Somewhere, in the no man’s land between Christmas and New Year, feels like a good time to look back on 2011…

Overall, I have been incredibly lucky to find two business partners (Tim Reading and Ed Sellwood) who are fun, rewarding to work with and (crucially), massively more organised then I am.  We set up CoSpA (the Co-Sponsorship Agency) last summer and have worked with over a dozen organisations so far.  In brief, we’re working with brands to create or grow ‘social action’ projects.  In some cases we’ve created a project from scratch.  VIY, for example, gets young people fixing their own youth clubs.  We brought together Pimlico Plumbers, Wickes, A4E and London Youth and led the overall management of the project.  It is now well on its way to being a national scheme.  In other work,  we’ve been brought in to facilitate a particular conversation, like with Channel 4 on the future of news and current affairs reporting.  More recently, we’ve being asked by brands to help them imagine how an already successful project might be scaled up, nationally or internationally.  Our focus tends to be on young people and our increasing speciality is around cross-sector partnerships.  PhoneBrain, for example, gets school pupils working in groups to think about how they use their mobile phones.  Funded by PhonepayPlus (the industry regulator), we have weaved in ITV (X-Factor), EMI, Moshi Moshi (the record label) and Unltd to bring the project to life in over 1,200 schools.   

In 2012 we want CoSpA to be having more conversations with brands who see the connection between making money and making a difference.  Rather than talking about ‘do-gooding’ sidelines, we’re interested in how our work links with the assets and success of a business.  What is a company brilliantly placed to do?  How can a project be used to engage its team members or customers?  How can its success be measured?  Increasingly, these sort of questions are leading us into meetings with Chief Executives and Marketing Directors, more often than CRS managers.  Amongst the things we’re pondering for 2012… How can the Olympics inspire business?  How can the power of lyrics improve literacy?  How can music and dance increase physical fitness? How can retired people pass on their DIY skills to teenagers? And how can a telecommunications company connect people who don’t already know each other?  We’d love to plot with potential partners about any and all of these!

In other news…

I helped organise two trade missions (my fourth and fifth) in 2011.  In January, the Future Health Mission departed for San Francisco.  Charlie Burton from Wired Magazine (and now GQ) joined us in the US and wrote about his week here.  In March, the third WebMission took place with another great list of companies.  Missions are a great opportunity to get to know people.  The companies have been selected from a list of applicants and unlike meeting someone at a networking event, you can have several conversations over the course of a week – some light-hearted, some more serious.  I’ve just signed up for my sixth mission (in March 2012) which will be the second Clean and Cool Mission.  Supported by the Technology Strategy Board, I’m particularly looking forward to this as I get to work closely with the Long Run Venture.  That means rejoining forces with Guy Pattison (we worked together on WebMission 2) and working with Martha Jennings and Scott Cain, who I met through Tenner, several years ago.  

The end of March saw the launch of StartUp Britain, which I’ve written about here (at launch) and here (six months in). Highlights have been working with the co-founders (Emma, Raj, Jamie, Michael, Duncan, Lara and Richard) and team (Jamie, Lorna, Becky) and meeting up with the tour bus on the road around the UK.  January will be a big month for the campaign as we showcase some of the best events in the year ahead.

In the wake of the London riots over the summer, I worked with Arrival Education to help pull together an event for young people to have their voices heard.   Not In Our Name took place at Westminster Central Hall and I managed to coordinate with Downing Street to arrange a visit for some of the participants to meet the Prime Minister.  Although the event was relatively last minute, there have been some excellent conversations since then between the organisations which came together to make it happen.

Other things I enjoyed in 2011;

1) Travelling to Paris with MTV (Viacom) to speak to their global sales teams about projects which make money and make a difference.  I was encouraged to speak about Tenner and VIY, and also to highlight the work of companies including M&S, Greggs and Waitrose.  It was really inspiring to be able to talk with such senior executives who are serious about new ways of working.

