Vlogs - Andrew Goldberg

Chris McPhee is the founder and CEO of My Lead Locker, bridging the gap between marketing talent and home improvement business owners, through the use of third-party technology and symbiotic partnerships. In this Spotlight Interview, Chris shares some insight into the exciting technologies and strategies that My Lead Locker is and will be embarking on world-wide over the coming months and years, and some valuable lessons about owning a fast-growth, scalable business. Chris also shares his top learnings and biggest obstacles he’s had to overcome since starting his business, as well as how to attract the best people to your team. For more information about My Lead Locker, visit https://www.myleadlocker.co.uk/.

Dr Poonam Gupta OBE, Chief Executive and Founder of PG Paper, began her entrepreneurial journey when she arrived in Scotland in 2002. Now she is one of the most recognised entrepreneurs in the UK and beyond, committed to further building PG Paper worldwide, expanding into new fields of business but also passing on her knowledge and experience to a new generation of entrepreneurs.

Her portfolio of companies continues to diversify, operating in over 60 countries, with offices across the globe.

With a career-long interest in strengthening and enabling greater collaboration between Scotland and India; Poonam led a successful Scottish Chambers Task Force to India in 2019.  She has been recognised as one of the ‘100 Most Influential in UK-India Relations’ by India Inc Group. Poonam is currently Chair of the UK India Manufacturing Council, FICCI, the largest and oldest apex business organisation in India.

In this Business Spotlight Interview, Poonam shares some of her biggest learnings since she began her business ownership journey, some of her biggest challenges and how she overcame them, and most importantly, the value of tapping into the vast network of learning and business support resources available to entrepreneurs in Scotland.

For more information about PG Paper, visit https://www.pgpaper.com/.

FQM is a Health, Safety, Environment Quality and Information Security consultancy, coaching and training organisation. They are a solutions provider, with a focus on delivering cost effective outcomes to more than meet client requirements.

FQM’s approach is to demonstrate performance assurance by reducing business risk through linking robust processes with people to give integrity. They deliver this with their extremely competent consultants, auditor and trainers, plus their unique compliance software package – Mango.

Chris Docherty is the managing director of FQM, having taking over the business eight years ago, following a stint in operations. Chris shares his most valuable learnings as a business owner, primarily around the importance of recruiting the right people based on their characteristics, values, and cultural fit with the organisation, as well the importance of fostering a positive and flexible work environment, and the value of everybody in the company looking after themselves personally, as well as professionally.

For more information about FQM, visit https://www.fqmltd.com/.

Paul Sammeroff is the owner of recruitment company PAS Capital, specialising in Oil and Gas, Engineering, and Renewable Energy, among other sectors. In this Business Spotlight Interview, Paul shares his key learnings and major issues he’s had to overcome since becoming a business owner, and gives us a brief insight into his aspirations for international expansion and growth. You can find out more about PAS Capital here: https://pascapital.co.uk/

ISSOS offers award-winning summer schools in Scotland, England and the USA for students aged 13 – 18, from all over the world. Jen Munro founded the company 17 years ago, and in this Spotlight Interview shares her journey, how she decided to go into business for herself in the first place, and her learnings on the way. Jen shares the importance of company culture and values, the importance of fun in and out of the workplace, and why it’s so important to love what you do and feel fulfilled by the business that you’re in. For more information on ISSOS, visit https://www.issos.com/.

WHOLUS [whol-us] is a whole life, people-centric, digital transformation organisation. Built around their proprietary interoperable platform, they are ecosystem agnostic, offering a multi-faceted SaaS platform and transformative service. Dealing with leading IoT related hardware and software companies with an information holistic point of view. Everything they do is built on their ethics foundation which promotes the principle of high quality ESG principles.

Founder/CEO Gordon Mitchell shares his insights and experiences based on his years as an entrepreneur and business owner, particularly with regards to personal growth and development, and well-being, both for himself and for his team.

For more information about Wholus, visit https://wholus.com/.

