Are you ever too old to turn your favourite hobby into a brand-new business venture?

In this very special episode of All About Business, James Reed is joined by his wife Nicola, founder of the successful drinks company, Beeble.

Nicola shares how she turned her husband’s birthday gift into a thriving business, the ups and downs of bootstrapping a company with her daughter’s friend, as well as some rather disturbing facts about her bee colony.

Nicola is an artist, teacher, beekeeper and entrepreneur. She owns Beeble, a B-Corp that makes a wide variety of spirits with honey from her very own hives. Nicola has a Master's degree in Fine Art from St Martin's School of Art, a PGDip from Chelsea College of Arts and a teaching degree from University College London.

01:37 Introduction

02:27 Nicola Reed's Beekeeping Journey

04:43 Turning Honey into Spirits

07:45 The Beeble Brand and Business Growth

13:22 Balancing Business and Passion for Bees

23:54 Insights and Lessons from Beekeeping

27:07 Beekeeping Courses and Techniques

28:31 Personal Experiences with Bee Stings

30:39 The Undertaker Bee and Bee Communication

32:49 Challenges in the Spirit Business

36:11 Marketing Strategies and Customer Feedback

41:36 Beekeeping in Prisons

43:17 The Joys and Challenges of Beekeeping

46:03 Future Plans for Beeble

48:25 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Try Beeble’s delicious honey whisky

Take a beekeeping course

Follow Nicola Reed on LinkedIn

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All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more at: www.reed.com

This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk

Climbing to the top of the ladder can be tough. With competition from peers, how do you stand out so you can get that promotion and even become Managing Director?

In this episode of All About Business, James is joined by Donna Murrell, Managing Director of Reed in Partnership. Donna began her career at Reed as an entry-level employment advisor and worked her way up to the very top. In this conversation, she shares little known strategies for boosting your career, explains why diversity in leadership is so important and gives actionable advice for building your confidence no matter where you are in your career.

Donna is the Managing Director of Reed in Partnership, a branch of Reed which delivers public services such as employment support, wellbeing advice and DVSA testing. Donna has been at Reed for over 20 years, starting as an Employment Advisor.

00:58 Introducing Donna Murrell

07:47 Expanding Reed in Partnership

09:54 Leadership and team building

13:08 Donna's management philosophy

20:44 Going from Operations Director to Managing Director

25:16 Advice for aspiring leaders

29:51 Spotting and nurturing talent

31:25 Creating Opportunities for Employee Engagement

37:01 Embracing curiosity and learning

39:30 Women in leadership: challenges and progress

49:34 Preparing for career progression

52:05 Building confidence and overcoming anxiety

54:49 Reed interview round

Follow Donna on LinkedIn

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Learn more about Reed in Partnership

All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more at: www.reed.com

This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk

With seventy percent of online buyers abandoning their shopping before checkout, how can you create a frictionless customer journey that only takes ten seconds?

In this episode of All About Business, James Reed speaks to customer experience expert Todd Unger.

Todd reveals why most customer journeys don’t work, how low-cost AI can help you understand your customers better, and the hit Ariana Grande song that could transform your approach to customer experience.

Todd Unger is the Chief Experience Officer at the American Medical Association, overseeing membership, marketing and customer experience initiatives. His book, the ten-second customer journey explains how you can rapidly convert customers online, drawing on Todd’s 30 year career in marketing and customer experience.

02:00 Meet Todd Unger: Chief Experience Officer

03:27 The evolution of Customer Experience

08:04 The four points of CXO

10:50 The importance of frictionless experience

18:07 Building effective digital services

24:10 Building a culture of testing and experimentation

26:17 The role of AI in modern testing

26:44 AI's impact on the 10 second customer journey

28:03 Leveraging technology partners for AI

34:29 Practical applications and future of AI

45:17 Customer experience advice for entrepreneurs

48:27 Reed interview round

Follow Todd Unger on LinkedIn

Visit Todd Unger’s website: https://www.toddunger.com/

Buy Todd Unger’s book

Follow James Reed on LinkedIn

All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more at: www.reed.com

This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk

Being a socially conscious business is becoming more and more important, but can it really help you grow your brand long-term?

