Winning Moves is pleased to continue our work with Hull City Council and HEY (Humber and East Yorkshire) Growth Hub for the second phase of their Digital Catalyst programme. The ERDF-funded programme offers fully funded support for SMEs, which is based on intensive one to one consultancy for businesses hoping to grow through digital technology.
Winning Moves implemented the first phase of the programme from late 2019 through 2021.
While the first phase occurred during the unique challenges of the pandemic, this second phase comes at a critical time for UK businesses as they face the difficult economic headwinds of supply chain price increases, rising energy costs and inflation. In a recent survey of UK businesses, when asked about the most important support to help with future growth, the most commonly mentioned measures were Net Zero, digital technology and long-term finance.
Digital Maturity Assessment
All participants will begin the programme with a Digital Maturity Assessment, a best-in-class diagnostic tool, to review their current digital performance and practices and how they align with the future aspirations of the business. With a clear understanding of each business’s current position and goals, the advisors will identify the business’s technology needs and agree on which steps are most appropriate to reach their digital potential. They will also quantify the financial benefits of digital adoption.
Following the Digital Maturity Assessment, the support will generally follow one of two paths:
Digital Roadmap, where businesses will be supported to develop an actionable digital plan that identifies specific, pragmatic and cost-effective solutions, as well as the skills and resources required to adopt them. Or,
Digital Sprint, which will focus on a specific technology.
Advisors will also offer digital workshops with the internal teams to identify opportunities, create a clear plan for implementation and/or learn techniques. If needed, they may assist in engaging with trusted technology suppliers, as well as other support and funding.
“With the UK ranked 14th in the World Digital Competitiveness Ranking, there is room for improvement in digital adoption amongst businesses,” said Mark Modena, Director of Winning Moves. “One-on-one support with highly qualified digitals experts has proven to make an immediate, positive impact on businesses, which in turn contributes to the nation’s economic growth. We are pleased to be working with Hull City Council and HEY Growth Hub to continue to help more Humber businesses.”
Blowing Minds through Digital
Richard Marshall, Managing Director of Grayton, a 30-year-old mechanical and structural engineering company based in Barton-upon Humber, joined the first phase of Digital Catalyst. Grayton was a late digital adopter, not having changed their back-office functions before joining the programme.
Mr Marshall’s experience with the programme resulted in some immediate wins for the business, including scanning technology which increased their productivity and space utilisation, and communications technology, which allowed employees to better communicate across locations and resulted in faster decision-making.
“The assessment was mind-blowing and the opportunities for improvement were huge,” Mr Marshall said.
Businesses with less than 250 employees who are based in the Humber and have ambitions to grow their business through digital solutions are eligible for the programme. You can find more information on Digital Catalyst here. For more information on the Benchmark Index, a suite of powerful and flexible business diagnostic tools, please click here.