L2S E16: Laura Ryan on Strategic Networking and Meat Business Women

<p><strong>Guest Bio:</strong> Laura Ryan BA (Hons), MSc, DipM MCIM </p> <p>Laura has a First-Class Honours in Marketing and a Masters in Management and has also achieved Chartered Marketer status via the Chartered Institute of Marketing.  Laura joined the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) in 2007 after successfully launching premium beef & lamb brands within a large butchery business in the North East of England. Working her way through the ranks she was appointed as Sector Strategy Director for Beef & Lamb Board in 2015.She led the strategic review and development for the Beef & Lamb sector in England by identifying key challenges and opportunities which deliver long term growth. Last year Laura successfully launched Lavenpark, her own consultancy business which is working with levy boards, government and commercial companies to achieve greater success through improved industry insight, connectivity, business development, marketing, and communications. Laura is the founder and global Chair of Meat Business Women which launched in 2015. It has recently been recognized by the United Nations with Laura presenting on the contribution Meat Business Women makes to the global Sustainable Development Goals. </p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Link</strong></p> <p><a href="https://meatbusinesswomen.org/" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">Meat Business Women</a></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Episode Quotes</strong></p> <p>On Strategy -- “Don’t let folks tell you that it’s more complicated than that. Understand, do the research, understand where you are now, what’s the ambition, what’s the macro-environmental impact, what are your competitors doing, get the research, get the data, and then map out a road map.” - Laura Ryan<br />  <br /> “Strategic networking is essentially about generosity and reciprocity, but we have to invest time in it. And [we’re] debunking the myth that your networking is turning up to conferences or after work functions with mediocre wine and dreadful canapes... It’s genuine care, but also having t