Bill Christie, Managing Director of CER Business Finance Ltd, is a Chartered Banker and a Fellow of the Chartered Banker Institute. In this unique Business Spotlight Interview, Bill shares some of his top learnings from four decades in the financial services and banking industries, and shares his experience of shifting from a large corporate environment to flying solo in his own business. Bill highly values the importance of surrounding himself with a strong external team and strategic partners, the importance of asking the right questions and giving the right information, and the challenges of having to re-brand himself when transitioning from the banking world to the self-employed world. For more information about Bill, visit https://card.pramaze.com/bill-christie.

Alan McMillan is the CEO of Bowls Scotland, which is The National Governing Body and source of all information, news and updates for lawn bowls in Scotland.

Bowls Scotland is building on their recent Commonwealth Games success and supporting bowling clubs to be at the heart of their local community.

With 800 clubs and over 50,000 members, Alan has a massive responsibility and relies heavily on his team of 14 people. Our discussion focuses on the importance of engaging all team members and fostering an environment of sharing new ideas and trying new things. One of Alan’s biggest learnings being in business is to listen to all those around you, realising that you can’t know everything yourself and you don’t know where the next great idea is going to come from.

Gillies & Mackay are a 2nd generation family business that “builds the best sheds” and timber buildings. Cara Mackay is the CEO and talks to us about the trials and tribulations of growing up with the business from various roles up to her current leadership position, and how she has needed to work hard to gain the trust and support of her amazing team. Cara shares with us her views on the qualities of a great leader, the importance of creating and maintaining a positive culture in the business, and the importance of staying out of our comfort zone. Cara also shares some other amazing innovations currently in the works to allow this amazing business to grow into the future! For more information about Gillies & Mackay, visit https://gilliesandmackay.com/.

In this Business Spotlight interview, we hear from Craig Hume of Utopia Computers. Craig took over the business from his late father, and presents yet another example of how the next generation of business owners are committed to growth, adapting to the changing business environment and economy, and to creating more opportunities for amazing team members. Craig shares his views on the importance of target marketing – “Not every customer is for us.” – and the importance of supporting each team member in their own personal and professional growth. For more information on Utopia Computers, visit http://www.utopiacomputers.co.uk/.

In this Business Spotlight interview, we hear from Stephanie McKigen of Dalriada Homecare. Steph started working for Dalriada in 2001 as a support worker in the residential unit and then in the community. She started as Deputy Manager in 2015 before taking over the role as General Manager in 2017 and then Managing Director in 2019. Steph tells us about her journey entering and then ultimately running a family business, and the importance of recruiting staff based on their attitude, values, and most importantly, their compassion, on the premise that they could teach people the technical skills of the role, but not the compassion. Steph reminds aspiring business owners that although it can be hard work, it can be very rewarding and we must stay the course. She also shared the importance of delegation without micro-managing. For more information about Dalriada Homecare, visit https://www.dalriadahomecareltd.co.uk/.

Ian Henderson, owner of Henderson Properties and Superior Homes (Kenya), shares his learnings and experience from years of business ownership in various industries and countries. With lots of travel and juggling multiple businesses, Ian has learned how to separate family from business, and how to be fully ‘on’ and fully ‘off’ when he needs to be, and the importance of recovering fully when on holiday. Ian has also shared his views on the importance of having clear long-term plans for the business. For more information on Superior Homes, visit http://www.superiorhomes.co.ke.

The Sporting Pursuit is a leading sport’s consultancy that supports and develops coaches, athletes and teams to become the best they can be. They offer unique insight’s from the world of sport with over 20 years of international experience working across all areas of coach development, athlete development programme design and performance sport. They offer inspiring and interactive workshops, events, athlete & coach consults and keynote presentations to National Governing Bodies, Schools & Education, Clubs & Communities and Performance Teams specialising in Talent, Leadership & Character Development. Founder Stevie Baxter shares his 10 years’ experience and learnings since going into business for himself, the importance of having patience as a business owner, and the importance of balance. Stevie shares his tips for balancing work time with family time, and the consequences that can occur when we don’t look after ourselves and work too hard. Most importantly, Stevie shares the importance of being passionate about what we do, and believing in ourselves.

Thanks!