Perhaps the biggest question in creativity is, ‘What do you do when you’re stuck?’ In interviewing Andrew Reich, one of the head writers and executive producers of hit TV sitcom Friends, I discovered that there are a number of techniques in leading the creative process that can be generalised and applied to any function or industry. One of the techniques that emerged repeatedly was to embrace taking breaks and changing one’s environment.
The latest Spotlight on Spinouts Report by the Royal Academy of Engineering Enterprise Hub has revealed rapidly growing spinout clusters outside the ‘golden triangle’ of Oxford, Cambridge and London – with the local authorities of Manchester and City of Bristol demonstrating the highest growth by proportion of spinout population.
In the fast-paced world of digital advertising, influencer marketing has emerged as one of the fastest-growing sectors. The allure of having someone with a massive following sing praises about your brand is so compelling that it often makes founders forget a simple truth: the most inspirational influencer is, in fact, the founder themselves.
Chris Todhunter, Technical Director at Studio Republic explains the importance of online accessibility: “Web accessibility should be seen in the same way as a high street shop without wheelchair access, or a cinema without a hearing loop – excluding a website user because of their disability has long been classed as discrimination in the USA and we’re quite a way behind in the UK in terms of legislation. In fact, 97.4% of 1 million website home pages tested in a WebAIM 2023 study were found to have accessibility errors. The most common failures are actually pretty easy to fix.”
Elkstone, the Irish investment house, has announced that the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) has committed to anchor the final close of its €100 million Early-Stage Irish Venture Fund. With Enterprise Ireland also on board, the fund has already deployed over €10m to date and aims to complete its initial investments by 2026.
A new research report, Education for a World of Opportunity, reveals that over a third (36%) of British Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) decision makers believe that technology and innovation have created fewer opportunities for unskilled workers to “learn on the job” and progress to higher paid roles.
Majid Al Futtaim, the leading shopping mall, communities, retail, and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, today launched the second edition of its Launchpad programme – part of Xsight Future Solutions business, Majid Al Futtaim’s newly formed business aimed at accelerating the company’s digital offerings and empowering partners with scalable, end-to-end digital services, products, and solutions. Majid Al Futtaim’s Launchpad strives to unlock value by partnering with and investing in innovative startups and disruptors that can benefit from the reach of the Majid Al Futtaim ecosystem.
EarSwitch has been awarded the UKRI Healthy Ageing Challenge Grant. The grant will enable EarSwitch to develop its EarMetrics product, initially for the UK’s diverse and ageing population. EarMetrics aims to provide an in-ear sensor for standard hearing aids to measure temperature, heart rate, pulse, and blood oxygen levels and a medical first: continuous blood pressure monitoring.











