How Can You Get Individual Superstars to Work Together?

When you have a small business, you need to have the best hire to be part of your tram. However, it’s not always a piece of cake to gather aces and put them on their best places and get them to work altogether.

Most managers are then faced with the question on how to combine their talents, skills, and brains for one project and lead them to work harmoniously.

Vince Lombardi believes that the secret to building a team of superstars is to motivation them to work towards a common goal. But even if we’re not talking about sports, the same motivation is quintessential in any team, especially in the workplace.

In the Team Effectiveness Review led by Elaine Yew at Egon Zehnder during the late 90s, she discussed the six critical team competencies that can make an A-team thrive.

Let’s explore the six ingredients that make individual superstars work great with a team.

Balance

It’s not enough that the team understands the importance of diversity of skills and strengths. They should be also willing to incorporate them. Dan of The Leadership Freak noted about 13 reasons why teams lose momentum and one of them is dominant members who cause others to feel insignificant.

As the leader, you are responsible to help your members understand each other’s skills and strengths despite the fact that superstars tend to be “me-focused”. By identifying each superstar’s motivation, you can work around how to best motivate and inspire them to work with others without feeling the need to be always be on the spotlight.

Energy

An ambitious team thinks about long-term momentum at a high level. Superstars are naturally driven individuals who always have the thirst for victory and excellence and each member’s enthusiasm would easily rub off on others.

Alignment

Do your team members understand the larger team purpose? If not, you may want to direct all theirefforts on one central objective. It’s time to leverage their thinking. TribeHR Staff said businesses are most successful when employees’ personal goals are aligned with that of corporate goals. Yes, while each member may have personal goals and priorities, team leaders should aim to make the business thrive and ensure that each team player’s goal aligns with that of company’s.

Resilience

Author Margaret Heffernan said that social capitals make a group resilient. By that, she means trust, knowledge, reciprocity, and shared norms. If you are a team leader, it helps to show your team the outcome of their collected efforts. Writer Glenn Llopis said one of the ways to inspire a team is to make them feel that their hard work makes a difference beyond just profitability.

Efficiency

One of the biggest challenges to teams is how to deal with pressure not only individually, but also as a team. You may encourage your team to try a few quirky de-stress hacks such as photography contest activities or simply employee’s day out. After a super-busy week, your team deserves relaxing and reenergizing activities to keep them motivated and happy at work.

Openness

Do the team members’ value engaging with the broader organization? When each member has connection to one another, it becomes effortless for them to share ideas, concerns and contribute towards the common goal better.

Having great individuals work together as a team is a great opportunity and a challenge to focus on the over-all and high level goals. By focusing on the over-all objectives, one can minimize the potential clashes within the team and make the best use of individual talents, skills and take advantage of the adversity of the group.

Having aces on their best places allow each team member to feel significant without having the need to be constantly on the spotlight and think more of the common goal as opposed to focusing solely on individual ones.

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A Guide to Improve Online Customer Experience with Upselling and Cross-Selling Strategy

For aspirants in eCommerce industry who wish to make it big, merely cataloguing products and focusing on intelligent navigation will not suffice. It’s time to think out of the box. And this comes through the process of upsell and cross-sell strategy. Most of the digital businesses often do not care of this selling technique and lose revenue in the long run.

Why Upselling and Cross-selling?

The process is an art of introducing customers to complementary products that gets instant acceptance. According to Forrester research analyst, upsells and cross-sells strategy is responsible for an average of 10-30% of eCommerce revenue. Every time a customer buys something, and if you fail to offer an upsell and cross-sell, you are definitely missing a great opportunity to increase your sale.

Surveys have revealed that both these strategies are useful in increasing revenues manifold. Also, the tool helps customers choose the high quality products when shopping online.

Here’s how it goes…

Let’s say a customer is looking at purchasing a camera

Upselling strategy: After selecting a camera, if customer is immediately presented with the option of buying a DSLR camera, the merchant is trying to persuade the customer to switch his purchasing decision to a more expensive product. Upselling is getting the customer to spend more money on the same type of product he initially intended to buy.

