JP Corry.

arly career architects either born or living on the island of Ireland are being invited to pitch their creative concepts for the temporary use ofa vacant site on the corner of Royal Avenue and North Street, the location for the £100m Belfast Stories tourism destination. The Storylines Design Competition

2022 is offering the winning architect, or team of architects, a budget of up to £120,000 (including up to £30,000 professional fees), a mentorship and the chance to see their concept for a meanwhile use become a reality at this key city centre site by December 2022. Competition organisers, the Royal

Society of Ulster Architects (RSUA), Belfast City Council and sponsor JP Corry are asking architects to pitch their vision of how this currently unused space could be made playful for people of all ages, incorporating pockets of nature and creating new social meeting places. Chair of Belfast City Council’s City Growth and Regeneration Committee Councillor Ryan Murphy explains: “This is a fantastic opportunity for early career architects – they could see their design become a reality and help animate our landmark Belfast Stories site prior to construction, due to commence in 2025. We want to bring forward the most innovative, beautiful and creative meanwhile use to support the city’s ambitions for increased activation, greening of open spaces, and seeking meaningful uses for land that is vacant, pending development. “We’re passionate about reenergising and connecting our city spaces by creating more green space and greater cultural vibrancy, diversity and footfall – and architecture and urban design have a really important role

to play in our city’s regeneration.” The Storylines Design Competition provides an important platform for early career architects to showcase their talent – and to establish themselves in the city by taking forward their winning design in partnership with Belfast City Council. Ciarán Fox, Director of the RSUA comments: “Architecture and urban design must play an important role in helping to respond to the major challenges facing our city and town centres. So we want to see concepts that reflect Belfast’s Bolder Vision, demonstrate that our city centre is open and welcoming for socialising, for business and for visitors. We also want to see concepts which embrace our commitment to tackling the Climate Emergency and support vibrant and inclusive city centre living. Early career architects interested in submitting a concept design can find out more at www.belfastcity.gov. uk/storylines.The deadline for the submission of proposals is 5pm on 30 March 2022. Entries will be judged by an expert panel and may be exhibited by Belfast City Council and the RSUA.

FOUR NEW IoD NI COMMITTEE MEMBERS ELECTED

he Institute of Directors Northern Ireland (IoD NI) has further strengthened its committee with the election of four new members. Joining the committee are Alan Lowry, Founder and CEO, Environmental Street Furniture, Richard Johnston CDir, Deputy Director, Ulster University Economic Policy Centre, Claudine Heron, Director, W&R Barnett and Grainne Walsh, Director, Stratagem. Gordon Milligan, IoD NI Chairman, said: “We are glad to welcome our four new committee members to the IoD NI, as they join us in helping to provide a strategic voice for business leaders across Northern Ireland.

“They each bring with them a diverse and extensive set of skills from a broad range of business backgrounds and sectors, including manufacturing, education, research, and public affairs. “As we move forward into 2022, the Northern Ireland business community continues to face unique challenges, most notably Covid-19 and the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol. Elected based on their wealth of knowledge, insights and leadership, this addition to our committee will prove invaluable in helping steer the IoD and in providing support to our growing community of members as they navigate these issues.”

The Institute of Directors Northern Ireland (IoD NI) has further strengthened its committee with the election of four new members. IoD NI Chairman Gordon Milligan, centre, welcomed the new members, from left, Grainne Walsh, Director, Stratagem, Richard Johnston CDir, Deputy Director, Ulster University Economic Policy Centre, Claudine Heron, Director, W&R Barnett and Alan Lowry, Founder and CEO, Environmental Street Furniture.

Eye on News

BelTech Returns In Person For Ninth Annual Conference

elTech, the popular technology conference that celebrates and inspires the local tech community, is returning to Belfast for its ninth annual event. Taking place at Titanic Belfast on April 7, BelTech is back in person for the first time since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. A forum for the technologists of today to investigate the revolutionary technologies of the future, BelTech is this year curated by individuals from three of the region’s largest technology companies; Kainos, Allstate Northern Ireland and Liberty IT. Set to inspire a burst of activity among local innovators, BelTech will focus on Software Delivery and the challenges of making it to market. Sessions will cover the importance of multi-disciplinary teams, the challenges of working with live systems and designing technology for future change.

An opportunity to meet and collaborate with peers both locally and globally, BelTech will celebrate the latest achievements and milestones of local industry while also providing engaging and informative sessions for the next generation of innovators. Curated by technologists, for technologists, BelTech 2022 is supported by Kainos, Liberty IT, Allstate NI and Unosquare. A hybrid event, the conference will also be streamed live for those who wish to attend from home. Tom Gray, Director of Innovation at Kainos, said: “Northern Ireland’s tech professionals will unite once again this April at BelTech, a conference that has adapted and evolved over the past nine years to provide timely and valuable insights for the industry. This year, we look forward to delving into the area of Software Delivery, specifically the process of getting software ready for

Mark Brown, Vice President of Technology Products at Unosquare, Catherine Paul, Lead Software Engineer at Kainos, Lord Mayor of Belfast Councillor Kate Nicholl, Managing Director of Liberty IT Tony Marron and Kevin Higgins, Technical Lead at Allstate NI.

production and delivery to the market.” “Carefully curated to be a useful and beneficial event for professionals across all areas, it will also examine what’s new, next, and how those emerging technologies will affect us.

BelTech returns to foster leadership, advancement and collaboration and we have no doubt the opportunity to return live and in person this year will help inspire new partnerships, ideas and innovations across the industry.”

DWF Recruits 27 to Belfast Team DWF, the global provider of integrated legal and business services, has continued to grow its team in Belfast with 27 new recruits recently appointed across its practices.

he new positions, which range from Trainee to Director level, will supplement DWF’s key sector and practice area teams including Insurance, Employment, Real Estate, Corporate, Dispute Resolution, Construction and Banking. To support its expanding client base and workload, DWF also plans to recruit a further 25 new positions over the next 6-8 months. The business has grown steadily since entering the Northern Ireland market in 2015 and is now firmly established within DWF’s global network. Its 100-strong Belfast team has extended its specialisms to a range of multinational businesses, insurers, High Street retailers and supermarket chains operating in Northern Ireland. Ken Rutherford, Managing Partner of DWF’s Belfast office commented: “I’m proud and delighted with the growth of our team. Our track record, together with our strong team culture continues to attract the top talent which is further good news for our clients.” DWF has been recognised as a Top 30 Employer for Working Families and in The Times Top 50 Employers for Women for its efforts to work towards gender

equality. The Financial Times also regularly list DWF among the Most Innovative Law Firms in Europe. “As a business we are committed to hybrid working in a post COVID world – creating opportunity, embracing diversity, and being innovative in the

ways we operate,” Ken Rutherford continued. “We have launched our global ESG strategy and will ensure its principles and new ways of working are embedded across our business as further proof of our commitment to our colleagues and their development.”

Eye on News

Henry Brothers Sets The Bar For Sustainability In Construction Sector

Henry Brothers, one of the UK’s leading construction companies and Northern Ireland’s Responsible Business of the Year, has launched its strategy to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

he organisation, which is already building a new net carbon zero Nursery and Forest School for Staffordshire University and a £9m sustainable development at Loughborough University, aims to reduce total greenhouse gasses emissions by 2% each year for the next nine years and to halve CO2e emissions by 2030. The Journey to Net Zero strategy will be achieved through a number of initiatives such as implementing 100% hybrid/electric cars by 2025, utilising 100% eco cabins on sites by 2025, and enhancing its biodiversity by 2% a year. Ian Henry, CSR Director at Henry Brothers, said: “Sustainability has been at the heart of our operations for over two decades with eco-friendly

practices adopted since the 1990s and progress recorded since 2014. “The outcomes of our sustainability initiatives to date – which include developing the Henry Brothers Nature Reserve, creating the Sustainability Professionals Forum, and involvement with tree planting schemes – have been excellent, but the launch of our Net Zero Strategy is certainly our most significant commitment to date. “It comes at a time where businesses and individuals have more of a responsibility than ever before to change our behaviour and protect our environment. “Our Journey to Net Zero outlines exactly how we will achieve this ambitious goal by working with our employees, clients and partners to achieve a sustainable future that builds upon the extensive

Deborah Madden, Acting Group Environmental and Quality Manager and Ian Henry, CSR Director at Henry Brothers are pictured in the Henry Brothers Nature Reserve

foundations already in place.” Henry Brother’s Journey to Net Zero Strategy identifies how the company will review and implement new practices around fuel, gas, car mileage, electricity use, waste transport, air mileage and delivery mileage carbon. The reduction in each of these areas will be achieved through seven key ventures – reducing the operational impact, a Sustainability Professionals Forum, carbon literacy training, reduction in the reliance of fuel, the ongoing Research and Development programme with Queen’s University, tree planting schemes, and honest and transparent reporting and disclosure. Ian continued: “This journey comes with significant investments of time and money which will be used in part to deliver carbon literacy training for all of our employees, maintain our environmental learning programme, and research new methods of introducing renewable electric into our projects and working. “The buildings we are currently

constructing will be in place in 50 years so sustainable construction is required now to ensure these structures are suitable long into the future. Our work has always been of the highest calibre, and we are delighted when local communities directly benefit from it, but to now deliver construction projects that also benefit the environment is inspiring.” Henry Brothers, which has sites in Northern Ireland, Scotland, and the Midlands, has recently started work on Staffordshire University’s first net zero carbon building, which will incorporate a forest school facility, air source heat pump heating, roof mounted solar panels, and earth tube passive cooling systems. Ian concluded. “For construction to have a real impact, sustainability needs to be a vital element at all levels of the supply chain. Our partnerships with our subcontractors and suppliers are crucial to ensuring the success of our Journey to Net Zero and we look forward to working together to ensure responsible construction.”

Eye on Finance

Upstream - Truly driving global growth… Since becoming part of Cubitt Trade Holdings (Europe) LLC six months ago, life at Upstream has been transformed.

s Northern Ireland’s only privately owned provider of Working Capital into the SME and Corporate business sectors, formally becoming part of the Cubitt UK Group was a bold, but logical move. Cubitt was formed with a vision to become the UKs leading nonbank provider of receivables financing. They have already made a number of sizeable acquisitions across the UK and Ireland, and continue to have a focus on rapid expansion, both through organic growth capital for indigenous businesses and acquisition of other working capital funders. “We had several options open to us, but we were convinced becoming part of Cubitt was absolutely the right one. We felt our approach and outlook on funding options were well aligned and we knew, by becoming part of the Cubitt ‘family,’ we could do so much more to support the business community right across Ireland as the economy moves into recovery,” says Upstream Founder, Judith Totten MBE.

LARGER FUNDING LINES “Whilst Upstream continues to work at a local level, supporting ambitious SMEs, our focus is now much broader and includes commercial enterprises of all sizes right across the island of Ireland. As a result of our relationship with Cubitt we can now offer access to a full range of scalable, stable, and technologically empowered global finance solutions,” says Alan Wardlow, Upstream’s Sales Director. “As part of a major, international group we now have access to significant capital– which has been earmarked for deployment in the UK and Ireland’s commercial and corporate markets. The funding is all about enabling successful, growth-focused businesses to propel themselves forward.”

Alan Wardlow (Sales Director, Upstream); John Metcalfe (Acquisition and Relationship Manager, Upstream) and Judith Totten MBE (Founder, Upstream).

INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT AND LOGISTICS Cubitt is an international organisation that in addition to innovative funding solutions, owns companies that provide warehousing and logistics facilities to support businesses in their export and development strategies. In short that means companies can avail of capital to deploy more efficiently in their business, rather than tying up funds in their supply chain. For example, where product is being imported from say China and transportation can take several weeks. Judith Totten MBE explains: “Thanks to the fact Cubitt has its own global warehousing and logistics facilities, we are able to provide these complementary services to our clients in Ireland as we fund their sales cycle from supplier through to end user. This makes us absolutely unique in our marketplace and an ideal partner for companies who currently operate or have aspirations to operate on the international stage. We have already seen the benefits this can bring

to Irish businesses across various sectors including for example, trading commodities and medical supplies.”

GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY As part of its commitment to allisland growth, Upstream has begun the process of adding to its senior talent base by announcing the appointment of John Metcalfe as Acquisition and Relationship Manager. John has more than 15 years of professional banking experience. Prior to joining Upstream, John was a Business Manager within the Bank of Ireland mid-corporate team. Within his role as Acquisition and Relationship Manager for Upstream, John will be supporting current and new clients as Upstream continues to upscale. John says he was attracted to Upstream for a number of reasons. “I was immediately stuck by the enthusiasm and ambition of the team at Upstream, but what really sets us apart is the flexibility of funding packages,

speed of decision making and the partnership with Cubitt. Furthermore, as traditional Banks increasingly appreciate the value that complementary funders can add alongside their own credit lines, Upstream are ready to provide that additional support for growth. I am therefore keen to speak to any ambitious business owner who is seeking a bespoke working capital solution.” Alan Wardlow says John’s appointment is only the first step along the path of Upstream’s ambitious growth trajectory. “It says a lot for us that someone of John’s considerable experience in traditional business banking has the confidence to join what some still perceive as an alternative funder. I have no doubt we will be offering others the opportunity to join us on our journey in the coming months.”