2) Playing a role at the MADE Festival in Sheffield.  This year the organisers chartered two first class carriages and I was asked to host a group of delegates as they made their way to the event.  Some speed-networking (of course!) and a quiz ensued – all before 9am…

3) The Tenner Tycoon Awards in which I got to meet some of the winners.  One that sticks in my mind is the team from Yorkshire who made a recipe book in honour of a school friend who passed away last year.  By the day of the awards, they had already sold £6,000 of books!  Watch this space for news on the future of Tenner.  To be honest, following the end of Enterprise UK, it has been quite a challenging process as the trustees decide what will become of the scheme.  Ultimately, I’m confident that it has a great future ahead and look forward to being able to share more in 2012.

4) Hosting a few Speed Mentoring events, which involve a group of ‘mentors’ taking part in a series of 15-minute conversations with up-and-coming delegates.  Highlights this year have been sessions with NABS (the advertising industry charity) and with the British American Project.  With the latter, we teamed up fellows of the project (from both sides of the Atlantic) with members of the UpRising Leadership Programme.  On my mind for 2012 is how you bring together the beneficiaries of a particular organisation so that they can meet and help each other.  I’ll have the chance to do this with the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust next year and hope to do similar work with others.

Another event I especially enjoyed chairing was the Big Conversation with Business in the Community, which took place at World Skills.  We paired up 20 Chief Executives with 2o students to have a conversation about work experience and how it can be turned into work inspiration.  The buzz in the room was remarkable – there is something very simple and powerful about one-to-one connections between people at such different stages in their career.  I really got the impression that they were learning something from each other, and look forward to doing more Big Conversations with BITC in 2012. 

On a personal note, this has been my first full year living outside London. Although I still have an office in town (now in Centre Point), the move has certainly helped me to disconnect from work, although it has meant that I have to think more carefully about which events I attend –  probably no bad thing! 

In November I visited India for the first time and was really grateful for the generous hospitality of Richard Alderson (running Unltd, the launchpad for social entrepreneurs in India) who made us feel incredibly welcome.

I’ve been grateful for the feedback you have given me on my blog this year, reader.  My favourite experience came through a fairly brief post I wrote back in August called ‘Clues‘ about stuff I wish I’d known when starting out. It prompted some of the most amazing comments from many of my favourite people which are well worth a read.

Once again, I’m fortunate to be working with a great team at CoSpA, which makes the work I’ve been doing with other teams (on Missions, Tenner, StartUp Britain and others) possible.  As someone who tries to stay positive, it’s been an important year to have had the support of close friends and colleagues.  One particular group (we call ourselves Sevens, and meet every six weeks for a ‘behind-closed-doors’ supper) has been especially supportive (they know who they are!) and I can’t recommend the formula enough –  regular catch-ups with a group you know, like and trust.

2012 is going to be a year of challenges and opportunities.  Hopefully, it will be year of solving ‘problems worth solving’ in new and interesting ways.  

In the style of Jerry Springer (but with bigger eyebrows), here is my final thought going into a new year: 

Most weeks, people will refer to me (and not least because it’s a link I have encouraged) as being ‘connected’ and often… ‘most connected’.  Of course, this is a massive exaggeration and pretty self indulgent of me to bring it up.  So here’s the thought – the resolution, if you like;

Forget ‘Most Connected’.  In 2012, I will do my best to be the ‘Most Connecting’.  I want to end the year having made good things happen through the people I helped to meet.  Would you be up for helping me with that?  If so, please let me know!

In the meantime, wishing you a happy and healthy 2012 . 

If anything I have written about here strikes a chord, then I look forward to hearing from you.

 

I’m fascinated by the idea of ‘Hidden Convenors’.  People or organisations with an opportunity to bring people together, yet who for some reason do not.

Take for example a couple of increasingly well-known business people I’ve seen many times this year.  One sold their business a year or two ago and spends a great deal of time as a ‘guest’, and very little time as a ‘host’.  Granted, their speeches are great, and they have a terrific ability to light up a room.  When I think of the people they know, I keep imagining how brilliant their events (or salons, or breakfasts) would be.  I can’t help thinking that they’re missing an opportunity to create massive value for everyone they choose to invite.  For old time’s sake, they could event give a speech at their own event!

