TECHNOLOGY New tech start-ups on the increase


The number of new tech companies being set up in the East Midlands rose by 22% in 2018 according to new analysis by Chamber strategic partner RSM. In total, there were 422 new


software development and programming businesses incorporated in the East Midlands in 2018, up from 345 in 2017. Nationally, there were 11,864


new tech firms established during the year according to data held by Companies House, a 14% increase on the 10,394 companies set up in the previous year. The data also revealed that tech


company incorporations grew across every region in the UK with the exception of Scotland where the number of tech start-ups dipped slightly by four per cent and in the North East where the numbers remained flat. Commenting on the figures,


Kevin Harris, Office Managing Partner at RSM in Leicester – and the Chamber’s President – said: “Given the current economic uncertainty, it’s fantastic to see that tech start-ups across the East


lining up to commit funds to the right projects. “Tax incentives such as the


Kevin Harris


Midlands have continued their upward trajectory, and that the rate of growth in our region is higher than the national average. “Our universities are playing a


key role in developing the next generation of tech entrepreneurs and venture capital, private equity and traditional funders are still


Enterprise Investment Scheme, R&D tax credits, video games tax relief and the Patent Box regime are all playing their part in helping to fuel this growth. “The challenge for start-ups, particularly in the tech space, is to develop at speed and to scale-up fast. There can be a high rate of failures as projects can often get overtaken by new technological


innovations or better resourced competitors. But get the formula right, find the right backers and success can be very lucrative.” In order to support the growth ambitions of successful UK tech- based scale-ups, RSM recently announced a partnership with Upscale 4.0 – a six-month accelerator programme delivered by Tech Nation. It will work to offer companies access to its expertise and experience to assist the next phase of their growth.


and fining those that ignore warnings and put their heads in the sand. As with any investigation there is


a lapse between reporting and the penalty. GDPR has not gone away but is potentially working its way towards your business. Businesses that deal with


I have been told several times over the past months that GDPR is over. We had the panic in May 2018. Email marketing slowed for a while. Lots of templates of privacy notices were for sale. Then the world did not end and there was little visible sign of the Data Protection police so many seem to have forgotten about it. That is a very dangerous attitude for small businesses for several reasons. GDPR never was about email


marketing and sticking some form of privacy notice on your website. It was, as it says on the tin, about data protection. It relates to the whole business and requires a change in mindset as to how the business deals with its data. The business must examine itself and know what data it holds and what it does with it. It should then assess if it is following correct procedure and if not, work some out and apply


consumers can find themselves caught out by knowledgeable members of the public who will report them to the ICO. Small therapists who deal with sensitive medical data are at high risk. Data covers photos and video so


if you film events do you get permission to do so? Consumers can be very sharp on these things. Hiding at the back is the rise in


Is GDPR over?


By Anne Phillips (pictured), Director, Barkley Business Services


these to the workforce. Staff should be trained in a way that they listen and understand, not consider it a boring chore quickly forgotten. From the start the Information


Commissioners Office (ICO) made it clear that higher standards would


be expected of larger companies. They are the ones that have received the large well publicised fines. They have large budgets to bring in large expert companies. However, the ICO has started looking at the smaller companies


cybercrime. Loss of data is a breach of GDPR. This can occur from outside by hacking or phishing as well as careless or vindictive staff. A large number of businesses will


close within two years after a major data breach because of damage to their reputation. The ICO may be the least of their problems. I have found companies selling products to protect businesses against threats that most don’t even know exist. Small businesses may think that,


being small, they will be thought not worth attack. In reality they are just known to be easy targets. GDPR is not over, it is just beginning, and small businesses would be wise to realise the risks out there.


business network April 2019 77


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