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How to Fire Up your Business Plan with Research and Development (R&D)

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Discover how to use Research and Development (R&D) to your full advantage and completely strengthen up your Business Plans!

Research and development, known as R&D, refers to that part of your business plan that is your ability to gain knowledge in order to design, develop, and enhance your product, services, technologies, or processes. If your company is a high-tech firm, R&D is number one on the list of capabilities crucial to your long-term success.

Even if your company isn’t technology- or manufacturing-based, though, don’t assume that R&D isn’t a necessary capability. Even a one-person consulting business needs research ability to track the competitive arena, find out about prospective customers, and keep on top of industry and client news.

For example, a business that liquidates households for people who can’t do so on their own hardly seems in need of R&D capability. But, think again. The Internet now plays a starring role in the sale of antiques and collectibles — whether through online auctions or through specialized auction and antique sales sites.

And even if the business owners never go near an online sale, almost certainly they’ll use online resources to find out what people are paying for items like the ones they’re selling.

For other businesses, R&D is the key to enhancing business skills, enlarging product and service portfolios, and staying on top of customer, industry, and competitive research.

Ways to improve your R&D skills include:

  • Attending trade shows with research-related sessions
  • Taking industry-specific courses, in person or online
  • Participating in social media networks with people in your field who share findings, ideas, and advice
  • Subscribing to mailings from innovators in your industry
  • Completing certification programs
  • Updating your computer skills
  • Keeping up-to-date through trade journals and sites
  • Joining an industry group
  • Broadening your awareness of industry, market area, consumer, and industry issues and opportunities
  • Your business plan should include a section that addresses your R&D capabilities, including the following:
  • The importance of R&D to your competitive success
  • A description of your current R&D capacity (including a description of the expertise of staff and contract sources)
  • Your agenda for R&D over the next year
  • Planned R&D expenditures over the next year
  • Your long-term R&D goals

 

Now you are familiar with all these key pointers to consider when planning the Research and Development aspect of your Business Plan, be selective on which factors would suite your business the most and then use them to your full advantage. Good luck!

Are you already familiar with R&D and it’s importance within a Business Plan? Would you like to actively contribute to the growth of a thriving Business? Check out our latest job opportunities by following this link! 

 

– Steven D. Peterson

– Peter E. Jaret

– Barbara Findlay Schenck

4-Tips from Richard Branson on Business Growth Strategies

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Starting your own business can be one of the best decisions you make in life, but it can also lead to some tough situations, and hard decisions to make. Fortunately, Richard Branson has shared some of best advice for growing a business…

“It is no easy task but with the right support and a smart approach, the dream of scaling up your venture from start-up to successful business is in reach,” the Virgin Founder says in a recent SME Advice blog. “If you want to be in business 10 years down the line, you must have a deep understanding of your business, the market it operates in and a great team to support.”

 

Plan for the long-term

Failing to plan for the long-term and thinking about the possible risks and opportunities could make all the difference to the success of your business. “Setting some milestones for you and your team to work towards will keep you motivated and driven,” Branson recommends.

“There will be obstacles to growth you cannot foresee but having a roadmap in place from the get-go will help build structure and focus to decision-making.”

He also suggests putting in place strategies to mitigate any obvious risks to your business model from the start. “If you have a clear vision of where you would like your business to have expanded to after 10 years, plan how you can achieve this.”

 

Stick to your founding principles

Branson has one key piece of advice for when expanding into new territories or creating new products: “Having a uniting them all under one roof is one of the best advantages a business can have. Customers relate to brands and the values it stands for more than the tangible aspects of a product.”

He advises working out your business’ values and principles early on so that you can turn these values into tangible activities your customers can interact with. “Virgin has always been about putting the customer at the heart of everything we do and innovating in industries ripe for disruption. This is what our brand stands for and is applied to every business bearing our brand name.”

 

Gather a great team

Investing in the people you’re working with and trusting them with responsibility is another key ingredient to building a successful business, Branson says. “I learnt this from a very young age. There is little point recruiting great people if you don’t then give them the autonomy to take their role and run with it.

