Robert Craven

Currently Managing Director of the Directors’ Centre.  In his time, he has run restaurants, management training companies and sound recording studios. He’s someone who has been there and done it. Robert was described as the ‘entrepreneurship guru’ by The Financial Times.  Cranfield School of Management says he is ‘the closest thing that growing businesses have to a modern day John Harvey-Jones'.  His four recent books are all business best-sellers and The Independent said they are ‘truly  inspirational’. 

Tony Barnes

Tony was a globe-trotting TV news reporter, presenter and best-selling author until he caught the bug of running businesses. Now he is Chief Executive of bglobal plc, a fast-growing and AIM-listed company in Darwen that is a leader in smart metering.  bglobal overcame the credit crunch and in the first half of 2009 grew by more than 115%.  TV-man to meter-man ... now there’s a story.

Jim Hancock (host)

Jim has thirty years' experience as a political editor and broadcaster for both Granada TV and the BBC.  From 1998 to 2006 he was the BBC's political editor in the North West, reporting for the nightly news programme and presenting the regional section of the BBC's Politics Show each Sunday. He is political editor of a magazine and writes weekly for two newspapers.  Jim is still a regular on TV and radio. 

12.45

Coffee, tea, and biscuits on arrival.  Registration 

13.30 

Summit opens.  Welcome by Len Collinson and opening by Graham Baldwin, Pro Vice Chancellor of the University of Central Lancashire 

13.45 

Robert Craven (Managing Director of the Directors' Centre) 

14.30 

Discussions at tables of ten, each with a facilitator.  Set questions and consequential reports 

15.30 

Break 

16.00 

Tony Barnes (Chief Executive of bglobal) 

16.45 

Conclusions (Jim Hancock) and then closure by Peter Watson, Managing Director, Business Link Northwest 

17.00 

Final comment by Len Collinson and into networking 

17.30 

End.