Swindon & Wiltshire News
Business West busts echo chamber with latest board appointments
Three new non-executive directors have joined the board of business support service Business West, which has sought to make the appointments outside of its usual list of contacts.
Phil Smith, managing director of the Bristol-based business representation organisation – which runs the Swindon & Wiltshire Initiative – admitted the organisation found it hard to recruit from the wider business community.
“Recruiting in your own image is a very difficult instinct to break,” he said.
“The world is changing dramatically, and our board is very conscious that to remain credible and effective, Business West needs to know what’s going on in all parts of our business community: their concerns and hopes.
“We manage to reach out, through many great projects, deep into our communities, but sometimes struggle to truly interpret and/or act on the messages we are getting. Too often we end up prioritising what we already know and care about.
“Historically, Business West has drawn its selection of non-executive directors from our extensive, but usual, range of contacts.
“This time around we were determined both to avoid this echo chamber by prospecting in new pools, and also to take care to properly describe the talents we were looking to recruit.”
Ade Adebayo is an audit senior manager at Swindon-based building society Nationwide. He also serves as an Independent Member of the Audit Committee of Bristol City Council. He enjoys coaching, mentoring and inspiring individuals to become the best version of themselves, and is a mentor with a local Bristol charity that supports ex-offenders in reintegrating effectively into society.
“I’m delighted to be joining the Business West board at such an interesting time. I am very proud to be part of an organisation that is helping make the region the best place in the UK to live, learn and work,” he said.
Martin Shelford is co-owner of Rocko, a consultancy working with Tech SMEs. Martin comes has experience within retail, supply chain and tech. He is passionate about diversity and inclusion and working with companies to adapt and thrive.
“Given we’re navigating significant economic, political and technological change at the moment, and will be for the years and decades to come, I’m looking forward to doing my bit to help the West become a leading region in diversity, opportunity and innovation,” he said.
And Poku Osei is an entrepreneur with a host of skills and experience across many sectors in Bristol and the South West at board and consultancy level. He is the Founder and CEO of Babbasa, which supports underrepresented young people in the UK, and has many personal awards for the work he has done for communities, diversity and inclusion.
