Sir Geoff Hurst tells Bedfordshire companies to be more ruthless with failing employees

As well as award-winning B2B copywriting, Chapter & Verse also provides public relations and media relations services to clients. A recent commission came from Inside Business, to promote three business conferences in Northampton, Bedford and Milton Keynes. The Bedford event was last week, and below is our post-event release. 

World Cup winner Sir Geoff Hurst told Bedfordshire companies today (Friday 3 October) to be more like football managers and get rid of staff who do not make the grade.

Sir Geoff, who scored a hat-trick for England in the 1966 World Cup final, said not enough companies he dealt with over the years as a businessman were prepared to make sudden changes needed to benefit their business. He also called for highly-rated employees to be better rewarded in the current economic climate.

Speaking at the Inside Ex Bedfordshire Business Conference and Exhibition at Bedford International Athletics Stadium, Sir Geoff, who became an insurance sales manager for 20 years after retiring from football, said: “Just like in sport, it’s important for local businesses to manage their companies well in such tough times. I was a businessman, working for an insurance company for 20 years, but I’ve never seen economic conditions as bad as this. It’s tough for everyone out there.

“I think bosses in Bedfordshire have a big challenge right now. They have to look at every opportunity from a business perspective, reward the people that do well and have a serious think about getting rid of people who do not perform.

“The most important thing about a company is its people – the same as a football team, it’s about honest endeavour. Not many companies look after the good people the way they should.”

Sir Geoff, 66, appeared at the conference for the second year running. He gave away a signed a replica England 1966 World Cup winner’s shirt at the event which raised hundreds of pounds (£534) for Bedford Hospitals Trust.

He said: “I enjoy doing a lot of charity work for hospitals around Cheltenham where I live, and other places like Bedford.

“I played for West Ham against Bedford many years ago in a pre-season match. I was here last year speaking at the business conference for the same charity event so was happy to come back again.”

Mark Palmer, Global Brand Director of Green and Black’s Organic Chocolate also spoke at the event.

He gave plenty of advice to local businesses on how to get the most out of their company having overseen the dramatic rise in sales for Green and Black’s products in the UK. He revealed the company are now rolling out to Japan having already launched in the USA, Canada and New Zealand.

Mark said at the conference: “You have to look long and hard at a particular product or service and ask how much value does it have before you spend money marketing it.

“People think throwing money at something is a short cut to success but it’s a common mistake.

“For smaller businesses like some of the ones here in Bedfordshire today, who don’t have a massive budget, I would say don’t abandon a practical business model. Start small scale and see the reaction to your product before you spend huge sums of money marketing or promoting it.

“Think about who the customers are you are trying to target and don’t be afraid to ignore the groups who are not suited to your product.”

Businesses attending the conference said it was a great opportunity to network with local businesses at a tough time for many.

Sam Dalrymple, sales director of easycopiers said: “Events such as this one in Bedford, and those Inside Ex events at Milton Keynes, are a great way to gain business. We signed another contract this morning and have more than covered the costs of appearing at the conference.

“It’s a good way to show other local businesses what it is your company is capable of and further business relationships.”

Paul Price, the event organiser, said: “The key message at Inside Ex Bedforshire is ‘think local’ – rather than worrying about circumstances globally. If firms in the region think local, they will probably find they can make big savings without compromising on quality, helping themselves and other local firms in the process. For example, firms may until now have sourced their printing services from London without realising there’s a perfectly good printer around the corner.

Jude Cottam, of Bedford Hospitals Charity, being supported by the event, said: “We are very grateful to Inside Business for supporting Bedford Hospitals Charity and to Aerofone for helping sponsor Inside Ex Bedfordshire. The great thing about this charity is that 99.95% of the money we receive goes directly towards what it is supposed to go on – getting state-of-the-art equipment, rather than simply the bog-standard NHS equipment.”
 
Inside Ex Beds, in its first year, is one of three annual Inside Ex events. The others are Inside Ex Milton Keynes, on November 7, and Inside Ex Northampton, which took place on September 18.

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