100% PRINCE2® funding available until March 2011

As a business owner you want to keep the ideas in your company fresh and your staff motivated. One of the biggest issues with running a successful business is in keeping employees on top of their game and ensuring that you have the edge over your competitors.

Social Enterprise East of England (SEEE) is encouraging all social enterprises to apply to the body before the end of March 2011 to receive full funding for the PRINCE 2® Foundation course as part of the ‘Beyond 2010’ initiative.

John Sentinella, Business Development Manager at the University, said: “Training can provide an excellent way for social enterprises to address a wide range of needs, from developing management skills to computer design techniques, helping to give that all important competitive edge. With 100% funding is available until the end of March this is a great opportunity for these organisations to benefit from this kind of training.”

The Knowledge Hub provides a range of courses for employee development, with PRINCE 2® Project Management being one of the most popular. The course focuses on creating and managing a defined organisation structure as well as emphasising the effectiveness of dividing projects into manageable stages that can be more easily monitored.

PRINCE 2® has become the benchmark standard in project management and is now an internationally-recognised qualification.

For more information on PRINCE 2 ® or any of the courses offered by the Knowledge Hub click here or call 0800 328 5334. To find out more about Beyond 2010 and SEE, click here.

The University is here to back you up

In these difficult economic times, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for businesses to justify additional spend on increasing their staff numbers. In fact, because of the financial pressures being experienced right across the country, many companies have had to let go of staff when they would rather be expanding but can’t absorb the extra cost.

If this sounds familiar, then a University of Bedfordshire graduate intern might well be the answer for your business. Since its launch last year, the University’s graduate internship scheme has provided over 100 local companies with keen-minded and enthusiastic graduates, who are given a subsidised placement in their suited industry for between eight and twelve weeks.

Some placements have even developed into permanent roles, with Bedford-based cremePR being one example. “Good quality PR graduates who don’t want to move to London are like gold dust,” said Maria Kennedy, director of cremePR. “This scheme found me exactly the right candidate locally, who has since been recruited by us. It was a very cost-effective way of recruiting and I would recommend this to anyone else looking for a graduate, or even an extra pair of hands.”

Tony Moliterno is now settled in his new position as PR executive at cremePR. “Having completed other unpaid internships in the past, it was refreshing and motivating to be paid a wage for my work and be able to put the skills I’d learned at University to good use,” he said. “The internship gave me the ideal opportunity to start my career with cremePR, where I am able to continue learning on the job in a supportive environment.”

Due to its popularity, there are few places left so this is the last chance for businesses to apply and take us up on this great opportunity. The scheme forms part of ‘Backing Young Britain’, a national initiative to help companies in these times of economic strain and support graduates seeking to boost their CV with valuable work experience.

To apply for one of our graduate interns, shortlisted on your behalf from a pool of pre-screened candidates with relevant skills, click here, call 0845 328 5334 or e-mail knowledge@beds.ac.uk.

Is Customer Satisfaction Dead?

Customer satisfaction has long been a key objective in marketing with resources all being directed to gaining high levels of satisfaction with products, services and customer experiences. However, the latest University research concludes that this is not what ultimately influences consumers.

The Knowledge Network will be hosting its second event for 2011, ‘Customer Satisfaction is Dead’, which looks at how to target and maintain customer loyalty in 2011 and helps businesses to understand how effective marketing can aid growth in these highly competitive times.

At the event Professor Jillian Farquhar, Professor of Marketing Strategy at the University’s Business School, will present her research on sustainable marketing strategies at the event. Also speaking is Anthony Prior, of Sheridan Global Ltd, who will discuss the latest innovations in market research technology.

The event is open to all but will be of particular interest to business managers and marketing professionals from the public and private sectors. It will be held on Wednesday 23rd February 2011 at 5.30pm at the Putteridge Bury Conference Centre.

For more information on the event or to book your place please visit
the website, email info@theknowledgenetwork.co.uk or call
0800 328 5334.

Back to basics: Business building seminars

Are you looking to start a business and build yourself a successful, mini-empire? Haven’t a clue where to begin or the best way to go about putting your ideas into fruition? Well, we can help you!

Basics of Building a Business (B3) is a series of FREE seminars aimed at University staff, students and members of the public from Bedfordshire who are interested in setting up their own business, but need a little guidance on how to go about it.

The series, which has already run a successful term in Luton, is made up of eight evening seminars being held in room P2.04 at Bedford Campus. Each seminar will be delivered by a successful businessperson with expertise in their topic of discussion and include a mixture of theory, case studies and interactive exercises, to enable and encourage you to form your own business or start up an enterprise.

The series will also give delegates the opportunity to enter the University’s B3 Business Plan Competition 2011.

For the full list of seminars or to register your interest, visit www.beds.ac.uk/knowledgehub/entrepreneurship/basics, email the Knowledge Hub at knowledge@beds.ac.uk or call 0800 328 5334.

Celebrating and supporting graduates in employment

The Knowledge Hub started the New Year with a bang as we celebrated the achievements of participants who took part in the Supporting Graduates in Employment training project.

112 participants enrolled on the programme that completed in December, which invited graduates and employees with graduate level experience to participate in a project combining a CMI Level 5 qualification with a customised training programme delivered by local business consultants, lecturers from the University and career advisers.

As well as celebrating and congratulating the graduates on their achievements, the project has helped to develop strong relationships with our local authorities by boosting the number of people with NVQ qualifications at Level 4 or higher and contributing to the local authority’s education objectives.

The final dissemination event for the Supporting Graduates in Employment project was held on Thursday 13th January 2011 at 6pm at the Putteridge Bury Campus, where the successful participants were presented with their certificates, followed by a selection of presentations by some of those involved on their positive experience during the Supporting Graduates in Employment programme.

2011 set to be bigger and better

As 2010 gives way to 2011, what better time to look at the range of events offered by the Knowledge Network in the next twelve months? With the theme for 2011 being ‘Innovate To Accumulate’, we’ve got some great events taking place, covering subjects such as sustainability, attracting foreign investment, opportunities in e-health, advances in project management, and much more. Click here to read more.

Fight the festive flab this Christmas

Christmas is almost here and as the temptations of festive food can be too much for some, we've enlisted the help of Professor John Brewer, Director of Sport at the University, who outlines the best ways to ensure the Christmas hangover doesn't carry on way into the New Year. As well as the obvious 'don't eat so much', John's expertise in sports science also reveals some interesting facts about how our bodies respond to the excesses of food and drink at Christmas, and how just a short amount of exercise each day can dramatically improve your productivity once it's time to return to work. Click here to read more.