Highlands and Islands Enterprise is the Scottish Government’s economic and community development agency for a diverse region which covers more than half of Scotland and is home to around 450,000 people.
The Challenge
Many of the businesses that HIE support are spread out in remote locations around the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. This makes attending training skills workshops to help grow their business challenging as it means taking a lot of time out of the office travelling.
HIE launched the Entrepreneurial Academy to support entrepreneurs in the region accelerate their business growth. The Entrepreneurial Academy provides a suite of one-day, practice-based workshops delivered by experts with hands-on experience of running a business and supporting entrepreneurs.
During 2018-20, the Entrepreneurial Academy was rolled out across the Highlands and Islands and we delivered Pitching Skills workshops in Lerwick, Portree, Forres, Thurso, Oban and Inverness.
Each workshop had up to 15 participants, some are early stage or young entrepreneurial companies or social enterprises with growth potential, others are entrepreneurs – or their staff – who want to equip themselves with the skills, knowledge and tools to accelerate their growth, as well as those with the ambition to scale their businesses.