Chamber Members: Is Your Wellbeing Strategy Working as Hard as Your Team?
As a fellow supporter of local business, I’m offering exclusive wellbeing reviews for Chamber of Commerce members — designed to help you get more from your current health and wellbeing provision.
We’ll look at what’s in place, spot gaps, and explore tailored solutions that can:
Improve productivity
Reduce absence
Boost staff retention
And show clear ROI
It’s a no-obligation consultation that’s all about helping you create a healthier, more engaged workforce — because strong teams build strong local businesses.
Let’s book a time to talk. One conversation could change the way your business supports its people.
This year’s Innes Lecture is being delivered by Prof Sujit
Sivasundaram, Professor of World History at the University of Cambridge, who
will look at the history of pepper and the role it plays in the world.
It will be held on Tuesday 29 April in the John Innes
Conference Centre at Norwich Research Park. The event is free to attend and
open to all. Please book your tickets here.
Doors open at 6pm with the lecture starting at 6.30pm.
Pepper is the most widely used spice in the world, but its
widespread use was not always certain or predictable.
This lecture follows pepper’s journey from its origins in
South India, across the Indian Ocean, and through many different hands, before
the Portuguese sought to take control of it.
The way pepper was harvested and traded to meet growing
demand helped shape the plantation economy. The combination of the plantation
economy and European colonisation played a huge role in shaping the modern
world. Looking at how pepper was cultivated and traded, reveals different
ecologies, trade networks, labour systems and cultural influences.
Prof Sivasundaram’s last book, Waves Across the South: A New
History of Revolution and Empire, won both the British Academy Book Prize and
the Jerry Bentley Prize for World History. He is a Fellow of the British
Academy.
A dictionary will tell you that negotiation is a strategic discussion between two or more parties that resolves an issue in a way that each party finds acceptable. This programme will equip you with the skills to maximise your chances of a successful outcome.
Key topics:
The negotiation process
Why should someone buy from you
Negotiation skills
Value engineering
Negotiation in practice
Dates for this course will appear here once confirmed.
With £billions spent annually across government, local authorities, healthcare, and education; the public sector offers a powerful growth avenue for businesses of all sizes.
Unlock new opportunities for your business with Chambers East and Crown Commercial Service in this essential webinar on navigating public sector procurement under the UK Procurement Act 2023.
Webinar Hosts
· Neal Smith – Deputy Director, Cloud & Hosting, CCS
· Lucy McCormack – Commercial Lead, Digital Capability and Delivery, CCS
What You’ll Learn
– How recent procurement changes make bidding for contracts simpler, fairer, and more accessible
– Practical insights to help win new contracts and expand into public sector markets
– Expert guidance on streamlining your bidding process for a competitive edge
This session will help you understand how recent changes make bidding for contracts simpler, fairer, and more accessible, giving you a competitive edge.
Whether you’re looking to win new contracts, expand into public sector markets, or streamline your bidding process, this webinar will provide practical insights and expert guidance to help your business succeed.
Book now, and we’ll send over the joining link prior to the webinar.
Kickstart your personal and business development by joining the University of East Anglia’s (UEA) Help to Grow: Management course with Norwich Business School. Led by UEA academics, the course equips your business with tools and strategies to bolster your resilience.
Help to Grow: Management is a nationwide course, and as a member of the Small Business Charter, Norwich Business School is currently open for applications for its fourth cohort starting on 6th March 2024.
The course is designed for business owners, CEOs and tomorrow’s senior business leaders, who each bring a diversity of experience. 50+ regional businesses from a wide range of sectors including science and technology, electronics and aviation, social enterprise, retail and logistics have participated to date. Over 1,700 teaching hours have been delivered since November ‘22, as well as 500 hours of mentoring and 400 hours of peer-to-peer advice.
Participants will enhance their management and strategic capabilities, learn how to innovate in their business and adopt digital technologies to boost productivity and operational agility.
The course supports managers and leaders of SMEs with 5-249 employees. Those with 10+ employees may apply for two places. The 12-week programme is designed to fit alongside full-time work commitments and is 90% funded by the Government, meaning the fee payable by participants is just £750.
Unfortunately we have had to postpone our backstage tour, but we look forward to announcing new dates as soon as we have confirmation from our friends at The Theatre Royal.
Since 2002 over 16 million theatergoers in 19 counties have thrilled to this awe-inspiring production of We Will Rock You!
We really hope you can join us – you’ll have to be quick as there are only 20 spaces!
You’ll have a Backstage Tour of the set of We Will Rock You, the worldwide smash hit musical by Queen and Ben Elton which returns to the UK, a show that boasts the scale and spectacle that marked the bands’ legendary live performances. During the hour tour you can experience first-hand the set, stage, sights and sounds of live theatre.
Network in the welcoming Kemp’s Resturant over breakfast comprising of a selection of local cheeses, local meats, artisan breads, granola, yoghurt, warm pastries, sliced fresh fruit, tea and filter coffee. We think its a great way to start your day! Norwich Theare Royal is one of the East of England’s largest and most successful theatres with over 250 years presenting theatre in Norwich….
Norwich Theatre Royal is the largest and most successful theatre in the East of England with over 400,000 people attending annually to watch 400 performances, ranging from shows for pre-school age children to grand opera, and everything in between. We feature the best of West End shows from big musicals to great dramas, alongside dance, comedy, family shows, opera and music – Click Here for the latest show information.
Would you like to develop your skills in this role and gain
a qualification?
Norfolk Adult Learning offer a Level 5 Management and
Leadership Skills course, with the next programme starting in March 2025.
Achieving a Level 5
Diploma in Management offers numerous benefits for both the learner and employer,
significantly enhancing the overall performance and productivity of the organisation
Our engagement groups represent local businesses in the community, to connect, support, and give voice to every business in Norfolk.
As well as having the opportunity to discuss key topics, you’ll also be able to network with fellow businesses.
Our aim is to have groups in many cities, towns, market towns, and villages across Norfolk, to connect, support, and give voice to every business in Norfolk. These groups are accessible to all businesses, whether you are a Chambers member or a non-member.
These groups will provide you with a platform to debate issues that are most important to you and your business. The Chamber network will lobby and influence on your behalf, using our dedicated team, our website, social media channels, and our digital platform.
Your feedback will be used by our team and the Chamber’s Board to help shape the strategic direction of Norfolk Chambers, ensuring we can truly be the voice of Norfolk businesses.
Whether the local challenge is skills, road, rail, digital infrastructure, recruitment, or the rising costs of doing business, we want to hear from you.
Agenda
9:00am
Arrival and Networking
Welcome from Norfolk Chambers
Introductions
Start of group discussions on key topics
10:00am
Power Hour: Maximising Your Membership Discover how to make the most of your Norfolk Chambers membership, including a guided overview of the Digital Chamber and tips for using our platforms to promote your business, share news, and engage with the local business community.
This session is fully booked please email events@norfolkchamber.co.uk to be put on the waiting list.
You will learn:
This session will highlight a particular way the brain operates when we meet a prospect for the first time. Tapping into this knowledge allows us to take advantage of the way the brain naturally functions, leading to more opportunities and creating long-term, highly effective sales habits. Guaranteed fun, with a relaxed and informal delivery style, this session is for those who have no sales experience at all or seasoned sales professionals.
3 top tips you’ll walk away with:
Learn how to get your prospect to ask you for a meeting rather than the other way around
Understand the link between how you think and how you sell
Discover why selling sequence will increase your sales success
In this session (How to Improve your Selling Game) Matt Sykes, Mindspan Global Ltdwill be your host.
About Matt:
Drawing from over twenty years of sales experience, ranging from global corporate B2B collabroative selling roles to start-up lead generation applications, Matt runs a Mindspan Training Franchise, specialising in sales training. His passion for performance psychology and his understanding of how people make purchasing decisions, create the ideal combination for him to help progressive sales professionals achieve even more sales success for themselves via training workshops and 121 mentoring.
Please arrive 15 minutes before the session starts at 08.30am.
In this session (Serving Your Customers Through Social Media ) Sarah West, The Social Edge will be your host.
You will learn:
No matter your size or industry, customers increasingly want to contact businesses via social media. A recent study found that 53% of customers who ask a company a question on social media expect a response within 1 hour – day or night!
This session will show you how to turn customer enquiries and contact into opportunities to impress. You will discover how to respond to messages and comments to enhance your social media followering and build a relationship with customers that leads to sales.
3 top tips you’ll walk away with:
How to encourage potential customers to make contact through social media
How to respond to enquiries and turn them into opportunities
How to delivery great customer service online and resolve complaints
About Sarah:
Sarah is Managing Director of The Social Edge and Full Mix Marketing. An award winning chartered marketer, Sarah has 15 years experience as a specialist in digital & social media marketing, including establishing an award nominated social media team for a leading national brand. She knows how to deliver highly effective campaigns and turn social media into a new source of customers. The Social Edge helps Norfolk & Suffolk businesses grow through social media marketing; including highly targeted advertising, creating a strong following, establishing your business as expert in its field and serving customers via social media.
Do you know which documents are necessary for an international shipment? Documents are there to help get the goods into the destination country quickly and efficiently. They also offer benefits to both the exporter and their overseas customer.
This full day course looks at export documentation and explains why they might be required, what content is required and the benefits they offer.
Aims • Understand which documents are necessary for an international shipment • Know the key pieces of information required for each document • Understand the importance of preferential trade agreements • Know how to complete the documents • Understand the rules of origin • Know the difference between shipping documents and what they are used for • Identify sources of information with regards to these documents
Who should attend? This course is suitable for anyone involved in the export or import process and who are involved with the preparation of documents such as; accounts, purchasing / buyers, freight forwarders, shipping, marketing, customer services, goods inward staff and many more.
Testimonials “Norfolk Chamber always makes us feel very welcome. The course was as good as always and I now have more knowledge on the industry and export documentation.”
“The content of the course was very goods. I got clarification of the documentation required and how they are used at different stages of an export.”
“Very good course, would recommend.”
Cancellation Policy 15% of fee payable if delegates cancel more than 7 days in advance. If less than 7 days the full fee is payable.
One of the ‘core 10’ courses accredited by British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). Candidates achieving Pass or Merit in the course will receive a certificate. Those who pass 6 individual courses will achieve a nationally recognised Foundation Award in International Trade.
Do you understand the role of HMRC, rules of origin and Intra-EC trade? Understanding complicated customs procedures is vital to help save you time and money when importing and exporting goods.
This half day course will provide you with the information you need to be able to understand how to comply with customs and the procedures in place.
Aims: • To understand the role of HMRC, the rules of origin and Intra-EC trade • Understand key pieces of information on a customs entry and what they mean • Know why it is essential that goods are classified correctly and who is responsible • How to work out the VAT and Duty to be applied to your import • Be able to explain ‘free circulation’
Who Should Attend? This course is suitable for anyone involved in the export or import process such as; accounts, purchasing / buyers, freight forwarders, shipping, goods inward staff and many more
Testimonials “Very detailed and informative course. The trainer was more than happy to answer all of my questions at the end.”
“All aspects of the subject were covered. I would definitely recommend this course to a colleague.”
“Great course – the trainer is very passionate and knowledgeable.”
Cancellation Policy 15% of fee payable if delegates cancel more than 7 days in advance. If less than 7 days the full fee is payable.
One of the ‘core 10’ courses accredited by British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). Candidates achieving Pass or Merit in the course will receive a certificate. Those who pass 6 individual courses will achieve a nationally recognised Foundation Award in International Trade.