Intuit QuickBooks announces the launch of its first ‘Prosperity Hub’ in the UK
Intuit QuickBooks launches its first Prosperity Hub in the UK and the eighth Hub for Intuit QuickBooks overall. The Hub will support job opportunities and growth in the North East by equipping entrepreneurs with the skills needed to start and build successful small businesses (SMBs).
Newcastle and the North East was selected as the home of Intuit QuickBooks’ first European Prosperity Hub, as it has the highest unemployment rate in the UK at 6.6% (compared to 4.5% in the rest of the country) and has the lowest number of SMBs. The North East has also been one of the hardest hit regions for job losses due to Covid-19, with the employment rate dropping by 2.1% in the June-August period compared to March-May.
The Prosperity Hub will be run out of Intuit QuickBooks’ existing Newcastle-based Customer Success centre in Concentrix, the global business services company. Concentrix currently employs more than 120 Intuit QuickBooks focused staff, driving £5.3m growth in the area between July 2019 and June 2020.
Specifically, the Prosperity Hub in Newcastle will support job opportunities and growth in the North East by equipping students and entrepreneurs with the skills needed to be successful:
- Small Business Success Programme: providing virtual training to SMBs in areas such as cashflow management; moving a business online and design thinking (an approach to innovation used by high-growth companies in Silicon Valley). Upskilling across these key areas can help businesses succeed in the digital economy – a necessary transformation embraced by many since the pandemic. A virtual small business success platform is currently in development, bringing these resources and more to all Prosperity Hub Communities in 2021
- Job Readiness Programme: providing students access to education on personal finance and entrepreneurship, helping develop skills needed for the 21st century job market
- Sustainability Programme: to help businesses save money while reducing their carbon footprint through programmes such as energy audits, sustainable shipping options, and more.
The programme launched in the United States in 2016, and currently has six centres in the US and one in Canada. At every Hub, the aim is to stimulate economic prosperity by supporting under resourced communities with investment, training and educational resources.
Over the past year, Intuit QuickBooks’ investment in Prosperity Hubs has translated to an 83% return on investment through local economic growth[5]. If those figures translate to Newcastle, that could mean as much as £1.83 in economic growth for the North East for every £1 invested by Intuit QuickBooks.
Chris Evans, vice president and UK country manager, Intuit QuickBooks said: “With economic inequality rising globally, we launched our Prosperity Hubs programme in 2016. The mission was to generate economic prosperity for communities in need by creating new jobs, preparing people with skills of the future, and equipping entrepreneurs with the tools they need to start and build successful businesses. By July this year, the program had helped create 2,200 jobs in six U.S. communities and one in Canada.
This is an amazing achievement, but we’re passionate about doing much more and we’re aiming to boost this number to 7,000 by 2023. That is why I’m so excited to be extending this mission by launching the first Prosperity Hub in the UK.
We looked at where we could create the most impact and chose the North East of England as it has the highest unemployment rate in the UK and a really tough small business landscape. We’re going to offer resources and training that can create new businesses and generate prosperity for people at a time when they need it most.”
Jamie Driscoll, Mayor of North of Tyne, said: “The North East is the place to invest. I’m pleased that Intuit will make their first full-scale investment outside of the US in our area. It is a statement of confidence and will create much needed jobs, and support career development. I look forward to working with them as they establish themselves in the North of Tyne.”
Leader of Newcastle City Council, cllr Nick Forbes, said: “Unemployment is rising due to the pandemic, and this is set to get worse as the government brings the furlough scheme to an end.
“It is vitally important that Newcastle is open for business and attracting investment so we can create new employment opportunities. That’s why I welcome this vote of confidence in the city.
“Small businesses are the backbone of the UK economy and anything that encourages their growth has got to be good for Newcastle and good for the region.”
Lucy Winskell OBE, chair of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership, said “It’s great to see Intuit choosing the North East to launch its first prosperity hub initiative in the UK, which support’s the North East LEP’s focus on raising aspirations across the region to improve our skills base and entrepreneurial mind-sets.”
Catherine Crossley, site director, Concentrix, said: “We are delighted to have been given this amazing opportunity to work more closely with Intuit in becoming their first European Prosperity Hub. We are passionate about supporting growth and prosperity in our local community. We have long admired the work that Intuit and our Johnstown site in North America has done over the past few years and believe that by partnering with Intuit in Newcastle, we will be able to further support our local communities in the North East’.
Cormac Twomey, EVP, global operations and delivery, Concentrix, said: “Over the past number of years we have worked closely with Intuit and we truly value the strength of our partnership. We are hugely proud to have this opportunity to strengthen that relationship in the UK by becoming their first European Prosperity Hub. We look forward to continuing to align with, and support, the purpose and values that underpin Intuit and the Prosperity Hub.”
For more information on the Prosperity Hub programme, please visit:
https://www.intuit.com/togetherweprosper/#/hero