Eye on News

Experience Development Programme Creates a Hybrid Hero in ICC Belfast

As the first industry to shut down and the last to reopen, the events industry was one of the hardest hit by coronavirus. Recognising how crucial this industry is to economic prosperity, Tourism Northern Ireland launched a number of programmes and initiatives to support the Northern Ireland tourism industry to rebuild, recover and compete in a fiercely competitive sector.

ne such initiative was the Experience Development Programme, which focused on destination demand generators such as attractions, venues and other experience providers. This programme supported tourism businesses to adapt their offering to meet the changing needs of their target markets, ensuring continued investment during an otherwise commercially challenging period. Following a successful application, ICC Belfast’s technical infrastructure has expanded significantly, and the convention centre is now fully hybrid by design. Technological enhancements made include 4K PTZ BirdDog P400 cameras in every meeting space as well as a

suite of encoders and decoders to allow connectivity between video sources and NDI installation across the venue controlled by a central ‘gallery control’ allowing full vision mixing and streaming of spaces. The interactivity of conferences has increased exponentially too, with remote and in-person delegates using Glisser, a hybrid delegate platform, to influence discussions and content themes through live Q & A sessions, polls and gamification. Julia Corkey, ICC Belfast | Waterfront Hall | Ulster Hall Chief Executive, highlighted the positive impact this investment has had saying: “We are incredibly grateful to Tourism Northern Ireland for this support. The Experience

Development Programme has enabled us to showcase the very best that Northern Ireland has to offer in terms of people and technology and the response from clients has been overwhelmingly positive. “In September, we successfully delivered our first fully hybrid large-scale event, the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EABCT) Annual Congress. “Over a period of four days, we seamlessly streamed nine simultaneous live sessions, with a mix of in-person presenters and 150 remote ones. There were also 20 remote workshops where experts presented from their own homes. On-site delegates were able to interact with speakers via their own devices, as well as with the 1,400 participants at home. “The expertise of our team, coupled with state-of-the-art hardware and software made this possible.” David Roberts, Director of Strategic Development at Tourism Northern Ireland also praised the convention centre’s achievements saying,

“ICC Belfast’s innovative enhancements are an excellent example of how Tourism Northern Ireland has been able to support the development of an economically and environmentally sustainable tourism economy. “As Northern Ireland’s only purpose-built international convention centre, we know that the benefits of ICC Belfast welcoming tens of thousands of delegates each year, both virtually and in person, are felt across the region as we can communicate our compelling offering and ultimately welcome more visitors to experience all that Northern Ireland has to offer. “Through close collaboration with the industry, we are confident that Northern Ireland will continue to gain global recognition as one of the most vibrant exciting destinations to visit, be that for a conference, a staycation or a transatlantic trip.” An e-commerce platform for use by event organisers has also been created by ICC Belfast which equips its clients with a digital toolkit to offer hyper personalised conference experiences. In addition to boosting the profile of tourism businesses of all sizes, it is envisioned that this product will incentivise longer stays and repeat visits to Northern Ireland, supporting regional and seasonal extension. Furthermore, the data capture functionality will foster tourism clusters in key growth sectors through the creation of highly engaged, qualified audiences that can be targeted with relevant content that is distinctively Northern Irish and unique to the lucrative business events sector. These innovations have earned ICC Belfast a spot among the most forward-thinking event industry suppliers. In addition to being shortlisted in the 2021 Digital Event Awards ‘Best Venue offering Digital Event Facilities’ category, the venue retained its ‘Most Innovative and Tech-Friendly Venue’ title for the second year in a row at the 2021 Event Technology Awards.

Eye on Cloud Communications

Getting Northern Ireland SMEs ready for the Big Switch Off When BT (now Openreach) announced in 2019 that it was permanently pulling the plug on its ‘old’ copper wire services, which includes its Integrated Service Digital Network (ISDN) and Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to transition to a fully digital network in 2025, few people were overly concerned.

ast-forward through a two-year global pandemic and many businesses would certainly be forgiven for not yet getting their head around the issue. The fact is, time is marching on and most forwardthinking businesses already have the ‘Big Switch Off’ firmly on their radar, have introduced the technology necessary to allow them to keep going or have, at least, started to make contingency plans. That’s because, from next year, SMEs across Northern Ireland will no longer be able to buy new lines or make changes to existing services. And that matters now. In fact, in Northern Ireland, out of all 193 exchanges operating, almost 60 percent have already been upgraded or are about to be overhauled and for those exchanges upgraded (14 percent), it means businesses now cannot make any changes and have little option but to make the transition. That’s how fast things are moving. If anything, the pandemic has helped to accelerate this transition. More than ever, our businesses rely on all things digital – from smartphones, apps, the Cloud, Microsoft Teams, and much more. Those bundles of copper wires packed into hundreds of mini exchanges right across Northern Ireland are fast becoming obsolete – and your ‘old’ phone system with them.

Protocol (VoIP) technology, replacing them instead with high speed SOGEA (Singe Order Generic Ethernet Access) broadband lines or FTTP (Fibre To The Premises) fibre optic cables which can seamlessly carry both. More than 14 million ‘traditional’ lines are now being urgently replaced in the UK, and the speed of change is quickening fast, particularly in Northern Ireland.

So what can you do? It’s easier and cheaper than you think, and you don’t have to do too much – other than act decisively with the help of an expert in the field. You could consider migrating your lines to a SIP Trunk instead, a cost-effective on-premises solution that allows you to embrace VoIP calling by either adopting a new phone system or leaving it as it is. A popular alternative to ISDN lines, you can keep your number, build line capacity and speed and reduce your costs while opening up a whole range of features that simply are not available on traditional land lines into one unified easy-to-manage system. Given the deadlines looming, our advice is to embrace this idea sooner and contact us to ensure no loss of service or business productivity while avoiding the ‘last minute’ bottleneck of orders which will inevitably take place. There’s also another, more comprehensive costeffective solution to consider - Hosted Telephony – which provides a range of fixed line and mobile telephony capabilities through an easy-to-use web portal, allowing you to manage your calls and staff productivity on a digital business platform, or app, which is secure, reliable and easy to navigate for little real outlay and continuous service and support. Alternatively, you could opt to replace your ‘old’ lines with additional phone lines that will run over your internet connection.

So what can you do right now? So what’s going on? Most of the communications technology your business currently uses is running on either ‘old’ ISDN or PSTN lines. In addition to your office phone system, broadband, fax machines and PDQ payment terminals, and even the likes of your office alarm system, CCTV, electric gates and door entry access systems all operate over these ‘end of life’ phone lines. With that in mind, it’s estimated that around two thirds of Northern Ireland’s businesses are not aware of the severity of the looming deadlines. Meantime, Openreach is swiftly but quietly withdrawing these ‘traditional’ lines in favour of Voice over Internet

Stephen McQuoid

Give us a call and we’ll take you through the steps and timing of the quick and easy process of switching

from a traditional system and explain the best, most effective option for your needs. We’ll even train your staff how to use any new equipment installed, including desk phones, mobiles and desktop apps too.

Stephen McQuoid is Regional Director, Ireland, Radius Connect. Radius Connect is rapidly becoming a leader in business telecoms in the UK and Ireland. For more information on Radius Connect and the wider family group of Radius businesses, visit www.radiusconnectsolutions.com

“From next year, SMEs across Northern Ireland will no longer be able to buy new lines or make changes to existing services. And that matters now.”

Eye on News

Value of equity deals surge in Northern Ireland The British Business Bank’s eighth annual Small Business Finance Markets 2021/22 report has revealed equity investment in smaller businesses across the UK is on course to double while bank lending has dropped close to pre-pandemic levels. Mark Sterritt, UK Network Director, Northern Ireland at British Business Bank

n Northern Ireland the investment value of equity deals was 226% up in the first three quarters of 2021 compared to the equivalent period of 2020. The 27 investments in Q1-Q3 were worth £61million, which already exceeds the £20m of investment in Northern Ireland in the full year of 2020. The report revealed a strong appetite within smaller businesses locally to take on finance. The proportion of smaller businesses in Northern Ireland happy to use finance to grow was 35%, second only to London at 37% of smaller businesses.

Northern Ireland attracts a growing number of venture capital investors A growing presence of locally based venture capital investors was also highlighted, with proximity between investors and small businesses identified in the Bank’s first Regions and Nations Tracker report published in October 2021 as a key factor within equity investment. In 2019 there were nine unique equity investors involved in venture capital (VC) in NI listed, but by 2021 this had grown to fifteen. Mark Sterritt, UK Network Director, Northern Ireland at British Business Bank said it was encouraging to see such an increase in the investment value of equity deals here. He said: “We know investor presence is a key driver of investment activity and it is encouraging to see a growing number of locally based

venture capital investors in Northern Ireland. “When you put this alongside the proportion of smaller businesses in Northern Ireland who are willing to use finance to grow you can see why the investment value has grown to £61million in the first three quarters of 2021. “There remains work to do to raise awareness of alternative finance across smaller businesses here, especially when you consider that the £61million was just 1% of the investment value of all deals across the UK in Q1-Q3, 2021. “Also, despite these strong levels of investment, there remain disparities in access to finance among different groups. Breaking down barriers to accessing finance remains key to levelling up economic opportunity which the Bank is committed to addressing.” In the October Spending Review 2021, the government announced £70 million to provide a new fund for Northern Ireland smaller businesses, to be administered by the British Business Bank. The Bank will be working with local stakeholders to deliver this increased support, with further details to be announced in due course. A further £150 million for the Bank’s Regional Angels Programme was also announced. The programme committed £10 million to Co-Fund NI back in March 2021, which provides growth capital to early stage, high potential smaller businesses in Northern Ireland.

Debt markets returning to pre-pandemic levels The amount of debt held by smaller businesses has significantly increased compared to prepandemic levels due to businesses accessing the government’s Covid-19 emergency finance schemes. At their peak in March 2021, smaller business debt stocks were estimated to be 30% up. Encouragingly, however, debt repayments are becoming a smaller share of businesses cash flow as UK economic recovery helps boost their turnover

Almost half of smaller businesses view reducing carbon emissions as a priority Additionally, the report found that in 2021, almost half (47%) of smaller businesses viewed reducing their carbon emissions or environmental impact to be a priority for their business and one in five (22%) would use external finance to help transition their business to net zero. Just over one in 10 (11%) of smaller businesses have already used external finance to support net zero actions. In contrast, almost three quarters of smaller businesses (71%) viewed maintaining or increasing sales to be a high priority.

Eye onOffice

Eye on Office

Serviced Offices Leading the Post-COVID Business World

IN the wake of the Northern Ireland Executive’s decision to remove all COVID-19 restrictions, Donna Linehan, Client Services Director at VenYou, claims that the serviced office sector will lead the way forward in a post-COVID business world and that it is essential for the wider economy that businesses return to the office. 40

onna writes… Two years on from the beginning of the pandemic, it’s heartening to see some normality returning to our everyday lives. As business owners plan for the future and what their employees working lives will look like from this point onwards, it is vital that companies return to the office, if not full time, then certainly following a hybrid approach. We’ve heard the reports that warn that cities could become ‘ghost towns’ if businesses

don’t return as companies and their employees truly are the life blood of Belfast City Centre. They provide so much business for our shops, cafes, restaurants, bars, gyms and public transport operations, which all play a key role in the wider economy’s recovery. Not only that but a recent Government report found that almost half of adults in the UK have experienced a decline in their mental health and wellbeing since the beginning of the pandemic. Meanwhile, an article in Bloomberg Wealth reported that poor mental health was the leading cause of sick leave in the UK in 2021, costing employers an estimated 42 billion pounds. Having more structure around the work day, more of a worklife balance and being able to converse with colleagues face-to-face by returning to the office could be a huge help when it comes to boosting employees’ mental health. Over the course of the pandemic, the VenYou team has also noted that more and more companies are moving away from conventional office spaces – that’s where the serviced office sector comes in. VenYou, a Belfast based bespoke serviced office provider, currently servicing three buildings in the city centre including the remarkable Scottish Provident Building, has been leading the way in the business world for many years, long before the outbreak of the pandemic. Part of the reason why VenYou’s serviced offering is so attractive is the flexibility that we offer, which is perfect for any business, regardless of sector and even those planning to follow a hybrid working model. Unlike conventional office spaces, VenYou does not offer lengthy leases which means that companies can remain flexible

and agile and can respond to market changes with ease. Companies are also not required to pay for utilities, rates or office furniture and we’ll even provide the tea and coffee! VenYou provides essential support services for businesses which means that they can concentrate on doing what they do best. Plus the fact, the flexibility that comes along with a VenYou serviced office, means that you can upscale, or indeed downscale, your workforce whenever you need to – perfect for any entrepreneurs just starting out on their business journey. In the event that your business grows or shrinks, we can also assist with the moving process and will ensure that your company experiences little to no interruption. In terms of service offering, we truly believe that VenYou is well ahead of its time and is now leading the way when it comes to the future of office working. To get Belfast back on its feet again after a challenging period, it will take a collective effort, but it starts with getting people back to the office. I’m confident that it won’t take long for Belfast’s wider business economy to start ‘booming’ again.

