The guest speaker at this month’s AM Executive Breakfast Club meeting is Susannah Schofield (pictured), commercial director at the Royal Mail maintenance network.

She sets up businesses and creates innovation under the Royal Mail brand.

Previously she was the managing director of Royal Mail Courier, a new same day delivery venture, working with the new breed of online retailers who need to offer their customers the option of having products in their hands within a few hours.

Before leading the courier service, Schofield was Royal Mail’s new business commercial director.

She led a team of 300 with the remit to establish Royal Mail as the delivery supplier of choice, primarily with SMEs all over the country.

She achieved this whilst also balancing a drive for profit with the scrutiny and regulation that comes with being part of the state postal service.

Schofield’s exposure to the small business world also led her to establish her own.

Best In Glass was a service akin to the likes of Tupperware parties and Jamie Oliver’s Jamie at Home service.

The company, which she co-founded and sat on the board of, delivered packs of drinks, accessories and cocktail recipes to homes with the aim of hosting parties and selling on more.

The business was later sold to Bacardi.

Having written a paper on small businesses, Schofield was recruited to the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills’ ‘red tape’ advisory panel.

The paper also evolved into her book, Mind The Gap, her ‘dice matrix’ business model, and her own consultancy.

As well as the many lessons in leadership, sales and innovation from Royal Mail, she also speaks about building a business, motivating a team, and women in business.

From her experience with SMEs and her dice matrix model, she highlights the six areas any business needs to consider from both an internal and a customer perspective.

The next AM Executive Breakfast Club meeting will take place on Friday, January 29, 2015, at Simpson's in the Strand, London.

Please note: Attendance is exclusively for senior franchised dealer group executives.

To attend email nicola.baxter@bauermedia.co.uk.