Elevate - for business leaders

My Big Decision: Sahar Hashemi on why giving up Coffee Republic was a ‘great mistake’

Thursday, May 13, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: My big decision, Women in business | Tags: entrepreneurs, entrepreneur, women in business, CEO, My Big Decision, Sahar Hashemi, founder, Coffee Republic

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She’s the woman who plugged the caffeine cravings of a nation when, together with her brother, Bobby, she founded Coffee Republic in 1995. Now in Grant Thornton’s

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Grant Thornton advise shareholders of HobbyCraft Group on sale

Wednesday, May 12, 2010 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Financing , Retail sector | Tags: business, finance, due diligence, corporate finance, Simon Davies, hobbies, disposal, sale, lead advisory, deal, entrepreneurship, Warren Haskins, HobbyCraft, art and crafts, Bridgepoint Capital

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How to be a corporate entrepreneur by Sahar Hashemi

Monday, May 10, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: My big decision, Women in business | Tags: entrepreneurs, entrepreneur, tips, corporate, My Big Decision, customers, Bobby Hashemi, Sahar Hashemi, Pret a Manger, Coffee Republic

Sahar Hashemi is the co-founder of Coffee Republic, one of the most powerful women in British business and author of new book for entrepreneurs, Switched On . She’s also the subject of Grant Thornton’s next

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Puttnam’s five laws of creative business

Friday, April 30, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Media sector | Tags: Alex Connock, entrepreneurs, media, management, creative industries, ideas, dreams, House of Lords, zeitgeist, profitability, NESTA, blame, David Puttnam

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Where is the smart money going in support services?

Thursday, April 29, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Financing , Thought Leadership | Tags: business, investment, report, M&A, recovery, outsourcing, money, support services

The second report in Grant Thornton’s series looking at where the smart money is going in business was released this week. This time the focus is on the support services sector, which has already seen a strong recovery in the value of private equity investments in 2010.

Continue reading to download the free report…

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Best paid CEOs, social media demographics and why women are so good in the boardroom – April links

Friday, April 16, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Media sector, Women in business | Tags: links, women in business, Twitter, boardroom, energy, social media, Facebook, LinkedIn, CEOs, demographics, London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Digg, Ford, carbon emissions

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Which business stories are getting the most hits on the web this month? Read on and discover Elevate blog’s pick of the links for big business – from benchmarking your chief exec’s salary to the high cost of leaving company PCs switched on, and more… 

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What’s wrong with your business model?

Wednesday, April 14, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Business advice, Thought Leadership | Tags: innovation, business, entrepreneurs, recession, finance, research, technology, strategy, business models, New Business Models, competition, Economist, board, distribution, revenue, change

Nearly two-thirds of UK businesses are hamstrung by their own business models and unprepared for the recovery of the market. In a new report on business models, Grant Thornton presents the lie of the land – from the latest research on UK business model behaviour during the recession to a list of questions you can to bring to the boardroom table…

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Futureproof your business model in three steps

Wednesday, April 14, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Business advice, Thought Leadership | Tags: innovation, business, entrepreneurs, recession, finance, research, strategy, business models, New Business Models, competition, Economist, board, CEOs

Recently, Grant Thornton commissioned The Economist Intelligence Unit to survey over 450 UK executives on their business models and if/how they are planning to adapt over the next 18 months - you can download the report for free below. Then ask yourself three key questions about your business model and discover some simple ways to answer them…

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My Big Decision: Julie Meyer on launching a tech firm during the dot com downturn

Wednesday, March 31, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: My big decision, Financing , Women in business | Tags: business, entrepreneurs, investment, entrepreneur, technology, digital, women in business, CEO, financing, My Big Decision, Julie Meyer, Ariadne Capital, First Tuesday, backing, dot com, Dragon’s Den

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Setting up a technology-oriented investment firm just six months after the dot com bubble burst may sound like risky business. But as entrepreneur and BBC Dragon Julie Meyer explains, in Grant Thornton’s

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Women in the boardroom world map (infographic)

Wednesday, March 31, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Infographic, Thought Leadership, Women in business | Tags: business, entrepreneurs, statistics, Ros Simmons, research, infographic, women in business, data, CEO, chart, women, IBR, boardroom, management, senior management, PHBs, discrimination

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How many women made the C-Suite last year? Which countries are currently topping the list for employing female senior-level female executives? Find out in
Grant Thornton’s latest infographic, which maps figures from 24 countries. On a shocking note, neither the UK nor the US even makes the top 20…

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Where’s the pain and gain in Budget 2010?