Another Hidden Convenor is the BIG Lottery Fund.  Granted, they are (first and foremost), a funder, however just think about their potential to bring people together.

They did this yesterday, and I was inspired by the results. 

The cause in the spotlight was the newly-formed New Day Foundation.  This group of ex-gang-members from Birmingham have come together to inspire young people in the area not to go down the same path which led a number of them into prison. 

In the words of one of the co-founders, Sharif;

“During a quite heavy prison sentence, I came to my senses one day and realised I would rather be a part of the solution, than a part of the problem, and decided I want to see CHANGE and a better way forward in my community.  I  have lived what some would call a dark life and I do not want my youths, your youths, our youths living life in that same darkness. I want their futures to be BRIGHT and that is now my life’s dedication”

They have already been helped by a former MP and minister, the super-smart James Purnell, who introduced the team.

To help them, BIG created an event for the founders of New Day to tell their story and we broke out into a number of smaller groups on themes from social media to networking, training, social enterprise and publicity.   There was an amazing buzz in the room, and you really got the impression (I hope correctly!) that we were helping the team.  In addition to meeting the group (who were impressive, dynamic and committed to their cause), we got to meet our fellow guests, were given tremendous food for thought and strengthened our relationship with the team at BIG. 

What might future events look like, from BIG or other funders (NESTA, Untld, Esmee Fairbairn?). 

Here are a few ideas, some of which I’m sure are already being considered or may have been tried before;

1)  Consider having multiple (perhaps three) causes in the hot-seat on any one event.

2)  Allow people to participate virtually as well as physically.  This would involve a pre-recording from the relevant founders – a short video explaining who they are and what they are looking for help with.  ‘Virtual’ guests could chip in advice and helpful connections online before, during and after the gathering.

3)  Explore a rewards scheme for participants.  For my time yesterday, I would gain a Green Badge (for example) signifying that I had contributed my time to one event.  These could be built up and would recognise the contribution of community members.

4) See the guests (virtual and physical) as a potential network.  One thing which would increase my desire to give another couple of hours to a future event would be the chance to cross paths with other ‘network members’ again.  This (in my view) is more appealing than a series of one-off encounters, although of course you need fresh guests too!

5)  Turn this from a one-off experiment into a series of formatted events.  Think of a great name for the series or ‘technique’ which will inspire others to get involved and even emulate.

What have I missed?

Is your organisation a Hidden Convenor?  Are you personally? 

Do you know someone who spends 100% of their time at events with a ‘Guest’ badge on, yet never takes their turn as the ‘Host’.

Maybe they think that ‘hosting’ is what ‘other people’ do.  It’s not for them.  It’s too fiddly, time-consuming, stressful perhaps.  Not ‘their thing’ at all.  They simply don’t think of themselves as ‘an organiser’.  They are a ‘business owner’, a ‘journalist’.  They have ‘a day job’.

What is really stopping them? 

What is stopping you? 

Finally, what other tips do you have for Hidden Convenors, and who else have you spotted doing a good job of this?

 

The Leeds University Careers Fair of 1999 was a pretty depressing place. 

It was for me anyway. 

For a start, you left with the distinct impression that the vast majority of British companies were either large or very large. 

The reality, that 99.9% are NOT large, was not even hinted at.

Secondly, the truth that dared not speak its name; Namely that pretty much every other student I spoke to at the time was interested in doing their own thing.  If not immediately, then at some point.

I raised this with the Student Union, because I wanted to start hosting some events for entrepreneurial students.  They sent me to the Business School.  Armed with some local knowledge, I mentioned that I’d be keen to get something going, and had already drummed up the enthusiasm of a couple of local firms, who might be interested in being guest speakers. 

