Launching and growing a business is not easy. You can feel alone and overwhelmed by the task at hand. In business, just as in life, sometimes we need someone to talk to.
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But finding that local business support and the right person to converse with can be difficult too.
That’s why Royal Bank of Scotland has developed a programme of local business support to help guide entrepreneurs down the road to success.
Angie Lee is the Royal Bank’s Local Enterprise Manager for the North East, covering an area from Dundee to Elgin. She has a remit to support local businesses in whatever way is needed to ensure they achieve their goals.
Angie has a history of championing the local business community and working in the third sector. Now she says her role at the Royal Bank gives her the equipment to really make a difference to growing ventures across her area.
Principal among the support available is the Royal Bank of Scotland Entrepreneur Accelerator Programme which supports and empowers UK entrepreneurs to scale their businesses to the next level.
How does it work?
The Accelerator provides a six-month programme with one-to-one coaching, leadership events, networking opportunities and an ecosystem of expert local business support. It’s free and participants don’t even have to be a Royal Bank of Scotland customer to access it.
Angie said: “The amazing thing about the accelerator is entrepreneurs get allocated with a business coach from day one. They get help with goal setting and do a full thought leadership programme that’s delivered by internal staff and experts. They’re introduced to networks, so they’re continually learning and continually growing.”
The programme can be accessed online but it is also run from hubs in Glasgow and Edinburgh that provide a space for entrepreneurs to grow their business.
Angie added: “The hubs have a co-working space, a lounge area and event space. They also have meeting rooms that the entrepreneurs can use, so it really lightens the load for them financially when they’re in that early stage and looking to make those connections and grow.”
An MOT for your business
The bank also offers enterprise health checks that take a deep dive into the challenges facing your business. It offers a great way of identifying issues and pairing businesses with people who can help.
Angie said: “It’s just a really good conversation about your business. We look at where you are just now and what your vision is. But we also examine what your challenges are. At times people can say, ‘oh I’m not too sure I can do this now’. So sometimes the best way is just to listen and then connect them to a few other people that have been in the same boat.”
Local business support for women
Royal Bank of Scotland has also recently launched its Mentor Match programme for female entrepreneurs. This vital new service provides unlimited one-to-one conversations for women in business with people who have faced the same challenges they have. Again, it is completely free and you don’t have to be a Royal Bank customer to access it.
Angie said: “It’s there for women at any stage of business who might need support. They can just go online, say what it is they need and then a selection of mentors will pop up with that particular skill. It’s like online dating for businesswomen and I think it’s phenomenal.”
Support like this, which helps break down barriers and empowers underserved communities, is a particularly rewarding aspect of Angie’s work.
She said: “From working with my background, the proposition that the bank offers sits with my values, which is the reason I’m here and the fact I can still have a big emphasis on supporting women and ethnic minority communities is fantastic.
“I never quite had to the mechanism to actually make that difference and now I’m in this environment with all this support, it’s a bit of a free range to go and do what I can and it’s great.”
Find out more about the Royal Bank of Scotland Accelerator and get your business on the road to success.