Monday, March 29, 2010 | Posted by: Richard Jameson
Categories: Economy, Tax | Tags: tax, entrepreneurs, economy, income tax, CGT, Richard Jameson, budget, NIC, Alistair Darling, relief, Gordon Brown, stamp duty, fiscal drag, budget2010, PSBR, election, economic growth, budget deficit

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Attempted headline-grabbing announcements,

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Budget provides entrepreneurs with £80k giveaway

Thursday, March 25, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Economy, Tax | Tags: business, tax, entrepreneurs, entrepreneur, capital gains tax, CGT, budget, Alistair Darling, relief, budget2010

‘Entrepreneurs’ may not have made the top 100 keywords used in Alistair Darling’s budget speech (see our Wordle below), but Budget 2010 held some good news for entrepreneurs looking to sell their business, as the Chancellor raised the level of

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Why Facebook matters to business

Wednesday, March 24, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Business advice, Media sector | Tags: business, Alex Connock, entrepreneurs, media, digital, Ten Alps, online, social media, Facebook, tool, Coca-Cola, Aston Martin, Barclays Football, Ning, Google News, Disney, monopoly

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10 tips for entrepreneurs by Ariadne CEO Julie Meyer

Tuesday, March 23, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Business advice, Financing , Women in business | Tags: entrepreneurs, recession, entrepreneur, financial, tips, forecasts, Julie Meyer, business plan, Ariadne Capital, fixed cost, leader, cause, Dragons’ Den

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She is the founder of Ariadne Capital, a technology-orientated investment firm, a Dragon on the BBC’s online Dragons’ Den and, according to the Wall Street Journal “one of the top 30 Most Powerful Women in Europe”. She’s also the subject of Grant Thornton’s next

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Tory tax plans, the double-dip and the UK’s business Oscars – entrepreneur roundup

Tuesday, March 02, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Economy, Tax | Tags: links, recession, technology, awards, health, National Business Awards, acquisitions, development, leaders, staff, leadership, training, budget deficit

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Optimism Index of 36 economies in 2010 (infographic)

Monday, March 01, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Economy, Infographic, Thought Leadership | Tags: recession, infographic, chart, recovery, forecast, International Business Report, privately held businesses, revenues, optimism, double-dip

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Can you guess which country is the most economically optimistic in the world right now? Would China be top of your list? Or perhaps India? If so, then you’d be wrong on both counts. Grant Thornton’s latest infographic reveals which economies are smiling, which are po-faced and which are downright unhappy about their projected revenues. Here’s how we put it together…

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The North goes mad for decentralised media

Monday, February 22, 2010 | Posted by: Grant Thornton
Categories: Media sector | Tags: Alex Connock, entrepreneurs, media, investment, digital, Digital Britain, BBC, TV, Media City, culture, Mark Thompson, animation, regional, North, Northwest

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My Big Decision: George Davies on why launching GIVe was his toughest decision yet

Sunday, February 21, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: My big decision, Retail sector | Tags: entrepreneurs, retail, My Big Decision, business leaders, George, George Davies, Next, GIVe, per una

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George Davies is big in women’s clothing – so to speak. He launched Next, George at Asda and per una at Marks & Spencer. But, says Britain’s ‘King of the High Street’ – the latest subject in Grant Thornton’s

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World’s top 50 CEOs and how to present like Steve Jobs – entrepreneur roundup

Monday, February 15, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Media sector, Technology sector | Tags: women, boardroom, iPad, presentations, Apple, Steve Jobs, CEOs, branding, franchises, pitching, mumpreneurs

Read our monthly roundup of popular business stories from the web.

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Oratory is back in business

Friday, January 22, 2010 | Posted by: Fiona Cullinan
Categories: Media sector, Technology sector | Tags: business, Alex Connock, media, CEO, Ten Alps, Edinburgh, skills, Bob Geldof, presentations, Apple, speech, PowerPoint, Steve Jobs, persuasion, speaking, Royal Television Society, MacTaggart Lecture, Channel4, oratory

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