NEW BUSINESS GURUS TO HELP SMEs BY UNLEASHING COLLEGE EXPERTISE
New business gurus are being placed in six Scottish colleges to help boost the fortunes of companies. The new £1.5m initiative is a partnership of 6 of east of Scotland’s leading colleges and two universities.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will benefit from the college expertise that the new Business Development Executives will help make translate into value added business products, processes and services.. This will include knowledge about a range of sectors, including tourism, food and drink, rural businesses, construction, environmental and creative industries.
The initiative is part of the wider 2kt project, originally led by Edinburgh Napier and Queen Margaret Universities. Over the last two years, 2kt has assisted 170 SMEs develop product, process and service innovations. This has increased sales by over £1.5 million and helped create a number of new jobs, significantly impacting upon the Scottish economy.
The new £1.5m funding allows Business Development Executives to be appointed in the east of Scotland’s most successful colleges including Stevenson College, Edinburgh’s Telford College, Jewel and Esk College and Carnegie College, Elmwood and Oatridge Colleges.
The funding boost has been provided by the Scottish Government SEEKIT programme, the Scottish Funding Council and the European Regional Development Fund.
Dr Neil Bowering, Head of 2kt said: “Now more than ever, educational institutions have an important role to play in supporting the future of Scottish business. Traditionally this support has tended to be provided by the University sector however, we recognise that colleges also have much to offer from a business development perspective. It’s fantastic to have secured this significant funding which will go a long way to helping the partnership to support, develop and grow Scottish companies over the coming years.”
Mark Batho, Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council added; “Our funding of this exciting and ground-breaking project will support Edinburgh Napier and Queen Margaret Universities, working collaboratively with colleges, to provide a valuable service to business. “By working together, the universities and colleges can offer better opportunities to industry and help to stimulate innovation and economic generation.”
Published on Thursday 8 October 2009