Sarah DeasCo-operative Development Scotland’s chief executive, Sarah Deas, was inspired by the optimism conveyed by Scottish business at the recent Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI) Forum.

Entitled All Cylinders Firing, the event highlighted that new forms of collaboration are required in order to achieve business ambitions.

Writing for SCDI’s event blog, Sarah paid tribute to those employers who demonstrated that focusing on their staff helped their company succeed.

She said: “Several weeks have passed since the Forum but it continues to inspire and provoke discussion. While there has long been a focus on improving the customer/client experience, there is clearly growing evidence that investing in and engaging staff will lead to further gains.

“Most importantly, ensuring staff and partners feel they are part of a community can provide an important competitive edge – something that will help Scottish business thrive.”

To read Sarah’s thoughts in full, go to the SCDI website and follow the ‘Event Blog’ link on the right of the page.