e-bulletin August 2007

News & Events

The Bishop's Sermon, a message from new Chair Alex Bishop

At our AGM on 18th July, I took over from the fabulous Sarah Gee as Chairman of Birmingham Future. Huge thanks to Sarah for her strong leadership over the past 12 months. For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Alex Bishop and in in my day job, I am a partner in the dispute resolution department at Shoosmiths here in Birmingham. I look forward to getting to know you all over the coming year.

We welcomed over 100 guests to Birmingham Future’s AGM and the launch of the Power50, in association with The Birmingham Post. Click here for a copy of Future’s annual report and click here to see who appears on this year’s Power50 list! The list was pulled together to showcase those people whose influence will still be felt when our generation takes over as the business and civic leaders of this city. The list is intentionally controversial. Please do take a look and tell us what we’ve got right, and who you think is missing.

Birmingham Future is now firmly regarded as THE voice of young professionals in the city. It is my hope that not only will Birmingham Future’s voice continue to be heard but that Future members’ actions will be felt in the coming years. And it is this hope that lies behind my three key themes for the year; pulling together, personal social responsibility and pride in Birmingham.

Future members could and should have their views on the future of the city heard as it is their city to inherit. Our City Centre Team has already started an extremely constructive dialogue with Birmingham City Council. We would actively encourage our members to feed through to us your ideas for the future of the city. What is it you want to see? More town houses? A crèche in the city centre? Cycle lanes? The Council has asked for our input. Help us make the most of the opportunity. Email us your ideas to Charlotte Wright.

With regards to personal social responsibility (PSR) we want Future members to make a difference to this city. We will let you know about a series of initiatives which you can get involved in over the coming year but in the meantime, (and if you haven’t done so already), please sign up for our school engagement project to help raise the aspirations of Birmingham’s schoolchildren CLICK HERE for the sign-up form!

As a proud Brummie, I am keen to encourage others to get to know the city better so that they too can be vocal and proud ambassadors for the wonderful city in which we live and work, see our new ‘Birmingham – Did you Know?’ section below. Our events team are also coming up with ideas to show you all some of the less obvious sights of Birmingham but again, we would welcome your suggestions. Email your ideas to Imogen Noons

I look forward to working with all of you over the next 12 months. I would encourage you all to get in touch with me here, or indeed any member of the Leadership Team if you have any feedback or suggestions for making Birmingham Future the organisation you want it to be! Make your voice heard!

Pulling together – the city is ours to inherit

As already mentioned above in Alex’s message we have the opportunity to tell Birmingham City Council what we want from our city. This all began from a meeting held by the City Centre team with Clive Dutton (Director of Planning and Regeneration for the Council) and Phil Singleton (City Design Advisor) updating them on the focus for the Masterplan following on from Professor Michael Parkinson’s envisioning study and the development of the city as a whole e.g. New Street, the Library etc.

They really want to hear from our young professionals as to what their vision for the city is, what they want to see change and they will then try to feed these into the Masterplan as a whole when it is commissioned shortly. Any ideas that the membership might have would be very welcomed by Clive and Phil.

Let’s be proud of what our city has to offer – please email your ideas to the City Centre Committee Chair Charlotte Wright here!

What's the Big Idea?

Following on from the first B1G Idea episode on work/life balance, the team behind the thought provoking podcasts has launched the second and third instalments, this time tackling the issues of ‘creatives versus suits’ and the environment.

The B1G Idea, which was set up by UCE Birmingham, in conjunction with Birmingham Future, is a series of podcasts that deal with particular issues facing young professionals who work in B1. It is an opportunity for a different kind of discussion and interaction between professionals who might not otherwise meet face-to-face due to time pressures and other commitments.

The podcasts are available to download as MP3 files, so you can listen to them at your leisure, either at your desk or on your own personal MP3 player. They are also available through the iTunes store.

Click here to listen to all of the episodes so far...

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in the B1G Idea podcasts may not necessarily be those of Birmingham Future and its members.