In this episode of All About Business, James Reed sits down with Centre for Social Justice CEO and proud Leeds native, Andy Cook. They explore the unseen world of philanthropy, why small charities are often more powerful, the best interview questions to ask future employees, and the steps you can take to become a brand locals love.

Andy is CEO of The Centre for Social Justice, an award-winning organisation that aims to solve Britain’s most pressing social issues through political change. Hailing from Leeds, Andy founded another award winning charity that helped disadvantaged youth across the Midlands. Since then, he’s become an advisor to several leading philanthropists and CSJ has been awarded social policy Think Tank of the Year for the last 2 years.

1:56 - Introducing Andy Cook - CEO for the Centre for Social Justice

2:48 - The Centre for Social Justice

8:43 - The five areas of help that affect Society

9:58 - The Big Give

13:38 - The importance of giving people opportunities

16:56 - The power of smaller charities

19:04 - Where do donations go and how to make the process better

21:07 - Should businesses engage more with philanthropy?

25:35:00 - The Kickstart Program

27:40:00 - Finding a balance between education and employer's needs

31:36:00 - The Centre for Social Justice Foundation

34:36:00 - Why businesses should be more involved in the education system

38:18:00 - How you can help

40:10:00 - Reed interview segment

41:50:00 - Wrap up and final thoughts

Find out more about the CSJ

Follow Andy on LinkedIn

Register for the Green Match Fund

Donate to a cause you care about

Follow James Reed on LinkedIn

All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more at: www.reed.com

This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to get your brand heard, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk

Talent and customers aren’t just looking at the product or service your company provides. They’re choosing organisations with purpose over those who only prioritise profit.

In this episode of 'All About Business,' James is joined by Becky Willan, CEO of Given, part of Anthesis. They explore the importance of implementing purpose into the heart of your business,, the impact of ESG and sustainability on brands, and practical steps for organisations to align profit with meaningful societal impact. Becky shares her journey from working at Body Shop to founding Given, and discusses how companies like John Lewis and Lloyd's Banking Group are navigating purpose-driven transformations.

01:31- Introduction

02:26- Meet Becky Willan

03:13- Defining Purpose in Business

03:48- The Journey of Given

07:41- Implementing Purpose in Organisations

11:32- Case Study: John Lewis Partnership

20:31- Case Study: Lloyd's Banking Group

24:01- Advice for Entrepreneurs

29:54- Evidence of Purpose-Driven Business Success

31:25- Purpose vs. Philanthropy: Understanding the Difference

33:52- Reed's Purpose-Driven Philanthropy Model

34:54- Steps to Implementing Purpose in Your Organisation

36:44- The Importance of Employee Engagement and Culture

40:14- Challenges and Pitfalls in Purpose-Driven Organisations

42:54- Case Study: Centrica's Purpose Transformation

49:49- IKEA's Purpose and Philanthropy

51:35- Personal Reflections and Future Aspirations

53:56- Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Find out more about Given

Follow Becky on LinkedIn:

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All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more at: www.reed.com

This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk

What if there was a model your business could use to smash your targets faster? And with a team of no more than 10?

In this episode of All About Business, James speaks to Alex Day, Managing Director of Big Give. Alex explains how his small team of ten has managed to raise hundreds of millions of pounds for charity. They also discuss how technology is transforming the charity sector, why philanthropy is good for business, and the psychology behind giving money away.

Alex Day is Director of Social Impact at Reed and Managing Director of the Big Give, the UK’s biggest match funding charity.

Every year, Big Give runs a variety of match funding campaigns, including the Green Match Fund, Kind2Mind and the Christmas Challenge. Since 2008, they’ve raised over £300 million for charities all over the world.

