How the Supply Chain North East Project helped me…

Lara Mellor Training & Consultancy is a dedicated provider of Microsoft and IT training for businesses in the North East and beyond. Lara would usually carry out training at business premises but, in light of the recent pandemic, is now delivering training virtually. This has allowed her to grow her business and expand her client base nationally.

Q. When did you initially become part of the Supply Chain programme?

A. I found out about the programme of support available to North East SME’s through SCNE at a networking event and, following a discussion with one of the programmes’ project managers, I signed up right away.

How has Supply Chain helped your business so far?

Being part of the Supply Chain North East programme has allowed me to grow my brand, which has been a huge benefit to the business. I was given the opportunity to deliver a session to the NEPIC network about how to cope with inbox overwhelm. The session was well-attended, received fantastic feedback and allowed my name and brand to become exposed to a wider audience. It also allowed me to showcase the training I provide to larger companies. I also attended several NEPIC Cluster Connect events, were I met a lot of potential clients – those with between 20 and 400 employees who spend a significant amount of time working at a computer.

Would you recommend the programme to other businesses?

Yes, absolutely. I have already recommended it to many other businesses.

What recent developments / successes has your company attained?

I have gained two new clients as a direct result of NEPIC’s Cluster Connect events – which I was able to attend through our engagement with the SCNE programme. One of these clients works in the manufacturing of cleaning and sanitisation products, so working with myself has been extremely helpful during this busy period. I have built a good relationship with these clients and will be doing more work with them in the future.

What are your plans for the future?

I’m seeing a huge increase in demand for training on POWER BI, a business intelligence software that is often called ‘Excel on steroids’! It has proved to be very popular over the last two years due to its ability to analyse large volumes of data and create amazing graphics of said data. I hope to deliver a lot more sessions around Power BI in the coming months.

For more information please visit, www.laramellortraining.co.uk or contact Lara at lara@laramellortraining.co.uk

Supply Chain North East brings together four key partners to work with over 800 businesses through to 2021, supporting them to identify opportunities in new and existing markets. An integral part of the North East Strategic Economic Plan, that has a vision to create 100,000 more and better jobs between 2014 and 2024. Supply Chain North East is delivered across the region by RTC North, Generator, North East Automotive Alliance (NEAA) and North East Process Industry Cluster (NEPIC).

Supply Chain North East is a multimillion programme aimed at revolutionising the way SMEs diversify their offering and embrace new markets. The programme has received more than £3m of funding from the England European Regional Development Fund, which is part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020.