Cross-selling: Ones when the DSLR camera is purchased, if the customer is presented with options like a camera bag, additional lenses and memory card, it complements their existing purchase. When customers are offered additional products to support and complement the product that he has already decided to buy, the technique is called cross-selling. The special packages supporting the main item allow your customers to receive that extra at a special price. The strategy aims at getting a customer buy more products in addition to the original product he intended to buy from you.

In case of an online business, upselling and cross-selling includes showing the related and relevant products on order or product page.

The Core Difference

Upselling is about understanding the features of your more expensive products and how those features can be of great value and benefit to the customers. While cross-selling involves how the special packages supporting the main products allow your customers to acquire that extra they require at a special price.

Can You Upsell and Cross-sell everything?

Simply focusing on selling more and increasing the customer’s cart size isn’t always the right strategy. You need to understand what exactly your customers want. Consider what actually makes sense to show your customers and at which stage in the purchasing lifecycle.

Consider the three primary factors during Upsell and Cross-sell Method-

Relevance of the add-ons

Showing irrelevant additional products will unnecessarily confuse your customers. Make a list of your products and accessorize them with the compatible ones. Given a situation, customers will always need something besides the product he’s currently buying.

The greater familiarity your customers have with the additional item, the more likely they’re to buy.

Value for money

While you upsell and cross sell your products, do not increase the overall product order by more than 25 percent. Customer should feel the worth of every penny they spend.

Right time to approach

You don’t want to seem pushy with your products and on the contrary, you also don’t want to miss the window of opportunity. It is recommended to create triggered-based rules to showcase the right message at the right time.

Don’t exaggerate

Ones you know what to upsell and cross sell your customers, be tactful about it. Showing your customers heaps of unnecessary products, page after page will only confuse your customer’s acuity about your brand. This ultimately affects the overall conversion rates.

Are You Considering Upselling or Cross-selling?

Most of the retailers often remain confused as what to select – upselling or cross-selling. Research and analysis has revealed that consumers are more attracted to the upselling process than the cross-selling. It has been observed that they pay more attention to the pages that upsell the products. Studies have also revealed that 4% of the total online sales are usually driven by upselling strategy, whereas cross selling drives only 0.2%.

However, it has been noticed that cross sell is more effective when the products are presented on the checkout pages. It should not be ignored completely, but suggestions of the add-ons should be made more intelligently based on what the customers are buying, post purchase history and the amount they spend.

Measure your Performance

Analytic tools help in assessing the purchases that has already taken place and the trends associated with it. If a mother is buying diapers for her baby, she might buy other products related to infant care. This trend needs to be analyzed so that next time a mother clicks on a diaper in an online catalogue, she must get a pop-up of other products related to her baby care. These related products are quite useful for prospective customers.

Considering all these factors, plan your upsell and cross sell strategy to improve conversion rates as they’re effective drivers of additional revenue for your business.

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Moving Product: How to Save Money on Your Startup Transportation

When small business owners launch a transportation service, they usually have high fuel costs right up front. However, there are many ways to keep gas costs low throughout the year. If you use these tips you can help save money and make your investment in transportation pay off.

Design a Strategic Network

To configure the best network, you must understand how your business allocates clients to different distribution centers. By using a networking tool, you can find a good network easily because the system will provide detailed information about historical order volumes. It will also recommend the most efficient routes to use during the day. As a result, you will lower your daily fuel costs. The first step is recording all your trips, who makes the most purchases, and how the traffic is on each route. From there you can work out a good system for improving the costs of getting around.

Route Optimization
You must optimize your routes to cut your costs. By maintaining your vehicles, daily carbon emissions will reduce as well. For this task, you will need advanced scheduling and routing software. Typically, businesses that use route optimization tools lower their fuel costs by nearly 20 percent. Many drivers waste gas because they don’t plan their routes with a good tracking tool. Invest in highly efficient tracking devices to give drivers information about the length of every route. When routes are accurate, drivers get big savings since they don’t waste as much time. Make sure you are always on top of repairs and part replacements as well. When vehicles run at peak health and performance, so will your business.

