Ian's Story

Ian Beardsmore is an Alumni Member of Vistage and this story relates to his time as a member.

Moving from the factory floor to the MDs office can be a steep learning curve. The skills and experiences that get you there aren’t always the same as the ones you need leading from the top.

Ian Beardsmore began working at Advanex Europe on the manufacturing floor. Starting first as an apprentice, he was rapidly promoted up through the organisation and became managing director.  

As commercial manager for Advanex in the northeast, he was comfortable with the engineering and sales sides to the business. But becoming MD was, in his words, “a big leap for me.”

“Listening to those stories and insights helps me to make more informed decisions.”

While determined to succeed, Ian needed a way to accelerate the learning curve and improve his understanding about how different parts of the business worked together. He found the answers in his Vistage group meetings. Members come with all different strengths,  from all different industries, and could share their knowledge. 

He also emphasises the value of issue processing — a central element of every Vistage meeting. “The other group members have been through it, and they have solutions, they have experiences where things went right or wrong and listening to those stories and insights helps me to make more informed decisions.”

Sharing knowledge across the team

In 2016, the existing directors of the business built a new management team which would carry the company into the future. Ian explains that,  “It was an exciting time, but I looked around the room, and I was aware the new management team had little experience of managing or working outside of Advanex.” 

Based on the expertise Ian gained from his Vistage membership, he decided to place all of his senior managers into Vistage groups.

“Vistage has developed the less experienced people, and it’s given them a wider awareness of the business. Someone who had been in an engineering department all of their life had little concern for sales or finance, and the exposure to Vistage members from other businesses and industries has helped broaden that experience."

A keen learner, Ian continues to be an active member of his local Vistage group, sharing that “I take lots of value from the Vistage group meetings; I like to learn and to sit each month and listen to a speaker, especially as the quality of the Vistage speakers is enormously high.” 

Ian recognises that there is still lots to learn, and he can’t implement every single tool and technique he hears. “I always want to fulfil my potential, and that always gets further away. Every time you get better, there’s always more to learn and more to fulfil, both for me and for Avanex as a company!”