Partner Article

Consultancy goes global amid rapid growth at home and abroad

A BUSINESS growth specialist has rolled out its services nationally while also taking a small army of the region’s firms into new high-growth markets across the globe.

Gateshead-based Sphera Consulting Ltd has grown rapidly since its inception in 2009 and now services almost all of the North East’s major innovation enterprise organisations, universities and digital cluster groups.

The company helps early-stage, high growth potential businesses accelerate their growth, plan for scalability, prepare for investment and commercialise new technology.

Over the next 12 months the firm expects to double its turnover on the back of its recent expansion across the UK which comes after a string of client wins in Leeds, York, Edinburgh, Bristol and Cambridge.

Meanwhile, the business is also acting for 10 North East firms that are in the process of going global, as Sphera helps set up and grow revenue streams as far afield as China, the US, Australia and Japan.

The company founded by Ross Golightly, who – although originally from the North East – has spent much of his career overseeing the successful development of large business units and product lines in Europe, the Middle East and South Africa.

He has also held senior roles at a number of corporate heavyweights including Swedish appliances giant Electrolux and the US Fortune 200 multinational, PPG Industries, in addition to other advisory firms. .

Mr Golightly said: “The North East is producing a huge number of innovative business start-ups, particularly in the digital and technology sectors, and we have been in the privileged position of helping to transform many of these into scalable businesses.

“There has previously been a provision gap in the North East for supporting innovative businesses to achieve step-change growth and we sought to address that gap.

“In just two years we have grown to a position or working with and for the majority of the region’s innovation connectors, technology networks and universities to support business acceleration and innovation and will become a national entity this year with several new clients from across the UK coming on board.

“In terms of overseas work, we are now involved in projects in Asia, Australia, the US and Europe and expect to play a key role in helping North East firms take disruptive technologies into new markets in the coming months and years.”

Sphera has also recently been enlisted by a number of the region’s firms to aid their international growth.

Among such organisations are Northumbria University, who the firm is supporting to license technology internationally and AIM-listed multinational Zytronic Displays Ltd who generate 90% of their sales from international markets.

The company also lists Newcastle Science City, digital enterprise organisation Codeworks, Entrust, DigitalCity Business, Durham University and Sunderland Software City on its rapidly growing roster of clients.

The firm also delivers for many of the regions innovative digital start-up’s, such as happiest, LamasaTech and Tribus.mobi and a range of established expansion-stage businesses such as Dene Films and Silverbean.

For more information on Sphera Consulting Ltd please visit: www.spheraconsulting.co.uk

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .