- SMEs with a registered or trading address in Birmingham, Solihull, Redditch, Bromsgrove or the Wyre Forest are invited to attend
- The full series consists of three workshops hosted by academics from Aston Business School and Birmingham City Business School
- The workshops are part of the Innovation Vouchers scheme to help drive innovation and business growth
SMEs with a registered or trading address in Birmingham, Solihull, Redditch, Bromsgrove, or the Wyre Forest have been invited to attend Aston Business School’s Innovation Workshops.
The free1 workshops are part of the Innovation Vouchers project, which is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
The full series consists of three workshops hosted by academics from Aston Business School and Birmingham City Business School on 2, 9 and 23 February 2022 running from 9.30 am to 5.00 pm at The Eastside Rooms in central Birmingham. The academics include Innovation Vouchers project director Professor Nick Theodorakopoulos and head of Aston Business School Professor Pawan Budhwar.
The workshops are on three key areas:
- 2 February 2022: Envisioning Growth through Innovation
- 9 February 2022: Leadership & Strategy for Innovation
- 23 February 2022: Marketing for Innovation
Attendees who attend all workshop sessions will receive a ‘Managing Innovation in Business’ certificate from Aston Business School.
Nick Theodorakopoulos, professor of entrepreneurship development and Innovation Vouchers project director at Aston Business School, said:
“The Innovation Workshops support small-and-medium sized businesses to build their capacity to innovate and grow.
“Independent evaluations from the previous project phases have showed that workshops have a positive impact on attendees, resulting in substantial increases in gross value added and new job creation.
“The staff who deliver the workshops are experts in their field with excellent industry experience. I would encourage businesses owners to attend the Innovation Workshops and grow their business.”
Tickets for the Innovation Workshops are available HERE.
- Notes to Editors
1The workshops are free for eligible businesses. However, de minimis rules apply. The support we plan to provide through the workshops will comply with the State Aid rules using the de minimis exemption (in accordance with Commission Regulation (EU) No 1407/2013, OJ L 352/1). Under this exemption a single undertaking may receive up to the limit of €200,000 of De Minimis aid from the Member State within which it does business and which provides the aid over any period of three fiscal years. To attend the workshops, you will be asked to complete a Statement of Previous Aid received under the De Minimis exemption and arrange for a director of your business to sign it. Using this information we will assess your eligibility to receive assistance.
About Innovation Vouchers
European Regional Development Fund
The project is receiving up to £803,273 of funding from the England European Regional Development Fund as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (and in London the intermediate body Greater London Authority) is the Managing Authority for European Regional Development Fund.
Established by the European Union, the European Regional Development Fund helps local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support innovation, businesses, create jobs and local community regenerations. For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/european-growth-funding
Workshop Times and Dates
All Innovation Workshops start at 9.30am and end at 5pm.
About Aston University
Founded in 1895 and a University since 1966, Aston is a long established university led by its three main beneficiaries – students, business and the professions, and our region and society. Aston University is located in Birmingham and at the heart of a vibrant city and the campus houses all the university’s academic, social and accommodation facilities for our students. Saskia Hansen is the interim Vice-Chancellor & Chief Executive.
Aston University was named University of the Year 2020 by The Guardian and the University’s full time MBA programme has been ranked in the top 100 in the world in the Economist MBA 2021 ranking. The Aston MBA has been ranked 12th in the UK and 85th in the world.
For media inquiries in relation to this release, contact Sam Cook, Press and Communications Manager, on (+44)74469 10063 or email: s.cook2@aston.ac.uk
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