smallbusiness.co.uk: Helping your business think big

Small firms that can demonstrate best practice in marketing could benefit from taking part in an initiative run on behalf of the DTI’s Small Business Service.

Inside UK Enterprise (IUKE) is a programme to encourage exchanges between businesses – to get UK businesses to learn from other UK businesses, and so encourage their productivity and profitability.

Host companies put on scheduled visits, at which they exchange and share their expertise with visitor groups.

Although IUKE has an ongoing host recruitment process for all its best practice topics, it is currently focusing in particular on marketing.

"We are looking for the "down-to-earth" success stories that companies have been through themselves," comments Sharron Barnes of the IUKE.

The IUKE pays a visit to a potential host company, "to go and have a look at the business. It’s a very informal day", Barnes explains. The IUKE examines how a business has achieved its expertise and discusses what the business would get out of hosting an IUKE visit day.

Benefits for hosting businesses include PR coverage, marketing (with fliers, for example) of their business, and free visits to other hosts’ visit days.

"They also hear feedback," adds Barnes, " it is like an ongoing consultation." The business is perceived as having achieved a certain standard, and at the same time feedback helps the business to benchmark its achievements.

Visitors get the opportunity to "visit companies who demonstrate business excellence on various issues, and talk with like-minded managers about …approaches to common problems", Barnes said.

A visit can include a host company’s managers taking visitors through the business improvements they have made, and how they identified and implemented their best practice. A question and answer session can be held, and networking opportunities exist.

Steel sheet metal fabricator, Dutton Engineering (Woodside) Ltd, has 50 employees, and has been a host company with IUKE for 10 years. Mike Nash, Business Excellence Manager at Dutton says that the firm’s motivation is to "help others avoid the mistakes we made and achieve what we have achieved. However, it is a two-way process and we are also keen to learn from our visitors." The company offers supply chain partnership, annualised hours, teamworking and the Business Excellence Model, as part of its IUKE day.

A visit day costs Ł95 plus VAT.

For further information on the programme, visit www.iuke.co.uk or phone 01730-235015.

With thanks to Lloyds TSB Success4Business. For more news and information visit www.success4business.com.

(1/3/02)