The board of Aycliffe Business Park Community (ABPC) is looking to appoint an individual or company on a consultancy basis to support the implementation of its ‘On the Map’ business engagement project.
Aycliffe Business Park is the largest in the North-East, with an estimated 500 companies employing more than 10,000 people.
ABPC was originally set up eight years ago as an informal group, but was formalised into a limited company in 2016 with the appointment of several unpaid directors.
Five years since launching officially, ABPC now wants to engage with more companies on Aycliffe Business Park by appointing its first paid-for role, initially on a six-month term.
The objectives of ABPC’s ‘On the Map’ project are to raise awareness among businesses on the park that may not yet have engaged with ABPC, increase the number of businesses that engage with ABPC events and activities, gather feedback and views of businesses to help inform future activities, and ensure ABPC is meeting the needs of businesses based on the park.
The scope of the work required from the three-month project, due to start on July 1, 2021, is to visit businesses on the park, gather basic information about what the business does, design a simple set of survey questions to ask businesses visited in order to gather feedback and views and inform them of the opportunities on the ABPC website.
The remit will also be to increase the visibility of businesses, showcase their offer to other companies on the park and ensure they’re aware of the external support available and how it can be accessed.
All work is to be carried out under the Aycliffe Business Park Community brand, working closely with the ABPC board.
The successful candidate would be expected to produce a monthly written report outlining the number of businesses contacted per month, the numbers engaged, information gathered and business feedback/views, as well as attending monthly board meetings and the regular news and networking meetings.
ABPC board chair Kerina Clark said: “The appointment of our first remunerated role is a significant development for Aycliffe Business Park Community.
“The ABPC board is made up of unpaid volunteers, representatives from around the business park who are willing to offer some of their time for free, and that has its limitations in terms of how much time we can spend trying to get out there to meet businesses.
“While our news and networking meetings are always popular and very well attended, we need to engage with more businesses.
“So we’re looking for a professional, self-motivated and ambitious individual to help us do that, to get out there and be more visible and get more feedback from companies on the business park.”
The successful candidate could either be an individual consultant, or from a consultancy business.
Those interested are invited to submit a short proposal outlining their experience, how they would approach the work, the number of days proposed, and their hourly or daily rate.
Proposals can be submitted by email to [email protected] by Friday, June 1.
ABPC aims to support and aid economic development and economic activity on Aycliffe Business Park, and to promote and supporting the ABP through events and marketing materials, both in print and online.
It aims to do this by signposting ABPC members to support, provision and information for their business needs while communicating and sharing skills, best practice and facilitating knowledge transfer within the ABPC.
The current ABPC board is made up of Kerina Clark (Xcel Centre), Pamela Petty (Entreprenising), Rachel Townsend Green (Thrive Marketing), Sarah Slaven (Business Durham), Martin Walker (Mantis Media), Lee Harris (Mitchell Gordon) and Ben Healey (Greystone Legal).