“It also frees you up as the founder to focus less on the day-to-day activities and more on the over-arching objectives laid out in your 10 year roadmap. Over my 40 years in business I have assembled a fantastic team to run the Virgin Group’s day-to-day activities and this has freed me up to spend 80 per cent of my time working with Virgin Unite – the not-for-profit arm of the Virgin Group.”

 

Get the right support

Having a good mentor can help you learn from others’ mistakes and hopefully avoid them, as well as teaching you how best to use the funds you have available, Branson says. “I myself benefited hugely from the words of Sir Freddie Laker when starting Virgin Atlantic. He told me I could never compete with the big advertising budgets of the large airlines and would have to get out there and use myself to promote Virgin Atlantic.”

If you found this article interesting, be sure to check out our latest Business Development Executive job role by following this link!

Ever wondered what the most commonly asked Job Interview questions are? You can find out by clicking here!

– Natalie Clarkson

Shrewsbury Development will see 400 new Shropshire Jobs

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400 new Shropshire Jobs will be created following development plan by major food company ABP.

More than 400 Shropshire Jobs are to be created by food giant ABP, with a £20 million investment at its operation in Shrewsbury.

The redevelopment of its site in Harlescott is the company’s latest vote of confidence in Shropshire.

Last year ABP completed a £30 million overhaul of its site at Hordley near Ellesmere.

ABP is already one of the biggest private sector employers in Shropshire, with 732 staff at the Battlefield Enterprise Park in Shrewsbury and more than 725 at Ellesmere. The new additions would take its total workforce to almost 1,900 in Shropshire.

ABP said there will also be a significant number of construction jobs generated during the project.

Its county operations supply beef to major customers across the country, with Sainsbury’s a key contract for the company.

The latest proposal is for a new retail meat packing building that ABP said will improve the existing Shrewsbury plant.

The new building will also include a dry goods store, employee amenities, canteen facilities and administration and staff offices.

But director Seamus Banim sounded one note of caution over the impact of Brexit on farmers in the UK.

“The vast majority of cattle coming to ABP Shrewsbury is sourced from farms within a 50-mile radius and it is our hope that this supply of quality British cattle will not be impacted in a post Brexit non CAP era,” he said.

A planning application for the development is expected to be made public in the next few days.

Councillor Malcolm Price, Shropshire Council’s portfolio holder for housing, said: “The comments we have received so far have mostly been positive. When it is completed it will be one of the most modern and efficient packing plants in Europe. All the equipment will be brand new, state-of-the-art.

“The good thing about the company is all the meat that goes into the site comes from within 50 miles of Shrewsbury.

“This is a major investment for Shropshire. It is significant employment and economic investment.

“In 15 years of being a councillor I have never heard a complaint against ABP. They are a very professional and well-run company. They have a great reputation.”

– Shropshirestar

 

For more information on Shropshire Jobs, check out our latest job vacancies on our website by clicking here!

Ofcom and BT Rivalry: Plans for Openreach Independence

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BT Group’s plans to give Openreach greater independence share some common ground with Ofcom’s recommendations, but will this be enough to ease its rivals’ anti-competitive concerns?

Ofcom has waded in with its take on what BT must do to allow its infrastructure division, Openreach, to operate as an independent company and in a less anti-competitive way.

The communications regulator has published an eight-point plan, detailing what needs to change at Openreach to diminish BT’s hold over the organisation, and ensure a fairer deal for competitors that rely on its network to deliver services to their customers.

However, if these changes fail to deliver on these fronts, Ofcom said a formal split between BT Group and Openreach is still a possibility.

“BT retains influence over significant Openreach decisions,” said Ofcom, in a statement.

“BT has an incentive to make these decisions in the interests of its own retail businesses, rather than BT’s competitors, which can lead to competition problems.”

To rectify this, Ofcom is calling for Openreach to be established as a distinct, legal entity inside the wider BT Group, with its own branding and whose actions would be overseen by an independent board of directors, with no prior affiliations to its parent company.

The CEO of Openreach would be appointed by this board, and be held to account by them, with no input from BT Group.