Lease a Commercial Truck
Leasing a commercial truck will free up capital for your company. The process is very affordable because most companies will not need a down payment. Each payment that you make every month will cover any maintenance issues that could occur. Overall, this transportation option is highly recommended because it can lower your taxes during tax season. Other services like Arrow Truck Sales might also offer commercial trucks for sale which can be a good investment for a company that plans on using transportation like this for a long time.

Fuel Usage Strategies for Commercial Trucks
According the experts, morning is the best time to fill up a commercial vehicle. When pumping the fuel, use the lowest setting to reduce gas vapors and never fill the tank when the gas is nearly gone. If you fill the tank while it is partially full, the truck will have better fuel mileage. Find out what the best hacks might be for your particular vehicle and see how you can improve them.

Train the Staff
If your employees have poor driving habits, monthly fuel costs will be high because frequent starting, stopping, and shifting affect fuel efficiency. To save gas, your drivers should not press the gas petal or the brake petal too quickly since both these actions increase gas consumption. This strategy will only produce great results if the drivers have good routes. If they avoid stop lights and heavy traffic, there will be less starting and stopping throughout the route as well.

Overall, you can save money on your transportation if you rent a commercial truck, choose good routes, and train your staff properly. Preparing for your distribution and transport early on will give you a head start over the competition. Make sure you know what you can afford to invest in and what will pay off in the end.

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Small Business Community Involvement: Why It’s Important

Consumers are looking for many things in businesses today. A growing number of people now want businesses that have some type of local connection or that give back. This means you will want to consider contributing to the surrounding community or neighborhood. There are several reasons why it is important for small business community involvement to be encouraged.

Raise Brand Awareness

The first reason to get involved is to raise brand awareness with the people who matter most to the business. Getting out into the community with banners or just branded t-shirts will begin to make people aware that your business and brand exists. Being directly involved with the community allows you to actually show your brand message and personality in a way not usually possible through traditional marketing techniques. The impression you leave can make a real difference when someone is making a purchasing decision later.

Build Community Trust and Loyalty

A second reason community involvement can be beneficial is because it builds trust and loyalty for your business within the community. The people who see your business in the community will come to realize that your company is not a faceless conglomerate with the exclusive goal of earning a profit. It shows that you are willing to work to help the community and give back, like the foundation by Gary Young. This is going to instill trust in people. Additionally, if community members know you support local causes, then they are more like to choose your business over a competitor or generic online site.

Networking Opportunities

A major reason to get your business out and involved in the community is that there might be many surprising networking opportunities. Helping the community could potentially expose you to important local figures, elected officials or even other business owners in the area. You could use these contacts to potentially strike new business deals, handle problems with your company or work on joint marketing efforts. Networking can be very powerful within a community and often opens doors that would have remained closed otherwise.

Strengthen Employee Bonds

Many of the employees working for your business are likely to live in the surrounding communities. A benefit of getting involved locally is that your employees will start to feel a sense of pride working for your business. This can lead to personal ownership of each job position. The employees might even start to establish stronger bonds with coworkers. This can make your business stronger and more productive. It could also reduce turnover and eliminate problems finding the best local talent.

Improve the Lives of Neighbors

Something to consider is that getting involved with the community is going to start improving the lives of your neighbors in different ways. You might help to increase property values, reduce poverty and improve the local economy through charitable actions. This actually benefits your business by making it easier for the people in the community to make more purchases potentially from your company. A stronger and better community means more disposable income and happier customers.

Earned Media

A final reason to get involved with the community is the possibility of earned media. If your business is out in the community frequently, then there is a chance that you will eventually be covered through the local media outlets. This could mean free stories about your business in local newspapers, on the radio or on the nightly news. Earned media can expose your company to many more people than some other types of advertising.

Being involved with the community can elevate the profile of your business, give employees a good feeling about working and make neighbors feel a connection to your company. It is a valuable way to build up your company within a given area. You should always look into getting involved with the community when running a business.

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What is it Like to Win the Business Achievers Awards? – Alan Armstrong – Almac

We talk to former winners of the Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards to learn more about how winning the award has impacted on their businesses.

