About Richard Maclennan: I’m Richard, before joining Appleyard Lees and training as a patent attorney I worked as a senior research scientist/study director on an EU research project. My role involved managing a number of different projects and experiments that were continuously producing data that needed to be reported to various stakeholders across Europe. From the first day working in my previous job I was given the overall responsibility to organise and run the projects in the way I saw best. This is not how most people’s first months as a trainee patent attorney usually go!
Over the last few months the Appleyard Lees Manchester office has slowly been brought back to life and people have started to return to the office. Personally, I am happy to be back in the office and not in the home office every day. Over the last year it feels like I have spent most of my time in one room in my house, either working, revising or taking exams!
Getting back to the office was one thing but I have been waiting for the first in-person event since early 2020. ‘Pitch in a Pub’ was my first foray back into the world of in-person networking. Organised by the Innovation Forum Manchester, ‘Pitch in a Pub’ brings entrepreneurs, academics, professionals, researchers, and students together to network and discuss all things life sciences, technology, and entrepreneurship. At this edition the ‘pitches’ were given by AEH Innovative Hydrogel, Simplex Molecular and Promake Ltd. The technology areas were diverse and included innovative agriculture practices using hydrogel, rapid antibody screening tests and 3D printing of medical innovations.
Every pitch had something of interest and the questions following each pitch showed that the audience was engaged with each one. It might have been down to the specific audience, but it felt like there were more questions and better engagement in person than online. Speaking to other attendees it was clear that most were glad to meet in person and discuss anything from their PhD research to track cycling over a drink rather than watching the pitches online. The various speakers also stayed afterwards to chat which would certainly have been harder online. Networking virtually was (and perhaps now is?) a necessity but in my opinion, networking in person can’t be entirely replaced.
