Speaking to Sue Bedward, Director of Operations at IOEE Academy, MBL Academy we took a look at what work they are currently involved in.

Sue said: “Midlands Business Leadership Academy (MBL Academy) has been an IOEE Academy for just over 4 years. We have recently gone through a new branding and website launch after being informed that our clients had difficulty in finding us online. We recognise that the world of business and enterprise is ever expanding and the number of people starting their own business is on the increase.

Organisations providing support and information for new business start-ups is diversifying and expanding into sectors including business banking, housing associations, recruitment agencies and library services where Business Information Centres are now hosted in most major city libraries across the country. This is a key source for local enterprise start ups to get support.  Recruitment agencies are seeing an increase in clients looking at self-employment as an alternative to employed positions. 

Therefore, we needed to ensure our digital presence was diverse so that we can be found easily for our training services by the different organisations seeking to provide quality business advice and support to their customers.”

Here at the IOEE we have seen first hand the excellent work MBL Academy have been able to carry out and some of the fantastic courses they are able to provide thanks to their IOEE Academy status. We asked Sue what it was that made being an IOEE Academy so important to MBL Academy.

“Being a part of the IOEE and SFEDI means that we are part of an enterprising family.  We were  invited to the Celebrating Enterprise Awards 2019 at the House of Lords which was a great opportunity to bring all the Enterprise Family together to celebrate the successes and brilliant work being done by other Academies and partners up and down the country.  Being a part of the IOEE/SFEDI allows us to demonstrate that we provide business enterprise services to a recognised quality standard, and to share best practices and keep up to date on enterprise news.“

How is being part of the global IOEE enterprise ecosytem able to impact on the quality of business support?

“At MBL Academy we feel privileged to support business advisers, mentors, and consultants on their own development journey which in turn enhances the support they can provide to their clients.  One of the common threads we have noted with our SFEDI learners is their passion to help businesses to startup and grow.“

MBL Academy also recognise the importance of accreditation of learning programmes in providing additional credibility and quality within the business support landscape.

“What SFEDI and IOEE offer is professional recognition,  and a quality standard in the work we do to support and advise business owners.  Accredited advisers have fed back that going through their SFEDI accreditation has given them more confidence as well as the opportunity to reflect on their current practice and implement a structured support process in how to help their clients.

One SFEDI learner said: “The SFEDI Awards qualification you helped me achieve has been put to good use and I have been providing business advise on two key council run programmes for 4 years now. So thank you.”    

By completing a SFEDI qualification, Business Support Advisers are able to validate what they do, it provides an opportunity for them to receive constructive feedback on how they provide business support and advice, and enables them to set their own agenda.”

Visit www.mblacademy.co.uk to find out more.