Today's business environment is increasingly competitive. With creativity and innovation more crucial than ever to drive business growth, ensuring a diverse workforce has fast become a key priority for leaders. Despite the continued focus on DE&I, there is still a lack of understanding when it comes to neurodiversity. This has very real consequences for individuals, businesses, and the wider economy.

Oxford University Innovation (OUI), the technology transfer office of the University of Oxford, has launched its 2024 report Shaping the Future: Oxford’s Innovation Impact, showing it raised millions of pounds to fund innovative research and venture creation, filed scores of new patents and created more than 15 new companies over the past 12 months. 

Paloma Health, the AI-enabled healthtech startup reducing wait times for access to critical NHS health services, has raised £2 million in a pre-seed round. The round was led by Triple Point Ventures, with co-investors Heal Capital and expert angels, including Pam Garside, Co-Chair Cambridge Health Network, and James Allgrove, ex-Stripe. The funding will support the roll-out of Paloma Health’s first NHS service providing access to children and young people’s autism assessments in under four weeks.  

What do business owners keep in their pockets? Keys? Phone? Handkerchief? What about their HR team? Probably not but that’s about to change. Established HR consultants Cream HR have created a new resource that enables owners of SME’s  (there are 5.51 million in the UK) to have their HR questions answered from their phone with their new product FresHR.

Microalgae protein innovator Brevel has successfully implemented the FOAK (First-Of-A-Kind) strategy method by building its first plant for proprietary industrial-scale fermenters for microalgae protein. The company has completed construction of its FOAK facility and already secured two commercial agreements with leading food & beverage companies.

iwoca, one of Europe’s largest SME lenders, has announced a new £200 million package of debt funding from Citi and Waterfall Asset Management and doubles its SME loan offer ceiling to £1 million.

Sunswap, a UK cleantech startup decarbonising cold chain logistics, has announced that transportation services business, DFDS, has ordered the first 10 of its zero-emission ‘Endurance’ transport refrigeration units (TRUs). 

The project management sector in the UK needs an urgent rethink. SMEs and other companies and organisations across a wide range of industries are experiencing high failure rates in critical initiatives. Over three decades of experience in digital and business transformation, I've witnessed up close how inadequate project-management practices lead to substantial waste of resources and organisational risk.

AXA – Global Healthcare has announced the launch of its newest and most customisable product to date, Global Health Adapt, designed to meet the needs of SMEs with a globally based workforce. The product will be available for all new business from the beginning of January 2025.  

BGF, one of the largest and most experienced investors in the UK and Ireland, recently surveyed business leaders across its 400-company investment portfolio to assess the impact of AI on SMEs.

AI is changing many fields with its fast progress, and governments around the world are facing the difficult challenge of creating good policy governance frameworks that can leverage the advantages of AI while reducing any negative impacts.

cocreatd is a a new venture studio, designed to back big ideas in the marketing industry and bring them to life. Founded by Oliver Yonchev, a former business partner of Steven Bartlett – cocreatd is Yonchev’s first venture since exiting Flight Group, alongside co-founders James Lawson Baker, Paul Stevens, and Simon Whitaker.

Today, when the entrepreneurs of early-stage ventures find themselves very busy with operational tasks, they have little time to focus on expanding their networks and focusing on personal development. Sometimes, they can even simply neglect the value of being in a community and consider it as a waste of time.

A staggering 89% of UK cybersecurity professionals believe that AI is more beneficial to cybercriminals than to defenders, according to the latest State of the Security Profession report from the Chartered Institute of Information Security (CIISec). With only 54% stating that AI will aid defenders more than attackers, this highlights a growing concern within the industry.

Scotland’s expanded Venture Builder Incubator (VBI) 5.0 has launched, supporting 34 entrepreneurs – 12 more than last year – from UK universities to grow and develop their businesses and skills.

Brain expert Natalie Mackenzie helps business owners understand their brains better. Here she shares why understanding your cognitive health, and improving it, is key to being the founder of a successful startup.

Hiring your first employees marks a major milestone for any startup, reflecting your business's growth. However, expanding your team requires a deeper understanding of HR processes and employment law to avoid common pitfalls. Sally Gwilliam, Employment Partner at Harper James talks you through the essential areas you need to know as your business grows including employment status, contracts, HR compliance, IP protection, and dealing with resignations.

In a world where disruption and innovation are worn as badges of honour, the term 'thinking outside the box' is meant to be something we all strive for as a personal attribute, and feel less adequate if we’re not one of those out of the box thinkers.

The Digital Operational Resilience Act, commonly known as DORA, is scheduled to come into force on 17 January 2025. It aims to both harmonise EU Information and Communication Technology (ICT) regulation across EU member states and, more importantly, address a critical gap in how financial institutions manage ICT operational resiliency risks.

A notable 41% of IT professionals are struggling to hire qualified candidates due to a ‘significant’ skills gap in the industry, with only 12% reportedly unaffected by this gap. That’s according to new data from SolarWinds, a provider of simple, powerful, secure observability and IT management software.