e-bulletin March 2009

Hello and welcome to this month’s e-bulletin. As you will see, February was another busy month for Birmingham Future. Thank you to all those members that attended the Annual ’Medieval’ Ball at the Botanical Gardens. As billed, it truly was a ‘knight’ to remember. Thanks to the generosity of our members and guests, we managed to raise £1,500 for the Future Foundation, which is great news. There was more good news last month with the announcement that the Colmore Row Business Improvement District (BID) was given a resounding “yes’’ vote. This is not only fantastic news for the businesses and organisations that are based within the Colmore Business District area, but also for Birmingham, which now operates three BIDs (you can read more about this below). Finally, don’t forget that tickets are on sale for BYPY 2009. Tickets are already selling like proverbial hot cakes, so make sure you get yours. News & Events

Membership Renewals

Membership notices for 2009 have now been issued, and should have been received by your usual contact at your firm. To date, many memberships remain outstanding for the 2009 year. As such, we should be grateful if you could check that your membership is up to date. If your employer arranges your membership, please check with your usual Birmingham Future contact as to whether they have confirmed their intentions to renew. If you have any queries on whether your membership has already been updated, please contact Jo Sollom at the Birmingham Future office on 0121 632 2000.

Matthew Boulton College Signs up to Graduate Apprentice

Birmingham Future is delighted to announce that Matthew Boulton College for Further and Higher Education will be joining the Graduate Apprentice scheme as one of the three placement organisations for the Graduate Apprentice 2009. The Graduate Apprentice scheme, run in partnership with Graduate Advantage, is one of a kind, each year offering one selected graduate the unique opportunity to experience three diverse work placements over a 12 month period. Continues…

BYPY Tickets on sale Now

The rush to grab tickets for Birmingham Young Professional of the Year (BYPY) 2009 is now on. Tables for this glitzy awards ceremony, which recognises the individual achievements of the city's young professionals, are notoriously difficult to get hold of and the BYPY committee is advising everyone to book their tickets early to avoid disappointment. It is set to be BYPY’s most spectacular event to date and will take place at the ICC on Thursday 4 June. Guests will enjoy a three course dinner as well as the opportunity to dance and drink until the early hours. For those who are still in party mood there will also be an exclusive after party at the Living Room. To reserve your place please visit the Birmingham Future Website or contact Isabel Drabble at the Birmingham Future office on 0121 632 2201 / email isabel@birminghamforward.co.uk If you would like to know more about BYPY please visit our website www.birminghamyoungprofessional.co.uk

Birmingham Future Ball - A blast...!

Amongst the steamy, tropical greenhouses and the sweeping lawns of the Botanical Gardens was the setting for a night of medieval mischief and merriment: the Birmingham Future Annual Ball. Celebrating the achievements of the organisation over the past year, the event saw the great and good of Birmingham’s young business community in attendance. Though most were attired in standard black tie and a variety of stunning evening gowns, a brave few had accepted the challenge of fancy dress, meaning the odd peasant, wench, and, oddly, Braveheart, was spotted in the throng…. Continues on the Birmingham Future blog

Colmore Business District Bid gets a resounding Yes vote!

Organisations and businesses eligible to vote for or against establishing a business improvement district (BID) in the area surrounding Colmore Row have given a resounding YES to the proposal. Ballot results released by independent election scrutineers, Electoral Reform Services, revealed that 87.3% of all those who voted were in favour of the BID progressing. For the BID to be successful a majority by rateable value was also required. This was achieved with 90.1 % of the total value of those who voted. (£45,205,250.00) The yes vote serves to send out a positive message that companies in the heart of the city are willing to make an investment to create a better business environment for their employees and enhance the identity of the area, despite current economic challenges. Full press release here.

