News from Russell Jones, Chairman of 2020……………..
What a scorcher! And that’s not just the record breaking weather at the end of July!
Each Breakfast meeting seems to get busier and better, with the buzz in the room of people making contacts, catching up on people and generally getting on with things.
As I said at July’s Breakfast meeting, it isn’t hard to talk about Mansfield and Ashfield, when you have fantastic businesses like our meeting sponsor, Pinewood Properties. They’ve won 6 Gold and a bronze in the ESTAS awards and taking on those clever folk from down south!
We breed fantastic businesses here in our area and the likes of Pinewood Properties going down to their Awards event and bringing back all these Awards just proves this.
And none have been bred better than Linney.
A 6th generation business, with the most fantastic strapline I have ever heard, ‘Restless since 1851’.
Nick ran through and reinforced the importance of why Mansfield and Ashfield are a shining jewel.
He brought to bear the fact that Mansfield 2010 started in the difficult 90’s and achieved so much. With the ethos that ‘bigger, better, stronger’ rather than fading away, as most networking clubs might do, it has grown stronger and become Mansfield and Ashfield 2020.
Nick chimed together with 2020’s own thoughts that relationship building between education and business is more important than ever, and noted that Linney’s success was based on finding the true person within the child, and letting them flourish within the Linney business.
Scott from Linney’s Regenerate business told us about this new arm of the Group. Regenerate looked internally at Linney’s processes re waste redundant equipment and turning it into money and opportunities and links with Nottingham Trent University. They are now doing this externally and can help you. Even paper dust can be turned into kitchen worktops- really!
And of course, R.E.A.L. Education again resonated with all of this! They confirmed their view that no person should be left out of education and it was finding the right space and task for their students to achieve and they encouraged local business to share in their successes so that those businesses could share in and reflect their good news.
And then of course, I spoiled the whole party by being that party pooper.
But seriously, every organisation always needs new blood. And with my family calling me, I decided a couple of months ago to call it a day and retire from the Board after 7 challenging but happy years as Director and nearly just over 3 years as Chairman.
September will be my swansong but the Board is very strong and others are entering the fray to keep matters moving forwards.
My decision has also coincided with a couple of Board Member vacancies so on that basis, please make sure you give being a director, or indeed, Chair, some thought and put your name forward for consideration during the summer. I hope you’ll be thinking hard about it and more info about both roles can be found here.
You can make a difference and it is the engagement of us all that makes our area the place it is.
See you in September! Enjoy the summer.