The company should own the network it operates, which – in turn – would better position it to make investment decisions involving Openreach assets, Ofcom said.

Furthermore, Openreach should have the freedom to develop its own strategy and annual operating plans, based on the budget handed to it by BT Group.

“This model would provide Openreach with the greatest degree of independence from BT Group that is possible without incurring the costs and disruption – to industry and consumers – associated with separating the companies entirely,” the Ofcom statement said.

“It is designed to ensure that Openreach acts more independently from BT Group, and takes decisions for the good of the wider telecoms industry and its customers.”

“If it cannot achieve this, Ofcom will reconsider whether BT and Openreach should be split into two entirely separate companies, under different ownership,” it added.

Ofcom said it is seeking feedback on its proposals, and has invited interested parties to have their say until 4 October 2016.

Meanwhile, BT has published details of its own plans to shake-up the corporate governance of Openreach. These cover many of the areas outlined by Ofcom’s proposals, including establishing an independent board of directors and allowing the organisation to operate with a greater degree of autonomy.

Gavin Patterson, chief executive of BT Group, said the organisation is doing all it can to respond to industry concerns about how Openreach operates.

“These changes will make Opereach more independent and transparent than it is today, something both Ofcom and industry have requested,” said Patterson.

“Our proposals can form the basis for a fair and sustainable regulatory settlement and they can also enable Ofcom to bring its review to a speedier conclusion.”

Calls for Openreach independence grow

Ofcom’s proposals follow on from the publication of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee’s report into Openreach on 19 July 2016, which called for the subsidiary to be given greater autonomy when it comes to making spending and strategy decisions.

Matthew Howett, telecoms, media and technology analyst at market watcher Ovum, said the operating model being put forward by BT and Ofcom could be implemented in months, allowing all parties to focus on ensuring the UK has the broadband capacity it needs for the years ahead.

However, while Ofcom and BT might be broadly in agreeance with how Openreach should operate in future, Howett conceded the telco’s competitors may not be so enamoured with their proposals.

“For some, only full structural separation will be enough and it is important to note that Ofcom have kept this option on the table should its proposed model not deliver,” he said.

“Given the enormous costs and uncertainties, coupled with the weight of evidence, for Ofcom to proceed with structural separation now would be a disproportionate response, even if practically delivered.”

– Caroline Donelly

UK Government Broadband Plans

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The UK government plans that by 2017, about 95% of the country will have been covered by super-fast broadband and about 98% will have covered through 4G

The UK has a strong foundation for connectivity, but the Government recognizes the need to do more. So what is it doing about it?

As a Frontrunner, Britain is reaping the benefits of early investments in cloud and big data assets and a-well-thought-out strategy to drive the adoption of 4G, fiber optics, and the Internet of Things (IoT).

With an academic environment conducive to innovation and technical collaborations between the public and private sectors, as well as a steady flow of funding from the government, the stage is set for augmented innovation in Britain.

The terrain

The UK government is on a mission to transform its broadband network across the country to make speeds of 100 Mbps available to all of its citizens. In 2015, the UK Government announced it would invest £1.7 billion through 47 local projects to improve broadband – with the overall aim of ensuring that approximately 95 percent of the country has access to super-fast broadband by 2017 and 98 percent has 4G coverage.

Investments in high-speed broadband, data center (DC) networks, and cloud platforms are in turn creating a new form of competitive advantage.

Now, a growing community of developers is inventing new products and services, using these platforms as their foundation.

By fostering innovation, the UK is hoping to achieve an advantage in a global race to develop the standards that will underpin 5G, which experts expect will be crucial to the development of IoT and the growth of augmented innovation. Based on an audit by the National Infrastructure Committee the UK will set out its 5G strategy in 2017.

When it comes to fast broadband, the UK is leading the way, with adoption levels 50 percent higher than Germany and significantly higher than other major European economies. The uptake in fast broadband reflects a growing demand for media applications, especially for entertainment.

