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The field opens in the race to join an upcoming start-up business
On October 10, six companies will pitch for talent at a Pitching for Management event at the Oxford office of Grant Thornton.
Increasingly, investors are saying that companies are more likely to find investment if they have a strong management team in place right from the start. In response, entrepreneurs and small start-ups are getting experienced professionals on board to help with their ideas before applying for funding. Through this event, sponsored by Marks & Clerk, they will have an opportunity to pitch for these professionals.
Bernie Morgan, founder of Wizzmoni, who pitched for a CEO, a CTO and a CFO at the last Oxford Pitching for Management event, said: “Before the Pitching for Management events I was looking to build a first-class team through normal routes which was a long and expensive process, whereas at these events I could advertise all three roles at once. Meeting candidates in person from the beginning was better than scouring through CVs as I could get a feel for their personality and talk to them more specifically about their experience. The
support from the team both before and after the event was great as they continued working to advertise my roles and put me in contact with interested parties after the event.”
Grant Thornton’s Christopher Penfold, head of business development Thames Valley, said: “Grant Thornton is pleased to be hosting Pitching for Management again this series. Small businesses face so many challenges during their growth, that events like this which allow them to meet experienced and knowledgeable people face to face
are a great opportunity. The value that these companies can gain, just by having the right people on board, is huge. These events are really unique, and we always enjoy hosting and attending them.”
Stephen Blake, patent attorney at Marks & Clerk, said: “Having the right team in place makes it possible to attract funding, especially from VCs and angels. In doing that, companies can build a war chest to protect their IP portfolios.”
There is already a strong interest in the region from senior executives in the area who are willing to offer their time, knowledge and expertise to the best local start-up and entrepreneurial businesses. In Oxford in particular, there is an interest from those wishing to have an exciting second career.
Pulsant hosts popular UK Maths site
Cloud and managed hosting expert Pulsant is providing the server infrastructure required to support Oxford University Press’s (OUP) popular international maths teaching site MyMaths
www.mymaths.co.uk.
With offices in 50 countries, OUP is the largest university press in the world. Its MyMaths site is designed by practising maths teachers, for use by teachers and pupils from Level 2 to A-Level. It supports the UK curriculum with interactive games and worksheets linked to a powerful assessment management system that allows homework to be set, completed and marked online.
Pulsant provides reliable, consistent and fast access to over four million pupils who use the system on a 24/7 basis. Its hosted servers are built to withstand hundreds of thousands of simultaneous hits; particularly during peak periods like term time and in the early evening when most children access their homework.
“Supporting teachers is all about establishing trust. They have to be confident not only in the quality of the materials but also how they are delivered. They won’t set homework
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from a system that constantly falls over which is why we require 100% reliability from Pulsant,” stated Kate Granville of OUP.
Pulsant also has to ensure that the servers have high levels of security to protect data and to safeguard the system from potential threats.
Granville explained: “Because we deal with children and provide ongoing assessment, it is vital that our hosting provider has the inherent security and processes in place to deal with this. We have been impressed with the level of consultancy, service and support from Pulsant which has responded well to the challenges faced by our heavily-used educational site.”
Mark Howling, Pulsant CEO, stated: “We work with many e-learning providers to help optimise their online experience and deliver reliable hosting for their applications. We are delighted to be able to support OUP with its dedicated online maths channel in the UK. Our team is geared up to help them meet the challenges that delivering this type of high-traffic site involves, particularly in the run up to exams.”
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – OCTOBER 2012
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