PROFESSOR DYLAN JONES-EVANS

Back in November 2014, I was attending the Caerphilly Business Awards at the Bryn Meadows Golf, Hotel and Spa complex where the best of the county’s entrepreneurs and businesses were being recognised amongst their peers. It was a brilliant evening hosted by Jamie Owen and one which brought the local business community together in a way that many other events simply fail to do. However, the one thing that kept coming back to me as every award was being announced was the absence of similar awards for Cardiff despite the impact of the city on the Welsh economy. So, the next day, I contacted Grapevine Events Management – which was responsible for organising the Caerphilly Awards – and suggested we should set up the Cardiff Business Awards in 2015 to recognise outstanding achievement in business and celebrate talent, ambition and innovation from across our capital city. One of the distinguishing features of these awards, which many other competitions did not have back in 2015, is...

Launched in 2015, the Cardiff Business Awards have recognised outstanding achievement in business and celebrate talent, ambition and innovation from across Wales' capital city. This year’s awards – to be held in Cardiff City Hall on June 23rd 2017 - come at a time when Cardiff is developing an exciting future that will ensure its continued economic growth over the next few years. One of the key influences on this renaissance will the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal. Ratified on St David’s Day, this £1.2 bn of public funding will unlock significant amounts of private sector finance to boost jobs and prosperity not only in Cardiff but across the wider region. It includes funding of £734m for the South Wales Metro  - which will transform the transport infrastructure around Cardiff and the surrounding areas - as well as support for innovation, digital infrastructure and business. But before even a penny of this funding is spent, there are already major property investments...

One of the most interesting and rewarding experiences over the last year was my role at chairman of the judging panel for the very first Cardiff Business Awards, organised by local firm Grapevine Events. As far as I am aware, these awards are the only ones where, in addition to the normal application form, the shortlisted companies have to present in front of a panel of independent adjudicators. With nearly fifty firms appearing over two days, it was a highly intensive process especially because, as chair, I had to be present for every business that came before the panel. However, it was thoroughly enjoyable to meet so many great businesspeople and to see how they loved working and living here in Cardiff. Since the first Cardiff Business Awards back in 2015, there have been some interesting economic developments in the city. Probably the most important of these was the agreement for a £1.2bn City Deal for the Cardiff Capital Region. This is expected to create 25,000 new job...

This week saw the launch of the 2016 Cardiff Business Awards to celebrate the capital city’s best businesses with the winners announced at a gala dinner in Cardiff City Hall in June. As the chairman of the panel of judges for the awards, it was a real honour and pleasure to spend two days last summer listening to the shortlisted companies and their achievements. In fact, the Cardiff Business Awards is one of the few that I know of which does not rely only on paper entries written to choose the winning companies. Given the face to face interaction, making a decision on the winners of each category, never mind the overall winner, was really challenging for the judges. And whilst it was not surprising that the judges has some preconceived ideas prior to interviewing the firms from the initial application process, the majority of those minds were changed after being given an opportunity to listen directly to the founders of the shortlisted businesses. The interviews also gave th...

While nearly every other local authority area in Wales has an annual award ceremony to recognise the achievement of local businesses, Cardiff has yet to establish such an event. However, that anomaly is about to end with the recent launch of the inaugural Cardiff Business Awards. Organised by local company Grapevine Event Management, the aim is to bring together the Cardiff business community to celebrate those individuals and businesses that are establishing the city as a great business location. In doing so, the awards have received the backing of the City of Cardiff Council, Cardiff Business Club and the Cardiff Business Council. NatWest Bank, so long a major financial force in the city, are principal supporters for the awards evening and will be highlighting the new commitment they are making to the start-up community through their proposed Entrepreneurial Spark incubator which will be opened early next year. Major players in the business life of the city, including Cardi...