For instance, Virgin Media, part of Europe’s largest cable network, is planning to extend its reach from 12.6m homes to 17m – almost two-thirds of UK households – with an initiative called Project Lightning.

This plan is expected to create 6,000 jobs and is one of the largest private digital infrastructure investments in the UK in recent years.

Speed bumps

The UK has invested solidly in its digital infrastructure. It has the largest digital economy in the G20 as a percentage of GDP over the last five years. However, the international landscape is getting competitive.

The challenge for Britain is to maintain its lead in the face of tough and varied competition, and an increasingly tepid global economic forecast.

Horizons

The British government could be a good role model for other countries as they chart their way on the connectivity map. It has shown foresight by having a long-term strategy and has supported its digital initiatives with appropriate funding.

In 2014 the Government committed to investing £42 million into the Alan Turing Center –for research into the collection, organization and analysis of big data. A further investment of £40 million was announced in September 2015 for the IoTUK program, with £10 million set aside for a single collaborative R&D project in a city region.

The UK public sector has been the biggest adopter of cloud solutions and has set an example for other verticals to follow.

The government’s introduction of G-Cloud has allowed small companies to compete with the larger traditional players for government contracts to supply cloud IT services. Initiatives such as G-Cloud have encouraged bids from smaller IT service providers and are attracting investments to build DCs to serve the rest of Europe.

The government is also investing in the development of 5G mobile technologies with the launch of Europe’s largest academic research center. The UK 5G Innovation Center is the largest European center dedicated to the development of the next generation of mobile services. In an innovative collaboration between the public and private sectors, the center is funded by £12 million from the Higher Education Funding Council for England and more than £68 million from a number of private international telecom groups.

The government has nurtured an environment that supports start-ups and entrepreneurship. For instance, the UK government has recently exempted about 100 DCs from tax on energy usage in order to create a favorable environment for the DC business.

Given how power hungry DCs are, the move has energized the DC market supply side.

Milestones: IoT

In 2014, Innovate UK, the Government’s innovation agency backed a consortium of 40 UK tech companies to create a new open IoT specification that allows machines to work together over the internet, and for applications to analyze data independent of human intervention. As part of the Government’s digital economy strategy, Innovate UK pledged to invest £30 million a year for the first four years (2015-2019) to support innovation in the digital economy. Below are a few examples of companies that have benefitted from this investment:

Crowd Connected has launched its ‘co-locator’ system to aggregate festival-goers’ smartphone data to map behavior and allow organizers to respond accordingly. Their collaboration with Live Nation at Wireless Festival 2014 came after a £25,000 grant and competition win with Innovate UK.

Looking ahead

As a Frontrunner on the Connectivity Journey, the UK is slowly shifting towards augmented innovation, and is therefore in a position to share its experience and expertise in reaching this point on the connectivity path. It has proved by example that a healthy collaboration between government and industry can achieve measurable successes for the economy as well as the technological world.

Additional Sources:

  • UK Seeks Head Start on ‘Internet of Things’,Financial Times, September 2015
  • Virgin Media Challenges BT with Cable Network Extension Plan, The Guardian, February 2015
  • BT is the Champion of Fast Broadband, The Telegraph, March 2016
  • The Future and How to Survive It, Harvard Business Review, October 2015

– Global Connectivity Index

Shropshire jobs will be created as Blueprints are being drawn up

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Shropshire jobs will be created as three major development sites are the subject of discussions.

Shropshire Council has confirmed it is talking to the owners of Copthorne Barracks in Shrewsbury, Clive Barracks at Tern Hill, near Market Drayton, and Ironbridge Power Station in an effort to ensure any development of the sites is “sustainable”. This development will create many Shropshire Jobs should the plans go ahead.

Councillor Malcolm Price, Shropshire Council’s cabinet member responsible for planning, said the developments should include employment and potentially community facilities rather than just housing.

“The council will put the plans together in conjunction with the owners responsible for the sites. We want to maximise the use of these sites.

“The easy avenue for those sites would be just to go for housing, which is not appropriate.

Both Clive and Copthorne Barracks are owned by the Ministry of Defence.

