Here to help businesses understand and engage with the region
Understanding your market, engaging key stakeholders and navigating a changing economic and political landscape has never been more important.
Our Insight & Intelligence Services help organisations make informed decisions, identify opportunities and strengthen their understanding of the issues shaping Greater Birmingham and the wider region.
Services
Drawing on the Chamber's extensive business network, research expertise and stakeholder relationships, we provide tailored support that helps organisations access valuable insight, connect with influential stakeholders and achieve their strategic objectives.
Whether you're looking to commission research, engage with policymakers, understand regional trends or raise your profile among key audiences, we're here to help you turn insight into action.
Research
Good decisions start with good intelligence.
Our team delivers high-quality research and insight projects that help organisations better understand the issues, opportunities and trends shaping Greater Birmingham's economy.
Drawing on our extensive business network and research expertise, we can design and deliver bespoke projects that align with the Chamber's values and can include one or any combination of the following:
- Desk-based research
- Focus groups
- Business surveys
Whether you're exploring a new market, seeking business intelligence or looking to inform policy and investment decisions, we can provide the evidence and insight needed to support your objectives. Please get in touch.
Stakeholder engagement
Strong relationships create opportunities.
Our stakeholder engagement services help organisations build meaningful connections with the people and organisations shaping the future of Greater Birmingham, and could include:
- Roundtables with MPs, local businesses and/or local political figures
- Facilitating introductions to key regional contacts in the public and private sector
- Hosting briefing sessions on the current political landscape
- Stakeholder mapping
By connecting businesses with the right people at the right time, we help turn conversations into opportunities.
Tailored Communication Support
Communications & Profile Building
Tailored communication support is included as standard when you commission the Stakeholder Engagement or Research Services, and can include the following:
- Communicating outcomes of activities in the Greater Birmingham Business News e-newsletter, which reaches c.15,000 contacts daily
- Podcasts
- Blogs
Connections and Reach
Connections & Reach
Through the Chamber's extensive network, you can access one of the most influential business communities in the region, alongside senior stakeholders from local government, education, industry and policymaking.
Connections include:
- Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce Patrons
- Regional political bodies, including Combined Authority Executives
- Pan-regional delivery bodies, such as Midlands Engine and Midlands Connect
- Government Departments
- Members of Parliament
- Economic and political think tanks
- Local Authorities, such as Birmingham City Council
Bespoke Packages
Whether you're looking to understand the region better, engage key stakeholders or generate valuable business intelligence, our team can build a tailored package of activity around your business objectives.
Recent Insight & Intelligence Projects
Business Research: West Midlands and Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan
The Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce Policy Team has led the research and analysis underpinning the 2026 Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs) for the West Midlands and Warwickshire, each a statutory document funded by Skills England. Through collaboration with regional stakeholders, businesses and further education providers, the LSIPs aim to support delivery of skills provision to meet employer demand and facilitate regional growth. featuring insights from over 1,000 and 700 engagements with local employers respectively.
Business Research: Department for Business and Trade
Following the UK’s official exit from the EU on 31st January 2020 and the end of the transition period on 31st December 2020, the six Chambers of Commerce across the West Midlands partnered with the Department for Business and Trade to gauge local business’ recent experiences of trading with EU Member State counterparts. The research was led by the Policy and Strategic Relations team at The Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC) and supported by the Chambers of Coventry & Warwickshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Shropshire, and the Black Country.
Business Engagement and Communication Support: Colliers
Hilary Witts, Head of Operations (Ratings), Colliers: “We have been working with the Chamber for the past 5 years, providing advice on all business rates matters across the different sectors, sharing our views on current legislation and developments in the system and giving suggestions about how the business rates regime can be improved for rate payers, both in Birmingham and nationally.
“We regularly contribute blogs to the Chamber’s website, sometimes make joint statements with the Chamber’s policy team and also write for the Birmingham Economic Review. Our head of department also attends round tables and policy discussing events.
“We have a very good working relationship, with a two-way flow of information and thoughts. We find the team at GBCC personable and helpful with their fingers on the pulse in relation to ongoing issues that ratepayers are experiencing.
“The Birmingham market is very important to us and we have found that the relationship has put us in touch with many local companies, as well as taking the messages that we are trying to deliver wider afield, such as to the British Chamber. This helps with our lobbying for change for ratepayers. Overall we really appreciate the support GBCC provides for us.”
Business Research and Engagement: Birmingham City Council, Young People and Covid-19
The Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce conducted a bespoke research project with the Birmingham City Council Leader's Office. Through focus groups and surveying, the Chamber sought to gather business views on the impact of Covid-19 on young people (aged 16-24) and what needed to be done to prevent a ‘crisis cohort’ with diminished employment prospects and earning potential. This research contributed to Breaking down barriers: working towards Birmingham’s future supporting younger people into employment.
Mary Crofton, Cabinet Support Officer, Birmingham City Council "This was a high profile piece of research carried out at the height of the Covid pandemic, feeding into ‘Breaking Down Barriers’, the Birmingham City Council report into youth unemployment in the wake of Covid. We were very impressed by the work carried out by the Chambers, who carried out high quality research despite Covid-19 restrictions, provided valuable support and insight into the design of the project, and enabled us to massively increase our reach into the local business community. The quality, insight and presentation of the final report were all excellent. At all times we found them to be a responsive and highly professional research partner, providing regular updates and in-time feedback on the progress of the project."