Timestamps

00:00- Intro

02:31- How Big Give's Match Funding Works

03:38- The Psychology Behind Match Funding

05:38- Campaigns and Themes of Big Give

08:18- Digital Transformation in Charity Fundraising

12:53- Running a Lean and Effective Team

16:37- Engaging Big Figures in Philanthropy

23:42- Identifying Your Passion for a Cause

25:16- Setting Ambitious Goals

27:37- The Importance of Ambition in Social Impact

29:26- Supporting Smaller Charities

30:50- Innovative Match Funding Strategies

31:59- The Contagious Nature of Generosity

32:32- The Christmas Challenge Campaign

34:18- Philanthropy in Business

37:18- The Philco Model

41:33- Quickfire Round

43:38- Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Links

Visit the Big Give website: https://donate.biggive.org/

See what difference you can make: Big Give Christmas Challenge 2024

Double the difference this Christmas NOW

Follow James Reed on LinkedIn

Follow the Big Give on LinkedIn

All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more at: www.reed.com

This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk

Authenticity. It can be the difference between a thriving business and losing your audience. Gone are the days when having a good enough product was enough to drive growth, and with so much competition out there, having a brand that people believe in is non-negotiable.

In this episode of All About Business, James Reed sits down with father-daughter duo Molly and Philip King of Ireland’s family-run festival, OtherVoices.

Starting in a tiny church in Dingle, it grew to become a hotly-anticipated event. It’s hosted some of the biggest names in music, including Kate Tempest, Arlo Parks and Amy Winehouse and is now watched by millions across the globe.

They explore the ins and outs of working with family, how to use digital media to build a brand and, despite massive growth, how they’ve managed to stray true to their original vision.

Timestamps

01:55- Family Dynamics in Business

02:27- Building an Authentic Brand

03:57- The Role of Culture and Trust

08:23- The Evolution of Other Voices

10:35- The Digital Transformation

14:33- The Growth of Other Voices

20:39- Maintaining the Core Ethos

23:32- Navigating the Pandemic

24:30- The Birth of Other Voices Courage

25:21- Live Performances in Iconic Locations

26:51- Challenges and Triumphs in the Music Industry

28:59- Spotting and Nurturing Talent

33:13- The Unique Experience of Performing in Dingle

38:04- Ireland's Edge: Bridging Art and Science

42:18- Quickfire Round

45:47- Conclusion and Farewell

Watch Other Voices live on YouTube

Follow Other Voices on Instagram

Follow Other Voices on Tik-Tok

Follow James Reed on LinkedIn

Find a creative job you love

Find out about the Big Give Christmas Challenge

All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more at: www.reed.com

This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk

One thing that’s on pretty much every business owner's mind is the advent of AI, what it means for your business, and how you can use it to get ahead of your competitors.

But AI is only one piece of the digital business puzzle…

In this episode of All About Business, James Reed CBE speaks to Oli Green, a trailblazing entrepreneur who has started and acquired multiple businesses across the digital landscape.

He reveals the key areas every business should be focusing on when it comes to digitisation and explains why he was able to raise a substantial amount of funding in just a few short weeks.

About the guest

Oli Green is CEO of Brave Bison, a digital advertising and technology services company. Brave Bison bought Social Chain in 2023, a social media agency founded by Steven Bartlett that has worked for global brands such as KFC and LinkedIn. Oli is also Chairman of Tangent, a company that helps enterprises build future ready digital experiences, products and capabilities with a focus on People, Planet and Purpose.

02:21 Digital First Approach

03:18 Emerging Trends in AI

04:47 Challenges in Recruiting AI Talent

06:45 Improving Digital Experiences

08:46 Social Media Strategies

09:55 Brave Bison's Four Divisions

17:18 Acquisition Strategies

24:36 Integration Challenges

29:18 Working with Family

37:41 Public Company Benefits

40:19 Conclusion and Future Vision

Connect with Oli on LinkedIn

Follow Brave Bison on LinkedIn

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All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more at: www.reed.com

This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk