Open4Business from NLive Radio

Publisher Ben Thomas of All Things Business celebrates the 100th edition of the magazine as well as the launch of the 2025 Northants Business Excellence and Northants Education Awards which he runs. Also learn about Ben's social impact initiatives, and the thinking behind his motto 'Business Needs Education and Education Needs Business' . See https://allthingsbusiness.co.uk/Originally broadcast on Open4Business Tuesday 29th April 2025

In this thought-provoking episode, Vanessa Ugatti, The True Worth Expert exposes the costly mistake professional service providers make by not charging their true worth — and the long-term damage it can cause to the firm's revenue and their people's morale, health, and well-being. See https://www.thetrueworthexpert.comOriginally broadcast on Open4Business Tuesday 29th April 2025

Helen Russell, an early careers specialist, talks about apprenticeships and as well as sharing highlights from the recent UON Employer Connect event. Hear about Helen's business, The Right Track Consultancy, and her views on embedding and developing talent for long-term business success.Open4Business Originally broadcast Tuesday 29th April 2025

Experienced Impact Practitioner Shehnaaz Latif reports on her successful inaugural Impact Showcase in December and her plans for 2025 - and how we can all help ourselves with some me time. See https://tootservices.co.uk/

Farmer and entrepreneur Duncan Farrington MBE talks about the New Year's Honours award as he prepares to celebrate 20 years of Farrington Oils - and how he is still innovating. See https://farrington-oils.co.uk/

Cllr Rebecca Breeze is the West Northants Council Cabinet Member responsible for Strategic Planning, Built Environment & Rural Affairs, and here she talks about her career, her work and its long term natiue plus and the major issues she faces on behalf of local citizens.

Driving industry change and sustainability is the mission of Deborah Taylor, founder and MD of the Sustainable Leather Foundation CIC, which recently held its annual summit at the University of Northampton, from where Deborah reports on the event, the key issues and the work of the Foundation. See https://sustainableleatherfoundation.com/

Executive job hunting in mid-career has its challenges, as high flying Oxford graduate Simon Gilchrist attests following his career break. Despite a stellar CV and a top Warwick MBA, it is not easy to find a suitable new role - but this story does have a happy ending! 

Entrepreneur and publisher Martin Lewis-Stephenson speaks about how he acquired and relaunched Northamptonshire's Business Times, and how his media business, the Pulse Media Group, is expanding - and the strategy and approach behind it. See https://pulsemediagroup.co.uk/

Guest presenter Rachel Mellows with special interviews all about the Northamptonshire Food and Drink Awards JA Knight & Son Farmers Ltd is a successful family run business based near Walgrave, Northamptonshire. Since taking over the farm, Matt has transformed the way the land is farmed using both modern technology to reduce chemical and fertiliser additions as well as changing land use to encourage wildlife and biodiversity. The farm has planted 8 acres of woodland as well as enabling the creation of a ‘nature corridor' from the farm to Pitsford Reservoir. Contact - 01604 781630 & www.jaknightfarms.co.uk Originally broadcast on Open4Business on NLive Radio 5th December 2023

Guest presenter Rachel Mellows with special interviews all about the Northamptonshire Food and Drink Awards Kamil Podgorski won the Canapé of the Year award for his ‘Autumn Sonata' – a cored scone, filled with autumn raspberry chutney and topped with parmesan and mint that was served to guests arriving at the Awards dinner. Originally broadcast on Open4Business on NLive Radio 5th December 2023

Guest presenter Rachel Mellows with special interviews all about the Northamptonshire Food and Drink Awards The Palmichael has been owned and run by the Palmiero family since 1981. Michael heads the kitchens and sister Maria runs the front of house. Their priorities are clear and simple: fine authentic Italian food and great friendly service. Using the very best quality Italian and British ingredients – the finest Italian DOC Parma ham; Parmigiano Reggiano; buffalo mozzarella, fantastic egg pasta; tender 28-day dry aged Hereford steaks, freshly prepared fish and seafood from UK ports including Brixham, Plymouth and Billings gate market, freshly roasted coffee from Well Roasted roastery in Market Harborough and Warner Edwards Dry and Flavoured Gins from Falls Farm in Harrington. The Palmichael aims to support local small businesses by sourcing their fresh food and drink as locally as possible and Northamptonshire has some of the best fresh produce to offer. Available to book for lunch and dinner reservations it offers the perfect setting for group bookings, whether you are entertaining friends, having a business meeting, or hosting a party. The versatile space can host parties for up to 30 guests dining or 50 for drinks and Cicchetti, with direct access to the bar this venue is a great area for receptions. Contact Info : 01536 723641 - www.thepalmichael.co.uk Originally broadcast on Open4Business on NLive Radio 5th December 2023

