Lincolnshire in a festive mood
IoD Greater Lincolnshire members gathered for their Annual Lunch at the Bentley Hotel on 6th December for what was a convivial pre-Christmas event.
Branch Chairman Gary Headland gave everyone a warm welcome and said it had been an interesting year for the IoD. He said the IoD would strive in 2020 to support its members in a number of ways that could be summarised as: Connect, Develop and Influence. The programme of events locally this year has been varied and well attended. Plans are well under way for 2020 events and you can find all kinds of events already on the website.
The keynote speaker was Ursula Lidbetter, MBE, BSc, FCIS, DL and a prominent figure in the retail sector for many years. The Chair of the Lincolnshire LEP until the end of 2019, Ursula is also Chair of the Greater Lincolnshire co Operative Group. Ursula struck a festive note by opening and closing her presentation with Christmas cracker jokes but the messages she shared in between were full of sound advice. They included: Amaze people; Push your boundaries (you’ll find there aren’t any); Be Kind; Add to your skills and knowledge; Be curious; Seek feedback and be prepared to change your mind; Make time for your family; and finally, Be yourself.
Ursula also explained how the CoOperative Group supports the local community through its 280,000 members and by involvement with libraries, buildings and health walks… yet all most people will see is the shops. Through involvement with the LEP Ursula has come across many turnaround companies always applies her golden rule to their future viability: “if this business didn’t exist, would you start it?”
A charity raffle resulted in a donation of £1,092.15 towards the Lincoln Imps Education Trail. The event was attended by nearly 150 people and was sponsored by jch: wealth management.
Our Annual Lincolnshire Lunch for 2020 is planned for Friday December 4th. We look forward to seeing you there!
