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Business Link is a government-funded business advice and guidance service in England. It consists of an online portal^[1] managed by HMRC and a national helpline. The network of local/regional advisors (under the auspices of BIS) was axed in 2011.

History[link]

The concept for Business Link was established in December 1992 by Michael Heseltine, then President of the Board of Trade, when he was in charge of the Department of Trade and Industry and initially referred to as "One Stop Shop". The practical effect of the introduction of this service was for it to replace the then Department of Employment's, 'Small Firms Service'. There were plans to open 54 Business Links but, by the end of 1993 (during which time the government spent some £3m on the programme), only three branches of the service had been formed. The first opened in Leicester on 27 September 1993, with others following in Birmingham and Congleton.

Five years after the launch of the Business Link concept, a network of 89 Business Links had been established, and each week some 10,000 businesses in England were using the service. The service employed about 650 personal business advisors (PBAs), who worked mainly with businesses that employed between 10 and 200 people. The Business Links wanted PBAs to work with growth-oriented businesses but this proved difficult to enforce and implement ^[2]. PBAs were recruited from those who ran businesses. At first some were self-employed earning commission but this did not prove to be self-sustaining ^[3]. Early business support in Scotland was called Scottish Business Shop. In Wales, the name was Business Connect, and in Northern Ireland, it was called Local Enterprise Development Unit.

Despite the evidence that it was the advisers who contributed to the impact of Business Link ^[4], the Coalition government , elected in 2010, declared their intention to abolish the regional business adviser programs run by Business Links. The website would be retained, and new Local enterprise policies would take their place.

Website[link]

The Business Link website^[5] was launched in May 2004 as part of the Transformational Government programme (an initiative to consolidated UK government websites). In 2010 it emerged that the site cost £35m a year to build and operate (totaling £105m so far).^[6] It is administered by the private company Serco, on behalf of the government.

The website proclaimed itself to be government’s online resource for business, containing essential information, support and services for business. The strap line used on the site was: 'Information. Support. Compliance.'

Information on the site comes in the form of guides (pages of text information), interactive tools (in which businesses can get personalised information) and transactions (in which businesses can for example, calculate their VAT).

In 2010 the website launched an experimental wiki on some of the guides to allow visitors to add their own content.^[7] This experiment ran until the end of September 2010 but is no longer available on the site.

Regional network[link]

Business Link’s face-to-face service operated on a regional basis across England and was funded by the relevant Regional Development Agencies (RDAs). The service used an IDBT (information, diagnostic, brokerage and transaction) model to advise businesses. Regional Business Links ran a variety of events and workshops on topical issues and general business skills. This service was evaluated on a number of occasions ^[8] These assessments generally found positive impacts of Business Link on companies that received advice. However, some commentators worried about the cost of Business Link and the variability of advice ^[9]. Some of the Business Links were chosen to provide more intensive support to fewer companies and these seemed to do comparatively well. Other Business Links showed less success with a 'spreading the jam thinly model' ^[10]

The Business Link regional advisory service offered advice and support to businesses until November 2011^[11]. It was then abolished along with the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs). The Business Link website^[5] and the national helpline continued to operate. Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) will be expected to drive regional economic growth in the absence of the Business Link regional advisory service.^[12]

Sponsorship[link]

It sponsors the UK Startup Awards.

Public money[link]

Various business link companies have engaged in direct competition with the private sector and with Governmental organisations such as ACAS. This includes the provision of employment law advice directly to businesses via cold calling, mail shots, emails and their websites. However, evaluations of Business Link showed that those taking advice from Business Link were thereafter more likely to work with private consultants as they learned about the benefits of advice ^[13]

Similar services[link]

Business Link only operates in England. The remainder of the UK has similar regional services:

• Business Gateway, Scotland^[14]
• nibusinessinfo, Northern Ireland (run by Invest Northern Ireland)^[15]
• Flexible Support for Business, Wales.^[16]

Regional providers use a rebranded version of the Business Link website.

Most OECD countries provide similar services although they may organize them differently from the SBDC in the USA to ALMI in Sweden. ^[17]

See also[link]

• Federation of Small Businesses
• Yoodoo.biz
• SOLOMAN (The Society of London Manufacturers)
• British Chambers of Commerce

References[link]

