On the innovation pulse

Cris Beswick, entrepreneur and author of The Road To Innovation, has given a free seminar to forward thinking organisations

Cris Beswick, a leading business consultant and author of The Road To Innovation, will give a free seminar in Manchester next week aimed at inspiring people to innovate.

This is the latest in a series of events delivered via Manchester: Knowledge Capital’s Innovation Manchester programme. Innovation Manchester is helping to improve the ability to innovate across Greater Manchester by inspiring, challenging and supporting the businesses and people who live and work there.

Cris, who is originally from Ashton-Under-Lyne, has spent the past 15 years as a successful serial entrepreneur, award winning designer and business consultant. He has helped companies develop everything from train networks to store interiors, brand experiences, products and strategies. His clients have included Nokia, Homebase, Wilkinson, Marks & Spencer, Waitrose, BP and B&Q.

Now, as a thought leader in creativity, leadership and innovation, Cris specialises in advising forward thinking organisations that want or need to do things differently. In his book, The Road To Innovation, he demonstrates how innovation needs to be focused on seven core areas: strategy, people, community, environment, creativity, risk and leadership. The book also explores issues such as what innovation looks and feels like and why a top-down approach is destined to fail.

Cris said of the forthcoming event: “One of the main reasons the world’s top organisations like Google or Virgin outperform the competition is that, at their core, is a strategy for innovation, and many Manchester companies could undoubtedly benefit from following their lead”.

“It’s great to have the opportunity to return to my home town and get businesses to think differently about how they do things.

I’ll be challenging people to question their status quo and look seriously at the bigger business picture.”

Dr Cathy Garner, Chief Executive of Manchester: Knowledge Capital, said: “I’m thrilled Cris is coming back to Manchester to share his insights, experience and enthusiasm for innovation. Manchester clearly has potential to be a world class city with a thriving knowledge-based economy; but only if we create and sustain an ecosystem of new ideas, knowledge transfer and collaboration. People like Cris, and events this like this, can really inspire people and help stimulate that process – it’s what M:KC and the Innovation Manchester programme set out to achieve.”