I remember the response like it was yesterday;

“If you’re some sort of corporate spy, coming in here, then I don’t think we can help you.  Can I suggest you look at enrolling on one of our business courses?”

So, it would be fair to say that the Leeds University entrepreneurial scene was not exactly thriving back then.

Up in Edinburgh (where I recruited some of the founding members for my first company), things were looking much brighter.

A fresh-faced lad called Tom Savage was in the driving seat of the Edinburgh Entrepreneurs Society and gave me a warm welcome.  Several years later, we launched Tenner together, and remain old friends.

A few years later, at the other end of the British Isles, Bob Goodson and friends were busy launching Oxford Entrepreneurs.  Amazing to think that a society which literally did not exist ten years ago, now claims to be one of the University’s most popular.  Bob and I would later cross paths in his more recent incarnation as successful San Francisco entrepreneur, as I organised my first WebMission.

The seeds of tomorrow’s success stories are being planted, today, in University enterpreneurship societies around the country.  They attract a weird and wonderful array of characters and we overlook their significance at our peril.

That’s why it’s good to see the British Goverment throwing its weight behind organisations like NACUE (the UK’s largest network of enterprise societies) today.  The team are keen and the students I’ve got to know through their events (often at the weekend) are amongst the brightest I’ve ever met. 

NACUE has a fantastic opportunity to network enterprising students across the UK and beyond, ensuring that our young entrepreneurs are given a helping hand, not a patronsing pat on the head.   I encourage anyone considering getting involved in their programme of events to give them some of your time.

Careers fairs should be upfliting, inspirational places. 

No student should leave without realising that 99.9% of companies are not large. 

And every visitor should know that at least one of the many options facing them is to do their own thing.

 

The Queen told me recently that I really must stop name-dropping.

She didn’t really.  In fact, she wasn’t even at home when I visited Buckingham Palace.

You’ll have to forgive me, reader, because it’s going to be difficult to get through this post without dropping the odd clanger.  Then again, if you can’t do that on your own blog, then where can you?

I was invited, along with a couple of hundred others, to be hosted by HRH Prince Andrew, who was being especially positive about all things technological and entrepreneurial. 

Perhaps surprisingly, Her Majesty’s household served up some rather tasty white wine from, wait for it, Waitrose, and we were treated to those funny little baguette-shaped crisps in small bowls. 

Writing about the event afterwards, the Financial Times mentioned my attendance, describing me as a Professional Networker.  My parents will be so proud.

One confession from the evening is that I wished I’d brought my Speed-Networking whistle.  I know, I know.  I’m beginning to sound like Keith Harris with Orville.  To the man with a  hammer, everything looks like a nail.  And to the bloke with a whistle, everything looks like a potential speednetworking event.  I just long to get people mixed up a bit.  Yes, I had some lovely conversations, including one with David Willetts, who took rather a shine to Tenner.  Wouldn’t it be fun though, in one of the best known palaces in the world, playing the grown-up equivalent of musical chairs?  I think that the Duke of York would have loved it.

Regular readers will know that I have a slightly mad idea for the Monarchy up my sleeve anyway.  I want to hoist a Batman-Signal onto the top of Buckingham Palace to summon MBEs, OBEs and others in times of national crisis.  More practically, I’d run a networking session at Honours events, after the cup of tea and cake, where guests would be introduced to each other, and welcomed into a new network.  These networks would be encouraged to meet locally on a regular basis, socially and to make a difference.  Aside from the Batman Signal, I don’t think it’s so crazy.

My whistle-finger began to twitch again last week.  Standing in the London Transport Museum, I’d been invited to celebrate the Evening Standard’s One Thousand Most Influential Londoners.  Before you ask, yes, that was another clanger and no, I was not listed between six and eight thousand. 

Technically, the party lasted from seven until nine in the evening, so by just gone nine o’clock I thought it was probably time to go.  Weaving his way across the Covent Garden Piazza was a slightly dishevelled latecomer to the party.  As he began attaching his bike to the museum’s railings, I greeted the Mayor of London with a wave, as he disappeared into the embers of the evening.

