Sheffield Live’s business programme, BusinessLive, heard yesterday from two award-winning business leaders who shared their experiences of growing and running businesses.

Jaqui Copley, managing director of the Elite Group, and Jay Bhayani, partner at Bhayani Bracewell, joined presenter Jamie Veitch. Both were fresh from attending Thursday evening’s Funny Business event at Sheffield City Hall, in which ten top personalities from Sheffield City Region organisations – including Jaqui – had performed a stand-up comedy routine to help fundraise for Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity’s Do Your Bit campaign. And Jaqui had even been crowned the winner of the best comedy routine at the event.

The show explored how Jaqui had grown the Elite Group from starting-up in 2002 as a home based business, through to recruiting staff, moving into business premises, and now turning over several hundred thousand pounds a year. Jaqui shared her insights and business tips for securing clients and sales, and how she’d dealt with challenges to grow her business – which distributes swimwear, lingerie and children’s clothes – to become the great success it is today.

And employment law expert Jay Bhayani, one of Sheffield’s leading employment lawyers, who has won accolades including recommendation in the legal 500, a Yorkshire Lawyer Employment Lawyer of the Year Award, and the ABDN Professional of the Year Award, joined the programme to talk through key policies and procedures that all businesses should have in place – and the pitfalls if they don’t. Jay discussed many aspects of employment law and HR practice, including directors’ service contracts, shareholder agreements, appropriate policies and procedures, and performance management in the workplace.

Download / listen to the podcast of the show here.