Robert Turnbull works as an adviser for New Anglia Growth Hub, run by the Suffolk Chamber of Commerce, and is one of 39 Growth Hubs situated across England.

Offering business support and advice to small and medium sized businesses in Norfolk and Suffolk, his was the very first team of Growth Hub Advisers to be included in the new SFEDI Directory, having gone live late in 2015.

They were even involved in the benchmark testing of the service and, as Robert explains, he’s someone who really values the extra assurance and broad overview of available, accredited services the SFEDI Directory provides:

“As a tool the SFEDI Directory builds confidence and lets users look for accredited business and enterprise support to meet the high minimum standards required. It’s very important for service providers to become accredited and be listed in the SFEDI Directory as it drives up quality and helps to establish a national standard.”
Advising businesses face-to-face and over the phone, Robert works with a broad range of enterprises, across various sectors, with many in the earliest stages of trading. He says:

“If it’s a start-up, for example, we’ll sit down and do our initial diagnostic and scoping of that business’s particular circumstances. From that, certain needs will arise, like raising finance, company structure, tax, or even just the basics of recognising that your market research must be valid and robust.”

Having explored these aspects of running a business, Robert and the businesses he’s supporting will go on to create an action plan and, importantly, the adviser will signpost businesses to appropriate sources of support.

In the past those in roles like Robert’s would have used Business Link to identify the right support for their clients. Today, the new SFEDI Directory is proving itself to be an invaluable resource:

“It could be start-up loans, it could be professional legal advice, it could be professional advice from an accountant but I can use the SFEDI Directory to locate the right services. There was certainly a huge void left post-Business Link, where people were struggling to find appropriate support they could have confidence in.”

Robert is a real believer in the importance of setting a national standard for business and enterprise support professionals working across the UK and, as well as having his services listed on the SFEDI Directory and using it himself, he and his team have also fully embraced the CPD aspects of SFEDI’s offer:

“Right now, I’m tutoring and assessing all my colleagues through the Level 7 Diploma in Professional Business and Enterprise Support Services and as part of that, we’ve signed up to the Code of Conduct published by SFEDI.”

The Code of Conduct Robert and his team have adopted outlines how they should behave as professionals operating in the business and enterprise support arena. It describes in detail the ethical considerations and responsibilities attached to their roles.

“It’s a real privilege to be able to act as a consultant and support people without having a commercial agenda to answer to. We have freedom from time constraints and we can offer free, unbiased, objective support.”

The SFEDI Directory’s core purpose is to drive up the quality of business and enterprise support in an ever-changing business landscape. A significant part of that changing landscape is a huge surge in self-employment, which is another reason that Robert and his colleagues are so pleased to have the SFEDI Directory at their fingertips.

“What we find is that self-employed people find it very lonely being in business and they really do need trusted advisers they can have confidence in. Often you find people are doing all the right things but they just need someone to talk to and bounce ideas off. I think we’re in huge need of the SFEDI Directory and as an ambassador for the service I’m determined to continue to raise awareness and engagement. Here at New Anglia Growth Hub we’re hugely committed to using the SFEDI Directory, we’re early adopters, we’ve engaged with it and we’re committed to letting others know that SFEDI and the SFEDI Directory should become an integral part of the service they offer.”