To find out more about VenYou’s service, call: 028 9091 8500, email: reception@venyou.co.uk or visit our website: www.venyou.co.uk.

‘We anticipate your business needs today to deliver the right service’ Donna Linehan - Client Services Director Jonny Hill - Operations Director

venyou.co.uk

Eye on OfficeDesign

Planting the seed for change B

iophilic Office Design. One of the most popular office design trends now, and of the future. In its simplest form Biophilic Design is the use of natural products in a space that helps fulfill humans’ innate desire to connect with nature. So why are so many businesses now using it as a way of transforming their business? Should you also be integrating it into your workspace? Businesses who prioritise employee wellbeing usually retain high levels of staff morale, productivity, and ultimately long-term success. Did you know having plants in your office can make you as much as 15% more creative and productive? As humans, our instincts gravitate us towards nature quite simply because it makes us feel better. Typically, we spend 90% of our time indoors, with only 35% of staff getting as little

as 15 minutes outdoors on any given day. According to the W.H.O. mental health and cardiovascular diseases are two of the prime contributing factors to illnesses worldwide and are usually stress induced. Studies show that our ability to directly access nature can alleviate stress. There is also proof that both direct, and indirect natural elements in your everyday surroundings can reduce your blood pressure, and heart rate! Having a thoughtfully designed, attractive workspace, full of natural light and biophilic elements can influence the perception of your business to the outside world. It shows who you are as an organisation and sends a powerful message about your social conscience and green-credibility. When we incorporate wellness strategies into our designs we address 4 core areas: Environment (light,

temperature, air quality, and biophilia), Physical (movement and nutrition), Physiological (stress and relaxation) and Social (a sense of belonging). You might be wondering how this all works if you are in a high-density space? Strategically placing biophilic elements in high-traffic areas or in locations where they can be seen will commission the greatest benefits. You might have plants to finish off dividing partitions, you might even have a large tree in the middle of your office, you might have a water feature in the corner, or you could opt for a living wall with moss in a busy corridor. One major benefit to using ‘live’ plants is that they transpire through their leaves. This process makes the air in the space more humid, which is excellent for combating the problem of dry-air, a widely reported problem in air-conditioned offices.

Whether you have a plant at the end of your desk or you can see the living wall at the end of the corridor from your seat, the benefits are the same. Is it important for the future of your workplace? We all spend a large amount of time at work, and whilst we are there, we want it to be a positive and meaningful experience. The environmental crisis has ignited a worldwide need to do better for our planet. It means office plants such as living walls are 100% justifiable additions to any workspace. Additionally, simply incorporating colour palettes and graphics inspired by nature or using wood and other natural materials can create an atmosphere which provides the wellbeing benefit for your employees. Are you ready to take your workspace to the next level? Contact the 1080° team, we’ll make it happen.

t: 028 9070 1080 e: think@1080.co.uk 1080 IS PART OF THE ALPHA GROUP

1080.CO.UK

Eye on News

NIHF Helps Members Zoom Ahead With Spring Webinar Series

McKees Managing Partner Chris Ross; McKees Partner Andrea McCann and Stephen Meldrum, President of Northern Ireland Hotels Federation.

he Northern Ireland Hotels Federation (NIHF) is helping its members ‘zoom’ ahead legally as it launches a Spring Webinar Series with Belfast based law firm, McKees. The webinars will cover key legal issues currently affecting businesses in Northern Ireland’s hospitality sector. 22 MARCH 2022 “What new licensing laws mean for hoteliers” 05 APRIL 2022 “Overseas Workers – Immigration”

The sessions will be delivered by McKees Managing Partner Chris Ross and Partner Andrea McCann who will be joined by Barrister Ryan Cushley. Chris Ross has extensive experience and expertise in running all forms of disputes including litigation, mediation and arbitration. Andrea McCann specialises in employment law and licensing law and is a recommended lawyer in The Legal 500. Over the past 25 years she has developed specialisms in employment and liquor licensing

matters. Ryan Cushley is a barrister, specialising in employment law and licensing law in Northern Ireland. Stephen Meldrum, President of the Northern Ireland Hotels Federation, discusses the importance of the webinar series: “The last two years have been very difficult for hoteliers, the tourism and wider hospitality sector. Brexit and the pandemic created a range of extremely challenging issues. We are now hopefully returning to more normal times and having listened to feedback from our members, the time is right to update and inform them on key industry issues. “The Federation is delighted to be able to team up with law firm McKees to deliver a free Spring webinar series that looks at post pandemic staffing, the introduction of the new licensing laws and changes in immigration rules for overseas workers. The series kicks off on Tuesday 8th March 2022 looking at staffing and its post pandemic ramifications. Collectively, the team at McKees has a wealth of experience in dealing with the legal issues the hospitality sector faces and their insights will undoubtedly be of great benefit to our members.” Chris Ross, Managing Partner at McKees, said:

“Northern Ireland’s hospitality industry has been the most affected by lockdowns and restrictions which has put immense pressures on all businesses within this sector. Whilst all restrictions have now been lifted, the repercussions of the pandemic are still being felt – for example job vacancies are higher than pre Covid, creating all sorts of employment issues. We are pleased to be partnering with NIHF in this series of webinars to provide help and information on some of the key legal issues that hoteliers are currently facing. The licensing and employment teams at McKees have extensive experience in licencing law and employment law and have been working closely with industry clients to help them navigate through these particularly challenging times. Joining me on the panel is McKees Partner,Andrea McCann, and Barrister, Ryan Cushley, who both have decades of knowledge and expertise dealing with the issues the industry faces in these areas. I am confident that NIHF members will gain helpful insights from the webinars and we’re looking forward to delving into the topics and answering any related queries that businesses may have.” NIHF members can register for the free Spring Webinar Series with McKees by logging on to nihf.co.uk/legalseminars

Schuh Moves Into Castlecourt After 27 Years In Flagship Royal Avenue Store

CastleCourt Centre Manager Leona Barr

anagement at CastleCourt Shopping Centre have confirmed that leading footwear retailer, Schuh, will move from its flagship store on Royal Avenue into the mall this April. With fit-out underway, the 8,000 sq. ft. store will complement Schuh Kids, which opened in 2015, trading from the ground floor of the centre, expanding the brand’s footprint under one roof. The development represents the brand’s most significant new store investment in the past five years, with all existing staff transferring to the new CastleCourt store.

Leona Barr, Centre Manager at CastleCourt says the move is representative of the confidence big brands have in the future of the Shopping Centre; “When Schuh opened its flagship Belfast store 27 years ago, it represented growth and regeneration for Royal Avenue and its surrounding areas, enticing even more global brands to the city centre. Now, with its most recent move to join us at CastleCourt, it shows the next generation of development in the area and the confidence our footfall affords their business. “Schuh will open next door to

Schuh Kids, resulting in a double fronted business with both offerings under one roof.” Scott Renton, Head of Store Development at Schuh added; “Belfast is a real ‘Schuh heartland’. It’s a city with some of the most committed Schuh shoppers and a fantastic student community. Bringing Schuh into CastleCourt next to our Schuh Kids store gives us the strongest fashion footwear offer in the city. It’s been a long time coming, and we owe it to the good folks of Belfast to give them the best Schuh shopping experience possible.”

Eye on Health

Cosmetic Mole and Skin Tag Removal Mr Chris Hoo is a Consultant Plastic Surgeon at Cosmetech and offers skin tag and mole removal and other non- surgical treatments including PDO Thread-lifts, Dermal Fillers and Anti-wrinkle Injections. He also offers Cosmetic Surgery at Kingsbridge Private Hospital. Today we interview him about minor surgery for skin tag and mole removal:

Q: How are skin tags and moles removed? Skin tags are a bit easier and can be removed by cutting, freezing (cryotherapy) or burning off (electrotherapy). This should be done in a controlled sterile setting to minimise the risk of infection, and they do bleed so the clinic needs to be able to manage this. Moles are usually excised with a scalpel. Occasionally they are shaved off but to ensure completion of the removal, especially if there are any suspicious features, the whole depth of the skin needs to be removed in one piece. Moles should be sent to the lab for pathology to ensure there are no suspicious cells. At Cosmetech we send all moles for pathology. Q: Does it hurt having these removed? If there is going to be significant discomfort the doctor or surgeon should usually administer local anaesthetic to numb the area. There will be mild discomfort as the anaesthetic is being injected but it is usually not significant and the anaesthetic takes effect within a couple of minutes. For very small skin tags, they can sometimes be frozen off without anaesthetic. Cosmetech has local anaesthetic cream which can be applied in clinic in advance of the procedure. We don’t like causing pain and make every effort to minimise it. Q: How long does the procedure take? Most of these procedures are very quick. A mole can be removed and the skin sutured within 5 to 10 minutes. Administration of anaesthetic and skin preparation add some time, and if several

lesions are being removed obviously it will take a bit longer. A skin tag can be removed in a matter of seconds but again, it is key that this is done in a controlled sterile setting (don’t try this at home). Q: Can I drive home afterwards? Usually there is no issue with driving unless for example the lesion was near the eye and vision was temporarily affected by swelling or watering. Hand surgery can also affect driving but the vast majority of these lesions are small enough not to cause a problem. If in doubt bring a friend or relative or take a taxi. Q: What about aftercare? There is usually a dressing for the first 3 to 7 days and, depending upon the operation site, sutures may need to be removed. On the face these are often removed between 5 to 7 days, but are left a bit longer on other body areas. Again these should be removed by someone skilled and experienced as doing it incorrectly can leave bits of stitch in the skin, or risk reopening the wound. After about a week most wounds do not need dressed but should be kept clean, and paraffin ointment often helps at this time. Depending on your surgeon, the wound may be dressed with ointment alone or sometimes skin glue. Q: Will I have a scar? All surgery which cuts through the full depth of skin will leave a scar. Skin tag excision shouldn’t leave much noticeable scarring but mole excision usually

Maypole Clinic 5-7 Shore Road Holywood BT18 9XH

T: 028 9042 3200 E: frontdesk@cosmetech.co.uk www.cosmetech.co.uk

will. The quality of the scar can vary depending on genetics. To optimise the scar we perform precise stitching, remove stitches at the appropriate time, and encourage scar management in the form of moisturising and massage. Scars can take up to 2 years to mature to their final appearance. If a scar does become thicker or remain red for a long time there are treatments such as steroid injections or laser colour reduction, but these are thankfully rarely necessary.

Surgical Skin Clinic Same Day See And Treat Service

Treatments available include: Mole Removal Tag Removal Cyst Removal Lipoma Removal Surgery Split Earlobe Repair Facial Threadvein Removal Thread-Lifts

Dermal Fillers Anti-Wrinkle Injections EarBuddies (Ear Correction for Babies) Aqualyx - Fat Dissolving Injections Leg Vein Treatment (Sclerotherapy) Pinnaplasty Skin Biopsy

Call 028 9042 3200 today or e-mail frontdesk@cosmetech.co.uk to book a consultation with one of our Consultant Surgeons. Cosmetech Maypole Clinic, 5-7 Shore Road, Holywood, BT18 9HX cosmetech.co.uk Cosmetic Surgery is also available at Kingsbridge Private Hospital Belfast. For more information please visit kingsbridgeprivatehospital.com Cosmetech is a partner company of the Kingsbridge Private Hospital Group.

Eye on News

New Manufacturing Leadership Programme Is Launched

The Centre for Competitiveness (CforC) and the William J. Clinton Leadership Institute at Queen’s University, Belfast have teamed up to deliver a new programme entitled Advanced Manufacturing Leadership, which is designed to develop the skills of those working on the production front lines in a bid to maximise opportunities for sustainable growth of the sector across Northern Ireland.

ponsored by the Department for the Economy (DfE) with support from the QUB Bright Minds initiative, the oversubscribed programme will run over a five-month period and has already welcomed its first cohort of students. For manufacturers to maximise opportunities for sustainable business growth in the age of Industry 4.0, leadership must be enhanced throughout the organisation. The Advanced Manufacturing Leadership Programme builds leadership from the frontline upwards, feeding the future of the manufacturing industry through investment in its people asset base. The course has been designed to provide additional upskilling and reskilling opportunities that will improve the skills profile of our manufacturing industry and support the DfE’s 10X Economy strategy. Split into eight modules, the programme is

Pictured from left are, Laith Dajani, Executive Director, Dr David Paulson, Professor of Practice and Programme Director and William Ussher, CforC Senior Executive.

designed to benefit supervisors and mid-level managers and help them improve their personal management capabilities; lead their team with confidence; to increase sustainability and implement practical tools and techniques for effective manufacturing operations and so much more. “One of the most valuable assets in a manufacturing company is its production front line management,” explained William Ussher, a Senior Executive at CforC. “They have excellent knowledge of processes or operations, they understand the recurring issues and are best placed to suggest improvements. This programme is designed to provide them with a range of skills to lead in a manufacturing environment. From tools and techniques to coach people, manage processes based on data, lead a continuous improvement culture, to gaining a range of business skills to understand company strategy, our aim is to equip these front line managers to be the drivers of cost and value and have a bigger impact on the business. “The DfE’s 10X Economic vision will enhance Northern Ireland’s key sectors and will strive to position the country as a global leader. Our aspiration is that the Advanced Manufacturing Leadership programme will play a key role in helping to achieve this over the next decade, by developing leaders who understand the need to embrace Industry 4.0 manufacturing techniques,

in an innovative and sustainable way.” Dr David Paulson, Professor of Practice and Programme Director at the William J. Clinton Leadership Institute at Queen’s University added: “Inspired by German leadership-development practices, the Advanced Manufacturing Leadership programme will focus on boosting a company’s productivity through developing the skills of its supervisors and team leaders. “For manufacturers to maximise opportunities for sustainable business growth, a range of skills including leadership must be improved throughout the organisation. The Advanced Manufacturing Leadership Programme focusses on building leadership from the front line upwards and aims to feed the future of the manufacturing industry through investment in its people asset base. “Alike most sectors, the manufacturing industry is facing a shortage of skilled workers alongside the many issues presented as a result of Brexit and the Northern Ireland Protocol. This course will enable attendees to develop the necessary skill and for motivated individuals, a pathway to company management and ultimately will help them to make a wider contribution to their company’s success. “We firmly believe that the Northern Ireland manufacturing sector has so much to offer and can only be further benefitted through unique initiatives like the Advanced Manufacturing Leadership programme.”

Eye on News

Carrickfergus Italian Takes Ulster Takeaway Restaurant Title

arrickfergus based Castello Italia has been named as the Ulster ‘Takeaway Restaurant of the Year 2022’ in the recent YesChef Takeaway Awards 2022 as well as being highly commended in the awards’ Ulster ‘Pizza of the Year 2022’ category. Hosted by YesChef Ireland the annual awards are designed to celebrate the stars of the Takeaway Industry in Ireland and as Programme Director, Nicci Smith explains, there have been lots of stars during the Covid pandemic. “We held our first Takeaway Awards in 2019 and little did we know what lay ahead for us all and the challenges that would face the industry. Food is not just a necessity it is a joy, a pleasure in life, a sensory experience, something that lifts us at the end of a tough week! “Owners and staff in takeaways across the country were on the frontline with a smile on their faces and a willingness

to go the extra mile. Restaurants pivoted to deliver takeaway food and throughout it all quality improved and standards were raised. And I don’t say that lightly, each and every business was independently assessed, and the standards were superb. I need to point out that researchers also found the level of service to be superb.” Discussing the win Artur Cufaj, owner, Castello Italia, which is based as 28 Scotch Quarter in the town, says: “We are thrilled to have been named Ulster Takeaway Restaurant of the Year 2022. When the pandemic hit, like lots of businesses we had to alter our offering to continue to serve our customers. We quickly re-calibrated and started providing a takeaway service, which proved to be phenomenally popular. As Covid restrictions eased, we recognised lots of individuals were still apprehensive about social interactions,

Pictured are (l-r) Jetmire Cufaj (Chef), Melisa Kukaj (Manager), Sameda Mustali (Manager), Meridian Ramaj (Chef), Jonida Cufaj (owner) from Castello Italia and award sponsor Patrick Dowling from AIB Merchant Services.

so we maintained our takeaway offering to cater for our loyal customer base.” Mr Cufaj adds, “As a business, we have previously won YesChef Best Italian Restaurant awards, but being so new to the takeaway scene and achieving this success is an indication that our approach has been right. We have applied our restaurant standards to

our takeaway offering and customers recognise and appreciate this.” Castello Italia, which opened in 2017, was born from a passion for Mediterranean cuisine. Its goal is to offer classic flavoursome dishes synonymous with Italy in a relaxed cafe and restaurant environment set across two floors and overlooking Belfast Lough.

Tim Hortons Opens Ninth NI Store At The Junction Canadian coffee chain, Tim Hortons has thrown open the doors of its ninth store in Northern Ireland at The Junction Retail and Leisure Park in Antrim.

reating 50 new jobs in the local area with a mix of full and part-time roles, the new sit-in restaurant and drive-thru will add to The Junction’s bustling food and beverage offering. Opening to the public today, the new development offers Tim Hortons famous great tasting, quality food and drink at great value in a comfortable environment that is welcoming to all. Longstanding tenant of The Junction, Costa Coffee has also rejuvenated its prime location at the retail scheme creating a modern, inviting café space with state-of-the-art facilities serving its ever-popular range of seasonal drinks and snacks. The recently completed refurbishment is part of Costa’s newly agreed longterm commitment to The Junction.

Commenting on the news, Chris Flynn, Centre Director at The Junction, said, “At The Junction we have created a space for customers to relax, socialise and enjoy themselves and the arrival of Tim Hortons to the scheme further strengthens this offering. The regeneration of the Costa Coffee store is also an exciting development, an already popular destination with customers, we look forward to welcoming coffee lovers to a fully modernised and refreshed site. “Coffee culture is growing in popularity and with an increasing demand for outlets locally we’re delighted that we can continue to provide the local community and visitors with a wide variety of options to enjoy a cuppa with friends or on the go.” Kevin Hydes, Chief Commercial Officer of Tim Hortons franchise

Celebrating the opening of Tim Hortons at The Junction are (L-R) Chris Toner, New Store Opening Manager, Tim Hortons; Geraldine Robinson, Regional Manager, Tim Hortons and Chris Flynn, Centre Director, The Junction.

in the U.K commented: “We began our journey in Northern Ireland three years ago when we opened the doors to our first restaurant in Belfast and have been welcomed with open arms ever since. Given the popularity of our current locations, it made sense to launch this newest restaurant with a drive-thru in Antrim so that we can make ourselves

available to even more people.” With a variety of high-quality outlets across the scheme, The Junction is committed to continuing to expand its portfolio with the recent opening of activewear shoe brand, Skechers, and plans submitted last November for a new £10m Dobbies Garden Centre, which will also include a food hall, restaurant and café.

Eye on Tourism

Tourism NI Links With Tourism Exchange To Drive Online Sales

Coastal Canters’, Sheans Horse Farm, Ballymoney, Co. Antrim. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Ireland.

XGB is a UK business-tobusiness digital platform that provides tourism businesses across every sector with an opportunity to generate online bookings, expand their channels, reach new customers and increase sales. Here in Northern Ireland, it’s being aimed at accommodation providers, visitor attractions and visitor experiences working with local council tourism authorities. James Berzins, Managing Director of TXGB, takes up the story. “We’re about growing the tourism economy and solving the problem of

bookability,” he says. “Research carried out by VisitBritain showed that a lot of tourism product in the regions wasn’t bookable online. The further you got away from London, the less connected it became. “So that’s where the idea for a B2B tourism platform came from. We launched TXGB and brought it to market in late 2019, just before Covid. So it was probably the best time you could think of to launch a digital platform for tourism....!” Tourism’s growth challenges prepandemic, says James, are much the same as its recovery challenges

Naomi Waite, Tourism NI

James Berzins, TXGB

post-pandemic. “But a disrupted sector is a less connected sector. One of our central roles is to drive trade between different parties in tourism. On one side of the market, there are a lot of suppliers and tourism businesses....a real tapestry of businesses. How do they get their product in front of the domestic consumer and the global consumer?

“On the other side, you have the distribution organisations, big players like AirBnB and Booking.com included as well as smaller local distribution channels. Our platform helps them reach previously unreachable suppliers” TXGB’s role is to connect the thousands of SMEs that need digital enabling with the key distribution channels serving the

Eye on Tourism

Enniskillen Castle. Courtesy of Tourism Ireland.

end customers. “The bit in the middle needs to be as solid and as efficient as possible,” adds James. But there’s also a data side to the TXGB platform. It enables organisations like Tourism NI to takea birds eye view of their market and develop agile and data-centric marketing strategies focused on the end customer. Big Data can also help drive the industry’s sustainability goals. Connecting to TXGB, he says, is a painless process. “It’s as simple as we can make it, but we also support customers through that journey. We don’t leave anyone to fly solo. Customers connect their product via a range of booking systems that have partnered with TXGB, or load their content onto the platform if needed and they’re bookable almost immediately. “We’re not a booking engine or a destination management system, we’re a dedicated platform that connects to the booking ecosystem that already exists,” he explains. “So our message to organisations here is to get on the ladder, become digitalised, transform their business and reach new markets.” Tourism NI’s Director of Marketing, Naomi Waite, reckons that the partnership with TXGB will be crucial in aiding the post-Covid recovery of businesses and connecting them to both domestic and international customers. “Online bookability is essential nowadays and we want the visitor experience to be as easy as possible. Customers need to be able to look

and then book and this partnership makes Northern Ireland more connected and more bookable and it will enable us to drive bookings directly from our campaigns “It will help us reach new customers and it will also help tourism businesses to refine and build their product offerings. As we encourage customers to Discover Northern Ireland, it will be a lot more effective with live availability and bookable products. We can work towards extending stays and maximising opportunities.” says Naomi.

“But, as James has mentioned, it also gives us access to much more accurate and up to date data, giving us an overview of what’s happening in our local market. There is potential for this to be a real game changer for our industry.” Tourism NI launched TXGB to the local industry at a recent webinar where both Naomi and James Berzins were on hand to answer questions. “We’ve had a great reaction so far,” says Naomi. “We had a lot of interest in the webinar. People are really engaging

and thinking about this very carefully. We’ve also had a number of sign ups on the back of the webinar event. Based on the initial reaction, tourism here will seize this opportunity with both hands.” James Berzins has been answering plenty of very specific questions around TXGB from operators here. “You learn by doing and that’s how most operators will approach this. But we’re really pleased that the reaction from industry in Northern Ireland has been overwhelmingly positive.” “Coming out of the Covid pandemic, businesses here need all the help they can get,” adds Naomi Waite. “This can act as a really important building block as the industry recover and builds up for what could be a really positive 2022 season. “The pandemic has made everyone reassess how they do things and what they’re looking for so this is a great opportunity to innovate and build for the future.” Tourism authorities, says James, are focused on growing the visitor economy, making it healthier and more resilient. “As things stand, what’s important is making a disrupted industry resilient and thriving. That’s the challenge.”

For more information visit tourismni.com and search Tourism Exchange.

Mourne Mountains, Co. Down. Courtesy of Chris Hill Photographic.

Eye on News

Lidl Northern Ireland puts stock in renewed charity partnership with NSPCC Pictured celebrating the announcement is Conor Boyle, Regional Director Lidl Northern Ireland and Joanne McMaster, NSPCC Northern Ireland Supporter Fundraising Manager. For more information visit www.abettertomorrow-lidl-ni.co.uk

Lidl Northern Ireland has announced the extension of its charity partnership with NSPCC Northern Ireland for a third consecutive time, committing to a new fundraising target of over £1.1 million by 2024.

stablished in 2017, the strategic partnership has delivered funding of more than £700,000 for NSPCC Northern Ireland through a range of activities and initiatives driven by Lidl Northern Ireland staff members across its 41 stores and supported locally by Lidl’s valued customers. In the last year alone, Lidl Northern Ireland staff and customers across the region raised over £100,000 for the charity and donated almost 130,000 meals to FoodCloud charities. The extended new partnership aims to surpass previous fundraising targets and deliver further help in supporting NSPCC Northern Ireland’s aim to empower children to stay safe and speak out against abuse and neglect. Over five years, funds raised through the partnership have contributed to the recruitment, training and support of 125 Childline volunteers across the charity’s two Childline bases in Belfast and Foyle. It has also supported the training of practitioners at the NSPCC’s two Service Centres in Northern Ireland to provide crucial support to children and families recovering from abuse. Lidl Northern Ireland has also supported NSPCC Northern Ireland’s flagship Speak Out Stay Safe Schools programme – one of the most highly demanded initiatives aimed at raising awareness amongst children of their right to be safe from abuse and neglect. Since April 2021, the programme has reached more than

45,000 children across Northern Ireland. Conor Boyle, Lidl Northern Ireland Regional Director said: “As a family retailer, I am immensely proud of our longstanding partnership with NSPCC Northern Ireland and all that it has delivered over the last five years. We are deeply committed to supporting our communities and our partnership with NSPCC plays a central role in that commitment, in line with our wider corporate social responsibility objectives. It’s been hugely successful for both partners and this is due in large part to the consistent fundraising efforts by our dedicated team members and caring customers. Each of our stores has a Lidl Northern Ireland NSPCC champion responsible for promoting the work that NSPCC does with our customers and colleagues. They are also responsible for fundraising activity which aims to engage local communities and families. Across 41 stores we have hosted everything from spinathons to superhero dress up days and of course our annual Trolley Dash campaign which has grown to become our flagship fundraising event. It has been very fulfilling to see this partnership develop over the years and the significant impact that our fundraising has directly made on the charity in supporting it to deliver vital services across Northern Ireland. It’s also been very rewarding for our employees and customers who have fully embraced the charity and give so much of their

time and energy to supporting our activity. We are honoured to continue this partnership for a further two years and help fund even more initiatives to safeguard and protect children across the region who rely on the services of NSPCC Northern Ireland.” Joanne McMaster, Supporter Fundraising Manager at NSPCC commented: “Our mission at NSPCC Northern Ireland is to fight for every childhood and, with Lidl Northern Ireland by our side, we have been able to build on the delivery of essential services and expand our scope to reach even more children in need. The partnership we have forged with Lidl Northern Ireland over the last five years has been transformative for our charity and I am thrilled that we will continue this to 2024 with a new pledge that will see the partnership break the £1 million fundraising mark. I’m proud that we are now Lidl’s established charity partner and I’m continually impressed by the generosity of employees and customers. I’m looking forward to the next two years working with Lidl Northern Ireland to deliver some significant new projects and campaigns focusing on our Childline service and enabling more children and young people, across Northern Ireland, to speak out. I’d like to thank Lidl Northern Ireland staff and customers for their amazing support and I look forward to seeing what exciting new fundraising initiatives are planned for everyone to enjoy.”

NORTHERN IRELAND’S FAMILY BUSINESS AWARDS ARE LAUNCHED Northern Ireland’s leading family-owned businesses are to be recognised in their very own business awards for the first time. Business Eye, the region’s leading business magazine and the team behind the annual AIB Business Eye Awards (now in their 15th year), will stage the Business Eye Family Business Awards 2022 this summer alongside lead sponsors NIE Networks and in association with family business specialists Harbinson Mulholland. “Northern Ireland has a really strong family business sector, from some of our very largest companies to a network of SMEs across every sector,” says Business Eye’s Brenda Buckley. “The Family Business category at our annual Business Eye Awards has always attracted our largest and more diverse entry by some distance. “So we feel that the time is right, especially as we emerge from the Covid pandemic, for Northern Ireland’s many family businesses to have their very own awards scheme, and that their achievement can be showcased and recognised.”

A planned 14 categories will cover areas such as Manufacturing, Tourism & Hospitality, Retail and Emerging Business, and there will be individual awards aimed at high-achieving family business owners and leaders.

“We are looking forward to seeing both up and coming businesses, together with established companies, vying to scoop the top spots and we would encourage all family businesses to enter now.”

Head of Stakeholder Engagement at lead sponsor of the awards, NIE Networks, Edel Creery, said;

Darren McDowell, Senior Partner at Harbinson Mulholland, added:

“NIE Networks is honoured to sponsor the inaugural Business Eye Family Business Awards. In what has been a turbulent few years for all businesses, the awards are a fitting opportunity to showcase the resilience of family owned businesses from every sector within Northern Ireland. “We have such a vibrant family business community here. We know how important it is to support and champion those businesses - it’s something we do every day through our connections and business support work, whether for locally focussed start-ups or those expanding to global export.

“The family businesses that we work with have faced down the challenges of the last few years with typical resilience. The ability of this sector to tap into the family values that run deep in their organisations will make them a powerful and vital part of the economic recovery. “It’s right that we should celebrate the contribution that this sector makes to the wider NI economy, so we are delighted to be a part of this.”

C ATEGORIES Emerging Family Business of the Year w

Retail Family Business of the Year w

A Northern Ireland-based family business which, in the opinion of the judging panel, has been making a real impression in its sector and which looks set for more success in the future.

Hospitality and Tourism Family Business w

A Northern Ireland based family retail active in any area of retail from supermarkets through to smaller, local retail outlets.

Hospitality and tourism has been through extremely tough times during the pandemic. This award sets out to recognise real achievement by a hospitality/ tourism enterprise, spanning pubs/restaurants, hotels and tourist attractions.

Manufacturing Excellence Award w

Next Generation Family Business Leader w

An NI-based family business at the leading edge of manufacturing across any sector. Evidence of the use of leading edge technology and a record of innovation will be welcomed.

A second (third, fourth…) generation family member making a real impact either by leading the family business forward or by playing a significant senior management role.

Service Sector Excellence Award An NI-based family business at the leading edge in the broader services sector. Once again, evidence of the use of technology and a clear understanding of the market will be welcomed.

Employer of the Year An NI-based family business leading the way in focusing on its employees, perhaps through employee benefits, initiatives and/or communicating effectively with its workforce.

Construction and Property Family Business w

Fastest Growing Family Business A local family business from any sector able to demonstrate fast and sustained growth, most importantly in terms of turnover, over the past year to two years.

An NI-based family business active and achieving in the construction or property sector - including house building, commercial construction, public sector contracts and property development/investment.

CSR Family Business Of The Year Food and Drink Family Business A family business of any size able to demonstrate a real commitment to corporate social responsibility. This could include charity initiatives, working at community level, encouraging staff to undertake voluntary projects, and other CSR activities.

The food and drink sector is exponentially important in Northern Ireland. This award will recognise a family-owned business at the forefront of the sector. Evidence of exporting and the innovation of new product lines would be welcomed.

Most Innovative Family Business w

A special award covering all sector of the economy but spotlighting the recognising real achievement in product or service innovation by a family-owned company.

Family Business Legacy Award This award will be presented to the Northern Ireland based family enterprise which has demonstrated extraordinary business achievement over the years, has contributed positively to the local community and economy and which sets an example for others to follow.

Family Business Of The Year Northern Ireland’s overall Family Business Of The Year in the opinion of our judging panel. This headline award will go to an outstanding family-owned business able to demonstrate achievement across the board over a number of years as well as a demonstrable contribution to the wider NI economy.

Enter now at businesseyeawards.co.uk SUPPORTED BY

Eye on Awards

Richard & Brenda Buckley, Business Eye, Edel Creery, NIE Networks & Darren McDowell, Harbinson Mulholland.

Richard Buckley, Business Eye, Edel Creery, NIE Networks & Darren McDowell, Harbinson Mulholland.

Eye on Awards

Richard & Brenda Buckley, Business Eye with Laura Bradley, Ulster University Business School & Alan Lowry, Environmental Street Furniture.

Edel Creery, NIE Networks.

Ciara Donnelly, Business Eye, Julie McKeown, Henry Bros & Darren McDowell, Harbinson Mulholland.

Brenda Buckley, Business Eye with Dougie King & Lucy McCusker, Action Cancer.

Nigel Crawford, Edel Creery, David Keys, NIE Networks & Ciara Donnelly, Business Eye.

Leo Callow, Callow Events & Siofra Healey, Community Foundation.

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Jim Burke, Hagan Homes, Richard Buckley, Business Eye, Paul Black, Alpha Office & John Toner, Hagan Homes.

Ciara Donnelly, Business Eye, Terry Cross, HInch Distillery & Richard Buckley, Business Eye.

Joanne McNeill, McNeill Communications, Richard McCluskey, Hinch Distillery, Lucy McCusker, Action Cancer & Treena Clarke, Harbinson Mulholland.

Ian Smyth, Mairead Mackle, Laura Bradley

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Richard Buckley, Business Eye, Paul Stapleton, NIE Networks & Ciara Donnelly, Business Eye Magazine.

Darren McDowell, Harbinson Mulholland.

Richard Buckley, Business eye with Jennifer Hood & Marty Colvin, HSBC Bank.

Darren McDowell, Harbinson Mulholland, Tracy Hamilton, Mash Direct & Angela Craigan, Harbinson Mulholland.

Edith Mercer, Robin Mercer, Hillmount & Brenda Buckley, Business Eye.

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Hastings Hotels Celebrates Double Award Win Hastings Hotels has picked up two prestigious awards including Best Luxury Hotels Collection – Northern Ireland at the 2022 LUX Travel & Tourism Awards for the second year in a row.

he company was also named Luxury Hotel Group of the Year at the Corporate LiveWire Global Awards 2021/22. The Travel & Tourism Awards, hosted by Luxlife Magazine, recognise those businesses that are offering the finest experiences, products and services in the industry. Whether established stalwarts, or up and coming newcomers, the awards endeavour to seek out the paragons who lead the way around the world and set the benchmark. The winners are determined through an extensive research and judging process which is driven by merit and centred around in-depth evaluation of skills and services on offer. Awardees must demonstrate expertise within their

field, dedication to customer service and a commitment to promoting excellence. The Corporate LiveWire Global Awards recognise excellence from all sectors and offers the opportunity for leading professionals and companies who have stood out for being results driven, innovative, and service focused to showcase their expertise, and highlight developments in their industry. James McGinn, Managing Director of Hastings Hotels said: “We are delighted to have once again been named the Best Luxury Hotels Collection – Northern Ireland at the LUX Travel & Tourism Awards as well as Luxury Hotel Group of the Year at the Corporate LiveWire Global Awards. These prestigious

Pictured following the announcement with Julie Hastings (centre), Marketing Director of Hastings Hotels and the group’s Managing Director, James McGinn (second right) are staff members Lyndsey Monaghan, Matthew Casement, Martin Mulholland and Nicole Kerr.

accolades are a true testament to the excellence in service we provide our guests. I am very proud of our employees across our six hotels and would like to thank them because it is due to their hard work and dedication that this recognition is possible.”

Holly Morris from LUX Travel & Tourism Awards said: “Hastings Hotels has demonstrated excellence and commitment in this industry, even in the face of uncertainty and more than ever, we believe the group should be recognised.”

NI Chamber hosts breakfast for HR professionals

orthern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NI Chamber) is inviting those working in HR roles to start their day with a Business Breakfast on Friday 25 March. This event will discuss employee engagement, the future of work in a hybrid world and creating an attractive employee experience. ‘Being Prepared to Pivot’ is an in-person event, delivered in partnership with Bank of Ireland, which will take place at 8.15am in Culloden Estate and Spa. It is open to those working in HR, people management and engagement roles across any sector. Sarah Milliken, Leader of Talent and Culture at Aflac Northern Ireland will share how the company has approached its return to the office and discuss the importance

of engaging with employees to create a model that works. Kathy Simpson, Head of HR at Musgrave will discuss organisational culture and employee experience, while Sive Molloy, HR Business Partner at Bank of Ireland will give an insight into attracting the right employees and skills in a competitive market. In addition, there will be an opportunity for delegates to interact, ask questions and network with others working in HR. This event is exclusively for NI Chamber members and is free for them to attend. To register please visit the NI Chamber website. The Business Breakfast with Bank of Ireland series is part of NI Chamber’s Learn Grow Excel business support programme, which is also supported by SME Partner, Power NI.

L-R: Sarah Milliken (Leader of Talent and Culture, Aflac Northern Ireland), Kathy Simpson (Head of HR, Musgrave), Mark Cunningham (Head of Regional Business Centres, Business Banking NI, Bank of Ireland) and Catriona Henry (Business Support Manager, NI Chamber).

Eye on Awards

New format as Workplace & Employment Awards return after two-year hiatus (L-R): Irish News business editor Gary McDonald pictured with business partner representatives (from left) Gillian Armstrong (director of business engagement at Ulster University), Ryan Feeney (director of public engagement at Queen’s University), Terry Hughes (senior vice president of marketing at Options Technology), Orlagh O’Neill (partner and head of employment at Carson McDowell), Elizabeth Toner (vice president of global talent at First Derivative) alongside Irish News editor Noel Doran (second right) and (left) and Siobhan Lynch (director of operations at Titanic Belfast).

After a two-year hiatus, the Irish News Workplace & Employment Awards, which has grown into one of the most important business awards initiative in the north, will return this June.

nd the initiative - which rewards exceptional people-focused companies and organisations by recognising excellence in the workplace - will have a complete new look and format. “I’m delighted to be able to say that the WEA show is back on the road,” Irish News editor Noel Doran told a launch dinner in James Street South restaurant. “In many ways our return represents a major vote of confidence for all our economic and employment prospects after such a difficult period, so it’s great that we have managed to reach this stage.” The launch reception was attended by number of business organisations as well as representatives of the initiative’s key business partners Options Technology, Carson McDowell, Queen’s University,

Ulster University Business School, First Derivative and Titanic Belfast. The Irish News Workplace & Employment Awards have evolved into one of the region’s most prestigious business initiatives, regularly attracting hundreds of entries and culminating in a glittering presentation in Titanic Belfast on June 30, hosted by comic Neil Delamere, who is best known for his hilariously quick-witted appearances on myriad panel shows including his long running tenure on the Blame Game and his live tours. This year the format makes it easier to enter, with each category including a two-part entry form, requesting background information and a 1,000-word submission standardised across all categories. For 2022 we have also launched

three new award categories Diversity, Equality and Inclusion; Best Company Connection; and Corporate Social Responsibility. Irish News group marketing and communications manager Annette Small said: “We’re thrilled to relaunch our WEA awards, which since their inception in 2006 have recognised the importance of focusing organisational strategy on businesses’ key asset, their people. “It’s people who drive and add value to any organisation, and our 2022 awards will be another celebration of the exceptional standards they demonstrate in different aspects of economy.” She added: “Everyone who enters our awards is recognising the importance of working closely with their staff at all levels, regardless of the size of the organisation, and how vital it is to have proper strategies in place for developing the huge talents which are out there in the field of employment.” Entries for the 2022 Irish News Workplace & Employment Awards are now open and will be accepted up until Friday April 22, with a judging panel

then due to convene on Wednesday April 27 to pore over the submissions. Mr Doran added: “We could never consider an initiative of this magnitude without the support of our business partners, and their endorsement remains a crucial factor. “It’s been an incredibly tough period for everyone involved in civic life here, but thanks to a massive effort across the board, a cautious and measured sense of reality is returning to our society. “We will now be extending the hand of friendship to a wide range of groups and individuals from all sections of our community at the Workplace & Employment Awards on June 30, the build-up begins from here. “It is going to be a wonderful evening, and I’m looking forward to seeing you all again at Titanic Belfast.”

