Clarity, direction, and a plan. For the business you actually want.
Most business owners reach a point where working harder stops feeling like the answer. You’re busy, you’re committed, and you care deeply about what you do – but something isn’t quite clicking. Perhaps you’ve made real progress and built something that works, but taking the next step feels less straightforward than you expected. The business isn’t moving forward as you’d hoped, and you’re not entirely sure what it needs next.
That’s exactly the conversation this Growth Lab is designed to have.
This session brings together people who’ve been at that same crossroads – and come out the other side with a clearer picture of what their business actually needed. Along the way, we’ll explore the difference between growing and scaling. Not as a theory, but as a practical tool to help you work out where you are, what’s holding you back, and how to move forward without adding more complexity, cost or pressure.
Why you can't miss this
Growing and scaling sound like the same thing. In practice they describe two very different paths – and many businesses struggle precisely because they’re trying to do both at once without realising it.
Growing typically means more revenue, more clients, more staff, with costs rising alongside. Scaling means revenue rising faster than your costs, by building systems and processes that make the business more efficient and less dependent on you personally.
Understanding which path fits your business – and aligning everything behind that choice – is one of the clearest ways to start making real, sustainable progress.
This session will help you
- Recognise whether your business is set up for growth, for scale, or accidentally trying to do both
- Understand what your business actually needs at this stage – in plain English, with real examples
- Ask better questions about your time, your team, your margins, and your systems
- Leave with 2–3 practical steps you can take straight back to your business
Meet the speakers
Keynote Speaker
Andrew Marsh
Vistage Chair | Business Transformation Specialist
Andrew Marsh has spent over 20 years leading businesses from start-up through to scale, and now helps other founders and leadership teams navigate exactly that journey. As a Vistage Chair, he runs six CEO coaching groups across the North East, working with business owners who are serious about making the right decisions at the right time.
In his keynote, Andrew will unpack the real differences between growing and scaling, the stages businesses typically move through, and how the founder’s role needs to evolve as a business becomes bigger and more complex. Clear, practical, and grounded in real experience.
The Panel
Deborah Wylie
Little Angels
Deborah is the founder and Director of Little Angels Fun Club and Nursery which she established in 1999. Deborah has grown the organisation from a single nursery to a multi-site, award-winning childcare group. A former founding Principal of Cramlington Village Primary School and an international schools inspector, Deborah is passionate about empowering children, supporting families, and driving excellence, innovation, and sustainability across the education and early years sectors.
Dean Benson
Visual Soft
Dean is a serial technology entrepreneur, investor, and digital founder of Visualsoft, one of the UK’s leading ecommerce and digital growth businesses. Since founding the company in 1998, Dean has helped thousands of brands accelerate online growth through technology, marketing, and innovation. Today, through Dean.id, he focuses on AI, automation, and digital transformation, while also supporting the next generation of business leaders.
Kevin Beales
MySalesCoach
Kevin has been founder & CEO of a number of businesses including ‘The Test Factory’ which was acquired by GL Education in August 2014, ‘Refract’ a sales software platform, and most recently he co-founded MySalesCoach.Com which provides an innovative platform for sales coaching, which has secured significant venture capital funding. Alongside leading MySalesCoach, Kevin mentor’s entrepreneurs through Manchester Business School’s Global MBA programme.
Jill Robson
A Star Attendance Solutions
Jill is the founder of A Star Attendance Solutions, helping schools improve pupil attendance and early intervention. Drawing on 22 years as a local authority attendance officer, she developed the A Star platform to automate monitoring, tracking and reporting – freeing school staff to focus on what matters most. Now serving more than 450 UK schools, A Star was recently named Small Business of the Year for the Durham, Sunderland & South Tyneside heat at North East Business Awards 2026.
Your hosts
John Forth and Debbie Simpson
Business Advisers, North East BIC
Debbie and John will be welcoming you on the day, introducing Andrew and the panel, and making sure the Q&A is open, relaxed, and genuinely useful. No question is too basic. That’s a Growth Lab promise.
What is Growth Lab Sunderland?
A free events series from North East BIC, built around real people sharing real experiences – informal, honest, and held at venues across the city. Growth means different things to different people. It might be more profit with less stress, winning back your weekends, or simply feeling more confident about the road ahead. Come with your questions. Leave with something you can actually use.
Making it easier to take part
We know that balancing business and caring responsibilities is a reality for many. You’re very welcome to attend with children if needed, and there will be a separate space available should you need to step out at any point.
Book your place
Growth Lab Sunderland: From AI Assistants to AI Agents
Date: Friday 5th June 2026, 9:00 - 12:30
Venue: Roker Hotel, Roker Terrace, Sunderland, SR6 9ND
Cost: Free
Priority is given to businesses in the Sunderland City Council area. Not based in Sunderland? Complete the form above to add your name on the waiting list and we’ll be in touch if there’s space. We’d love to see you there if possible!
