The Help to Grow Management programme, a collaborative effort between the University of Hull Business School and small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), has been highly praised by participants across a diverse range of sectors
The 12-week programme – 90% of which is funded by the Government, leaving a nominal up-front fee of £750 for participants – supports businesses to be more resilient to external challenges, empower innovation and increase productivity through the development of detailed growth plans and management strategies. It consists of online learning and face-to-face sessions, offering participants valuable insights into areas such as leadership, innovation, digital adoption, employee engagement, marketing, responsible business and financial management.
Aimed at SME business owners, leaders or senior managers from all sectors, it is facilitated by experienced experts from accredited business schools and designed to be undertaken alongside full-time work, with a time commitment of 50 hours over 12 weeks.
One local business that has taken advantage of the programme is Vertual, a Hull-based virtual reality training and education company. Jan Antons, product and business development lead at the company, shared her experience of Help to Grow.
She says: “We were incorporated in 2007 as a spin-off from the University of Hull, and we have done very well, especially in the education market for big installed systems. But as the world has changed, and even before the onset of Covid, we noticed that students wanted to learn differently. They wanted to learn in their own time, at any location, and they didn’t necessarily want to be in the classroom.”
This shift in learning preferences prompted Vertual to introduce new subscription-based products. According to Jan, participation in the Help to Grow programme was instrumental in rethinking the company’s product positioning and the value it offers to customers. “The programme itself was incredibly useful, and the modules are split up very nicely,” she adds. “What I noticed was different modules were resonating with different people.”
The Help to Grow programme had a particular impact on Vertual’s approach to its brand personality, as Jan explains. “The idea of a brand prism really struck a chord with me. I’ve taken that from the programme and discussed it with the founders. We’ve considered how we really talk about and think about our brand, and it made me realise where our products were on the prism and how we could tailor our messaging better. It was quite a lightbulb moment.”
Through the programme, Jan and her team learned how to better interact with customers and ensure that they were satisfied. “We operate in a niche market, so we need a good reputation and to be seen as approachable. We’re very much around competence, sincerity and hard work.”
Jan also highly commended the structure of the programme, which combines online lectures with in-person sessions. “That was one of the most powerful parts, to connect with other business leaders and see what challenges they were facing,” she says. The course’s learning materials continued to be useful even after the completion of the programme, she adds, helping the Vertual team devise a marketing plan for a new product.
Jan concludes: “The Help to Grow programme was a really helpful initiative. I would definitely recommend it to others because it helps refresh your thinking and helps you build new connections.”
- To apply and see the full programme timetable, register at execeducation.hull.ac.uk/help-to-grow-hull. Once you’ve registered, we’ll be in touch to confirm your enrolment.
- Alternatively, email help-to-grow@hull.ac.uk and we will be happy to discuss with you further about what the programme involves and about how the Business School can support your business to grow and innovate.
