LEDCOM HAS become the first local enterprise centre in North-ern Ireland and the first social enterprise with less than 25 em-ployees to achieve the prestigious Investors in People (IiP) Gold. LEDCOM directors and staff were joined at a special celebra-tion in the Willowbank Rural Conference Centre in Larne by another great Northern Ireland success story, multi gold med-al Paralympic winner Michael McKillop.
LEDCOM chief executive of-ficer Ken Nelson said the award showed the company’s deep com-mitment to achieving excellence in developing and supporting its staff and improving its service as a business support organisation.
“We are constantly striving for excellence within economic development and this Gold award is recognition of the past 29 years of supporting local businesses and individuals wanting to further their careers”
During the event, Bill Gordon, the Assessment Manager of Inves-tors in People Northern Ireland (Department for Employment and Learning) outlined the benefits of IiP and the support available to encourage organisations to seek accreditation.
He said: ‘We are really pleased to be here today. LEDCOM has been IiP accredited for seven years and it is the first local enterprise centre to achieve IiP Gold status. We hope this will encourage oth-ers to both pursue IiP approval and for those already with accreditation to aim for higher level recognition.”
Athlete Michael McKillop spoke about how he overcame diversity to achieve ten gold medals. He said that a professional approach to training and a determination to succeed applies to any area of business as much as the sporting arena.
In an inspirational speech, Michael — who was born with cerebral palsy on his right side, didn’t speak until he was three years of age and developed epi-lepsy at 14 — described how he overcame these hurdles to become a champion.
He said: “Life isn’t simple. Business isn’t simple. Getting a gold medal was a long journey. I had to build a team around me to achieve my goals. In business you have to work together to achieve your goals. There is a great simi-larity between my success and the process you had to go through to achieve your IiP Gold success.”