In this post we speak to Alan Armstrong – Almac

Almac: Overall Business Achiever Award, 2014
Alan Armstrong – Almac

Headquartered in Craigavon, Almac is an established contract development and manufacturing organisation providing an extensive range of integrated services to over 600 companies globally within the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors. Services include state-of-the-art drug discovery, world leading cancer diagnostics, research and development, manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients, formulation development and the support of global clinical trials. Today the global organisation employs over 3,500 staff in a diverse range of activities.

What was your start-up day?
My career started when I graduated as a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry in 1981 and joined Galen Research Laboratories (Almac Group’s predecessor organisation) in 1978 in the Quality Control department. I was promoted to Quality Assurance Manager in 1982, taking responsibility for overseeing regulatory compliance throughout the company. From 1982 to 1995 I held a number of Operational and Management roles within the Galen organisation.

In 1995 I was appointed to the Board of Directors of Galen Holdings PLC as Chief Operating Officer and when Sir Allen McClay retired from Galen in 2001 to establish the Almac Group the following week, I was right by his side taking up the privileged position of Chief Executive Officer.

Alan Armstrong – Almac

What motivates you?
Keeping Allen McClay’s vision alive motivates me daily. Allen was a father figure to every single Almac employee and we all believe in the vision which he created and shared. He was a highly passionate man, believing that every individual has a responsibility for the community, society and the world they live in.

Though he passed away in January 2010, there is still a strong sense of his presence around the company throughout all our facilities. His vision very much lives on in every decision the Board makes, ensuring his many ideas, philosophies and legacy are evident. I know he would be extremely proud of what we have achieved so far.

What keeps you up at night?
As a farming man, I am up every day at the crack of dawn. After a long working day between the farm and Almac, there is not much that can keep me up at night!

What’s been the most surprising part of running the business?
The staff of Almac surprise me every day. There is a true sense of loyalty and belonging felt not only by me, but all employees regardless of their location and I firmly believe this emanated directly from Allen himself when he used to talk about the Almac “family”.

The rate of expansion has been phenomenal and a true success story over the past 30 years. Our unrivalled range of services, innovative approach and proven quality record makes Almac a major player in drug development both now and we believe for generations to come.

What’s been the most challenging for you?
We firmly believe there will be more emphasis by pharma and biotech companies to use companion diagnostic tests to assist treatment decisions and focus on personalised medicines. This will inevitably impact the services our clients demand. Fortunately we have been working in this space for many years and have considerable expertise to leverage and help inform our clients accordingly.

Changes to international regulatory and compliance guidelines will present many challenges and Almac is planning ahead by ensuring a proactive approach is taken in both the interpretation and implementation of required standards.

And the most rewarding?
Achieving year-on-year growth, development of the global company and knowing that Allen McClay would be proud of our achievement.

What are some of the characteristics of people that have been successful at your company?
Almac has a strong track record of investing in our people. It is in our Core Values and Vision that, People are Almac’s core asset. Individually and collectively people are critical to the success of our vision. We recognise excellence and acknowledge that to empower our employees, we must invest in their continuous development’.

In addition to continuous employee training and development, we also endeavour to recruit the best talent globally. This is evidenced by the fact that we currently employ 30 different nationalities at our corporate headquarter site in Craigavon. It is also significant to note that we currently employ a high calibre of graduates as well as 5 professors throughout the Group whose expertise and knowledge is both exceptional and indispensable.

We are in a very covetous position at Almac where I am proud to say many of our Directors and Senior Management team have been with the company since graduation. This has added a stability and loyalty few other companies of our size are able to claim, particularly within our industry and means that Allen McClay’s vision to see Northern Ireland remain the firm’s headquarters and engine room has not been altered.

What are you most excited about for the future?
The future of Almac is very exciting! We are continuing to expand and grow our service offerings by investing in our people and innovation. I am particularly excited to see how we will increase our Global Presence having opened our Asia Pacific Headquarters earlier this year.

Any amazing families, partners, friends behind the scenes you’d like to thank – how did they support you in the early days?
We were delighted to be named Overall Business Achiever in these prestigious awards, particularly when pitched against other outstanding companies across all of Ireland. This is a fantastic recognition of the hard work by all our global teams and dedicated employees, without whom this success would not be possible. It is difficult to pinpoint a few people for me to thank, therefore I would like to give a huge congratulations to everyone at Almac who made winning this coveted award possible – it is a true honour for all of us.

