January spells a time for reflection in the personal and professional lives of business owners and employees. How can they level up this year? What did they do wrong last year? What do they consider their biggest business achievements?

With 2018 in mind, a study from CV-Library revealed the ambitions of British staff for this year, which showed bosses should be prepared – some 77.2 per cent of respondents had made career-based resolutions.

The findings showed that the most popular target set by workers was to find a new job at 69 per cent, while others sought promotions and some wanted to build more of a connection with colleagues.

What are the thoughts of leaders at this contemplative time of the year though? We invited a few diverse leaders to join us for a chinwag on camera to hear about lows, highs, lessons and concerns for the year just past and the year ahead.

We were joined by:

• Julianne Ponan, CEO and founder of free-from health food business Creative Nature
• Akin Onal, founder and CEO of ethical infant clothing brand Mori
• David Grady, founder of The Wood Flooring Shop, an independent store based in New Malden
• Tim Lyons, MD of TrustedHousesitters, a sharing economy business connecting home owners to animal lovers, who will sit for free in return for a place to stay

All of these companies are in different growth stages and sectors, something we felt was important to offer an array of insights, with the first of four videos reviewing their biggest business achievements of 2017 but, importantly, how they got to that point.

For example, Ponan discusses how Creative Nature’s partnership with the Coop exceeded her expectations tenfold. Offering insights on her free-from company’s potential, she said: “The free-from industry is very very large, it’s growing to £673m by 2020.”

Elsewhere, Grady noted that company growth and increasing profit margins were two targets achieved thanks to a solid marketing strategy.

What do you consider your biggest business achievements of 2017? Hear how our guests felt about theirs below:

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