The podcast highlighting the challenges facing SMEs

“As well as producing formal reports, we also have a lot of really interesting meetings with people.” 

Vicki Belt, deputy director of impact and engagement at the Enterprise Research Centre (ERC), is discussing the origins of Exploring Enterprise, the small business podcast she helps to produce. 

“So many good conversations go on at our events and at conferences, or just within our team. We’re often talking to policymakers and practitioners who work with small businesses, and we wanted to capture some of that informed conversation.”

Behind the mic

Established in 2013, the ERC is a leader in the study of growth and productivity of UK SMEs. 

Its podcast was shortlisted for Management Publication of the Year 2024, run by CMI in partnership with the Chartered Association of Business Schools, the British Academy of Management and the British Library. 

By then, the podcast had been running for three years, helping to communicate the centre’s latest insights on the issues affecting smaller operations. Short, accessible episodes offer a taste of the research evidence alongside discussions with informed experts, all of which help to get the centre’s work out to a wider audience. 

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The first episode focused on SMEs and their experience during the Covid-19 pandemic. As you may imagine, there was no shortage of topics to discuss.

Vicki recalls how podcasts were exploding at the time. The team figured they would dip a toe into the format, despite a lack of experience in anything like it. The first episode was so enjoyable they carried on, and have stuck with the same relaxed, DIY style ever since. 

Hosting duties are typically shared between the centre’s director, Steven Roper, and co-director, Mark Hart, both of whom are professors. Yet the tone remains open and down-to-earth.

“The charm of the podcast is that it’s just a chat,” says Vicki, who serves as the podcast producer, working behind the scenes on the design, lining up guests and scripting the questions. 

“Somebody says something and then changes their mind. It's a conversation. Ideas evolve as you carry it on.”

“Time moves so fast”

Vicki recalls one memorable episode from 2023, focusing on SMEs and fraud, which featured representatives from the Fraud Advisory Panel, the Federation of Small Businesses, and Cifas, the fraud prevention service. Even though Vicki worked at the research centre, the content of the episode still opened her eyes.