The Tern Hill site is being sold as part of an MoD drive to generate more money, and help the Government provide land for 7,000 homes. It has been anticipated that up to 600 homes could be built at the site, which is currently home to the 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment.

The Copthorne site was marketed for sale as a mixed use site last year, but despite several offers the Ministry of Defence decided to take it off the market to develop an outline planning application.

Once that is complete the MoD says it will be offered for sale.

Ironbridge Power Station is owned by energy firm E.ON and ceased production in November after 46 years.

Councillor Price said that comprehensive plans for the future of the sites are essential.

He said: “They will be more sustainable if it is a mixture use site and particularly containing employment.

“We have a lot of housing being built in the county and we need more employment sites which in turn will create more Jobs in Shropshire.

“None of this will be done overnight, we are talking a number of years but we need to start planning for the future and it is an ideal opportunity.”

The cabinet member said the authority would also be looking at the development of other sites across the country to learn about schemes that have been successful.

He said: “It may be with the former military sites there are others around the country where there is some best practice and we can look at whet they are doing and what has worked well.”

“We have a lot of housing being built in the county and we need more employment sites.

“None of this will be done overnight, we are talking a number of years but we need to start planning for the future and it is an ideal opportunity.”

The cabinet member said the authority would also be looking at the development of other sites across the country to learn about schemes that have been successful.

He said: “It may be with the former military sites there are others around the country where there is some best practice and we can look at whet they are doing and what has worked well.”

A spokesman for the MoD confirmed that discussions are taking place on the future development of the sites.

Speaking about its Copthorne site, Emma Sloper of the MoD said: “The MoD is working with its agents JLL to consider submitting an outline planning application to Shropshire Council for re-development of the site. It will then be marketed later this year or early in 2017.”

On the subject of the Clive Barracks, she said: “The MoD will work closely with the local authority and other interested parties

Roxanne Postle, a spokesman for Uniper which is in charge of Ironbridge Power Station, also confirmed the company is in the process of looking at the potential future uses of the site.

She said: “Our current focus is on the decommissioning phase at Ironbridge Power Station which is due to run until 2017.

“We are beginning the process of exploring future options for the site. These are early stage considerations and further details regarding the future use of the Ironbridge site will be given as appropriate.”

The Ministry of Defence revealed it would sell Copthorne Barracks in 2014 after large areas had been left surplus to requirements following the departure of the 143 Brigade.

When Copthorne Barracks was initially marketed it was advertised as 16 hectares, including a range of buildings, living accommodation, and sports facilities – including sports pitches and tennis courts.

The barracks were built between 1877 and 1881 and initially included a hospital.

It was originally the depot of the King’s Shropshire Light Infantry.

Construction work on Ironbridge Power Station began in 1962.

The plant was originally designed to run on coal and at full capacity was capable of generating up to 1000MW from two 500MW units.

It was later converted to biomass and the electrical output was reduced to 740MW. But only one of the two units had been operational following a fire in 2014 and capacity was further reduced to 370MW.

There were 130 workers on site when the plant closed last November. A small team of 14 was to be kept on after the shutdown to oversee a 15-month period of the decommissioning of the plant.

The closure of the power station was required by the EU’s Large Combustion Plant Directive.

Shropshire jobs

Clive Barracks in Tern Hill is currently home to the 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment, but the base is expected to be sold by 2020.

The 1st Battalion, which has been based at the barracks near Market Drayton since 2007, will be forced to move to an as yet unknown location – putting its future in Shropshire in doubt.

The MoD is releasing 10 sites across the country as part of a bid to increase the efficiency of the defence department’s estate, and as a contribution to the Government’s target of releasing enough public sector land for 160,000 homes by 2020.

It is hoped the sales will generate a total of £140 million, which the Government says will be invested into the defence budget.

Announcing the sale, Defence Minister Mark Lancaster said: “Every pound we make by disposing of excess land will be reinvested into a defence budget that keeps Britain safe.

“It will make the defence estate more efficient and better suited to the needs of our armed forces. it will help thousands of people to own their own home.”

  • Shropshirestar

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