Birmingham Future Confidence Survey

Thank you to all those members that took part in the first of what will hopefully be a regular series of surveys to gauge how confident young professionals feel about their jobs, career prospects and the economy. According to the latest survey, 76% of Birmingham Future members believe that Birmingham is well placed to weather the current recession, claiming that in the end it will only stand to make the city stronger. When asked what impact the economic climate will have on their short-term career progression, over half (53.9%) claim it will have no impact. A smaller percentage (27.4%) even admits that the recession will have a positive impact on their career, stating that not only is their job secure but that there are still opportunities for them to progress in their current role. Many respondents (15%) claim the negative impact of the recession will be even more significant as their employers are less likely to invest in training and career development. What’s more, nearly 60% believe that their job is more at risk in the current climate with nearly one quarter (22.6%) even saying they are more likely to start a new career path altogether.

Forthcoming Birmingham Future Events

Birmingham Forward Keynote Lunch with Michael Dicks Thursday 12 March 2009 The ICC, Broad Street, Birmingham B1 2EA 12:00hrs for 12:30hrs £46.00 inc VAT Birmingham Forward’s first Keynote Lunch of the year welcomes Head of Research and Investment Strategy at Barclays Wealth, Michael Dicks, as guest speaker. In a wide ranging speech, Michael will be providing his analysis of the current economic climate, offering his view on the global banking system and its liquidity issues and his predictions for the future of the economy Click Here to book tickets: Mentoring Thursday 19 March 2009 HBJ Gateley Wareing, One Eleven Edmund Street B3 2HJ 17:30hrs for 18:00hrs £23.00 inc VAT (Non-Members £28.75) Smart commentators seem to agree that the world is not going to go back to where it was before the current downturn. If that's true, we need to rethink our approach to career advice. Mentors can't just say "Do what we did", because the conditions in which they succeeded may no longer apply. More than ever, mentees need to be encouraged, even provoked, to find their own answers. Furthermore, those answers need to be truly strategic. In this session with Dr Andrew Bass, Programme Facilitator for the Birmingham Future Mentoring Scheme, we will use a mixture of case studies, examples and discussion questions to enable you to develop personal recession-proofing career strategies. Click Here to book tickets.

Invitation to exhibit at the Transition & Employment Conference

Education Business Links are looking for companies who are prepared to host a stand and speak informally with stand visitors about their sector/company and/or companies willing to provide a 30 minute presentation and run a 15 minute Q&A session based in a classroom for groups of approx 25 students. Being held at Cadbury Sixth Form College - Thursday 2nd July 2009 - 9.15am to 1.30pm - This is a large scale conference for 800 students aimed at 18-plus college leavers, hoping to go directly into employment/training For further information please contact Annette Hammond annette.hammond@bxlworks.org.uk or 07920 476517

University of Birmingham Alumni Networking Event

The University of Birmingham will be hosting a networking event for its graduates on Thursday 12th March in the Council House. Alumni who are working in the fields of business, corporate finance, investment banking, insurance, law, property, commercial and related ventures are invited to attend. The Network will be hosted by the Vice-Chancellor Michael Sterling and Anthony McCourt (LLB Law, 2004) and will be an opportunity to network with fellow alumni and to meet some of the University’s brightest students. Wine and canapés will be served during the Network which starts at 6.30pm. Alumni of all years and subjects from the University of Birmingham are welcome to attend. Tickets cost £20 each. Further details and online booking are available online at www.alumni.bham.ac.uk/bhamnetwork or from Clare Capella on 0121 414 8904.

Out and About with Lise-Ann Brennan

Lasan Restaurant 3-4 Dakota Buildings, James Street St Paul’s Square Birmingham B3 1SD The choice of venue for this month’s review was recommended by Future member, Husne Begum of Autism West Midlands. Husne very kindly arranged for Rob Langley and I to join her for lunch at Lasan with Managing Director Jabbar Khan, soon to be featured in Future Focus. Tucked away at the edge of the elegant and desirable St Paul’s Square, Lasan is a modern Indian restaurant offering authentic dishes cooked to the exacting standards of development chef Aktar Islam. The lunch menu features a selection of 5 dishes ranging from Tandoori Salmon to a Paneer Shashlik Salad with the main menu offering traditional dishes with an imaginative twist such as the Dum Ki Biryani, a goat and basmaiti rice dish. Continues here... If you are a budding foodie and would like to submit your own restaurant review then please email: Lise-Ann.Brennan@kbpb.co.uk 

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