Do you run a small business in the UK and are you asking yourself if it is time to start to recruit…
The first part is to go through a series of questions answering them truthfully and this will then assist you in working out whether you…
Thinkfest - Events but not just any events.
Thinkfest run events that have a cause and a purpose and that’s the only reason I entered this industry, and I am so glad that I did. Take read of a transcript of a conversation I had about this further below.
We have adopted the phrase that we do ‘events for business, reinvented’ We have also had others say that we are known for hosting ‘Simply Great Events’,
One of the reasons is that we are an awards and events management organiser with a difference operating in niche specialist areas and having a collaborative approach to working.
In conversation with Safaraz Ali, Founder and MD of ThinkFest.
So, Safaraz, going back a good few years now, the events and hospitality sector came to a grinding halt, can you tell us your experience about it please?
Our business activities were 100% restricted and we are unable to run any events. I recall we had the Business Book Awards organised for the 23rd March and this event had to be cancelled due to the lockdown restrictions. Thinkfest also had two large scale exhibitions under the Festival of Enterprise banner due to take place in April and October which we had to cancel. They were other events that our sponsors and partners cancelled due to lockdown restrictions or internal policy or just the uncertainty.
I was so proud of our team at Thinkfest, particularly Kasim Choudhry and Brad Edwards who put their mind to focus on online when it wasn’t always the default option. In that regard we were one of the first event companies to pivot to online events in March 2019 after having to cancel the Business Book Awards live event.
After holding that event we went full speed to online holding many events since then. We wanted out online events to be more interactive and engaging and thus put a lot of focus on the pre-production of the event. We also had to cancel our Festival of Enterprise Exhibition and in turn have run over 200 online webinars to support business. Below are some examples from the time – a time that we won’t forget in a long while:
As well as hosting our own catalogue of events we also work on strategic partnerships with other organisations to assist them in organising their events.
Currently, the team at Thinfets operates two annual awards that are owned by our group: the Multicultural Apprenticeship Awards and the Business Book Awards. We run the Festival of Apprenticeships an online careers Fair as well as a Roadshow events operating presently in three cities Manchester, London and Birmingham which is attended by thousands of pupils and students from schools and colleges.
We also are the people behind organising the SME: LIVE, Festival of Enterprise, Festival of Scaleups and Festival of Startups and have run hundreds of webinars and seminars over the last few years
We believe that Awards are the single most effective means of inspiring excellence and sharing best practice as well as creating more opportunities for those involved. We want to expand our reach and will consider other market areas if the vision meets our values and we can we can add value.
We pride ourselves on professionalism and the ability to provide the best quality service. Unlike many of our competitors in the awards industry, there are no fees for the judges. We believe credibility is the most important element of our organisation and this is difficult to maintain where there is an exchange of money.
We believe in working collaboratively and are open to having conversations with:
- Experts, Thought Leaders and Influencers interested in supporting our events as a Judge or Ambassador
- Commercial teams such as media, marketing and communications where we can discuss sponsorship packages individual to specific corporate agendas for increased and strategic exposure
- Results-oriented individuals looking to develop a new concept for a B2B event that has a basis for differentiation and where there is potential for growth
Our ethos is partnership working and creating true win/win situations.
How else can you assist us / we work with you on your plans:
Lets start with sharing some of plans for the future (god willing!)
Adoption & Fostercare Awards
we are working on bringing something niche and praiseworthy here – Our plans for The Adoption and Fostercare awards is about promoting and celebrating the hard work of the unsung heroes who assist children in care. The event plans are that we aim to recognise everyone in the process of providing children with a safe, secure and loving home environment.
Our aim with The Adoption & Fostercare awards is to create an opportunity to recognise the remarkable work that takes place every day to provide children in care a safe, stable and loving home environment. The awards will recognise the hidden heroes that devote their time and energy to supporting children through fostering and adoption as well as raising awareness and increasing understanding amongst communities.
Children are placed in care for a variety of reasons, however almost 61% of cases are due to abuse or neglect. Many children are mistreated, experience horrific situations and are often left traumatised as a result. There are over 82,000 looked after children in the UK, a figure which has been growing considerably year on year. Despite the increasing number of children in care, the number of adoptions has fallen.