For more information and details on entering the awards, go to www.irishnews.com/WEA

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Call For Cyber Security Sector To Play An Increased Role

The UK Cyber Security Council has revealed the significant role the cyber security sector will play by creating jobs and protecting businesses across Northern Ireland, as the industry’s importance grows in line with our increasingly connected and digital lives.

ith a joint ambition to ensure the UK becomes the safest place to live and work online, two high profile events held between The UK Cyber Security Council and the Department for Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) addressed the vital role the sector could play and the opportunities it could create across the region. From millions of digitally connected and wireless devices in homes, to critical infrastructure operations across energy, transport and manufacturing industries; digital technologies undoubtedly improve efficiencies, but have also created increased risks for cyberattacks, data breaches and hacking. Although these risks have increased in recent years, so too have opportunities for jobs in the sector – according to the Council - in bolstering the nation’s defences

against malicious cyber-attacks. According to a recent DCMS report, the rapidly expanding sector employs 52,700 individuals and contributes around £5.3 billion GVA to the UK economy, a 33% increase on the previous year. Comparatively, that’s roughly half the size of the GVA added by the UK’s agricultural industry. The number of active businesses specialising in the cyber security sector across Northern Ireland sits at 94 – employing around 2,300 individuals – an estimated 4% of the UK’s cyber security workforce. And according to government statistics, the average advertised salaries (2021) in core cyber security roles in Northern Ireland is £49,100 – two-thirds higher than the average £29,000 salary. The two events discussed the need for the UK to establish and embed industry-wide standards,

ethics and pathways for those working in the cyber profession by 2025, if it is to become the safest place to live and do work online. The events called on the industry’s practitioners to participate in helping to shape the Council’s future strategy and engage with the Government’s consultation on the sector, which closes on 20th March. The UK Cyber Security Council’s CEO, Simon Hepburn, said: “With record levels of investment last year, the UK’s £10 billion cyber security sector has the potential to create thousands of highly skilled and rewarding careers for people across Northern Ireland. “The two online events were designed to provide individuals and organisations working within the region’s cyber security cluster and business leaders with an opportunity to directly shape and influence the future of the profession. “We encourage those working in the sector to engage with DCMS’ ongoing consultation, as the Government seeks to address new measures to boost British businesses’ cyber security after recent high-profile attacks.

“The consultation asks for views on how best to ensure the UK Cyber Security Council is suitably empowered to be the voice of the profession, and to tackle the scale and diversity of the skills shortage which the government and industry seeks to address.” Simon continued: “Our other event provided the region’s practitioners with an opportunity to feed into and advise on the professional and ethical standards that cyber security professionals will follow throughout their career journeys. “The Council is encouraging those who already work in, or are interested in a career in, cyber security to engage in these forums. They will help us to develop and align both standards and career paths for a vital sector which will increasingly impact all our lives in the years to come.” As the voice of the UK’s cyber security profession, the role of the Council is to champion the cyber security sector and its practitioners across the UK, providing broad representation for the industry, accelerating awareness and promoting excellence in the profession.

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Broadband Firms Urged To Help Low-Income Families Media regulator Ofcom has urged all broadband firms to support low-income homes by offering discounted packages known as ‘social tariffs’.

fcom has found that only 55,000 out of 4.2 million homes in receipt of Universal Credit are using discounted rates. It means households on benefits are missing out on an average yearly broadband saving of £144 each. Many families are facing added pressure from the cost of living crisis. Ofcom said it wanted more companies to offer help to low income households and to make it clearer how people can switch to cheaper deals. It said that 84% of people receiving benefits were unaware of the social tariff packages. The regulator added that it has seen “limited evidence” of providers actively promoting their social tariffs to eligible customers while deals do not generally feature in broadband advertising or price comparison website searches.

fcom said a standard commercial broadband package costs an unemployed person claiming Universal Credit an average of £27 per month - or 8.3% of monthly disposable income. A £15 social tariff package would almost halve this broadband cost and use up 4.6% of disposable income, it added. Currently six broadband providers - BT, Community Fibre, G.Network, Hyperoptic, KCOM and Virgin Media O2 - offer at least one of the social tariff deal costing between £10 and £20 month. But other firms including EE, Plusnet, Shell, Sky, TalkTalk and Vodafone do not. Ofcom said it was now “calling on all other broadband firms to support struggling households by introducing their own social tariffs. We also want to see all companies promote these deals more widely, and make sure it’s swift and

simple for customers to sign up,” it added. Lindsey Fussell, communications director at Ofcom, said that too many broadband firms are “failing” in their “moral imperative” to either promote or offer social tariffs. “We expect companies to step up support for those on low incomes, and we’ll be watching their response,” she said. Talk Talk said that it had a partnership

with the Department for Work and Pensions which offers free connectivity for six months. Vodafone UK said its cheapest broadband was priced at £18 per month and this deal was available to all families. A spokesperson for EE said its home essentials package “makes access to fast, reliable broadband more affordable for those who need it the most”.

10-Minute Grocery Delivery Becomes A Reality

t might be a while before it’s here in Northern Ireland, but Deliveroo is trialling rapid grocery deliveries with GB supermarket Waitrose in the latest sign that competition is intensifying in the on-demand grocery delivery sector. The trial will take place at a deliveryonly store opening in Bermondsey,

London, later this month. Customers in the vicinity will be able to order up to 1,000 Waitrose items such as ready meals, vegetables and snacks via the Deliveroo app. Deliveroo’s core business is restaurant deliveries but in September last year it launched Hop, its service

that aims to deliver groceries in “as little as ten minutes”. It partnered with supermarket Morrisons for its first trial in Vauxhall and Battersea in London. The service marked Deliveroo’s entry into rapid deliveries, where it competes with the likes of Zapp, Getir and Gorillas. “It’s important that we continue to evolve along with shopping behaviour to give our customers more options for how and when they want to shop with us,” said James Bailey, executive director, Waitrose. “Deliveroo has given us more flexibility in meeting customers’ needs and expanding our successful partnership to trial ‘Hop’ gives us an exciting opportunity to introduce more new customers to the excellent food and drink we offer.” However, not everyone is convinced by the economics of rapid delivery. In December, Ocado Retail CEO Melanie Smith said she “struggles to see the profitability” for

companies operating in the space. Despite concerns, investors have continued to pour money into rapid delivery startups, with that cash effectively subsidising low-cost deliveries. Berlin-based rapid delivery startup Gorillas raised “close to” $1bn in October, giving it a $2.1bn valuation just one year after it was founded by CEO Kağan Sümer. US-based Gopuff is valued at $15bn (£11.3bn) – nearly as much as London-stock exchange-listed Ocado Group at £12.2bn. In November, Turkey-headquartered rapid delivery startup Getir acquired UK rival Weezy, suggesting that market consolidation may be vital for smaller players to survive. Last month, London-based Zapp secured $200m in a Series B round, bringing its total funding to $300m. Deliveroo became a public company last year in a lacklustre direct listing on the London Stock Exchange.

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CRYPTO ASSETS A THREAT TO FINANCIAL SYSTEMS? The booming crypto assets market could pose a serious threat to financial stability if regulators fail to take action, a global watchdog has said.

he Financial Stability Board (FSB), which monitors financial authorities in 24 countries, is concerned that the scale and structural vulnerabilities of crypto markets – as well as increasing interconnectedness with traditional financial systems – have the potential to cause significant disturbance to the global economy. “Although the extent and nature of use of crypto assets varies somewhat across jurisdictions, financial stability risks could rapidly escalate, underscoring the need for timely and pre-emptive evaluation of possible policy responses,” the Swiss-based body said in a report. “Systemically important banks and other financial institutions are increasingly willing to undertake activities in, and gain exposures to, crypto assets. The prevalence of more complex investment strategies, including through derivatives and other leveraged products that reference crypto assets, also has increased. “If the current trajectory of growth in scale and interconnectedness of crypto assets to these institutions were to continue, this could have implications for global financial stability.” The report estimated that crypto asset market capitalisation grew 3.5 times in 2021

to a value of $2.6tn (£1.9tn). It noted that crypto assets remain a small part of the overall financial system, but likened the risk to the sub-prime mortgage exposure that sparked the financial crisis of 2007-8. “If financial institutions continue to become more involved in crypto asset markets, this could affect their balance sheets and liquidity in unexpected ways,” the FSB continued. “As in the case of the US sub-prime mortgage crisis, a small amount of known exposure does not necessarily mean a small amount of risk, particularly if there exists a lack of transparency and insufficient regulatory coverage.” The report examined the vulnerabilities of three aspects of crypto assets markets, including unbacked currencies such as bitcoin; stablecoins such as tether, which is backed by reserve assets; decentralised finance (DeFi) and crypto asset trading platforms. All exist online only and are not regulated by a centralised body. Of particular concern is the structure of stablecoins, which leaves consumers vulnerable to high credit and operational risks, liquidity mismatch and sudden runs on their reserves. Unbacked currency also carries the risk of high price volatility. Other concerns include the environmental impact of energy-sucking

mechanisms used for certain crypto assets, as well as public policy issues, such as its use for money laundering, ransomware and cybercrime. The FSB has no binding regulatory jurisdiction over countries, but rather monitors the financial system and advises policymakers on best practice. Among its members is the Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey. Regulators including the Financial Conduct Authority have previously warned over the risks in buying cryptocurrencies, such as ones promoted by celebrity influencers including Kim Kardashian West. The FSB promised to continue to monitor developments and risks in the crypto asset markets, as well as explore the supervisory implications of unbacked assets, in order to help member states address the associated threats to financial stability. “Given the international and diverse nature of the crypto asset markets, authorities globally [need to] prioritise cross-border and crosssectoral cooperation,” the report concluded. “Efforts to enhance monitoring and to minimise regulatory arbitrage through further cooperation and information sharing are needed to keep pace with crypto asset developments.”

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Call For Electric Vehicle & Charging Watchdog Body

The UK car industry has called for a watchdog to oversee electric car charging prices and the availability of charge points.

he growth in electric vehicles sales is outstripping the rollout of charging points, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said. It said a

regulator is needed to monitor the market. The government said it was providing £1.3bn to expand the charging network. Over the decade between 2011 and 2021 the number of charge points in the UK jumped from about 1,500 to more than 48,000, according to industry figures. But between 2019 and 2021 the number of electric cars on the road increased much faster than charge points were being rolled out. Moreover, the charge point rollout was uneven, going faster in the south of England than in the north, the industry body said. Northern Ireland is known to lag well behind other UK regions. The SMMT called on the government to set up a new regulator called “Ofcharge”

- the Office of Charging - to monitor the market. Public charging points “remain critical to consumer confidence and are still relied upon by many commercial fleets, as well as the third of British households that do not have designated off-street parking,” the SMMT added. Electric vehicles are seen as a way to cut greenhouse gas emissions from transport. But while there is soaring interest in electric cars, this hasn’t yet translated into vehicles on the road. In 2020, the number of battery electric cars on the road increased by 114% to a record high of just under 200,000, while the number of plug-in hybrids jumped 35% to just under 240,000. There has also

been a sharp increase in interest in second-hand electric cars. However, electric cars remain a tiny fraction of the cars on UK roads, representing just 1.3% of the total. Businesses have been leading the way with fleet purchases, but the car industry is pushing for consumers to buy into electric cars too. However, many people have concerns about electric cars, with two of the main ones being the cost of buying a car, and whether there are enough charge points, including for longer journeys, the car industry says. Last summer MPs also raised concerns about the cost of public charging, saying it was far more expensive than charging a car at home. Energy prices have soared since then. Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, called for “clear targets” and more government support for rolling out charge points. A Department for Transport spokesperson said the government was providing more than £1.3bn “to support the continued roll-out of charge points at homes, businesses and on residential streets across the UK, levelling up our charge point provision while supporting the deployment of rapid charge points on motorways and major A roads.” The government will publish its electric vehicle infrastructure plan soon, the spokesperson said, adding: “We continue to work with local authorities to ensure they are engaged in the transition, and are encouraging them to make use of the on-street residential charge point scheme which last year committed £20m for the rollout of public charge points in residential areas.”

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Sony Goes Mini With New Headphones Sony has launched a new line of Cheerios-shaped wireless headphones for people who want to be able to hear the world around them while listening to music or podcasts.

he LinkBuds - available for £149 - have adopted a novel approach to the challenge, something often of concern to runners who fear missing the dreaded cyclist’s bell from behind. Some headphone models like Apple’s AirPods have a transparency mode that amplifies ambient sounds. Others, like Shokz, use bone conduction to relay sounds to their wearers through vibrations in their cheeks while leaving their ears uncovered. But the LinkBuds use a 12mm ringshaped driver that has an actual hole in the middle, allowing sounds to pass straight through to an unobstructed ear canal. “Never off” is the advertising slogan the Japanese technology giant has chosen to run with, due to the LinkBuds 5.5 hour battery life and the ability for people to continue wearing them even while having conversations.

