Lincolnshire Business Week 2023: Shining a light on thriving local businesses

The curtain has fallen on Lincolnshire Business Week – a week in which the best of Greater Lincolnshire business was educated, celebrated and embraced with a series of well-received events.

Organised by Stonebow Media, Lincolnshire Business Week was all about elevating your business acumen and understanding the tools required to take your business to the next level – while maintaining a sustainable, people-centred ethos.

The action-packed week featured talks, panel discussions and expert insights from industry frontrunners, spotlighting those at the forefront of sustainability and growth in business.

Following the Better Business Summit and Doing It Differently Conference, the week culminated in the wonderful Lincolnshire Business Excellence Awards – where the county’s finest businesses and leaders were recognised for their efforts.

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Social Change Better Business Summit

Lincolnshire Business Week 2023 kicked off in style with the Social Change Better Business Summit on Monday, May 22.

Hosted by Stonebow Media and Social Change, the Better Business Summit focused on how organisations can embrace sustainability and integrate people and the planet into aims of profit.

Speakers included Nikki Buckley, the head of sustainability for Lick.com; Joy Lam, the former circular economy director for LEGO Group; and the founder of Bird & Blend Tea Company – Krisi Smith.

Themes of B-Corp accreditation – which is a process ensuring that businesses meet high sustainability standards – were regularly explored by the speakers, both in their talks and subsequent panel discussions with audience members.

Sustainability doesn’t just mean what benefits the planet. Speakers also highlighted the impact of circular business models, which allows for a more continuous flow of consumption – while also reducing waste as an additional bonus.

In fact, plenty of business secrets became more all-encompassing during these talks, including the addition of the word “social” onto the typically business-driven “return on investment”.

Social return on investment reflects on the environment created for stakeholders and workers within a business, and how you can create the best results from that – rather than limiting success simply to monetary value.

To find out more about the Better Business Summit – visit the story on our new MyLocal platform here.

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Doing It Differently Conference

On Wednesday, May 24, the Engine Shed played host to another day of expert speakers and business minds – as the Doing It Differently Conference arrived in Lincoln.

Organised by Stonebow Media on behalf of the University of Lincoln, the conference saw a series of motivational speakers and inspirational people across all four corners of society and business pass on their wisdom on how you can prioritise people to aid business growth.

Speakers included Tim Sayers, the founder of Teams Come First; neurodiversity expert Andrew Whitehouse and Dr Jo Salter MBE, the first ever British female fast jet pilot for the Royal Air Force.

Two panel discussions were held across the day to allow attendees to ask burning questions to the speakers, while regular networking opportunities also presented themselves throughout the conference.

The overriding theme of this conference was the vital aspect of people in business, and how people can be nurtured and supported to maximise not just their potential, but your business’ too.

Read more from the Doing It Differently Conference on MyLocal – The Lincolnite’s new platform.

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Lincolnshire Business Excellence Awards

On Friday, May 26, the week rounded off in celebratory style – as the annual Lincolnshire Business Excellence Awards were hosted at the Engine Shed in Lincoln.

The event, organised by Stonebow Media and MyLocal in association with the University of Lincoln Enterprise & Research department, placed some of Lincolnshire’s finest business minds into the spotlight.

Hundreds attended the awards, which saw more than 200 entries submitted across ten categories – proving testament to the volume of businesses excelling in Lincolnshire.

The ceremony was led by ITV Calendar weather forecaster Emma Jesson, and an incredible medley of songs were performed by local children from The Curious Theatre School.

Business leaders and industry experts were recognised for their tireless efforts over the last 12 months in aiding the thriving nature of Lincolnshire’s business sector.

Winners were named in a series of competitive categories, including Tech Business of the Year, Family Business of the Year, Rising Star of the Year, and the prestigious Andrew Stevenson Award.

For the first time, you can now read the comments from our panel of expert judges, offering insight into how the decisions were made for award winners. To do this, visit the Lincolnshire Business Excellence Awards website.