More than 80 delegates gathered in Birmingham to hear insider tips of fast business growth at a one-day event hosted by Cognition and BGF.
We recently welcomed business leaders and marketing directors from across the UK to join us at our one-day event: Secrets of How Technology and Psychology Drive Growth.
Investor at BGF and former CEO of LoveFilm and Mothercare Simon Calver drew on his own experiences of the highs and lows of growing businesses. Fast growth is accessible to smaller companies and start-ups he said, thanks to four key reasons: access to capital, technology, talent and free access to information. “The small innovator is on the rise and the gap between the winners and losers is widening,” he said.
His sentiments echoed those of BGF’s Gurinder Sunner, who spoke about the opportunities ahead for small to medium-sized businesses if only they stopped believing these three myths about business growth.
Attendees also heard from Jill Palmer, CEO of digital travel company Click Travel. Jill led the company into a major period of growth and through a multi-million funding round in 2018. She advised leaders to find their leaders of tomorrow by developing them. She set up learning courses at the company for the senior leadership team and drove company-wide initiatives to reward employees for their hard work. “Celebrate your milestones,” she advised attendees.
Ed Barrett, who heads up EMEA sales for marketing technology HubSpot, urged businesses to see ‘disruption’ in a new way. “You can be an ‘experience’ disruptor!” he said, “it doesn’t mean getting a patent or making technology” - it means making your customer journey “fluid”. The traditional sales funnel should be viewed as more of a flywheel, he said, and businesses must ensure customers are not neglected once they have converted.
Cognition’s Co-Founder Dr Peter Hughes revealed why so many digital transformation efforts are doomed to failure – and what will really happen to businesses once AI takes over.
In breakout sessions over lunch, attendees were able to get one-on-one advice with the experts – whether questions about technology, business growth or marketing and sales. Cognition and BGF rounded off the day with an “Ask the Experts” panel, where attendees asked a range of questions about implementing digital change and how to keep ahead of the competition.
The event came at the same time as Cognition was named one of HubSpot’s biggest Diamond Partners in EMEA. You can find out more about that here.
Stay informed about future Cognition events in 2020 via the link below:
