North East leadership course shows SMEs the way

As the latest cohort of Help to Grow: Management Course leaders look towards starting their new year with a positive step, Samantha Wallace from QA Travel in Dyce is already seeing the benefits across employee engagement, marketing, and business planning. 

Recently appointed Regional Head – Scotland, Samantha oversees the day-to-day running of QA Travel’s North East office. The local firm merged with its Isle of Man office last year in addition to introducing international partners in Asia and the Far East, enhancing its offerings and growing its portfolio of international opportunities while introducing considerable positive change to the organisation.

Samantha is currently participating in the 90% UK Government-funded course alongside one of her colleagues, each benefiting from over 50 hours of leadership and management training from professionals at Robert Gordon University over a three-month, one-session per week period.

Reflecting on their reasons for enrolling for Help to Grow: Management, Samantha said: “We were keen to find a course that would expand our business knowledge on a timescale which allowed us to continue to focus on the day-to-day running of the company. Help to Grow: Management Course is a perfect fit given there are no additional assessments to complete - purely your own tailored personal and company growth plans based on lessons and knowledge gained.

“As it’s aimed at SME businesses, everything on the course is pertinent and much of the work is about your journey and how you adopt the lessons into your own role and business.

“The combination of online and face-to-face sessions allowed the entire cohort to share their own experiences and learn from each other in a relaxed yet informative manner. I’ve also found the mentor sessions extremely helpful with a wide range of leaders and senior managers from varying business sectors to work with.”

The flexible and hybrid course has now benefitted over 100 North and North East business leaders across seven cohorts since launch. Satisfaction with programme delivery is high, particularly among leaders based in Scotland with 95% of Scottish course completers reporting they were likely to recommend the programme to another business leader. Across the UK, 91% reported improved leadership and management skills and an improved understanding of employee engagement.* There are still a small number of places available for the upcoming course in late January.

It is delivered by Aberdeen Business School at RGU and overseen by David Gibbons-Wood, Principal Lecturer and Programme Director. He said: “The business environment in Aberdeen is currently exceptionally tough and there's not much oxygen in which a business can flourish. The Help to Grow: Management Course offers business a bit of breathing space - time to learn and talk with other business leaders and chart a path through.”

Steve Clark, who also participated in the same course, and Samantha Wallace, QA Travel

QA Travel was established in 1996 and is a leading travel management company that provides an array of travel services for organisations in various industries. Samantha insists that their participation in the course has already provided major benefits to the firm.

“It has exceeded our expectations. Woven through the course is an emphasis on a coaching leadership style, which allows all members of your organisation to be involved in decisions and how the company can grow and move forward. This is something we’ve proactively embraced, adopting many of the strategies explained on the course which has greatly improved our employees’ positivity and confidence.

“It’s given us the tools and confidence to set achievable business goals and growth plans for 2025. We’ve adopted a number of new processes immediately, including taking a more rounded approach to new tasks to ensure we set a clear vision to everyone involved of what we hope to achieve and the timescales involved.

“Help to Grow: Management has reminded us that that change is not restricted to major changes, and that engagement and open communication is just as vital for even the smallest changes. Perhaps our greatest learning experience to date, and certainly most timely, has led us to reconsider our current marketing messages and how we can improve and tailor our approach moving forward.”

On their progression, David concluded: “QA Travel has embraced three key areas that align with their current needs: exploring new markets, leading change, and developing a new marketing strategy. As Samantha has put it, the course equips them with the tools and confidence they need to succeed. I look forward to a very positive future for the team at this North East business.”

The next 12-week Help to Grow: Management course will begin later this month with the application deadline on Thursday 23 January. Apply now:

* Ipsos Evaluation of Help to Grow: Management, End of Year 3 Interim impact evaluation