Member Article

Generator launches Digital Scale Up Programme to boost North East SMEs

North East business development organisation Generator has announced it will roll out a programme in January 2018 to boost growth amongst the region’s creative digital businesses.

Applications are now open for the Digital Scale Up Programme, open to creative and digital SMEs which employ 6 or more staff.

Generator has pledged that successful applicants will receive expert mentoring and will be armed with all the strategic tools and processes to help them grow.

North-East businesses operating within the sector are being urged to attend its launch event on Thursday 14 September at the Live Theatre on Newcastle’s Quayside to find out more.

Speaking ahead of next week’s awareness raising event - which will kick start at 5:30pm and will feature first-hand scale up stories and an expert panel of speakers – Generator’s Head of Business Support, Emma Whitenstall, explains: “It’s hard for businesses to grow without the tools, strategies, and processes in place that ensure the business is robust enough to grow with demand.

“If your business is ready for the next phase but you’re not quite sure how to get there, we can help you grow in a sustainable way.

“There have been numerous initiatives around assisting and supporting start-ups in recent years, and this is the next step to help support businesses on their journey to success.

“The launch event at Live Theatre will showcase some of the outstanding success stories of local businesses that have scaled up successfully and reveal the inside track of how they did it.

“Delegates will also hear from the mentors and beneficiaries of the programme to get a real insight of what to expect and why you should apply.”

The programme, which will roll out in January, will be delivered through mentoring sessions in the style of an interim board by a key group of experts, with specialisms ranging from sales, marketing, and finance.

The likes of hedgehog lab’s CEO, Sarat Pediredla, will be speaking at next Thursday’s gathering at Live. After a decision to pivot the business in 2010, hedgehog lab has seen significant growth and international expansion, opening offices in London, India, the US and Denmark on top of its Newcastle headquarters.

He said: “While start-ups are super important to the region, Scale Ups are the job creators and foundation of a great business ecosystem, becoming the large businesses of the future.

“The Generator Digital Scale Up program is the support I wish I had while we were scaling our business and is packed with really useful advice and support. I’d recommend this to anyone considering the growth phase of their business.”