What doors has winning the Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards opened for you?
Being named Overall Ulster Bank Business Achiever of the Year was a special moment for us. It not only gives our employees a distinguished accolade of which we can be proud but is an endorsement of our work delivered to our clients and partners, building their trust and confidence in what we do. We also believe it helps to motivate our global team to meet business objectives.

What was the biggest benefit for you winning this award?
It’s the fourth successive time that a Northern Ireland company has won this award, and Almac beat off competition from a record number of entries from across Ireland. The judges have recognised the significant international footprint established by the Almac Group, clearly demonstrated by our international growth strategy achieving outstanding levels of sales, profit and market share growth.

Winning the award has enabled us to be recognised for and promote our Unique Selling Points.

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What is it Like to Win the Business Achievers Awards? – Dawn Cann – Avondale Foods

We talk to former winners of the Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards to learn more about how winning the award has impacted on their businesses.

In this post we speak to Dawn Cann of Avondale Foods.

Best Food and Drink Award, 2014
Dawn Cann – Avondale

Established in 1965, Avondale Foods the family-run company is located just outside Lurgan, Co. Armagh, on Chestnut Farm. Avondale initially grew and sold vegetables before moving focus to research and development and subsequently diversified into vegetable processing. With products supplied under own label and Country Kitchen brands, the company supplies most major supermarkets.

What was your start-up day?
Avondale was founded in 1965 and initially traded under the name of ‘S. Geddis & Sons’. I joined the business on a full time basis in 2000.

Dawn Cann of Avondale Foods.

What motivates you?
Building on the company’s success and a love of good food.

What keeps you up at night?
My 2 year old twins!

What’s been the most challenging part of running a business for you?
Refusing to compromise on quality in order to achieve a lower cost, during challenging economic times a few years ago.

And the most rewarding?
Seeing someone put one of our products into their shopping trolley still gives me a buzz.

What is one mistake you’ve made, and what did you learn from it?
I’ve made a few mistakes and I’ve learned not to repeat them.

What are some of the characteristics of people that have been successful at your company?

Integrity
Belief in the company’s ethos of sourcing high quality ingredients.
Passion for good food.

What are you most excited about for the future?
The company’s ability to develop exciting and innovative products coupled with growing consumer interest in foods has provided us with an excellent opportunity to expand our product portfolio.

Any amazing families, partners, friends behind the scenes you’d like to thank – how did they support you in the early days?
This is a family company, where the second generation are now in senior management positions. We all have different skill sets which complement each other.

What doors has winning the Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards opened for you?
The Business Achievers Award has helped raise our profile.

What was the biggest benefit for you winning this award?
Winning this award was recognition of the team’s continued work in delivering high quality products.

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Seven Ways to Save on Your New Business Building

Buying a new business building can be a costly and time consuming process. But there are a few proven ways to reduce both the short term and long term costs. Use these seven ways to save on your new business building and make sure you’re heading in the right direction financially.

Work with a Real Estate Professional
The building you purchase and the subsequent location will have lasting consequences for your business. Choose your building according to both your present and projected future needs. A real estate professional will have better access to a wider range of properties and will also advocate for your needs and dislikes. As a result, a real estate agent can be the negotiator you need, and use their professional skills to get you a better deal.

Choose Wisely
Your new business building will require the employment of many different contractors. While a finished building may only require a few touch up projects, be sure to carefully select your contractor. Avoid accepting the first bid, or rushing through the process. Thoroughly check references for contractors through asking their previous clients for reviews. Choosing the right contractor will be financially beneficial in the long run because you will most likely have need of their services in the future.

Project Management Software
Buying and fixing up a building for your business will be a long term project with many complex tasks. Using project management software will allow you to stay within the budget, while making sure deadlines are met. Project management allows you to stay focused while reaching your business goals. Use a good organizational or software system to keep track of bills, project progress, and future tasks.

Understand the Math
It is important to understand the financial costs of buying a business building. There are also real property costs, such as real estate taxes and settlement costs. Your constructing assets will be part of your cost basis, which may include labor, materials, contractor payments, and inspection fees. Be sure to work with a certified accountant to maximize your savings. Learn more about the financial costs of buying a building from the IRS.

