This month we spoke to Leanne Miller who heads up our new Digital Cluster North of Tyne Programme which supports digital businesses in Newcastle, Northumberland and North Tyneside with an array of different expertise.
She told us about her excitement around the momentum and interest the programme is gaining and the plans ahead…
What do you love about your job?
Getting out there and meeting such enthusiastic, passionate digital entrepreneurs. There are some fantastic businesses in the region, with such a variety of different ideas, I don’t know how people come up with them all! At a recent digital meet-up we had as part of the Digital Cluster North of Tyne programme, we had people staying on up to 2 hours after the event finished just to keep chatting, the tech business network is so supportive. We have meet-ups every other month too, so I can’t wait to see some new faces at the next one.
What does a typical day look like for you?
Lots of me flailing my arms around gesturing in meetings ? (I get far too excited when I start talking about the programme!). My role is so varied. Most days I work on a bit of matchmaking – introducing a digital entrepreneur that I meet to the perfect member of our team to support them – we have experts in intellectual property, technology readiness, marketing, branding, strategy and access to finance – so it’s all about pairing up the business with the right combination of our lovely team. I love working with partners of ours too to work out the perfect schedule of events and activity for the businesses we’re working with. Travelling across the North of Tyne region meeting connections working in the clusters we’re supporting is fantastic too – driving from Newcastle up into the Northern parts of Northumberland, you realise how varied the region is.
What is your biggest achievement to date in your current role?
The day after our first Digital Meet-Up, an attendee called me to let me know that they’d already set up a meeting to start working with another business that was there. That’s what it’s all about for me, enabling those connections for real businesses working in the region to help them thrive.
How do you maintain a work/life balance?
I have a 3 year old son, and thanks to Innovation SuperNetwork’s flexible approach I work 4 days per week so I can spend more time with him. On a Wednesday you’re more likely to catch me at a Tumble Tots class or soft play than at my desk!
What are you looking forward to the most this year professionally? And personally?
Working on such a new programme, I’m excited to see how it develops. I really want to make sure that what we’re doing is exactly what digital businesses in the North of Tyne region need to support their innovative work, so I’m looking forward to bending and flexing the programme as we move through it to create more meaningful connections, enable even more productive clusters and provide more advice on innovative products, services and processes. Personally it’s great to be working in a new role for such a fantastic organisation – I was in my last role for over 13 years so it’s brilliant to have something new to get my teeth into!
You can find out more about our Digital Cluster North of Tyne Programme here
