About Me

Ideas for Change was set up by Sanjee Ratnatunga to provide comprehensive project management services for those engaged in enterprise, business,  and skills support.

Every economic development and regeneration strategy over the past twenty years has recognised the importance of enterprise, business and skills for their local area, despite this, persistent economic challenges remain.  Why?  Often because we are not doing enough of the right things for long enough to have an impact, we sometimes continue to do the wrong things because they are easy to count and very few of us want to stick our heads above the parapet and try an alternative approach. Now more than ever, we need to start thinking about what is sustainable and right for local economies and start finding ways to provide the support that we know works. 

Ideas for Change is a way of supporting those that are on a mission to do what is right for local economies, those that want to make a difference and have a long lasting impact. I can help you develop your strategies and action plans, or generate project ideas and deliver projects for you. I am a qualified economist, an economic development practitioner and a project and programme manager.

Let me support your organisation to develop and deliver the very best enterprise, business  and skills support projects.

Experience

Sanjee Ratnatunga is a qualified economist and economic development practitioner who has been working in the North East of England for twenty years. She has an excellent track record in developing and managing successful business support services.  Having worked extensively with a range of public and private sector partners she has developed a strong understanding of the key economic challenges and opportunities facing the region.

Sanjee worked for the Regional Development Agency, One North East from 2006 until 2011 prior to its closure and was responsible at different times for the delivery of the Enterprise, Skills and Economic Inclusion programmes. These programmes were complex, multi-million pound programmes delivering some of the RDA’s key outputs and outcomes. Sanjee also worked for the former Business Link Tyne and Wear where she managed the start up services delivered by a collaboration of enterprise agencies and ran the developing new markets project for businesses. 

Sanjee worked in North Tyneside Council’s economic development team where she had various roles, researching labour markets, initiating and delivering an award winning micro-clustering project and finally heading up the Council’s business support services. Sanjee has extensive experience in bidding and securing funds through the European Regional Development fund, European Social fund and various government initiatives.

Sanjee is strongly motivated by exploring fresh thinking and new approaches to understand persistent economic challenges.  This led her to introduce the concept of psychographic segmentation to understand the pre-start enterprise market as part of the regional enterprise framework, explore the concept of micro clustering as a way of developing high growth companies and encourage those delivering enterprise support to embrace the concept of measuring and recording enterprise readiness.

During her career, she has spoken at International and national conferences on business and enterprise thinking and policy development.  She has presented regularly to Newcastle University’s MBA students on regional enterprise policy development

Sanjee has an open, collaborative and engaging style which has led her to develop several effective partnerships and a strong professional network in the North East. Through Ideas for Change, she is keen to bring this thinking and her networks to develop and support your organisation.