The number of children adopted from care fell to its lowest level in 21 years in 2020-21, Department for Education (DfE) figures show. This fall and downward trend puts additional pressure on authorities, agencies, organisations and individuals who work within the sector.
With the number of adoptions decreasing and the number of children in care increasing the requirement for foster carers has never been greater Thee latest figures indicate that there is a shortfall of over 9- 10,000 foster homes with the number of people applying to be foster carers falling . Therefore there is an ongoing drive by everyone in the sector to promote adoption and foster care within communities around the UK.
One of the key aims of the Adoption & Fostercare Awards is to raise awareness of the need for more support from the public to reduce pressure on authorities and organisations and encourage more people to become fosterers and adopters. There are many stigmas, stereotypes and misconceptions associated with adoption and foster care and by highlighting the success of people in the sector we aim to change these views and make people think more positively about the cause.
It is important that every child has the opportunity to live their lives in an environment where they can learn, play and grow without fear. Many authorities, organisations and individuals go above and beyond to ensure this happens and we want to give them the recognition and thanks they deserve through this award process. We aim to ensure all individuals and organisations across the sector are recognised including, Foster carers, Social Workers, Local Authorities, Independent Fostering Agencies, and associated Charities and Voluntary organisations. Talk to me if you or someone you know can assist in helping us with this opportunity and cause.
The Intrapreneur Awards
The ambition with The Intrapreneur Awards is to celebrate, recognise and shares the outstanding successes in all forms of intrapreneurship. The awards aspiration is that will bring to the fore the diverse range of sectors, organisations, teams and individuals that are promoting Intrapreneurship.
Intrapreneurship is all about people – and although definitions vary, they share a focus on working from within existing organisations to build, advocate and implement sustainable change. This moves beyond traditional approaches to problem solving, ideation and actualising change to do things differently and disrupt the status quo aiming to achieve collective benefits. Done correctly, this can achieve sustainable competitive advantage through enhanced employee engagement, accelerated innovation in products, services, processes or business models and transformation in organisational culture.
The aim is that the awards will bring to the fore the diverse range of sectors and brilliant organisations, teams and individuals that are moving from dreaming to doing to make positive change happen in their organisations and beyond. Given the complex and increasingly blurred issues facing business and society today, with unprecedented rates of change across political, societal, environmental and technological spheres, we believe that it has never been more important to catalyse the growth of intrapreneurial practices and the shared value that this can offer.
We believe that anyone in an organisation, irrespective of title or function has the capacity to be innovative and make a difference. Intrapreneurship is a mindset and approach that offers all employees the opportunity to do just that – to feel valued, engage in problem solving and aim to achieve disruptive innovation for collective good. We recognise that this is also challenging and involves risk, thereby requiring the right culture and appropriate nurturing and practical support. It is therefore critical to share inspirational cases of success and to unravel the myths, to help individuals, teams and organisations to go beyond bold ideas and concepts to effective implementation and lasting impact. The Intrapreneur Awards seeks to address this very challenge and I urge you to help us to get this off the ground and make this work.
Work with us to provide your events, we can be your events provider, providing reliable and remarkable events that will be talk of the town for the right reasons. We deliver events that provide value for our attendees.
The aim is that the awards will bring to the fore the diverse range of sectors and brilliant organisations, teams and individuals that are moving from dreaming to doing to make positive change happen in their organisations and beyond. Given the complex and increasingly blurred issues facing business and society today, with unprecedented rates of change across political, societal, environmental and technological spheres, we believe that it has never been more important to catalyse the growth of intrapreneurial practices and the shared value that this can offer.
The unwritten rules in an organisation and its effects
The unwritten rules in an organisation and its effects I am sure you would have noticed that many people and the media are currently up in arms about Elon Musk letting go of
Most Business Books don’t work unless you do
Most Business Books don’t work unless you do Most business books don’t work just as knowledge in general as it comes down to simply what you do with what you know! Most business