Business Wales’ Accelerated Growth Programme has appointed Siwan Rees as its new Operations Manager.
Siwan, 37, joins the Accelerated Growth Programme (AGP) from the NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator, where she was responsible for supporting businesses across Wales to start, scale and succeed. In her new role, she will be responsible for managing the delivery of business support services to over 500 high-growth businesses in Wales.
Business Wales’ Accelerated Growth Programme, which offers tailored support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) looking to expand, has been an enormous success since its inception in 2014. The programme has supported 1053 businesses in Wales to create over 9000 jobs. Research led by Professor Max Mundy of Cardiff Business School has demonstrated that £17 is generated in the Welsh economy for every £1 spent on high growth business support. The Accelerated Growth Programme is delivered by the Excelerator Consortium on behalf of Business Wales.
Siwan joins the Accelerated Growth Programme with a strong track record in supporting the entrepreneurial and SME ecosystem in Wales, with experience gained in education, banking and professional services. A European Business Management with French graduate of Swansea University, she is a board member for the All-Wales Chamber of Commerce and a Cardiff City Region Business Council member.
Siwan says she is looking forward to using her 360-degree knowledge of the business landscape to help Welsh firms grow and thrive:
“Business growth that creates sustainable, inclusive employment is the key to building prosperity and wellbeing for all in Wales. I am excited at the opportunity to manage such an ambitious high growth business support programme. The Accelerated Growth Programme has demonstrated that it is a real catalyst for growth, driving the Welsh economy by spreading opportunity and tackling inequality to deliver individual, regional and national prosperity.
“The past year has presented unprecedented challenges to most businesses and has provided new opportunities to many too. I am looking forward to working with the team at AGP and the companies we serve to understand the challenges facing them as we emerge from the pandemic.
“Working together and with trusted partners in the business support ecosystem, I aim to ensure we provide the highest quality business support services that help entrepreneurs tackle the challenges they face while making the most of new opportunities. This will be critical to supporting the COVID recovery and developing the right environment to ensure sustainable business success for ambitious companies in Wales.”
David Notley, Excelerator Consortium Board Director, said:
“We are delighted that Siwan has joined the Accelerated Growth Programme team, bringing a wealth of experience supporting ambitious Welsh businesses to scale and grow.
“Siwan will play a vital role in the delivery of support services to high-growth businesses in Wales, working with our team of highly experienced relationship managers to ensure businesses receive the tailored support they need to grow their businesses.
“There has never been a more important time to support ambitious companies in Wales. We are confident that Siwan’s experience will add significant value to our programme as we continue to deliver world-class business support that helps build high-growth, sustainable businesses and delivers significant economic and employment opportunities.”