1. ^ "Business Link". http://www.businesslink.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 July 2010. 
2. ^ Mole, K. (2002) ‘Street-Level Technocracy in UK Small Business Support: Business Links, Personal Business Advisers and the Small Business Service’. Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy, 20(2), 179-194
3. ^ Priest, S.J. (1999). Business Link services to small and medium-sized enterprises: Targeting, innovation and charging. Environment and Planning C, 17, 177–93.
4. ^ Mole, K.F., Hart, M., Roper, S., Saal.D. (2009). Assessing the Effectiveness of Business Support Services in England: Evidence from a Theory Based Evaluation. International Small Business Journal, 27, 557-582. Mole, K.F., Hart, M., Roper, S., Saal, D. (2008). Differential gains from Business Link Support and Advice: A treatment effects approach. Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy, 26, 315–34.
5. ^ ^{a b} "Business Link". http://www.businesslink.gov.uk. Retrieved 30 March 2011. 
6. ^ BBC. "The £105m website". http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/rorycellanjones/2010/07/the_105m_website.html. 
7. ^ "Experimental Wiki". http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?site=210&itemId=1085516912&type=ONEOFFPAGE. Retrieved 27 July 2010. 
8. ^ Bennett, R. J. and Robson, P. J. A. (1999) ‘Intensity of Interaction in Supply of Business Advice and Client Impact: A Comparison of Consultancy, Business Associations and Government Support Initiatives for SMEs’. British Journal of Management 10 , 351-369. Bennett, R.J, Robson, P.J.A. and Bratton, W.J.A. (2001) Government advice networks for SMEs: An assessmsnt of the influence of local context on Business Link use, impact and satisfaction, Applied Economics, 33(7): 871-885. Mole, K.F., Hart, M., Roper, S., and Saal, D. (2008). Differential gains from Business Link Support and Advice: A treatment effects approach. Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy, 26, 315–34. Mole, K.F., Hart, M., Roper, S., and D. Saal. (2009). Assessing the Effectiveness of Business Support Services in England: Evidence from a Theory Based Evaluation. International Small Business Journal, 27, 557-582. Roper S, Hart, M, 2005 ‘Small Firm Growth And Public Policy In The UK: What Exactly are the Connections?’ Working Paper, Aston Business School (RP0504)
9. ^ Bennett, R.J. and Robson P.J.A.. (2003) ‘Changing use of external business advice and Government support during the 1990s’. Regional Studies, 37, 795-811
10. ^ Mole, K.F., Hart, M., Roper, S., and D. Saal. (2011) Broader or Deeper? Exploring the most effective intervention profile for public small business support, Environment and Planning A vol. 43 no 1 pp 87 – 105
11. ^ "Business Link". http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/aboutus. Retrieved 30 March 2011. 
12. ^ "Department for Business Innovation and Skills, Local Enterprise Partnerships". http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/economic-development/leps. Retrieved 30 March 2011. 
13. ^ Mole K.F., Hart M., Roper S., and Saal D. (2009) "Assessing the Effectiveness of Business Support Services in England: Evidence from a Theory Based Evaluation" International Small Business Journal Vol 27, no. 5, pp. 557-582
14. ^ "Business Link | Scottish Enterprise". Bgateway.com. http://www.bgateway.com. Retrieved 2010-12-21. 
15. ^ "Business Link | investNI". Nibusinessinfo.co.uk. http://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk. Retrieved 2010-12-21. 
16. ^ "Business support, information and advice | business.wales.gov.uk". Fs4b.wales.gov.uk. http://www.fs4b.wales.gov.uk. Retrieved 2010-12-21. 
17. ^ Mole K and Bramley G. (2006) Making policy choices in non-financial business support: An International Comparison, Environment and Planning C., 24, 6, 885-908

External links[link]

• businesslink.gov.uk - Web Site
• Management Today October 1997

Video clips[link]

• Business Link Yorkshire
• Business Link East Midlands
• Business Link Hampshire

René Carayol (born September 10 1958) is a broadcaster, broadsheet columnist, business and leadership speaker and author. He recently presented the BBC series Did They Pay Off Their Mortgage in Two Years?.

Background & Career[link]

Born in The Gambia, the son of a diplomat, he was raised in the UK and now lives in London.

Carayol stated in Black Success Stories [1] that Alex Haley's historic novel, Roots, was based on Carayol family records.

Carayol has served as an executive main board director for blue-chip companies and also the public sector, where he was a non-executive director of Inland Revenue. Starting with Marks and Spencer in 1982 and rising through the ranks to Senior IT Manager and Executive, he was headhunted by Pepsi Co in 1992 and sat on the board of directors for Pizza Hut. He then joined IPC Electric as Managing Director and took the business from the concept stage through to the acquisition by AOL Time Warner. He was the first black person and first IT Director to have ever sat on the IPC board.

René was awarded an MBE in 2004 for outstanding service to the business community. He has provided leadership support to the British Prime Minister's Delivery Unit, and is now a Visiting Professor at Cass Business School.

Carayol has acted as an advisor to the CBI, McKinsey & Co and Barclays, amongst many other organisations. He has chaired and addressed conferences across the world in the retail, financial, technology, energy and government sectors. He has also conducted the first onstage business interview with Sven-Göran Eriksson in 2003 and hosted The Sunday Times UK Business Week. He has continued to interview prominent people including Bill Clinton and Mikhail Gorbachev in 2005, Peter Kenyon in May 2006 and Kofi Annan, Al Gore and David Cameron in 2007.

He is CEO of the Inspired Leaders Network (ILN) which was founded in 2000 and continues to be in public speaking.

Author[link]

As an author he has produced two books - Corporate Voodoo in 2001 (now in its third edition) and the sequel, My Voodoo in 2003. René is a regular broadsheet columnist, most notably for The Guardian.

Broadcaster[link]

René's television and radio career has seen him become a regular voice on BBC Radio 5 Live and present the critically acclaimed Channel 4 film The Man From The Met, on the challenges facing Sir John Stevens at the helm of the Metropolitan police. He is also a press reviewer on Sky Breakfast News and has been an expert witness on Mind of a Millionaire.

Carayol is the presenter of BBC2's business program, Pay Off Your Mortgage In Two Years, which was shown in January and February 2006. The follow-up series Did They Pay Off Their Mortgage in Two Years? began airing in January 2007.

He also presented The Money Programme special "The Fall Of BP's Sun King" in October 2007, investigating the real cause of Lord John Browne's resignation from BP.

René sat in for the Jon Gaunt radio show on Talksport from 11th to the 15th August 2008.

Football[link]

He is a season ticket holder at Chelsea FC and sits in the West Upper Stand.

External Links[link]

• The Carayol Home Page
• Corporate Voodoo
• Guardian Unlimited
• Daily Telegraph Article On Lord John Browne