Environmental considerations play a critical role in rural businesses’ decision-making, however, barriers exist which prevent them from fully transitioning to net zero, according to a major new survey from the National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise (NICRE). Four out of ten rural businesses ‘always’ consider the environment when making decisions with 57% taking action to… Read more

NICRE’s State of Rural Enterprise Report The rural economy post-pandemic: opportunities and barriers for business growth calls for continued improvements in infrastructure in rural areas. Businesses in rural areas perceive new opportunities for growth but long-standing challenges such as affordable housing, transport and broadband capacity are hampering take-up, according to a major new survey from the National… Read more

A new charter aiming to support entrepreneurs of all backgrounds to start or grow their business  is being launched by the University of Nottingham. The charter, aiming to minimise barriers to entrepreneurship for underserved and under-represented groups through creation of a more inclusive ecosystem, was launched nationally today, at the Shard in London, by the University… Read more

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor ( GEM ) UK report is being launched alongside the GEM Northern Ireland report at a special event hosted by Belfast City Council in conjunction with Aston University, Queen’s University and Ulster University  at The Innovation Factory in Belfast today, June 29th  2023. GEM is the world’s largest survey of entrepreneurship… Read more

As businesses continue to rebound from the pandemic, and new ways of hybrid and remote working become embedded, a new ERC study finds that while mental health-related sickness levels are remaining flat, presenteeism has increased sharply. Some reports suggest that this may, in part, be a consequence of new working practices. What does this mean… Read more

The launch of the new report Healthy Workplace Ireland: A Survey of Mental Health & Well-Being Promotion took place at an event at University College Cork on 29th March. The report is authored by Dr Jane Bourke, and Niamh Lenihan of University College Cork and ERC Director Professor Stephen Roper. It highlights the challenges employers… Read more

Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2022/2023 Global Report The 2022/2023 Global Report launched today at the Annual conference presents the results of GEM’s 24th research cycle. This adds another round of extensive national surveys to an already substantial GEM database of entrepreneurial results. In 2022, over 170,000 individuals were interviewed across 49 different economies, adding their views… Read more

The latest ERC State of Small Business Britain report has been published today. The report is the centre’s annual review of trends affecting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK and discusses the findings from research and analysis carried out and/or published by the ERC in 2022 including the results from our second ‘Business… Read more

The ERC will be holding a Research Showcase event on 26th January at The Shard where we will discuss new and ongoing research on themes including mental health, innovation, rural enterprise and internationalisation. 26th January, WBS at The Shard 12.00 – 4.00 This is an in-person only event and registration is essential.

Supporting line managers during challenging times Employers are waking up to growing workplace mental health issues since the pandemic, with greater commitment to initiatives and practices to address them. But will they be able to continue that commitment as the cost of doing business spirals? And how can they best support the line managers who… Read more