The new devices come in white and dark grey and are partly made from recycled materials, which does give them a noticeable dirty look as if they’ve picked up dust and fluff. Sony, which of course pioneered the Walkman back in 1979, has an extensive range of headphones including several that offer complete ear coverage. Some of those other models might be preferable for committed audiophiles, according

to reviews, many of which say the Cheeriosshaped style means the LinkBuds struggle to deliver as much bass as they would like. Another unusual design feature which Sony has included recognises the challenges of pressing the LinkBuds themselves. Instead wearers are able to tap just in front of their ears to control them, with the buds able to recognise a series of gestures through the vibrations.

The Battle For Tech Talent Hots Up British challenger bank Monzo is introducing a threemonth paid sabbatical for its employees in the latest example of companies revamping working practices to attract and retain top talent.

taff who have worked at the digital bank for four years will be able to take a total of three months’ paid leave, either in one block or one month at a time. The new perk is in addition to Monzo’s existing policy of allowing its 2,100 staff to take a one-month unpaid sabbatical per year. “We’re always looking to introduce best-inclass policies for our employees,” Tara Ryan,

Monzo’s head of human resources, told the Financial Times, which first reported the news. “Our people are essential to our mission of making money work for everyone and investing in them is a priority as we continue to grow.” Monzo’s sabbatical perk is the latest example of companies introducing measures designed to improve work-life balance for staff amid a highly active employees’ job market. In November, UK fintech Atom Bank introduced a four-day workweek without any cut in pay. Last month around 30 UK organisations began a six-month pilot for a four-day week, designed to measure the impact reduced hours will have on productivity, employee wellbeing and gender equality. Last year Monzo introduced extra paid leave to employees who experience the loss of a pregnancy or are undergoing fertility treatment. Monzo’s sabbatical announcement follows its $500m funding round in December, which gave

the London-based fintech a valuation of $4.5bn. It came after a turbulent two years for the challenger bank, with the pandemic scuppering plans to break into the US market and its founder Tom Blomfield stepped down last spring.

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It’s a Family Affair Award winning accountancy firm Harbinson Mulholland recently held the 2nd in a series of events focusing on “Female Leaders in Family Business”

Over 40 family business leaders enjoyed lunch in the Europa Hotel and an insightful interview from Mairead Mackle MBE, Tarasis Enterprises. Mairead spoke with host Sarah Travers, detailing her incredible business journey, her support of female entrepreneurs, her passion for creating social impact and her “business for good” mantra.

The next event is in the planning stages and if you would like be kept updated on this please connect with Treena Clarke – by email: tclarke@harbinson-mulholland.com or on LinkedIn @treenaclarke, Head of Marketing, Harbinson Mulholland.

Sarah Travers (centre) with Clare McCarrison (L) and Joan Rice (R), Harbinson Mulholland

Angela Craigan, Harbinson Mulholland, Sarah Travers (Host) & Mairead Mackle, Tarasis Enterprises.

Jennifer McKeever, Airporter, Sarah Travers & Caroline O’Neill, Digg Mama.

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Musgrave NI Support for UNICEF Ukraine Crisis Appeal Musgrave NI has announced the launch of a major fundraising campaign to support people impacted by the crisis in Ukraine.

rom tomorrow (Thursday, March 3rd), shoppers in SuperValu and Centra will be able to donate £2 in Northern Ireland via a simple “Tap to Donate” mechanism at the till. In the coming days, shoppers in Musgrave MarketPlace and Mace will also be able to donate. 100 percent of the funds donated will go directly to help support the immediate humanitarian response. As part of the campaign, Musgrave Group will donate over £200,000 to two charities who are actively supporting

people on the ground in Ukraine: UNICEF and the Irish Red Cross. Trevor Magill, managing director of Musgrave NI, said: “In recent days, our thoughts have been with all Ukrainian people and our colleagues and friends from Ukraine. Our main concern is for the safety of people in the region, and Musgrave NI, together with our retail partners, colleagues, and customers, want to do what we can to help. UNICEF told us that donating money is the fastest and most effective way to help those affected by this crisis at this time. For this reason, Musgrave is contributing £200,000 to UNICEF and the Irish Red Cross. We are also encouraging our customers in Northern Ireland to donate across our retail and wholesale brands to UNICEF, who are delivering life-saving supplies to children trapped in this conflict.” Commenting on the appeal, UNICEF Ireland Executive Director Peter Power said: “The children of Ukraine need help now.

Trevor Magill, managing director of Musgrave NI

Through this action by Musgrave and their customers, UNICEF will be able to protect more children living in conflict and scale up our life-saving programmes for children.”

POWER NI SHARES SUSTAINABILITY PLANS Power NI has met with Lord Mayor of Belfast Kate Nicholl to discuss the role they are playing in powering Northern Ireland in a cleaner, greener, more sustainable way.

ower NI is the first energy company in Northern Ireland to introduce an electric vehicle tariff for domestic customers, powered by 100% renewable energy. Power NI is also part of the Belfast Maritime Consortium led by Artemis Technologies, which is developing a zero-emissions hydrofoil ferry between Belfast and Bangor. Through Power NI’s parent company Energia Group, the company recently launched NI’s first hydrogen-powered double-decker buses in conjunction with Translink and Wrightbus. William Steele, Director of Customer Solutions at Power NI said, “We are delighted that the Lord Mayor took the time out of her very busy schedule to meet with us to discuss some of our innovative sustainable energy projects, including the Electric Vehicle tariff, which was of particular interest to the Lord Mayor, as the first Lord Mayor to choose an electric car as her vehicle of choice.” William Steele, Director of Customer Solutions at Power NI, Lord Mayor Kate Nicholl, and Ciara Moane,Corporate Development Project Manager at Energia.

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CastleCourt Gets Green Light For New Tenants Planning applications for a cinema and a family entertainment and adventure specialist to create a multi-offer proposition in the 120,000 sq ft space vacated by Debenhams in CastleCourt Shopping Centre have been approved by Belfast City Council.

mniplex Cinema Group will occupy 30,000 sq ft with luxury cinema brand ‘The Avenue’. Meanwhile, the family entertainment scheme will take up 50,000sq ft. The remaining 40,000sq ft has been earmarked for further retail activity with details to be announced soon. A new flagship Starbucks is also due to occupy a substantial new site in the centre, with significant on-street presence. The two major projects represent a combined investment in CastleCourt by owner Wirefox, Omniplex Cinema Group and the family entertainment provider of £10.5m. The Starbucks operation adds a further £350,000 investment in CastleCourt. 125 construction jobs will be created collectively during the landlord conversion and build, and subsequent tenant fit-outs. Up to 130 full and part time jobs will be created across all operators upon completion. Wirefox director Lucy Elliott says demand for space in CastleCourt has continued to grow. “From its inception in 1990, CastleCourt has been hugely popular with shoppers from all over Belfast and Northern Ireland,” says Ms Elliott. “The addition of The Avenue by Omniplex and the high-end family entertainment and adventure offering

signals CastleCourt and its wider area’s renewal and rejuvenation by offering memorable experiences people will want to repeat, in line with the changing shape of city high streets across the UK and Ireland. At the same time, we are seeing growth in our retail partners with new tenants and a new, bigger Starbucks making it the brand’s flagship operation in Northern Ireland. This blend of retail, leisure, bars, cafes and restaurants will attract more footfall to the city centre and enhance our visitors’ CastleCourt experience. “The future for CastleCourt looks very strong and we are looking forward to work starting on these sites as soon as possible.” Commenting on the new lettings, Alana Coyle, Director at joint agent CBRE NI said: “Fresh off the back of the announcement of Schuh footwear joining the tenant line up within the scheme, it is exciting to be able to confirm the further addition of the leisure occupiers in addition to a new flagship Starbucks coffee shop creating a striking active frontage at the entrance to the scheme. “CastleCourt has bounced back strongly following the relaxation of Covid restrictions and the ongoing renaissance of this area of the city centre has seen a considerable growth in demand from retail occupiers.” The Avenue by Omniplex,

covering 30,000sq ft will include nine luxury screen cinemas and bar. The luxury cinema is scheduled to open in December 2022, in time for major blockbuster releases Aquaman 2, Super Mario Bros.: The Movie and Avatar 2. The Avenue will accommodate up to 540 patrons with diverse scheduling across its nine screens, boasting all modern amenities such as the latest in Laser Barco projection and Dolby Digital surround sound technology. Offering an unmatched cinema experience to Belfast’s city centre, The Avenue, finished with plush interiors and comfortable sofalike seats as standard in all screens, will also feature a fully licenced bar, kitchen and lounge area. Cinemagoers can swap out their usual cinema soft drink for a glass of wine, cocktail or draught beer, or sample a range of small plates, gourmet burgers or freshly made pizzas served directly to seats. As for everyone’s favourite cinema snack, freshly made popcorn on-site, will also be available. Omniplex Director, Paul John Anderson says: “Working alongside Wirefox, we are delighted to have secured the necessary planning permission to progress with this scheme and can finally unveil more details of our luxury cinema brand ‘The Avenue’. Being the first of its kind in

Northern Ireland, we hope that The Avenue will draw cinemagoers into the city centre for quality service in an intimate and luxurious cinema setting.” The construction and fit-out contract has been awarded to leading company GRAHAM. Mark Gibson, Managing Director GRAHAM Interior Fit-Out, says the firm is pleased to be at the centre of a city centre regeneration project. “We are delighted to be working with the Wirefox team once again. Having completed several similar projects across the UK and Ireland, it’s exciting to see the innovative transformational plans envisaged for CastleCourt. The GRAHAM Interior Fit-Out team are proud to bring together localised delivery partners to revitalise the vacated Debenhams unit into a vibrant retail & leisure space. At its peak, the delivery site will have 50+ operatives across multiple trades, which will create much welcomed new job and apprenticeship opportunities, vital for the local construction industry. We look forward to playing our part in the regeneration of one of the city’s most popular retail & leisure destinations.” The announcement has been welcomed by the 75 retailers based in CastleCourt who have recorded consistent uplifts in sales performance since reopening last summer following the lifting of covid restrictions.

For when business success needs admin support

Eye Moving On 1 Celine Grant has been appointed Commercial Director at Re-Gen Waste and will be responsible for the company’s Public Sector, Commercial, Engineering and R&D Divisions. She joined Re-Gen Waste in May 2004, holds a BA in Business Studies from Ulster University, and held the post of Product Sales Director until appointed to her new role. Celine is a board member of the Recycling Association and a member of the Institute of Directors. She won the Women in Business NI Award for Best Exporter in 2011 and 2017; and has been shortlisted in the Outstanding Mentor Award category in 2022. 2 Philip Moreland has been appointed Implementation Consultant at WorkPal where he will train new clients on the WorkPal system to ensure their transition runs as smoothly as possible. The County Down man previously worked as a Senior Race Room Associate at Toal’s Bookmakers where he gained valuable customer-facing experience.

1. Celine Grant

2. Philip Moreland

3 Peter McConville has been appointed Finance Director at Barclay Communications. Peter joined the company recently having come from six years’ telecoms experience working as a Finance Director. Peter’s career to date also includes finance experience within the construction industry. Also 4 at Barclay Communications, Rachel Carson has been appointed as a Customer Support Agent. Rachel, who has previous experience in the telecoms industry, will assist Barclay customers with their landline and broadband services. 5 Michelle Prentice joins Ross Boyd Chartered Accountants as Senior Tax Manager and will draw from her 18 years’ experience working with some of the biggest firms and businesses across Belfast and Northern Ireland. Michelle’s expertise encompasses everything from your basic tax preparatory work to complex tax advice and reorganisations on multinational companies.

3. Peter McConville

5. Michelle Prentice

4. Rachel Carson

Eye on News

Celebrating Ten Years Of Cares Challenge

NI Water is celebrating a decade of one of the largest corporate volunteering schemes in the Province.

ver 1,500 staff have volunteered in 100 challenges to date, equating to more than 10,000 hours of volunteering to help support communities across Northern Ireland. As part of NI Water’s ‘Cares Challenge’ programme, activities are planned and set up in partnership with Business in the Community’s NI Cares Programme. The programme identifies organisations and charities within the local community who need a helping hand with physical tasks. This has allowed NI Water staff to help a wide range of charities over the past 10 years including, Southern Area Hospice, The National Trust, Welcome Organisation, Crosskennan Lane Animal Sanctuary and Foyle Hospice. In the latest Cares Challenge

In the latest challenge the team of 15 volunteers, including Chief Executive, Sara Venning, worked to make the garden at the NI Children’s Hospice a perfect place of solace for patients and their families.

the NI Water team got to work in the grounds of the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice. The team of 15 volunteer gardeners including Chief Executive, Sara Venning, worked together to plant new flowers, clear weeds, trim plants, and paint planters and fences. All working together to make the garden at Children’s Hospice a perfect place of solace for patients and their families to enjoy and relax in. Sara Venning, Chief Executive of NI Water, explained: “For more than a decade our dedicated staff have worked alongside charities, schools and community groups to help provide that extra support. “These teams of handy helpers have undertaken everything from gardening, painting and maintenance to environmental and fundraising days. It is often the extra

support that these groups require to enhance their facilities, improve the lives of their members and operate their centres successfully. “Volunteering has also proved to be a key part of our health and wellbeing toolkit. Our teams gain so much from the experience, not only by helping the community, but also having the chance to spend time with colleagues from around the business that they might not otherwise have a chance to meet.” Mary McCall, Director of Commercial Brand Development at the Northern Ireland Hospice said: “We were delighted that Northern Ireland Water chose to come here to Children’s Hospice and volunteer in our gardens for the day. The corporate volunteering programme at the Children’s Hospice is a winwin situation for all involved. It allows our business partners to fulfil their corporate social responsibility objectives and our patients get

the benefit of their expertise and hard work in the garden.” Kieran Harding, Managing Director of Business in the Community added: “NI Water has shown tremendous commitment to the local community through its decade-long involvement with the Cares Challenge. Employersupported volunteering enables employees to engage with local communities, charities and community groups, to develop an understanding of their needs, and to pro-actively support the work they do. When employers offer opportunities for staff to volunteer it supports better wellbeing, develops skills, and improves employee engagement – creating a happier, healthier workforce. “I’m delighted that, via the Cares programme, Business in the Community has been able to support NI Water to help local communities to thrive over the past decade.”

