Local Olympian helps local businesses reach their potential

20th May 2014

More than 100 of Aberdeen’s business leaders heard about the similar qualities required for success in business and sport from David Carry, double Commonwealth Games gold medallist and Olympian, at an event in the city this week. The Supporting Business Growth seminar at the Cults Hotel was hosted by Clydesdale Bank as part of its Business Week programme.

Aberdonian David swam to two gold medals at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne and capped his fine swimming career by finishing 7th in the 400m freestyle at the London 2012 Olympics. This week’s event saw David deliver a presentation on the importance of attitude, leadership, teamwork, goal setting and resilience to succeeding in the worlds of sport and business.

Since retiring from competitive swimming, David has been working for Red Sky Management which provides consultancy services on delivering sustainable high-performance to athletes and companies. David spoke specifically about the need for businesses to identify the core skills they possess and be adaptable to change.

Stephen Hepburn, Head of Clydesdale Bank’s Business and Private Banking Centre in Aberdeen, said: “It is always a pleasure to have somebody like David, who is a local sporting hero, along to share his experiences with our customers and professional contacts. In addition to his many sporting achievements, David has successfully made the transfer to the corporate world and hopefully some of the advice he shared will help boost our local business community.”

Other speakers at the event were Scott McKerracher, Regional Director for Business and Private Banking for Clydesdale Bank in the East of Scotland, and Gary McEwan, Chief Executive of Enterprise North East Trust.

Gary McEwan expanded on the points raised by David Carry, underlining the need for business owners to have a clear vision for their company’s future and supporting structure to help deliver it in place. He also spoke of the benefits to business leaders of investing in personal development to ensure they are reaching their full potential and taking the opportunities available to grow their business.

Clydesdale Bank’s Business Week is running from 12th-16th May. It sees more than 250 customer-focused events staged at the Bank’s UK-wide network of Business and Private Banking Centres, including Aberdeen and Inverness.

Businesses from across the UK are being invited to meet with some of the UK’s leading financial experts to discuss their most pressing commercial issues such as; planning and securing finance for growth, improving profitability and succession planning.

Clydesdale Bank’s Business Week will allow businesses of all sizes and industries to come together, discuss growth opportunities and examine the issues which matter most to them and their customers.