Yes, gazing round that mega-party (and it was a great bash), I did yearn to get them mixing more vigorously with each other.  They would probably have hated it, wouldn’t they?  Do you think that in centuries gone by, the people of Florence or Athens were better connected than we are today?  By better connected, I don’t mean Blackberried-Up.  I mean the tailor with the poet, the astronomer with the architect.  I sometimes worry that they may have been. 

The Standard splits its list into sections (I’m in Digital – stop sniggering at the back), however (in the words of editor Geordie Greig), lots of people defy being pigeon- holed.  I want to live in a city where the actress knows the bishop.  I bet she does (if you know what I mean).  But I’d like to see more of it.

A final Royal encounter last week at the annual awards for the Prince of Wales’s Youth Business International.  In a time of financial doom and gloom and endless negative publicity for young people, these were more breath of fresh air than cloud of smog.  Like the Shell LIVEwire award earlier in the week, they rang out a positive signal and cheered all of the guests up no end.

Arriving in my newly-hired black tie (always read the invitation), I was handed my smart name badge.  It was a little bit like being a third-rate Mr Benn;

Oli Barrett. Blogger.

In some ways, it’s not as bad as “Professional Networker”.  Is it?

At least it beats being Pigeon-Holed.

Ten years ago I was at Leeds University, starting my first business.  Little did I know that I would end up dropping out and moving to London.  Also unpredictable was just how many great people I would meet along the way.

Amongst the first people we persuaded to work with us (organising alternative careers events) were twin brothers (one in Durham, one in Bristol), Harry and Ed.   Both have gone on to do brilliant things and, at the time, both mentioned their cousin Nathalie to me.  Nathalie, it seemed, was helping to start a private members club in London, aimed at freelancers and entrepreneurs.  If I was interested, they would introduce me. 

I remember my first visit to Adam Street like it was yesterday.  Turning off the Strand in Central London.  Being pretty sure that the discreet black door could not possibly be the entrance to a club, but ringing the buzzer anyway.  Walking down into the vaults of, to a student, another world.  Following a tour and a coffee it slowly dawned on me that they would have no objection to me joining. They even offered me a great rate.  Brochure in my hot little hand, I emerged, blinking, into the afternoon chill.  I knew I had discovered somewhere special.  Somewhere which would go on to be the scene of many great encounters.

The year was 2001, and I had recently contacted the founder of Yo!  Sushi, Simon Woodroffe.  As well as offering to speak at one of our events, he had also agreed to have a beer.  He wanted to introduce me to a new contact of his, a chap called Ben, who he suggested he bring along.  That beer proved pretty fateful.   The location I chose was Adam Street.  Simon’s guest was Ben Way, who went on to be my business partner of several years and, to this day, a dear friend. 

Several years later, having met the most incredible girl one Saturday night, I had managed to line up a date the following Thursday.  The starting point of our evening, for a drink and some dinner:  Adam Street.  What became of the date?  Well, we’ve been happily married for two and a half years.

Picking up on the buzz, my little (I must stop calling her that) sister began working on reception as a job straight after college.  She moved on to University and began a career away from hospitality.  Over five years later, just last month, she began a new role, as head of membership.  At Adam Street.

So Happy Birthday Adam Street.  You remain a welcome retreat away from the noise and the haste of central London.  You host great events and have quiet spaces for catching up with old friends and meeting new ones.  Your library is a haven to escape and relax or work away for a couple of hours.

Most of all, a very big Thank You.  To James Minter and his family, who own the club.  To the whole team, including Andrew Goddard who returned recently as General Manager.  Jennie Cox, who remains the best hospitality staff member in London (rivals, please don’t poach her!), and to all of the team members of the past ten years.

Thank you to Nathalie Bristow and thanks finally to Harry and Ed Lawson Johnston.  Without the thoughtfulness of that first introduction, Adam Street would have remained a hidden place, behind a discreet door, just off the Strand, in London.