Home > News

Meet the new Business Account Managers working on the Opportunity Sheffield project. The Opportunity Sheffield project is supported financially by Yorkshire Forward and the European Union. The project has attracted £7.2 million investment from Yorkshire Forward, including £1.8m from the European Regional Development Fund as part of Europe's support for the region's economic development through the Yorkshire and Humber ERDF Programme.

Dale, tell us a little more about the Opportunity Sheffield project.....
The team working on the Opportunity Sheffield programme have been formed to provide impartial help and support to Sheffield Employers to recruit, retain and train all staff. The aim of the project is to change employer perceptions about investing in their own workforce. This is a fantastic support network for businesses in Sheffield and will be delivered by a team of eight Business Account Managers covering Business and Finance and Retail. Backed up by a great admin support team the project could not have come at a better time; a time when businesses need help and support. The programme will run for approximately 18 months and will see Opportunity Sheffield adding real benefit to businesses across Sheffield.

Stephen, what do your day to day duties include?
I am part of a team that is engaging with employers throughout Sheffield to offer a range of services designed to help recruit, retain and train staff. This includes provision of a job brokerage service providing a large pool of talent to choose from, advising on how to reduce absenteeism, helping in reduction of litigation and increasing productivity and revenue.  On top of this I can offer advice and assistance to participating companies on day to day issues concerning small to SME businesses

Richard, what are you enjoying most about your role so far?
Being out and about meeting with businesses owners and trying to help them become more successful through Opportunity Sheffield. I have already met some very interesting people with diverse business models and can see that the scheme is going to be a great success and a huge benefit to businesses in Sheffield.

Steven, what background knowledge and experience do you bring to the project?
I bring experience of operating at store management level for 25 years at a major department store group. Having worked my way up the organisation starting as a teenager I have hands-on experience and understanding of most of the roles performed in a complex retail organisation. This puts me at an advantage when offering the services of Opportunity Sheffield to retail managers because I know first-hand what pressures are experienced both by employers and employees and can help them find solutions.

I also have experience in the non-for-profit sector and understand their unique perspective. More than my retail management experience, I have learned the importance of keeping things in perspective - in business we all strive to achieve more and do things better, however we must remember why we are doing it and above all make sure that it's fun, not only for ourselves but for the people who work with us. 

Ian, what do you think is so special about Opportunity Sheffield and working for The Source?
It's a gift to be working on a project which puts ‘people before pounds'. Opportunity Sheffield is all about ‘Sheffield Plc' it's about creating an abundance mentality.  Everyone I know has problems.  We all have things that don't go as planned or have challenges which catch us off guard.  When you stop to think about it, a problem is nothing more than a situation in need of improvement.  Opportunity Sheffield is a solution based business project driven by solutions based doers.

George, you have worked at The Source for over 18 months, what is it like working for this growing organisation?
It's a pleasure working in such a stimulating environment, every day brings different challenges and the biggest positive is the chance to constantly meet so many varied and interesting people.

There are so many amazing facilities and services we provide at The Source, that being bored just isn't an option.

And the million dollar question for April, what is the worst April Fool you have ever experienced?
Dale - They say the old ones are the best, my wife made me a boiled egg for breakfast; I think you know the rest...

Stephen - When I lived in a shared house in Birmingham, many years ago, I got up one morning (after a heavy night out with my housemates) needing to spend a penny, as you do. To my horror my ‘mates' had ensured I was unable to get out of the room with a range of screws and brackets nicely arranged around the door frame!  I had to climb out of the window and let myself back in the house just to get to the toilet. It wasn't funny at the time!

Richard  - I don't know about the worst but the one I remember most was once being on holiday abroad in a villa where we were plagued by large flying creepy crawlies. On the first of April I came in from the garden and was told by my young children that one of these insects had landed on my shoulder which resulted in me running round the living room screaming like a girl trying to rip my t-shirt off. The children and my wife found this quite hilarious. They remind me of it every year and not just on the 1st of April.

Steven - The worst one I have ever played was sending a colleague a notification supposedly from the taxation department informing him that the tax liability for a company car he had borrowed from his boss was going to be charged to him. He handed the car back the next day! 

Ian - The day me and my mates bunked off school because we'd heard a news flash on Radio City telling us that the River Mersey had run dry.  North West water engineers were working on an emergency plan to refill the river so people could catch a ferry across the Mersey and make it into work before mid-day.  Reporters had interviews with people who'd walked their dogs on the river bed from the Pier Head to Birkenhead!  This was a once in a lifetime chance to see sunken warships and Luftwaffe bomber planes in mint condition, preserved by the ‘Mersey Mud'.

Thousands of people turned up, cameras and camcorders at the ready, John Hulme, Mark Hampson, Paul Clark and me... we'd all been had!  As Mr Allen our Geography teacher pointed out to us later that day whilst on detention, ‘The Mersey runs into the Irish Sea, so it could never run dry!'

George - I used to buy wholesale chocolate for a large cash and carry chain, and one morning (April 1st!) I read in a trade magazine that a new ‘foot long' Mars bar had been produced (with a great photograph of a bar alongside Liverpool  centre half Alan Hanson's  football boots).

I rang Mars head office straight away and asked why I had not been told in advance of this new line and if I could order some....only to be told the obvious...April fool!


Photo: L-R: Steven Gaunt, Richard Nutbrown, Dale Robinson, George Elliott, Ian Mackenzie, Stephen Hinchliffe