Businesses sign up to learn the lessons of Rovers’ return to the top

More than a dozen businesses with existing links to the club have already signed up to join the new Hull Kingston Rovers Business Academy.

Paul Sewell, chair of Rovers, said demand is high for places which are capped at 25 and will bring the opportunity to learn first-hand from people who have achieved success nationally and internationally.

He said: “The Hull Kingston Rovers Business Academy is not just another business club or networking group. It is a highly exclusive business leadership and mentoring partnership which will bring access to the best business brains and talent in the region.”

Paul is chair of multi award-winning Sewell Group, which is based in east Hull. The company took on the naming rights of Sewell Group Craven Park in January 2022 and Paul was appointed chair of the club later that year, joining owner Neil Hudgell and chief executive Paul Lakin.

Heavyweight additions which followed included David Kilburn, the co-founder of MKM Building Supplies, James McNicol, managing director of London-based Oil Brokerage Ltd, Ian Richardson, who has a strong international business pedigree in sectors including law, health and beauty, and Becky Oughtibridge, director of professional services at Sewell Group.

Each board member will present a business academy module which focuses on their area of expertise, with other contributions coming from Craig Franklin, chief operating officer at Rovers, and the Hull KR Foundation.

Participants will help to shape the content of each module to highlight issues pertinent to them and request help in particular areas. They will also visit board member businesses to see best practice, both locally and internationally.

The University of Hull Business School is a major partner in the new academy and brings its expertise in management, marketing, logistics, systems thinking, accountancy and finance. Andy Steele, chair of 360 Chartered Accountants, is an adviser to the board.

Paul said: “Business has so much to learn from sport and professional sport has to be a business. That’s why we brought the best of business into the club. People referred to it as a ‘power board’ but we have not been taking that depth and breadth of talent and expertise into the regional business community

“The Hull Kingston Rovers Business Academy will help to grow the next generation of leading businesses and people. If we can take the sprinkle of magic we’ve brought to the club as part of our transformation on and off the pitch and apply it to other businesses, that’s something the whole region can benefit from in terms of economic impact and employment.”

Paul added that Hull Kingston Rovers players will also be able to access the academy’s contacts and expertise as they look towards shaping their careers after retirement.

He said: “In the past they have approached individual board members and asked for advice, and now they can do that through the academy. It’s an extension of our player welfare and it sends out a signal that if you come to Hull Kingston Rovers we will look after you on and off the pitch and in retirement.”

Professor Rob Dover, Dean of the Faculty of Business, Law and Politics at Hull University, said: “As two anchor organisations within our city, University of Hull Business School and Hull Kingston Rovers have been improving the community of Hull for a combined 230-plus years. 

“We have come together once more to accelerate the development of the local businesses, with the aim of seeing more collaboration, better leaders and stronger organisations grow in the area. 

“The Business School’s activities pivot around its ‘authentic business education’, in supporting businesses through knowledge transfer partnerships and CPD, in supporting early-stage entrepreneurs and those seeking to scale, and in helping motivated individuals to realise their leadership potential. Therefore, we see this partnership as the perfect fit to help us in achieving those aspirations.”

The membership fee for the academy is £5,000 per annum. Among the business leaders who have signed up are Andrew Earle, founder of Andrew Earle's Holidays, and Matt Dass, Joint Managing Director of Springfield Solutions.

Andrew said: “I was introduced to the academy idea and immediately realised I would gain access to a range of knowledge and proven expertise that would surely enhance my ability to evolve my business acumen and interests. The success of the people associated with the venture will also present me with an opportunity to highlight my skill set of organising flights, hotels, and cruises for private clients requiring total travel management. It excites me as a way to grow and evolve my primary business interests in worldwide travel organisation.”

Matt added: “I am regularly approached to join a ‘business coaching programme’ or ‘leadership training course’, but when we heard about a unique new business academy, we instantly wanted to be a part of it. The academy will see business and sporting excellence collide, unlocking world leading insights from the best in business and elite sport on leadership, focus, resilience, people management and not settling for ‘good’ when ‘great’ is within reach.”