Membership Flyer’s hot off the press – any new members near you?

Birmingham Future is always on the lookout for new members, and to help generate interest in the organistion a new flyer has been produced to get the message about Future out to all those who don't know what it is or how to join. The flyers, which include general information about the organisation, benefits of membership and testimonials from past and current members' are hot off the press and ready to be distributed.

If you know of anyone that may like to join please contact the office on 0121 632 2200 or e-mail parmi.gill@birminghamforward.co.uk. Or if you feel your organisation has potential members and you would like some flyers to distribute, please let us know.

A lesson to Future from Henry V

Robin Alfred of Olivier Mythodrama delivered an inspiring and thought provoking talk on inspirational leadership at our event held last month. Using Shakespeare’s classic tale of defeat and victory, Henry V, Robin brought history to life whilst firmly rooting the talk in the present... Battle field emails anyone?

The insights in to leadership techniques and qualities were fascinating, not only in getting us to recognise certain traits in others but also in getting us to recognise our own qualities. Following along side Henry V we went from carefree thrill seekers to successful confident leaders... Well sort of! Robin's talk certainly got us all thinking about people who have inspired us and what sort of leaders we may become.

A thoroughly enjoyable event which I'm sure gave our new chair pause for thought as to her leadership of Future during the next 12 months!

Golfing around...

June 20th saw Birmingham Future hold an indoor tournament at the Living Golf on Broadway Plaza. All the delegates who attended were split into teams of 3 depending on ability for a tournament on the Old Course at St Andrews followed by a nearest to the pin and longest drive challenge.

• The winners were as follows: Team Tournament - Tim Flight - Needham and James, Ian Causer - Tirebuck Career Solutions, Nick Ball - Wragge & Co
• A wooden spoon prize was also given to the losing team - John Jones - Baker Tilly, Nick Parkinson - Shaws Chartered Accountants, Brian Meenagh - Wragge & Co
• Nearest the Pin - Craig Jones-Newey - AIG (only 18ft away)
• Longest Drive - Jamie Wright - Baker Tilly (276 yards)

Forthcoming events...

'Love wine? Want to know more and have some fun? Then join Birmingham Future and Harvey’s Wines on Thursday 23rd August 2007 from 6.00pm, for an interactive team wine tasting quiz that will give you the opportunity to do just that, and you don't have to know anything about wine to win! Click here to book your place!

Are you tired of being tired? Do you feel stressed at work or in everyday life? Do you feel like you need an MOT? Do you want to maintain productivity and creativity in the workplace? If so then come along to the Birmingham Future well-being workshop on Tuesday 4th September from 5.45pm. You will find out how you can achieve vibrant health through diet and massage, and learn practical, easy steps to suit your busy and demanding lifestyle. Click here to book your well earned place!

How long does a first impression last? You get a new job or are promoted to a new role. Your friends, family and colleagues congratulate you, you have a party, and all seems right with the world - what happens when the honeymoon period is over and all is not what you expected it to be? Join our successful develepment facilitator Dr Andrew Bass on Wednesday 19th September to help you improve individual, team and organisational effectiveness by aligning individual contributions with strategic goals.

Birmingham Future members are invited to a sneak preview of STATION - the sensational forthcoming international exhibition of photography with a broad railway theme combining vintage, iconic and contemporary images. With it's future hanging in the balance - this is a rare opportunity to explore Birmingham's historic Curzon Street Station. The exclusive preview kindly sponsored by Radisson SAS Hotel is being held on Thursday 13th September, click here to book your place for this FREE event and to show your support to the future of our heritage!

BYPY 2007 Better Than Ever

Anyone who attended this year’s Birmingham Young Professional of the Year awards would agree that it was the biggest, boldest event in its seven year history. From the banter between celebrity compere Simon Woodroffe and Chair of Judges Trevor Foster, to the quality of entries and winners, not to mention the legendary after party, a boudoir tent in the Living Room organised in conjunction with Big Cat Group, this will go down as a night to remember.

