Clare Bye, Oakland Innovation’s HR Manager explains that if you want a career with the company a PhD is just the starting point.

The energy within Oakland is almost tangible. It permeates the whole organisation and acts as the fuel to drive the company to be as successful as it can possibly be,” says Clare Bye, Oakland Innovation’s recently appointed HR Manager.

“My role is to make sure that we engage and retain the brightest individuals we can and then nurture their talents to ensure they perform at the highest levels and have some fun along the way.”

But landing a career offer from one of Cambridge’s most innovative companies is no easy matter, as Clare explains:

“We are continually on the look-out for the brightest and the best (preferably PhD level) but being technically excellent is just part of what we are seeking. We also need to see clear evidence of a rounded personality, organisational skills, client facing skills, accuracy and attention to detail. A facility for problem solving, creativity and an analytical approach are also part of the mix.

“We know what we are looking for and we have exacting standards.”

‘Nurturing’ is a term that Clare frequently uses to describe the environment within Oakland. “We are a tremendously caring organisation,” she says, adding: “We want everyone to do well and we will invest in their professional development to tease out and hone their skill sets. For us it’s about input as well as output.

“We provide solid career plans for our fifty or so colleagues and although we work in dedicated teams, we recognise that teams are made up of individuals.”

That is one reason why holding the Investors in People accreditation is so important. It gives Oakland a benchmark against which to test itself against other companies and offers an action plan of how to continue to achieve business excellence.

With over twenty five years in HR, Clare has worked with blue chip names like Marks and Spencer, the RAC and latterly as HR Director for Munters. Clare is a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development and holds a Post Graduate Diploma in HR Management.

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Oakland Innovation takes the fun run in its stride

The annual Fun Run around Cambridge Science Park (which aims to raise money for the BBCs Children in Need Appeal) attracted over 100 teams this year and Oakland Innovation bravely put forward three teams: a mens, ladies and mixed.

 
And we are proud to say that not only did we complete the relay run, but no-one dropped the baton and everyone completed their 1.1 mile lap, tuning in some very respectable times.

“Of course, it isn’t just about running round the Science Park on a chilly November day,” says Nigel Bailey who organised Oakland’s entries adding: “This is just one of a number of events we take part in to encourage a healthy lifestyle and team building.

“We have entered the Cambridge Cycle Challenge which pits us against other cities and encourages cycle use; the Global Corporate Challenge where teams use pedometers and over the course of sixteen weeks attempt to walk the equivalent of once round the globe and the pretty gruelling Dragon Race.

“We are always up for a challenge and will have a go at most events especially those that involve working together as teams.”

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Accessing Vital Business Intelligence Without Hitting A Bric Wall

For the third time in as many years, Oakland Innovation was invited to put forward one of its industry experts to address business leaders at a conference hosted by the Institute for Manufacturing in Cambridge.

This year it was the turn of Dr Eileen Buttimer who chose as her topic ‘Technology Intelligence in Brazil, Russia, India and China – Opportunities and Challenges’

“Each of these BRIC countries represents a huge opportunity for partnering and joint venture activities. Each of them is determined to play a leading global role in the development of new markets and the technologies associated with them. Their expanding economies mean that their governments are backing the growth of the R&D and education sectors with massive investment,” says Eileen adding:

“The number of PhD students in Brazil is growing by 12% each year. Russia is ploughing $2.8 billion into its R&D sector. India produces 2.5 million science and engineering graduates each year, while China sees 1.5 million science and engineering graduates each year.

“These BRIC countries are no longer content to play the role of ‘nut and bolt assembly lines’ for the West. They are determined to own and drive change.”

However, as Eileen points out, huge opportunities carry significant challenges, not the least of which is the near impossibility of accessing leading edge thinking in the BRIC countries for many Western organisations.

“Language and cultural barriers are major impediments for companies wanting to access the emerging markets and the technologies associated with them in BRIC countries,” says Eileen.

As part of her presentation, Eileen pointed out that Oakland Innovation is ideally placed to address these issues on behalf of its clients.

“We have over fifty highly qualified, multilingual employees, including scientists and engineers with both technical and commercial expertise.

“Not only are they fluent in languages, but because they are from overseas, they completely empathise with the cultural influences that come into play when interviewing key contacts in order to garner the necessary business intelligence. This market intelligence is crucial for our clients as it gives them an invaluable competitive advantage.

“It isn’t an exaggeration to say that we have gone out of our way to create a company with a global personality, which means that we can, quite literally, talk to the world.”

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Amit Nair has been promoted from a Consultant Analyst to a Consultant

Oakland Innovation is delighted to announce that Amit Nair has been promoted from a Consultant Analyst to a Consultant.

Amit Nair, relishing his new role as a Consultant

 As a Consultant Analyst, Amit, who joined Oakland Innovation two and a half years ago, has been responsible for delivering in-depth research for Oakland Innovation’s international client base.

  “Amit has been recognised for his dedication and high quality output, and he will now take on responsibility for the management of projects and teams, while continuing to build relationships with clients” explains Jenny Brown, Director.

 Originally from India, Amit speaks fluent Hindi and Marathi. He obtained a Research Fellowship at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Mumbai and then completed his PhD in Developmental Neurobiology at Cambridge University.

Amit is relishing the opportunity to expand his career at Oakland Innovation, which specialises in delivering research, understanding and insight to the FMCG (fast moving consumer goods),and industrial sectors, using insights obtained from leading experts and commentators to build on public domain data. 

 “The large variety and types of projects at Oakland has kept me abreast of cutting edge research in a variety of scientific areas. This is what drives my interest and keeps me wanting more,” says Amit.

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Prestige Award for Oakland Innovation

Oakland Innovation has been formally recognised by Proctor and Gamble (P&G) for its contribution to P&G’s global business development achievements.

 (Left to right) Jeff Weedman, P&G Senior VP of Global Business Development, Kate Bendall and Nigel Bailey, Senior Consultants from Oakland Innovation, Michael Zeitlyn, Managing Director of Oakland Innovation, Bruce Brown, P&G’s CTO and Bob McDonald, P&G’s  CEO.

Each year, P&G presents companies, which have made a significant contribution to its business success, with an award at a glittering ceremony held near P&G’s headquarters in Cincinnati, USA.

 At the ceremony, which was hosted by P&G’s Senior VP of Global Business Development Jeff Weedman, Oakland Innovation’s managing director Michael Zeitlyn received the P&G External Enabling Partner of the Year award from P&G’s CEO Bob McDonald and CTO Bruce Brown. The award recognises the company’s work with P&G in the areas of business and product development.

 Commenting, Michael said: “This award ceremony is an opportunity for P&G to bring together key business partners and formally recognise and reward those companies which have made a significant contribution to the development of P&G and I am delighted that Oakland Innovation was among this year’s winners of this prestigious award.”

 Oakland Innovation is a specialist research company and works with global corporations particularly in the fields of consumer products, personal care, food and beverage, and healthcare, providing solid market and technology  intelligence to assist with product and business innovation.

 P&G looks to build long-term relationships with its external partners and Oakland Innovation has been working closely with the company since 1992.

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