Eye on News

Lyons launches £4.5m Green Innovation Challenge Fund pilot

conomy Minister Gordon Lyons has met with manufacturers at Ballymena’s ECOS Centre to launch a call to companies for projects developing innovative low carbon technologies. The Challenge Fund, delivered by the Centre for Advanced Sustainable Energy (CASE) hosted by Queen’s University Belfast, an industry led sustainable energy research centre, received £4.5 million funding from the Department for the Economy, under the Economic Recovery Action Plan ‘Building a Green Economy’. Speaking at the launch, the Minister said “The Green Innovation Challenge Fund will help support development of the disruptive technologies and innovative projects we will need to underpin successful delivery and help meet the goals of the Economic Recovery Action Plan, Energy Strategy

and 10x Economic Strategy. “The provision of £4.5 million funding to the Centre for Advanced Sustainable Energy demonstrates that my Department is stepping up to directly support research and innovation that not only seeks to solve these dilemmas, but does so by bringing together Northern Ireland’s strong manufacturing and service sectors with its world-renowned academic and research institutions.” The Green Innovation Challenge Fund aims to stimulate a broad range of projects covering areas such as energy system design, the decarbonisation of marine and aviation, the built environment and hard to treat industrial sectors. Trevor Haslett CBE, chair of the CASE board commented: “CASE is delighted to be working in partnership with the Department for the Economy in the

Economy Minister Gordon Lyons pictured at the ECOS Centre, Ballymena with the Centre for Advanced Sustainable Energy chair Trevor Haslett CBE at the launch of the £4.5m Green Innovation Challenge Fund pilot.

delivery of the Green Innovation Challenge Fund. Our ambition is to maximise the impact of the funds by enabling research in clean technologies that will realise the goals of the NI Energy Strategy through increasing our indigenous energy generation, growing the local economy and ensuring vibrant and sustainable communities across Northern Ireland. “We would particularly welcome Pathfinder project applications which tackle technical, environmental, policy and social acceptance barriers to the adoption of new clean technologies. These projects

should aim to realise significant impacts across the wider supply chain, and involve researchers from both technical and social science subject areas.” The Challenge Fund brings together the most innovative firms with academic experts to solve the challenges of moving towards a net zero energy system, while delivering growth and jobs for Northern Ireland. Lessons learnt from this round will be used to develop a larger fund, one of the actions from the recent published 2022 Action Plan to deliver the new Northern Ireland Energy Strategy.

REGTICK SECURES £1M IN SEED FUNDING AND ANNOUNCES PLANS FOR 30 NEW JOBS

Pictured are Regtick’s Chairman, Tom O’Gorman and Co-Founders Gerry Murtagh (Chief Technology Officer) and Gary Lyons (Chief Executive Officer).

REGTICK, a Belfast-based tech company that has developed a real-time governance, risk and compliance SaaS platform for the financial services, health and insurance sectors has secured £1M in a seed funding round which will support plans to create 30 new jobs. The investment has been made by Newry

businessman, Tom O’Gorman, who has extensive corporate leadership expertise and will be used to build on the platform’s features, including its realtime Risk Management and Analytics functionality and to facilitate research and development as Regtick builds its international customer base. Co-founded by Gerry Murtagh and Gary Lyons, both from Northern Ireland, Regtick creates a simple, clear path for organisations to comply with complex regulations, reducing costs as well as increasing confidence and transparency that regulations have been met. Designed for organisations with distributed teams, the platform enables people to work collaboratively on complex tasks, allowing team members across the globe, inside or outside the office, to share best practice and to reduce work effort. Tom O’Gorman who has joined Regtick’s Board as Chairman said: “Regtick is a really exciting solution to address an increasing problem in a rapidly growing market sector. As well as traditional banks, trusts and fund management, the Regtick solution provides new digital banks and crypto services with an ‘out of the box’ set of tasks to follow to evidence compliance to regulators. The platform is another example of how Northern Ireland’s connected innovation ecosystem enables entrepreneurs to incubate and grow successful knowledge-based companies. I’m very much looking forward to helping

Regtick scale to the next level and to create a pathway for the wider Northern Ireland Regtech ecosystem.” Gary Lyons, Regtick’s Chief Executive Officer said: “We are delighted to have secured Tom’s investment which will allow Regtick to create jobs, build out our tech team and develop exciting new products for our clients. Not only is Tom’s investment a key to our sustained growth but his appointment as Chairman brings considerable business acumen and experience to our management team. As a Northern Ireland based company, we are also grateful for the support and guidance from TechStartNI, Invest NI and our legal team at Shoosmiths in our journey so far. We now look forward to accelerating our discussions with customers in our target global export markets and we are very much looking forward to exporting Regtick’s SaaS platform across the world stage.” Gerry Murtagh, Regtick’s Chief Technology Officer added: “Having consulted to many of the world’s leading financial institutions, I have seen the need for the Regtick Platform to solve common regulatory challenges. I’m pleased that we will seed and grow Regtick from Northern Ireland and this investment allows us to simplify the compliance burden for our customers as well as help organisations recognise new regulations in environmental, social, governance, diversity, equity and inclusion as a competitive advantage to embrace.”

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Motoring with James Stinson

Suzuki goes big with Across

Plug-in hybrids are a useful stepping stone to all electric motoring, writes James Stinson

lectric car sales are surging, accounting for one-in-five new cars sold in the UK in January. However, they weren’t all fully battery electric vehicles (BEVs), just under half were plug-in hybrids… and the reasons are simple. Despite making massive strides in recent years, BEVs aren’t for everyone. Many buyers love the flexibility that petrol-powered cars offer and just aren’t ready to make the leap. And that’s where plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) come in. They combine a conventional petrol engine with a small electric motor and battery pack. In the right conditions, they can cover somewhere between 30 to 50 miles on battery power alone but also have the flexibility of travelling as far as a tank of petrol will take you before filling up again. They aren’t emission free like BEVs but CO2 emissions are much lower than petrol only cars which makes them especially attractive to company car drivers who benefit

from generous benefit in kind tax rates. Indeed, the vast majority of PHEVs are likely paid for this way. There are a number of really good ones on the market, including plug-in versions of the Range Rover Evoque, Ford Kuga and Citroen C5 Aircross. They’re all great cars but none of them come close to the Suzuki Across’s super low 8% Benefit in Kind (BIK) tax rate. The Across is actually a Toyota RAV4 rebadged as a Suzuki, the result of a technology sharing deal. The deal sees Suzuki able to piggyback some of Toyota’s hybrid knowhow in exchange for

Suzuki’s small car expertise. The deal also enables Suzuki to bring the Across to market without going to the trouble and expense of developing its own mid-sized SUV. The core of Across is a 2.5 litre petrol motor, which is augmented by two electric motors – one powering the front axle along with the petrol motor and another powering the rear axle. Combined, these give the Across an impressive 302bhp to call on, enough for a 0-62mph time of just six seconds. The second electric motor also means the Across boasts four-wheel drive to help with slippery conditions. The Across propels itself along using either battery or engine power or a combination of both depending on the type of driving. But the car’s party trick is in and around town. At lower speeds it

“There are a number of really good cars on the market, including plug-in versions of the Range Rover Evoque, Ford Kuga and Citroen C5 Aircross. They’re all great cars but none of them come close to the Suzuki Across’s super low 8% Benefit in Kind (BIK) tax rate.”

can do anything up to a claimed 46 miles on battery power alone when fully charged , which is way more than most PHEVs can manage. The 18.1kWh battery pack takes five hours to charge from a home mounted wallbox. Do this and the numbers really begin to stack up because it costs far less to run a car off electric than it costs to do the same mileage filling up at the pump. Elsewhere, the Across is pretty standard fare. It’s nicely put together with plenty of space front and rear and a decent-sized boot. It differs very little from the RAV4 in terms of styling save for a slightly reworked front grille and the badges of course. Front and rear parking sensors are standard, as is a rear-view camera. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto mirroring is also supported so you can use your smartphone apps on the touchscreen. Some of the key safety features include driving assist functions such as a pre-collision system, lane-keep assist, and radar cruise control. The single model on offer starts at £45,599 which is pricey on its own and considerably more expensive than rivals like the Kuga and not far off Evoque territory. The trick up its sleeve is its unbeatable company car tax credentials.

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Dacia Joggera car for our time

If the cost of living crisis is as bad a some predict, many of us could well be looking for better value motoring in the months ahead. And there can’t be many cars that offer as much value as this new Dacia Jogger.

he Renault-owned Romanian car maker has history here of course, witness the success of the Sandero, Sandero Stepway and Duster… which are all proven, relatively cheap and really popular. The new Jogger offers something entirely new for Dacia because it has seven seats. And when we think of seven-seaters, we usually think of cars costing £25,000 and more. The new Jogger starts at….

VW’s Growing ID Family

wait for it… just £14,995, which is almost half what you’ll pay for the cheapest VW Touran and a full £2,000 cheaper than the base Fiesta. It’s based on the same platform as the Clio and Sandero Clio but with a much longer wheelbase. That and the boxy rear end work to make the most of the available interior space. And this is a proper seven-seater, with enough space in the third row of seats to transport two adults in

VW’s range of ID electric vehicles is growing. Having already seen the Golfsized ID.3 and the SUV-lookalike ID.4, we’ve now been treated to this new ID.5, one of the prettiest electric cars around. It’s essentially the same as the ID.4 but with a smoother coupe-like body style. Even with the sloping rear roofline, there’s not that much difference in terms of boot space between the ID.5 and the ID.4 with its more upright rear. The standard ID.5 is driven by a familiar choice of either 172bhp or 201bhp motors, which get it from 0-62mph in 10.4sec and 8.4sec respectively. A 77kWh battery offers a maximum range of 313 miles – a slight boost over the straight-backed ID.4, courtesy of the ID.5’s improved aerodynamics. Three specification levels are available: Tech, Max and the range-topping GTX. All models, starting with the £50,550 Tech, are equipped with ID Light LED matrix headlights, Volkswagen’s Travel Assist safety system, a powered tailgate, tri-zone climate control, an augmented-reality head-

relative comfort. It will do a lot more too with Dacia claiming over 60 possible seating configurations. With all seven seats in place, the Jogger’s boot capacity stands at 212 litres. Fold down the third row and run the car in five-seat configuration and you’ll have an impressive 699 litres to play with. And if you remove the final two seats entirely (they weigh 10kg each) and fold down the second row, there are 2,085 litres to play with. In 2023 this new model will become Dacia’s first hybrid when it gets the same electrified 1.6-litre powertrain as the Clio. It’s a mild set-up, with a modest 1.2kWh battery, but Dacia says it’ll spend up to 80 per cent of its time running on electricity around town. But for now, there’s a single engine choice - a version of Dacia’s 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol unit that delivers 108bhp and 200Nm of torque, paired with a six-speed manual gearbox There are three trim levels to choose from: Essential, Comfort and Extreme SE. Comfort, from £16,595, already looks like the sweet spot in the range. It has front parking sensors, a reversing camera, keyless entry, an electric parking brake, and an eight-inch infotainment display that offers Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity as standard. With a car this practical and prices that cheap, Dacia is surely on to a winner!

up display and 12-way-adjustable seats. Max trim is priced from £54,050 and offers 20in alloy wheels, premium sports seats, a more efficient heat pump and a sports driving package, which includes dynamic chassis control, progressive steering and drive-profile selection. The ID.5 GTX features an uprated performance powertrain with an additional motor on the front axle, bumping output to 295bhp and cutting the 0-62mph time to 6.3sec, but a slightly shorter range of 296 miles. Prices for the ID.5 GTX start at £58,640. Equipment includes sportier Ystad 20in alloy wheels, glossy finishes on the roof frame and C-pillars, red seat upholstery, dark-blue faux-leather door panels and GTX-branded door-sill protectors. The ID.5 also matches the ID.4’s 135kW maximum charging rate, too, so it can be topped up to 80% in less than 30 minutes if, of course, you can access a fast-charging unit. Otherwise, you’ll do what most people do and charge up overnight at home.

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Business Eye February March 2022

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