We were delighted to see Lightfoot take the award for Best Performing Company Overall in 2023. Founder Mark Roberts told us how continuous, sustainable innovation was helping his business thrive. “Everyone in the business is in it together to get it to the next stage,” he said.

Another talent-centric tech business to watch this year is Zenzero, a Microsoft Gold Partner, which provides future-ready managed IT, cyber, data and digital services to SME and mid-market customers. The business has an exciting phase of development in motion alongside a clear strategic plan of M&A and organic growth. 

CEO Michael Bateman says the growth strategy revolves around three key areas: People, service, and business, and he’s intent on building a business that is fit for the future in a meaningful way (B Corp status is imminent).

“People in Zenzero are important and each of them drive organic and acquisitive growth. We track the people side of our business really carefully through Employee Net Promoter Scores, internal moves and promotions, training and certifications, plus industry recognition, especially from Microsoft as we're a Microsoft partner.

“We also make sure we’re at the forefront of technology for our customers. We measure that in terms of new products and services, as well as things like automation: how are we supercharging our capabilities in machine learning and large language models, for example?

“And we stay absolutely focused on growth – is our message resonating, are our marketing campaigns getting us in front of the right people for organic growth? We’ve borrowed some B2C approaches and applied those to B2B sales, for example. We pursue high-quality acquisitions, based on established relationships so we can build a cohesive and integrated unit for the future: one team, one mission,” says Michael.

Neil Bellamy, our Head of Technology, Media & Communications says: “We’re delighted to be the banking partner for both Lightfoot and Zenzero as they’re exactly the type of firms we are looking to support early in their high growth journey. These firms are so important for the future UK economy - being productive, innovative, internationally focused, diverse and, as we’ve highlighted, good corporate citizens too.”

Our founding sponsorship of the Megabuyte Emerging Stars programme provides a unique and valuable spotlight on the very best in Tech. Meet the shortlisted companies here.

The Megabuyte 100 Awards take place this year on 14 March. 

Look out for our full interview with Michael in April where he shares his insight on M&A, attaining B Corp status, and the opportunities and challenges from AI.