26 March, 10am-12pm, Whittington Room, City Business Library, Aldermanbury, EC2V 7HH

With Capitalism under intense scrutiny there is a deep felt desire for a New Business Model. The requirements of fixing social and environmental disparities and yet create wealth has led to global interest in Social Enterprise at government and ground roots level, yet few people can explain what this is and what it stands for. Is Social Enterprise just a passing fad or is it a true alternative model that is inspiring, challenging and exciting the brightest of entrepreneurs and will truly transform the world for the better? Uday Thakkar will explain, entertain and inspire you to become a social entrepreneur.

 The event is free, but you must book in advance. Please book by calling 020 7332 1858 or email cblevents@cityoflondon.gov.uk

To see the event flyer, please click here.

This Bootcamp will be an intensive two day journey through the process of how to ensure that you make the journey a success.

Date: 8th and 9th May 2012

Venue: Red Ochre, CAN Mezzanine, 49-51 East Road, London N1 6AH

To see the event flyer and full programme, please click here.

The Bootcamp costs £235 + VAT, but some early bird discounted tickets are available. To book a place at the Bootcamp, please visit www.thebusinessbootcamp.org.uk or click here.

For more information, please call Claire at Red Ochre on 020 7250 8305 or email info@redochre.org.uk.

Date: 29th March 2012, 3.30 – 5.30pm (networking to follow)
Venue: Room 110, Roberts Engineering Building, University College London, Torrington Place, London, WC1E 7JE

This event is aimed at:

• anyone exploring the possibility of allowing units within their organisation to become independent service providers;
• those contemplating “Spinning Out” their units from their statutory sector employer; or
• those trying to get a better understanding of mutualism, social enterprise and new service delivery models.

Speakers will include government policy makers, people who have established their own “spin out”, legal experts, finance experts and those who have supported the “Spin Out” process.

Red Ochre and Capital Enterprise, the seminar organisers, are delivering a 2 day intensive Bootcamp on this topic in May. At this seminar you will be able to learn more about how this will be of benefit to you and your organisation.

To register for your FREE ticket, please click here.

In this workshop we will consider three steps that any individual or organisation can use at any level of expertise to get to the heart of your organisation’s impact.

Who should attend? Anyone interested in understanding the work they are doing and their organisations impact. Including founders and CEOs, members of the senior management team with a performance remit, operational staff with a performance remit.

By the end of this course, participants will:

• gain a better understanding of what impact means for you and your organisation
• leave with a three stage plan to guide your impact work
• run through practical impact exercises and methods
• identify  one or two of the most important things for you to measure
• have the options in how to then go out and measure them
• be better able to answer the questions, who do I need to tell, what do I need to tell them and in what form do they need to know it?

Come to this workshop and improve your impact leadership and impact attitude as well as your impact measurement.

Date: Tuesday 20th March 2012
Time: 10am – 1pm
Venue: The British Library Business & IP Centre
Price: £30 Inc VAT

Please email Claire on claire@redochre.org.uk if you would like to book your place for this workshop.

The press release provides further information about the programme and you can also find out more by looking at the arc website and launch video.

If you are a social enterprise and would like to apply for arc, please contact Matthew Lill. If you are a business and would like further information about the programme Jennifer Aungst.

Red Ochre is one of the delivery partners for the programme and will be delivering workshops on a variety of topics. Organisations are able to vote for the workshops they would most like to be delivered, and suggest additional topics that they would find useful.

For more information on the programe and the available workshops, click here.

The report, entitled ‘A Changing Landscape: A quality and quantative study of the VCS working to reduce re-offending and address community safety in changing times’ was released with two others, ‘When The Dust Settles’ and ‘Changing Times, Challenging Times’; also about the changing environment for these organisations.

The findings of the report looked at the ways the cuts have affected human, financial, organisational and social capital in each of the organisations, with some surprising results…

For more information visit Clinks, http://www.clinks.org/. Contact the author Martin Cooper martin@redochre.org.uk for a copy of the reports or talk about this work.

We can provide for you at no cost:

• Up to 4 days consultancy support
• Incorporation legal advice and registration of your co-operative company (you would just pay for the statuary fee of £40 or £116)
• Free membership of Co-ops UK (actual cost £70)
• Free Co-operative Bank account
• Access to £5,000 (which needs to be taken alongside a loan)
• Access to friendly loan fund which would not seek surety or guarantees

At the conference run by Vertex Consulting on growth strategies and with speakers such as the Chief Policy Adviser for Economics in Estonia and lectures from Henley Business School we ran the gamut of topics from cultural perspectives (David Rees) and customer insight (Jeff Callander), through to innovation and social innovation (me).

My take was innovation is a way to competitive advantage, and that people centric approach is key. Putting people, staff, customers and the wider community, at the heart of what you do is a key differentiator and helps you define and capture value, however you define value. I talked about a variety of non-technical approaches to innovation including tools, culture and social innovation models and even having the graveyard shift interaction was high.

A number of things struck me during my brief stay:

• The (apparent) over-representation of women as entrepreneurs, sales people and public faces of companies and organisations. This is a bit of a generalisation, and may well be a misconception on my part but did seem to borne out of by conversations and observations made by my fellow speakers.
• The presence of delegates from number of countries was high, but not as high as I would have expected. For instance there were a few delegates from Lithuania. Considering the geographical position of Estonia and it’s aspirations to be an export of country this seemed to be a bit of a missed opportunity.
• Surprisingly the Russian press in the Baltic picked up on the social enterprise aspects of my session, while the Estonia and Swedish press reported on my piece on innovation in my widest sense. I wonder whether there is a particular appeal of social enterprise for ex-soviet or communist states. Perhaps an “enterprise social” instead of the traditional “social enterprise” perspective?”

Turbulent times and an unforgiving environment. Constant change in society, the economy and technology. Organisational sustainability is being stretched to the limit. The demand for multi-skilled leadership has never been more pressing.

Organisations are demanding their leaders must be able to implement critical innovation, drive positive change, deliver winning strategies and craft responsive actions. At the same time they want their leaders to exhibit high standards of integrity, take responsibility for their actions and be guided by enduring principles rather than short term expedience. They are required to be visionaries and be convincing communications in order to motivate their teams and create supportive networks of stakeholders.

In 3 x 2-days modules over 4 months, you and a talented group of peers will explore the essence of holistic leadership – from leadership behaviours to the practical competencies of management. There will be a blend of lectures, thought-provoking debate, practical exercises and analysis – balanced with time for self-reflection and personal development. You will challenge and motivate each other, sharing ideas and forging professional bonds that can last a lifetime.

Red Ochre is famed for creating a learning environment that is invigorating, comprehensive and enjoyable. Our team has founded and run successful enterprises and charities; we are challenging and knowledgeable yet practical and grounded – stirred with a hint of laugher.

Download the Leadership Management Programme for full details and costs.

Whether you’re managing an enterprise or organisation, seeking a more senior role or starting up an exciting new venture you may feel very exposed and lonely. You may need someone to bounce ideas off. This is when you can turn to us to help. We’ve been there ourselves – all our team have set up a variety of enterprises and charities in the past.

We know how to listen, we know when to push. We can give you practical advice and tools to help you identify and implement what will work best for you and your organisation. We will work with you through the mentoring and master class programme.

Price:
£35 + VAT a master class. Every 5 master classes allows you a further master class for free.

Click for the full Essential Entrepreneur programme or here for the Essential Entrepreneur booking form.