news opinion
What do you do when someone smiles at you?
You smile – it’s a spontaneous reaction, if near impossible not to return the gesture. But if someTHING were to smile at you, how would you react? It looks like we’re soon to find out.
Tech company Semcon has developed a smile that lights up on a car’s front when it detects a pedestrian. This is for driverless cars – when eye contact is not an option – to assure them they’ve been seen and the car will stop at a safe distance.
Apple meanwhile – no doubt helped by its savings in corporation tax – is reportedly beavering away at its iCar with features from electric propulsion and gesture control to holographic displays, a level of connectivity as yet unknown to man or car.
As technology and science continue to confound, with an influx of news on supercapacitors and supernovas, in this issue we focus on the superwomen, men and companies of our region.
For starters there’s a colourful account of our Women in Business (see pages 16-21). Judges of this year’s awards said they were blown away by the quality of the nominations – “the bar just gets higher each year”. Each one of our finalists has an energy, passion and inspirational story that make her a worthy role model for all of us in business.
And if you’re in the market for legal services, or in the profession yourself, this month we highlight a number of our leading lawyers and law firms with extracts from The Legal 500 (see pages 24-38).
In the news, there’s been a lot to smile about too – post Brexit in particular. 74% of recruiters report that business is the same or better (APSCo); business activity has returned to growth after post-EU vote contraction (Lloyds); the property market reflects an “annual increase of 9.1% with prices also up 0.5% since July” (Land Registry) ...
You’ll find more of this optimism and renewed business confidence in the pages that follow. We hope you enjoy the read.
Carry de la Harpe Editor
4
businessmag.co.uk
CityFibre lights up Reading as the UK’s next Gigabit City
CityFibre, the UK’s leading alternative provider of digital infrastructure, has announced that Reading has become the UK’s newest Gigabit City. With approximately 30km of pure fibre network throughout Reading, businesses are now able to access a new generation of affordable, ultra-fast Internet services through CityFibre’s launch partner BtL, putting them among the best digitally-connected businesses in the country. The future-proof pure fibre infrastructure will ensure that Reading possesses one of the fastest and most reliable digital networks in the world, bolstering its reputation as an emerging ‘smart city’.
Reading’s smart city strategy has been outlined in the Reading UK 2050 project, promoting business incubation units and the use of the University of Reading’s city centre campus to exhibit and test innovative ideas. Reading’s new ultra-fast fibre network will optimise and accelerate all these endeavours – providing thousands of local businesses with a significant digital advantage.
As with all its Gigabit City projects, CityFibre selects an innovative local service provider
with which to partner. Reading’s Gigabit City launch partner is BtL, a provider of business- to-business IT and telecoms services, with a large customer base in the region.
Rob Lamden, managing director at BtL, said: “We’re extremely excited to be the Gigabit City launch partner in Reading. We have been observing demand for ultra-fast services grow exponentially in recent years, and this project has the potential to unlock a tide of demand for faster, more resilient and more affordable services. Businesses can now stop concerning themselves with bandwidth restrictions and instead optimise their operations, improving their experience and driving the bottom line.”
Greg Mesch, CEO of CityFibre, added: “We’re delighted to announce Reading as our newest Gigabit City project. Our network is designed to accommodate Reading’s current and future digital needs, from connecting public sector sites, schools and hospitals to powering the masts and small cells needed to deliver 4G and even 5G mobile coverage. Connecting businesses large and small is only the first step in Reading’s Gigabit City journey.”
Business activity returns to growth after post-EU vote contraction, says Lloyds
Business activity in the South East rebounded in August following a brief post-referendum downturn, according to the latest Lloyds Bank Regional PMI.
The South East of England PMI jumped from 45.5 to 54.3 in August. A PMI reading of above 50 signifies growth and below 50 indicates contraction.
Data for August revealed that business output levels increased as a result of a jump in new business wins and bumper order books for firms.
Growth in new business has been accredited to firms launching new products, marketing initiatives and sales staff working extra hours.
The Lloyds Bank Regional PMI, or purchasing managers’ index, is the leading economic
health-check of UK regions. It is based on responses from manufacturers and services businesses about the value of goods and services produced during August compared with a month earlier.
Cost inflation reached a five-year high in August. Local companies reacted to increased import costs due to the exchange rate and higher wage bills by upping their selling prices.
Ian Patterson, regional director for the South East, Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “August’s index shows welcome signs that July’s downturn was temporary. All measures of corporate health – output, new orders and employment – returned to above the 50 mark to signal an overall improvement in business conditions.”
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – OCTOBER 2016
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