Our series of interviews with local government councillors continues, with an engaging chat with Cllr David Smith, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, Engagement and Regulatory Services at West Northants Council. David talks about his varied career as a serial entrepreneur and for the past few years in politics, with a spell in France as wine maker and elite cycling along the way.

Martin spoke to Marco Gundermann the University of Northamptons Head of Economics, international relations and development at the Faculty of Business and Law all about last weeks autumn statement. What does it mean for general public, winners and losers, and what the political implications are for next years expected general election.

Silverstone Technology Cluster's CEO Pim Van Baarsen reports direct from STC's annual Innovation and Growth Conference, with details of the keynote speakers and a new initiative to address the skills gap in engineering. See https://www.silverstonetechnologycluster.com/

With news of an excellent new concept at their Thrapston base,  catering kitchen and equipment specialist WhitCo's CEO Vita Whitaker talks about the vision behind this new initiative, and how it will become a base to bring industry and education  closer together to drive skills and innovation. See www.whitcoltd.com 

The popular and well-known Northants & Milton Keynes Chambers of Commerce Group Commercial Director Sunny Singh gives an update on the latest Chamber activities, with a finger on the pulse of the mood  around the region, also sharing details of the Northamptonshire Business Awards and Next Generation initiative. See https://northants-chamber.co.uk/

West Northants Councillor Malcom Longley has cabinet responsibility  overseeing finance and here he talks about how his long career in business has prepared him to bring strong financial and budgeting disciplines to the new unitary authority. See www.westnorthants.gov.uk 

Musical Director and maestro Stephen Bell, founder of Red Kite Training, talks about how he is bringing his executive development, management training and motivational skills to bear in Be. Partners Ltd, a new venture and coalition of six partners coming together with a range of products and services to help organisations deliver real, lasting and positive impact in their people, planet, place, productivity and profit. See www.bepartners.org 

Recently retired University of Northampton subject head and senior lecturer Alistair Sutton and his successor Tiju Kodiyat reflect on teaching and managerial duties in a University environment and howe the demands of the job - and the students - are evolving.

Entrepreneur Emma Rose, landlady of The Coach House Inn and The Royal Oak in Rutland, talks about the transition from teaching business in a university to doing it and how her business philosophy guides her in creating welcoming community inns. See https://www.thecoachhouseinn.co.uk/ and https://www.royaloakduddington.com/ 

Celebrating the company's 65th Anniversary Cosworth's CEO and Chairman of he Board Hal Reisiger talks about the history and success of this jewel in the crown of Northamptonshire, a well-known brand in high performance engineering and motorsport, and reveals some insights into his management approach as an American working in the UK. See https://www.cosworth.com/

Listen to Dominic Masterson Chartered MCSI, Chief Exec of the Northants based Commsave Credit Union who treating their role in banking, finance and money as a service, with a high customer service and employee-focused philosophy.

Argentine born Julian Coronati discusses his ambitions and role with the Barcelona-based strategic sourcing company S3 Group, following his Master's degree in Italy, and, despite rising geo-political tensions, talks about the continuing importance and success of China as a source of products and components - and how other countries struggle to match the Chinese speed of response, service levels and competitive pricing

On this episode, we hear about life in the fast lane (via Eagles - see what I did there!) from Dr. Roger Barker, Director of Policy & Governance at the influential Institute of Directors (IoD) talking about representing business people in his regular contacts with Government.

We continue our series of interviews with the West Northamptonshire Council Cabinet, this time joined by Cllr Phil Larratt who is responsible for highways and transport (think potholes!) and waste - with an appeal to litterbugs everywhere.

This week hear from Julie Abraham, CEO of Richer Sounds about her journey to the top, and Dominic Masterson Chartered MCSI, Chief Exec of the Northants based Commsave Credit Union who are treating banking and money as a service (accompanied by Abba's Money, Money, Money).

