Ahead of the latest Courier Business Briefing breakfast event in Angus next week, Weir Group CEO Keith Cochrane talks to Andrew Argo about making it in business.
Q What key message will you deliver at the Courier Business Briefing?
Organisations of all scale and type can face similar challenges. As a leader, you have to manage the present and create the future and that’s a fine balancing act juggling investment, resources and priorities.
Q What is your impression of the business scene in Scotland and the UK?
Businesses look for stability, opportunity to grow and a good skilled workforce and the UK offers us that.
Q What changes would you like to see to help business?
Scotland and the UK are great places to build businesses and we need to ensure we maintain that competitiveness. We have to continue to build close relationships between our universities and industries something Weir has benefited greatly from.
Q Did you make a mistake early in your career that you would not have made with more experience?
It’s more important to me that a decision is taken based on the facts and experience you have available to you. If things don’t quite work out, then you have the agility and flexibility of mind to see the bigger picture and change things if you have to.
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Q What are your golden rules for business success?
Be yourself, find something you’re good at, work very hard and when you start to be successful, it’s important to ensure that your business has the capability to grow for the long term.
Q Can UK engineering have a bright future given its higher labour costs compared to other countries?
Absolutely. Here in the UK we have some of the finest engineers in the world. Our issue is, we don’t have enough of them.
Q How important are gatherings like The Courier’s Business Briefings?
I’m a big believer in collaboration, whether that’s within businesses, industries or across business, academic or other sectors. The Courier Business Briefings provide a great forum for leaders from all types of organisation to come together and learn from each other.* Keith Cochrane is the keynote speaker at the next Courier Business Briefing breakfast at Forbes of Kingennie Resort from 7.45am on October 28. For more information and to book tickets visit www.thecourierbriefings.co.uk or phone Victoria Tait on 01382 575631.