Yorkshire festive focus: Tracey Smith, York Science Park

As Christmas is less than a week away, and the businesspeople of Yorkshire are preparing to hang up their stockings, Bdaily is catching up with the region’s business leaders to reflect on the highlights of 2016 and how they plan on spending the holiday period.

For the series’ next instalment, we are speaking with Tracey Smith, CEO of York Science Park.

Your business

What were the three biggest highlights for your business in 2016?

We celebrated our 25th Anniversary this year, a momentous occasion that merited appropriate celebration and recognition. It was quite a challenge working on our Anniversary Economic Impact Report, and measuring the extent of our impact, but incredibly rewarding to see the figures it revealed, it has been amazing to see the true impact of the Science Park, not just on our residents but on the city as a whole.

It has also been a great year for developing members of our team, and implementing succession planning with our staff, which is something I’m proud of.

Our goal at the start of the year was to fill vacant space left by residents graduating from the park, with a diverse mixture of inventive companies. This year has seen some new companies join the park working in some amazing areas of innovation, and sectors that just didn’t exist a few years ago. It is constantly amazing to see what our residents are working on, and I look forward to seeing even more incredible companies join the Science Park community in 2017!

What are your business’ goals going into 2017?

Filling space is always a goal in our business, finding innovative companies to fill space vacated to allow for resident growth is a major objective going forward, and always will be.

We are also planning some changes to our Board of Directors in 2017, so there will be some more exciting news on that coming soon.

One of our other major projects for the coming year will be looking at business needs, and helping to create angel and investor activity around the companies we have on the park, and working collaboratively with our key stakeholders like the University of York to help develop programmes to support business growth and development on the Science Park.

Anything you/your business would have done differently over the past year?

The only change I would have made would have been starting work on our Anniversary Economic Impact Report earlier, which would have given us more time for our celebrations and promotion.

Your region

Why do you think Yorkshire is a great place to do business?

I have always found that people working Yorkshire are very open in the way they do business, they are happy and open to working collaboratively, and they have a straight-talking approach which is quite refreshing.

Yorkshire is a great place to base your business, offering companies access to a hugely talented potential workforce. York is regularly recognised as one of the best cities in the UK for talent, with 41% of residents having a degree-level qualification or higher, which is way ahead of national averages. In our annual statistical survey it was revealed that 86% of York Science Park residents pay their employees at, or above the average wages for their sectors, so it’s also a great place to work for a local business, as well as run one!

I have also found businesses located in Yorkshire are proud of being based here, and invested in their community and surroundings, in a way that you don’t often find outside of the region.

Any other company/companies in the region stand out for you?

I am constantly in awe of the companies based on the Science Park. Our residents are working in a huge range of innovative industries, from Augmented Reality through to Zoological records, and companies that have graduated from the park continue to be successful, winning awards and innovating their respective industries.

Hiscox have also been a great example of a big business getting really involved in the local community, and it has been encouraging to see them develop their relationship with businesses and networks across the city.

What does Yorkshire want to see happen in the future/next year?

Yorkshire is a place for innovation, and I am sure that in the future we will see new emerging sectors building their businesses and developing across Yorkshire.

Yourself

What individual goals did you achieve personally/professionally in 2016?

Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of York Science Park Ltd alongside my team was a great highlight for me in 2016. I am proud to come to work with such an inspiring mixture of people every day, and it was a great way to recognise and celebrate the people and businesses that have contributed to our success over the past 25 years.

I was also incredibly proud to win York ‘Business Personality of the Year’. The award meant a lot to me, because it recognised the work I have been able to do thanks to the support of my incredible team. The judges commended my years of dedicated service to the park and resident companies and my efforts to build an impressive network of contacts.

I couldn’t do what I do in the city without the support of my fantastic team at the science park, so the award was for them really. We have got such amazing, innovative companies in the city that have got such ambition - it really is an easy job.

How to you unwind after a stressful day at work?

After a stressful day at work, I love to work in our allotment to relax. I have always loved being outside, and combining a healthy dose of fresh air with being able to nurture things, and get them to grow, is just the perfect way to wind down after a long week.

What would be the perfect Christmas gift for you?

I’m looking forward to spending time with my family and friends at Christmas, so that’s really all I need. Having said that, I do love to travel, so tickets to somewhere new and exciting would be great!