Continuing our close look at local government, University of Northampton graduate Cllr Mike Hallam talks about his career and current political life having cabinet responsibility for Corporate Services at the West Northants Unitary Authority Councillors. Mike is responsible for Customer Services, HR, Legal and Democratic Services and Digital, Technology & Innovation strategies of the local authority where he champions a be kind and be accessible approach. See https://www.westnorthants.gov.uk/

Multi-talented Dr Johnny Wake DL celebrates winning the prestigious The Royal Agricultural Society's Bledisloe Gold Medal, awarded for outstanding achievement in the successful land management and development of an agricultural estate. The historic Courteenhall Estate has been in his family for hundreds of years and Johnny gave up his medial career to take over the management of Courteenhall. Not content with environmental issues, Johnny also talks about his voluntary and community work, including serving on the board of St Andrew's Healthcare and starting a charity New Leaf Learning.

With dual Belgian-US nationality, following his MBA at one of the world's top business schools, IESE in Barcelona, international digital management expert Filip Fontaine has led a full career in large corporate as well as start-up businesses in the tech sector, after packing up everything to head towards Silicon Valley in its early days where he landed on his feet at the start of e-bay - and he hasn't looked back since!See https://www.mindrops.com/about-us/team

If you want something done ask a busy person! Miranda Wixon DL gets things done, including organising 45,000 meals during Covid. To coincide with its launch on 18th October, Miranda talks about her latest project, the  Northamptonshire VCSE Assembly, the voice of the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector, which is democratically run under 14 thematic areas. See https://vcse-assembly.co.uk/

Born and bred in Northampton and from a well-known local business family, Councillor Matt Golby talks about his career and work as the Councillor with Cabinet responsibility for Adult Social Care and Public Health, some of the key initiatives in his area as well as his aspirations in office - and how he keeps his ear to the ground! See https://westnorthants.moderngov.co.uk/mgUserInfo.aspx?UID=164

Frazer Arnott from All Things Business has his finger on the pulse and shares an upbeat mood amongst Northamptonshire businesses as well as plenty of activity his firm are in terms of upcoming business excellence and education award nights, the monthly All Things Business magazine and a Technology Roundtable. See https://allthingsbusiness.co.uk/about-us/

Following the loss of her son, Lucy Smith founded Thomas's Fund in 2007 and here she talks about the charity with Esther Mitchell, Lead Music Therapist and the power and importance of its music therapy sessions for children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions - with an appeal to both businesses and individuals to help fund this valuable service. See https://www.thomassfund.org/

Now based in the USA, futurist Gil Agnew MBA reflects on his career and international corporate experience which he then gave up to study and pursue deeper self-awareness and spiritual intelligence, with evidence-based insights into the coming Age of Aquarius and the positive meaning and hope it represents for humanity in these volatile time. See https://www.newinnergy.com/aboutgilagnew and https://www.wholeworld-view.org/

He talks about his role as a coroner as well as his career path, taking him from humble beginnings in a minority ethnic background to a successful legal practice and recognition for his role in community service - an example for all young people. See https://sp-law.co.uk/ 

In the first of new series interviewing all the West Northamptonshire Councillors with Cabinet responsibility, Adrian talks with Cllr Dan Lister about his career, his Cabinet responsibilities for economic development, the controversial Market Square development and market displacement and his hopes and aspirations for the future od Northampton town and county. See https://westnorthants.moderngov.co.uk/mgUserInfo.aspx?UID=365

International entrepreneur Benn Klewpatinond talks about his mixed Thai-Scottish origins, plus his journey to running his Inond, his own 'product realisation' business as well as his his business philosophy and how he balances work with his personal life.  See https://www.inond.com

Does ChatGPT confuse you? Not sure how to embrace it? The University's Head of Learning Technology, Rob Howe, gives a very clear explanation of what it is and where it has come from, as well as an insight into his role at the University supporting both students and staff, his career and his thoughts on future technological developments - and how he keeps up with it ball!

