The workshop was run on a University campus, which was seen as being an ‘honest broker’ in facilitating interaction. The practitioners were not put in a compromised position such as being ‘sold’ a product. The participants were put up
in a local hotel the night before to allow for an early morning start and to encourage networking. People from both sides of the process were able to network, which allowed some of the frenzy one can sometimes see at ‘events’ centring on
networking, to dissipate. A brochure was published carrying a profile of the participants including contact details and company background. This again allowed the SME owner-manager to relax somewhat on the networking front, when
participating in the workshop process proper. The workshop was run over a period of a morning to encourage the participants to apply themselves over a sustainable period, and this schedule also allowed them to organise meetings within the locality or on the trip home. Considerations of this nature were found to facilitate participants and made the process more accessible and enjoyable as a result.