Could you improve your business?

Management Knowledge Transfer Partnerships, available through Bournemouth University Business School, can transform your business performance, productivity, resilience, agility and growth.

Management Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (mKTP) are being used by a wide range of businesses, in all sectors of the economy, across Dorset, and throughout the UK. The programme typically lasts for two years and involves a dynamic 3-way partnership between a company, a team of academic experts and a skilled graduate, resulting in significant improvements across your business.

The mKTP programme was introduced in 2019, and provides a potential for small and medium-sized companies to work with Bournemouth University Business School, employing a talented graduate to work in the company to help expand their management capability and to meet strategic goals.

Companies are partnered with the Business School, with a specific focus on the introduction of transformational change and improvements in management strategy and process, leading to increased productivity and business growth. The programme also helps with the recruitment of a talented and skilled individual who, in many cases, will go on to work with the company in a senior role at the conclusion of the funded programme.

The mKTP programme receives UK government funding of up to 67% of the overall project cost, with the remaining 33% being paid by the company itself.

Maximising growth potential Funded by the Government, Innovate UK has approximately £14m in additional Knowledge Transfer Partnership funding to drive management practice focused projects with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

By partnering with Bournemouth University Business School, you will work with them, along with an mKTP associate (a talented graduate), to realise your business’s growth potential. This funding is specifically for businesses with a need to shift or develop a management strategy to grow their business.

The Business School has recently been awarded Small Business Charter status - a national accreditation which recognises business schools that demonstrate excellence in supporting small businesses, student enterprise, and the local economy. The Business School is now looking for ambitious SMEs who are keen to make significant productivity changes across their business by embedding applied research to upskill employees and to make step-change productivity improvements. Here are some examples: • Alternative business models/business agility • Identifying new opportunities and revenue streams • Entrepreneurial thinking, developing new products & services • Organisational/behavioural/cultural change management • Succession/continuity planning • Coaching and mentoring • Improving efficiency, business processes and productivity • Executive leadership, strategic thinking and decision making • Developing business strategies in the aftermath of Covid.

Where do we go from here? Bournemouth University will be contacting Dorset Chamber members by letter and telephone to share further details about the programme (If you would prefer to opt-out of the calls please contact the university via the email address below).

For more information please contact Rachel Clarke at clarker@bournemouth. ac.uk or visit www.ktp-uk.org/mktp www.bournemouth.ac.uk

Up your social media game

The team at Dorset Tech have been discussing how businesses should up their game on social media.

Founder Chris Ryu says: "If you are a business owner then it’s impossible to ignore the impact social media could have on your business. If you aren’t aware of this then you need to get acquainted fast as you could be missing out on potential new business. If you already spend money on advertising in say magazines, local papers or radio stations then it’s worth investing some of that budget into an online social media campaign. "Whilst it’s not the most complicated task to carry out, social media marketing does require you to work in a certain way so you encourage and entice people to read your posts, view your site and more. Here at Dorset Tech we know a thing or two about social media marketing so we thought we’d put a little brief together to educate you on the basics." Don’t Over Post This is one of the most important things to remember. Resist the temptation to just post for the sake of it. People will quickly get bored if you just post anything and everything. Once or twice a day is enough for most standard accounts. Obviously there are exceptions to this but this all depends on what industry you are in. Keep It Simple People quickly read through social media content. Usually whilst grabbing 5 minutes at work etc. So keep posts short and informative. There is a reason Twitter limits character lengths. Short and snappy posts will always be read more then long ones. If you are posting links to somewhere else then keep your post short but explain the links content. People browse social media they don’t tend to visit to read. Encourage Participation People love a good debate so every now and then encourage a debate. Post an open ended question. Ask for opinions. Post choice questions, maybe even a poll. Keep it simple though and fun if possible. Variety Is Good Don’t just post about your business or industry. Add variety to your posts, maybe some humour. Some posts can be images if you feel people would be interested. For example here at Dorset Tech we post about web design, general tech talk, geeky stuff too. We like to keep it varied and not all sales or business related. Use Hashtags Always include hashtags in your posts. Not too many though. We see some with 5/6 hashtags used which is too many. Always use the most relevant ones and try use keywords that people are searching for. See what’s trending maybe as you may be able to use these if they are relevant to your business. Don’t use popular hashtags for the sake of it to get traffic as it won’t convert if the wrong traffic. 2 or 3 hashtags is normally enough. Avoid long silly ones too like #hereismysitecomevisit etc. 1 or 2 keyword phrases are usually enough for a hashtag. Use Humour For many they see social media as a form of escapism. A place to go to get away from the rigours of the day. For this reason alone always try keep humour involved, even in the lightest format. It’s a good idea to every now and then post some humorous posts also, just don’t post any offensive topics. If there are trending topics which are funny then try get involved and use hashtags. Run Competitions If you are a business or retail outfit then every now and then run competitions. For example if you own a Lodge in the country, run a share and like competition for one night s stay as a prize. You’ll be amazed at how quickly it will grow. People love a freebie and it’s so easy to like and share on social media that people will get involved. If you a retail outfit then you can do the same with a prize instead. Use Analytics Make use of the various free tools to give you feedback on people interaction with your posts. This way you can see what works, what people like and what doesn’t work. Most platforms give you access to free stats but you can also buy paid platforms too if you really want to get into the finer details of the activity your posts are generating. Pay Attention to Trends Keep an eye on what is trending, maybe there is something relevant to your business. For example if you make cakes there was a huge trending story recently about 2 rival big chains falling out over a chocolate caterpillar cake. This then became an online social media viral hit with some very funny posts back and forth. Use Visuals Images can say a thousands words in a split second, they are perfect for social media, hence why Instagram is so popular and growing all the time. People love looking at other peoples photos and images. You don’t have to post images with every post but it does help, as long as its relevant. More more information on Dorset Tech see www.dorset.tech

Battens' Family Solicitor appointed visiting fellow at Bournemouth University

Battens’ Family Solicitor, Georgina Bacon, has been appointed as a Visiting Fellow at Bournemouth University.

Georgina is renowned for her experience working in family law in Dorset, with a focus on child and domestic abuse cases. Her commitment to her clients and dedication to work saw Georgina promoted to an Associate Solicitor at Battens Solicitors in 2018, and has achieved a place on the prestigious Law Society’s Children’s Panel.

Georgina has been assisting the University in the training of their social workers since 2020. Her ongoing commitment to the high quality education and practice that Bournemouth University provides to its student social workers, gives them real life understanding of practice and procedure in the courtroom, including Court scenarios and issues which affect how cases are litigated by the Local Authority.

Explaining her role as visiting fellow, Georgina says: “We consider real life scenarios, considering dealing with vulnerable parents, parents with learning difficulties and remote hearings (which has been a topical issue owing to the Covid19 pandemic). My appointment and continued involvement with Bournemouth University is to equip its student social workers with the skills that they will need, when in practice.

I hold Bournemouth University in high regard, so to be appointed as a Visiting Fellow is very much a privilege, as well as an exciting opportunity to be a part of shaping the social workers of tomorrow.”

Bournemouth University said: “The Social Work department at Bournemouth University is proud of its links with practice to ensure that education on qualifying and CPD courses is not just current, but practice based. Our Senior Lecturer Tilia Lenz is leading the Law and Social Policy unit for BA and MA courses. To ensure a holistic preparation for statutory Social Work is offered to our students, we are very pleased about the close collaboration with Georgina Bacon.” www.battens.co.uk #GetBusinessDone