Clear talking from Anderson Strathern discussing what matters to you and your business

We move – no matter what happens, we go forward. We remain resilient. And we stay positive.

The future can only be better. We can’t change the world but let’s make a dent.

This is the philosophy of Enoch Adeyemi, founder of Black Professionals Scotland (BPS). In our latest podcast, he joins employment law expert, Musab Hemsi, to discuss his story and what led him to starting the organisation, which is now almost 2000-strong.

When Enoch secured his first professional role in Scotland, he knew his financial future would be relatively comfortable. He then looked around him and realised that his peers weren’t all in the same boat. So, he decided to build a raft.

His initial goal was simply to help other Black people secure professional roles, but BPS has evolved to become much greater than that. It is now effectively the gateway for professional organisations across Scotland to access Black talent, and for Black individuals to access and excel in professional roles. Further it provides education to organisations, which is already making a positive impact by increasing the hiring and retention of diverse talent within large professional and public service organisations in Scotland.

The BPS movement came from a place of gratitude. Enoch’s goals are to help brightness and intelligence to shine, to help people grow into their roles and in many cases, into new ways of living and understanding new cultures too.

Listen to the podcast to discover the impact that Enoch and his team have already made, and to hear what their plans are for the future.

From having to close down overnight, to experiencing its biggest boom in recent times, the revolving door of change has certainly been in full swing for the residential property market over the past two years.

The pandemic was the catalyst for a monumental shift in the reasons behind recent home moves and the property industry had to swiftly adapt to understand and respond to these new triggers. However, there will always be an emotional factor associated with purchasing a home which isn’t often the case in other major investments, and traditionally, there has been a great deal of advice available for sellers but almost no support for purchasers.

In this podcast, our experts Sara Jalicy, Jemma Richardson and Edwina de Klee explain why this needs to change by highlighting that having a specialist to consult means that there is an impartial party who can help buyers to make a pragmatic decision as to whether or not a property is right for their needs and also to provide guidance on a sensible approach to bidding.

In our latest podcast, rural law specialist, Karen Craig, speaks to Alan Laidlaw, CEO of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS).

Alan grew up in a rural area and as a child became fascinated with wheels, tractors and farm animals. All of these interests led him to building an illustrious career in Scotland’s rural scene. Although these areas were his original passions, he doesn’t hesitate to tell Karen that the best thing about his role at RHASS is the people.

The decision to cancel the Royal Highland Show wasn’t taken lightly and sparked discussion as to how the organisation could continue to effectively serve its members. Working from home meant that RHASS could concentrate on its other charitable work, helping to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the society’s membership.

Alan believes that the purpose of the society that he leads is to bring people together to celebrate successes, knowledge transferring and enabling continuous improvements. The past couple of years have emphasised all of these factors, and the absence of last year’s Royal Highland Show highlighted the importance of community within Scotland’s agricultural sphere. It became apparent that reigniting that connection while also facilitating innovation would be pivotal to the success of the industry.

With International Mediation Week approaching, we’re sharing an overview of what is involved in the mediation process and why it can be favourable to alternative forms of dispute resolution, such as adjudications and litigations.

In this podcast, our mediation expert, Jemma Forrest, and construction law specialist, Alistair Dean, talk to Frazer Wardhaugh, legal director and company secretary at BAM Construct UK Ltd. The trio discuss the value of mediation, noting its merits but also highlighting that the timing and the attitude of both parties is key to its success.

As an in-house lawyer, Frazer is familiar with mediation from a client’s perspective and he shares some of his experiences with our experts. He also explains the various possible ways to measure the success of the mediation process.

We all know that major disputes involve a huge amount time and resource. This can create a feeling of uncertainty within a business and can also claim staff time which could otherwise be spent much more productively. Resolving a dispute using mediation can lead to a positive impact on staff morale and can preserve commercial relationships. It can also help clients to reflect on and learn from the circumstances which led to the dispute in the first place.

Listen to our podcast for more insights, examples and a fascinating discussion around all aspects of mediation.

Can I afford to stop working? Will my kids have financial security during my retirement? How much should I be saving this month?
If you’ve ever asked yourself any of these questions, this podcast is worth listening to. In it, our experts explain what the three key stages of your financial lifecycle are, as well as detailing some of the most important questions to ask yourself at each stage of your own financial journey.

Tax and financial planning are often perceived as being ‘dry’. The kind of things that we know we should be paying attention to, but even with the best intentions, it’s easy to become side-tracked by ‘shinier’ activities.

We understand that financial affairs are personal, and the notion of sharing what our dream financial status is with an advisor can be difficult. But when our clients open up, we’re much better prepared to help them achieve their financial goals. Often, taking that first step and deciding to create your own financial plan is the hardest part. From then on, we’ll help you to engineer the route that’s best for your individual financial goals and ambitions.

Listen to the podcast in full and let our experts - Anna Hills, personal legal needs expert, Alison Pryde, tax specialist and Benjamin Mitchell, Chartered Financial Planner at our financial planning business, Anderson Strathern Asset Management - guide you through your financial lifecycle need to knows.