TEES TECH AWARDS 2024
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
SPONSORED BY VISTECH SERVICES
FINALIST
DINK
Winner – Embeddable founder Peter Calvert receives the Newcomer of the Year award from Paul Heeran , of category sponsor Vistech Services .
WINNER
PETER CALVERT ( EMBEDDABLE )
Double Tees Tech Award winner Peter Calvert has told how a self-funded survey he ’ s commissioned could help people bring their innovative ideas to life .
Peter – who set up his software development and partnership consultancy Embeddable in May 2023 – won not only the Rising Star category but also the Newcomer of the Year title at the 2024 Tees Tech Awards .
And after picking up both trophies , he explained the background to the survey and what he hopes it will achieve .
He said : “ One of the things Embeddable does is help people understand their ideas and make them happen , so we ran a survey at the start of the year asking what innovation meant to them and what support they needed .
“ We learned really early that innovation is subjective – it needs a lot of context . Across the Tees Valley , we offer a lot of support for innovation but if everyone has a different definition , we can ’ t support it properly .
“ It ’ s about finding out what businesses are looking for and working out how we can make that happen , whether it ’ s software , apps , tech or any kind of introductions new to your business .
“ We just want to see more of it happening in the region and keep businesses and money in the Tees Valley .
“ We ’ re seeing a lot of people looking for grant funding but also people looking for mentors and not knowing where to find them . Also , there ’ s a lot of talk around businesses that haven ’ t been able to employ apprentices because they don ’ t know what the right courses are for them .
“ Our survey found that of the people who responded , only three per cent hire apprentices in tech roles .
“ For a region that has such a good reputation in colleges , universities , apprenticeships and training providers , the uptake just isn ’ t there at the moment , so it ’ s on us to be able to make that happen .”
SPONSOR ’ S REFLECTIONS :
Paul Heeran , operations and company director , Vistech Services “ We ’ ve always been interested in this category . Our MD has invested in enterprise and technology and that ’ s what we run our business on , so newcomers in this industry epitomise what we ’ re all about . We ’ ve supported this since the inaugural event and we ’ re amazed how we keep churning out this quality again and again , year after year – it ’ s really encouraging for our area .”
Based in the UK ’ s emerging hub of North- East game developers , Dink is a digital entertainment studio that creates and develops video games – putting the “ fun ” in functional and “ making awesome stuff for awesome people ”.
After launching its first published game title in early 2023 , it has quickly established itself within its sector , working with the BBC to create digital content for a popular longrunning show and , with Teesside University , organising and hosting the biggest “ game jam ” in Teesside ’ s history , with more than 200 local developers getting involved .
Middlesbrough-based Dink also offers outsourcing services to clients , providing development services for other studios including video game projects , virtual experiences , 3D printing and more .
FINALIST
HOME SALE PACK
Designed to revolutionise the home buying and selling process by providing as much information as possible before the sale of a property , Home Sale Pack is an upfront information provider , giving all the information needed to sell a property at the beginning , including title documents , property forms , supporting documents , searches , EPC and a property health check .
Founded by solicitors , since launching on February 5 , it already has more than 110 registered agents and is actively preparing packs for sellers .
Home Sale Pack is designed to provide speed , confidence and transparency in what many see as a broken market . It aims to be the market leader in providing upfront information , as well as a household name when looking to sell a property .
WINNERS ’ ROLL CALL : 2020 : Salesfire 2021 : Unforgettable Experiences 2022 : SeerBI 2023 : The Petite Agency
The voice of business in the Tees region | 151