Jim French joined Flybe in 1990 when it was Jersey European Airways. By 2001
he was managing director, presiding over a plan to transform a loss-making
airline into a leading low-fare carrier. He was appointed chairman and chief
executive in 2005 and led the acquisition of BA Connect, which doubled the
size of Flybe, creating Europe’s largest regional airline.
What is your entrepreneurial background?
I have always been very motivated in terms of delivery, right from when I
started out in the airline industry. The entrepreneur side came in when the
company was facing closure, losing more than £20m a year.
I started working with a team in 2002 to craft some pretty clever deals to
fund the turnround without any recourse to the shareholders. We had to bring
about £40m into the business to fund the transition and that’s when we
started clicking into deals with suppliers and aircraft manufacturers, and
selling off assets without selling the family silver. Then there was the
acquisition of British Airways’ regional business, Connect. That was a very
big entrepreneurial win, which has really transformed the size, shape, scale
and profitability of our business.
Why did you agree to become a judge?
I took it as a great compliment for me personally but also the business –
Flybe is recognised now as a prestigious company. The other thing is that I
have always liked to learn, to see what other people are doing. Through the
process of being a judge you actually learn as well.
Why is the Entrepreneur Challenge important?
The whole buzz of the challenge stimulates delivery, it rewards excellence and
it builds for the future of the company through financial support. There is
also exposure – if the company is seen to be one of the candidates for the
award then it must first of all put itself in the position of being noticed.
Then it has to convince people it has a good strategy and then it has to
deliver. Some companies may be growing their business without having to go
into financial markets for funding.
The very process they are going though will give them exposure of how to
present their business to other people.
What will you look for in a competition entry?
The most important thing is a clear strategy. You must have a simple and clear
plan and a management team that has the capability, skills and resources to
deliver it. You must also have strong communications skills, both internally
and externally. There is no point telling customers how good you are if the
staff don’t know what you are trying to do.
How important is it to have a mentor, and how can they help your business?
It has been incredibly rewarding to me right from the outset of my
professional career. You have good bosses and bad bosses and I have been
very fortunate that the vast majority have been exceptionally good – bosses
who were prepared to assist, encourage and teach.
That is critically important in life and I think that, if you follow this
simple principle, you hand it down. One of the satisfying things I find now
is seeing people progress through Flybe, encouraging them to expand their
own skills and capabilities. That is one of the greatest joys of being in a
successful business.
Why is encouraging enterprise in Britain so important?
It is probably not politically correct to say it, but wealth creation is
important. From a regional perspective, it is critically important because
if you are looking to develop the regions you need to have business –
business is the lifeblood of the community. For a long time there was a
heavy concentration of this in southeast England, but it has spread out to
the regions.
What we have seen in the past decade is that a lot of very good people now
prefer to live in the regions, develop their businesses in the regions and
the regions are benefiting from that.
What makes a successful entrepreneur?
Self-belief. You must believe in what you are trying to achieve with an
absolute passion and determination to see it through. Energy, enthusiasm and
leadership – all the classics.
You have to show leadership, but to me it is not about motivation in terms of
demonstrating by example, it is also communicating, it is getting your
people to understand what they are doing, why they are doing it and what we
are trying to achieve out of it.
If you package all these into one parcel, you get quite an exciting
opportunity there.
How important an incentive is money to entrepreneurs?
The first thing is the idea, whether it is to create a new product or, in my
case, turn round an ailing business. It is the idea, the delivery and then
at the end of the day it is the wealth creation. If you start out by saying
you are going to make money, you are probably going to be a banker.