Local entrepreneur Shehnaaz Latif is an Impact Practitioner, working with UK charities, trusts, foundations and commissioners, and increasingly, with SMEs, providing training, consultancy and coaching support on the Theory of Change, defining outcomes and collecting, analysing and reporting on key impact data. She is also a wellness coach, and in this interview shares insights into her career, working life and philosophy. See https://tootservices.co.uk/

Ben Thomas, Founder All Things Business Magazine and MD of Giant Digital Marketing Agency talks about his motivation for doing the Great North Run for charity and his many various community initiatives. See https://allthingsbusiness.co.uk/

He talks about multi-stakeholder collaboration between local authorities, charities and business to create special places for 9-19 year olds. Phil is a guest speaker at the next ICRS Northants Hub meeting on 13th October by the UON's Centre for Sustainable Business Practices - free, all welcome!

Robert talks about the upcoming charity ride, now in its 9th year, having raised £250k since inception. See https://www.northamptonhopecentre.org.uk/event/ride-for-hope-2023/

Making a difference and changing the world! Barry Crisp, a lecturer in entrepreneurship and marketing at the University of Northampton is also the Marketing Director for the Global Centre for Healthy Workplaces. In this podcast talks about his career, his work and family connections to Japan where he has lived, and the background, history, ambitions and highlights of the recent successful Global Healthy Workplace summit held at the University of Northampton. Originally broadcast Tuesday 12th September 2023 on Open4Business on NLive Radio

For a thoughtful and clear view on how business should assess its wider social impacts, hear Global Healthy Workplace panellist Vincent Siegerink talk about his work as an Economist & Policy Analyst in the OECD's WISE (Well-Being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity) Centre. Vincent is responsible for work on the measurement of the non-financial performance of firms, to align official statistics of stakeholder well-being with business measures. He supports the Business 4 Inclusive Growth (B4IG) Coalition and acts as the OECD lead on the Impact Management Platform, which is dedicated to standardising social impact measurement.  See https://www.oecd.org/wise/ and https://www.oecd.org/inclusive-growth/businessforinclusivegrowth/ Originally broadcast Tuesday 12th September 2023 on Open4Business on NLive Radio

Listen to insights into the challenges of mental health in the workplace with Amy Browne, a speaker at the Global Health Workplace Summit held at the University of Northampton. Amy is the Stewardship Lead at CCLA Investment Management, leading the development of the CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark. This fascinating work assesses and ranks more than 200 listed companies on their mental health disclosure, thus drawing attention to the issues. Amy is a passionate and articulate champion for best practice. See https://www.ccla.co.uk/mental-health Originally Broadcast 12th September 2023 on Open4Business on NLive Radio

Healthy workplaces is something of interest to us all. Northants-based entrepreneur and lecturer Tommy Hutchinson is the founder of the Global Healthy Workplace Summit, which is now in its 11th year. Having travelled around the world via the US, Italy, Brazil and China, this year's Summit is being held on 31st Aug-1st September at the University of Northampton, addressing issues such as working from home, the 4-day week and best practice in taking care of employees for a better work life balance as well as productivity. Originally broadcast on 27th June on Open4Business on NLive Radio

Finance people do have a heart! Listen to Cameron Waldron, founder and partner of successful New England Financial Solutions Ltd, independent financial advisers, talking about his business model, philosophy and management approach - and how he is also passionate about promoting financial wellbeing for all through his Financial Wellbeing Foundation, with a rigorous evidence-based approach to building control, resilience and confidence no matter how wealthy you are. Originally broadcast 27th June 2023 on Open4Business on NLive Radio

Listen again to the EOA Employee Ownership Association's CEO, James de la Vingne, talking about the fast-growing and fascinating EO sector, its benefits and how it is attracting politicians of both left and right as it addresses all the weaknesses of short term shareholder capitalism through a long term stakeholder focus that gives employees voice, engagement and a real, stake in their business. Repeat broadcast on the 20th June 2023 on Open4Business on NLive Radio

Hear about one of the UK's leading employee-owned businesses and the benefits of EO from Michael Hodgson, Chair of GLIDE, the employee ownership board representing shareholders at Sheffield based the Gripple, Loadhog & GoTools group, and learn how their governance structure helps drive productivity, innovation and success. Originally broadcast 20th June 2023 on Open4Business on NLive Radio

A man on a mission! Hear Jordan Letts, the Northampton Saints Foundation's Head of Foundation and Social Inclusion Lead, talk about his work and how passionate he is about helping young people at risk of falling off the educational ladder. Having personal experience of the issues, this articulate young man has got his life on track and become a superb role model for 00s of young people in Northamptonshire and beyond. Originally broadcast 20th June 2023 on Open4Business on NLive Radio