Permits and Licensure
Consider establishing a limited liability company (LLC) as the owner of the building. This will provide legal protection through limiting your personal liability and protecting your personal assets from potential lawsuits. Buying a building through an LLC also guarantees privacy, as LCC records are not public property records. Finally, be sure to obtain the correct local, county, and state licenses and permits for your business and industry.

Save Energy
The good news is, there are plenty of ways to save energy through making adjustments to lighting, office equipment, and the HVAC system. For example, use compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and replace any incandescent ‘exit’ signs with LED ‘exit’ signs. Be sure to install motion sensitive lights in areas that are occasionally occupied, such as break areas or conference rooms. Purchase EPA approved, Energy Star equipment, and plug load controllers that can shut down inactive electronic equipment. Laptops use over 80 percent less energy than desk computers, and you can keep your HVAC system in top shape through regular, preventative maintenance.

Lawn Care
Using a professional landscaping service will save you time, which in turn will save you money. A BBB business reviewed lawn care service company will have commercial-grade equipment and tools which will save a lot of money in the long run, since lawn maintenance requires a variety of supplies and equipment, such as fertilizer, leaf blowers and lawn mowers. Landscapers will have the expertise and know how to properly care for plants and trees. And most services like Pro-Lawns aren’t just hired for the pleasant seasons, but also come in handy during winter for snow removal in St. Louis or wherever your business is located.

As a business getting into a new building, you can save a lot of money through using competent real estate agent and contracting professionals, utilizing project management software, understanding finances and licensure, and can cut costs through energy efficiency and by using a lawn care service. Use these tips to help you get started saving more on your next building.

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Office Design for Optimum Productivity

In this post we take a look at office design and how it can influence productivity. We look at a few core principles in interior design including colour, ergonomics, clutter and light.

It’s all about the Colour

Some studies have shown that the colour of an office can have a direct impact on employees. To understand the science of colour, here are a few hues to consider, and the effect that they’ll have.

Blue:

Blue is a very stabilising colour, and encourages a calm environment, full of productivity and focus.

Green:

Green is great for people who work long hours, keeping them on-task and invigorated.

Yellow:

Yellow boosts creativity and optimism in the office. If you want a cheery and productive environment, this is a great option.

Red:

For physical jobs, the colour red has been shown to increase the heart rate, as well as emotions like passion.

Depending on what you need for your office, just changing the colour of your walls could lead to fantastic results. If you don’t want the hassle of deciding the décor for yourself, you can enlist the services of an office planner, such as Opus 4, or you can specifically hire a designer for your rebrand.

Ergonomics

It doesn’t get simpler than this: if your wrists or your shoulders are in pain, due to poor ergonomics, you’re not going to be a very productive employee – you might even have to take time off work to rest your injuries. Ergonomics are so important. All offices should be set out with them in mind. That means investing in equipment that will stop employees from feeling as if a demon has been stomping on their spine all day. Make your workers as comfortable as possible.

Get Rid Of Clutter

Clutter is distracting. There is a reason why many people choose to tidy up before they do anything practical. A clean office makes space for new ideas and fresh minds. Clutter everywhere can get oppressive and bring people down.

Bring Nature Indoors

Some offices don’t really come with window views, or if they do, they’re not always pleasantly green. Bring nature into the office by investing in plants that are hard to kill, such as succulents. Plants help to filter toxins out of the air and keep employees productive.

Let In Light

Nobody wants to live in a dungeon. Letting in lots of light helps to create a spacious feeling, and it’s often uplifting for employees to have a lot of natural rays coming through the windows. It will boost energy and creativity throughout the office. Darkness is often depressing and slows people down.

Get Rid Of Open Plan

Although an open plan office seems to be preferred these days (as people believe that the pressure of being looked at all day will make employees work harder) but really it’s just heavily distracting. With people talking and moving around members of staff all day, you need the concentration of a saint to keep your mind on your work. Give people the peace that they need to crack on.

Movement

Some employees will just sit at their desk all day. This lack of movement is bad for their bodies, but also bad for their productivity. Everyone needs to move around and take short breaks. Encourage movement throughout working hours, even if that’s a klaxon that goes off every two hours, signalling that employees should do some stretches or jump around!

What’s your office set-up like? Is there a specific structure of colour that increases your production levels? Comment below if you’ve got any helpful office interior tips!

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What is it Like to Win the Business Achievers Awards – John Barron, Reagecon

We talk to four former winners of the Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards to learn more about how winning the award has impacted on their businesses.

In this post we speak to John Barron of Reagecon.

What was your start-up day?
Approximately 1990

What motivates you?
Growing the business to be market leader worldwide, developing new products (standards and certified reference materials), developing internal talent and contributing to the local economy.

What keeps you up at night?
Failure of products to reach customers on dates as promised and failure of products to match specifications or tolerances in line with customer expectations.

What’s been the most surprising part of running the business?
The excellent level of state support in Ireland, support and goodwill of stakeholders including banks, and level of co-operation from customers including competitors.

John Barron, Reagecon

What’s been the most challenging for you?
Products are extremely demanding technically, product range is very wide (approximately 7,000 different products), market tends to be conservative in accepting new products and sometimes (internally) our transfer process from R&D into full production is not agile enough.

And the most rewarding?
Building an international brand and obtaining a position as the largest producer of physical and chemical standards and certified reference materials in the world.

What is one mistake you’ve made, and what did you learn from it?
Company was under capitalised in the beginning. This restrained our growth trajectory and R&D pipeline. This was remedied by bringing in outside equity and leveraging grant aid and banking facilities against the equity. Learned the value of adequate funding.

What are some of the characteristics of people that have been successful at your company?
Positive attitude, ability to either implement and manage change or accept change, positive disposition, capability to work hard

What are you most excited about for the future?
There is significant growth in the market and we are very well positioned to capture a good portion of this opportunity, we are well positioned in China and the Far East for the growth that is occurring there and we have a significant new product pipeline developed.
Any amazing families, partners, friends behind the scenes you’d like to thank – how did they support you in the early days?

My wife Brigid, children James, Don, Maura, Eleanor and Stephen. Constant support and tolerance to enable me to develop the business. Constant support, dedication and friendship from our leadership team of Mike, Vicky and Don, Michelle, Lee and Bernard, and external directors Finbarr and Jim – I would like to thank them all sincerely.

What doors has winning the Business Achievers Awards opened for you?
Has enabled us to confidently present our value proposition to customers around the world knowing that what we offer is externally validated by independent adjudicators.

What was the biggest benefit for you winning this award?
Confidence that we are on the right track from strategic, tactical and operational perspectives.

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What is it Like to Win the Business Achievers Awards – Helen Arnold, TVM

We talk to four former winners of the Ulster Bank Business Achievers Awards to learn more about how winning the award has impacted on their businesses.

In this post we speak to Helen Arnold of TVM.

What was your start-up day?
1986

What motivates you?
I love a challenge and get great satisfaction from finding solutions – logistics / personnel / technical

What keeps you up at night?
Very little / pressure is for tyres.

What’s been the most challenging for you?
Balancing life / work. I love what I do, get great enjoyment from it and my family all work in the business – so getting away from it after hours is a bit tricky.

Helen Arnold, TVM

And the most rewarding?
I’m a glass half full person, love solving issues. But the best buzz is finding a solution to a client’s requirement.

What is one mistake you’ve made, and what did you learn from it?
After a few years in business we had an opportunity to diversify into a completely different business and we went for it but hadn’t researched it enough and it ended up costing us a lot of time and money and intimately we had to sell it on.

Lesson: Know what your good at, develop it and don’t run off blindly in another direction without very good reason.

What are some of the characteristics of people that have been successful at your company?
Our line of business is all about team work / getting along with people and from an operational point of view – thinking outside the box to find solutions (technical). So lateral thinkers with good people skills.

What are you most excited about for the future?
Planning the next stage of development of our company. We are currently looking at succession and knowledge.

What doors has winning the Business Achievers Awards opened for you?
Grew the profile of the company locally and nationally. Helped with recruiting.

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