May Edinburgh Networking Breakfast – Belinda Roberts MBE – WeDO Scotland

This month, we are delighted to be welcoming our very own CEO, Belinda Roberts MBE – under pressure from our Executive Team, it took a bit of persuading! As the founder of WeDO, Belinda is well-known in the Scottish business community and despite speaking regularly at business events, she’s never shared her entrepreneurial journey at one of our own events.  Belinda will be in conversation with Justine Mitchell who works closely with her at WeDO in her role as Head of Strategic Growth.  We decided this was a good plan as Belinda enjoys a chat so this should ensure she sticks to time!

Having started her career in recruitment in Edinburgh and London, Belinda set up her first business at the age of 27, a specialist recruitment training company which later diversified into delivering sales and management training.  After facing many of the typical mistakes made by entrepreneurs in the early days and subsequently starting over, following the lessons she learnt, she sold the business within 3.5 years of inception. Having taken a bit of time out and in her own words, “playing at a few alternative ventures outwith the business world”, she decided it was time to return to the Scottish business community.

Belinda launched WeDO in October 2008 addressing a gap in the market for a professional collaboration, peer-to-peer learning & support organisation championing SME entrepreneurs.  As with many businesses, WeDO faced tremendous challenges during the pandemic, being unable to host in person events and having never hosted an online event,  WeDO hosted weekly events throughout lockdown.  These ranged from Snack & Share, Social Drinks, Masterclasses, Hustings, Christmas Parties which supported both WeDO members and the wider business community.  WeDO also hosted the Scottish SME Covid Awards which attracted in excess of 7,500 votes and over 150 attendees – an event which was arranged in just 6 weeks.

Belinda is a former Director of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, served on the Board of Young Enterprise Scotland for 4 years, was a member of the Scottish Future Growth Council for 2 years and was one of only 2 Scottish Elevators (mentor) for Pitch At Palace, run by the Duke who shall not be named!  During the pandemic, she was a member of the Advisory Board for Scottish Business Cares, a goodwill collective formed by the Scottish Business Resilience Centre to maintain unity in the business community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During lockdown in her ‘spare time’ when she wasn’t hosting online WeDO events, Belinda created and headed up the Mentoring Programme for Scottish Business Cares. Funded by the Scottish Government, the Programme helped 50 businesses to map out their future paths and ongoing success during the pandemic.  She recruited a team of 14 mentors and personally mentored 2 businesses.

Belinda was awarded an MBE for services to business and entrepreneurship in the 2019 New Year’s Honour List and was presented with her award by Her Majesty the Queen at the last investiture she carried out.  She has mentored countless entrepreneurs over the years and enjoys her Non-Exec roles which have been in wide-ranging sectors.

Join us for what will be an honest, refreshing and entertaining story from an entrepreneur who it would be fair to say, has experienced most things over the last 28 years!

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

Anyone with an interest in business who is looking for an enjoyable networking event!  Unlike many speaker events, there is a full hour allocated to networking.

TICKET PRICE