BYPY 2007, Clare Edwards, said on winning her award; "Winning BYPY is a great pat on the back - it certainly put a spring in my step during the year!"

Not one to rest on her laurels, brand new BYPY Chair Roula Samaha, Manager of Filini Restaurant at the Radisson SAS hotel, has already set about recruiting her expert team to make BYPY 2008 bigger and better than ever before.
Were you looking at this year’s BYPY award winners thinking: “That could be me!”? What makes BYPY is the quality of its entrants, so if you think you have what it takes, stay tuned to www.birminghamyoungprofessional.co.uk for details of how to apply for next year’s awards.

A huge thank you to the 2007 BYPY award sponsors below who helped to make the awards a real success. If you are interested in sponsoring the forthcoming 2008 awards, please contact martina@birminghamforward.co.uk.

Challenge to Birmingham's undiscovered leaders - plug into the Matrix

The search is on for new leaders from the area to challenge the thinking of established authority figures in Birmingham - with the promise they can really influence the city's future development. The programme, known as Matrix, has been run by Common Purpose in the city for more than ten years and aims to bring together senior individuals from across sectors for an intensive programme of dicussions, frank talking and to identify how many issues they have in common.

The next programme starts in October and Common purpose Director Louise Teboul wants to hear from people who could fit the bill. For more information please email louise.teboul@commonpurpose.org.uk or call 0121 625 3269.

Firms to save thousands off annual training budgets reveals charity offer!

Crimson, a West Midlands based national training firm, is set to offer a highly sought after management training programme to companies at a third of market cost. They will absorb costs of running the popular course with any profits being donated to the Birmingham Foundation. Only those signing up via the charity will benefit from this heavy discount.

Derek Inman, chief executive of the Birmingham Foundation said: "Not only will this exclusive offer save firms thousands of pounds on their training budgets, it will also bring much needed funds to the Birmingham and Black Country Foundation and as the amount payable is actually a donation it is subject to the usual charitable tax breaks too..."

For more information and to take advantage of the special rate please contact the Birmingham & Black Country Foundation on 0121 214 2080 or e-mail derek.inman@btinternet.com

Little things... big difference!

The jungle drums are now beating on simple actions and little steps we could all take for a better future for Birmingham. Every Tuesday, The Birmingham Post's Thrive! page challenges us to adopt a new action to make a difference. Each month we will feature two new suggestions and do our bit. Here are the first two for you to consider and adopt this month!

Pull the plug on mobile phone chargers - Your mobile phone charger is more powerful than it looks. And 95% of the energy used by the phone chargers in this country is wasted. They’re only doing their job, ie charging phones, for 5% of the time. By comparison with this figure, the average ‘it’ girl is a crazed workaholic.

Don't be an ideas killer - At Unilever they have an approach they call ‘Build’, ie build on what other people say, don’t knock it down. Helpful ways to do this do NOT include the following: ‘I think what Brian meant to say is . . .’; ‘Great idea. Unfortunately, when Smallbottles tried it, it bankrupted them . . .’; or ‘I love it. But what do I know? I’m as mad as a lorry.’
Copyright, ‘we are what we do’. Community Links Trust Ltd.

Birmingham... Did you know?

• Bullring (specifically the Selfridges’s building) was recently voted the third most photogenic British Landmark, behind the London Eye and Big Ben!
• There are an estimated 62,000 burials under and around St Philips Cathedral in the City Centre.

New members...

The Membership Committee would like to extend a warm welcome to all our 49 new members who joined us in the months of May, June and July!

We are pleased to offer a membership benefits pack to all our Birmingham Future members. Details of the participating companies in the scheme are available on the website here. The membership cards will be posted out very soon so look out for those when they arrive on your desks!

Birmingham Future, One Victoria Square, Birmingham, B1 1BD
Telephone: +44 (0)121 632 2200 Fax: +44 (0)121 632 2201