CEO and founder of ROCK, one of Wales fastest growing businesses and renowned as ‘best place to work’, ROB DANCE takes a monumental business risk in expanding his business ventures, separate from ROCK to share his knowledge and resources with the local community.

ROCK was established in May 2008 amidst the UK-wide credit crunch. Beginning with £1,000 and founder Rob Dance’s parents’ garage, ROCK has become one of the UK’s fastest growing businesses. Always ahead of the curve, Rob’s IT solutions preceded the mainstream adoption of AI, automation, machine learning and analytics. During the COVID-19 pandemic ROCK increased business profits tenfold and provided increased benefits and salaries for employees as a way of giving back for their hard work and dedication. This led to ROCK being voted as Best Place to Work in the UK multiple times. ROCK also has an impressive 99.2% client renewal rate.

In recognition of his incredible achievements, Rob was the recipient of the accolades ‘Young Director of the Year’ and ‘British Entrepreneur of the Year’ in the last five years.

“I ran into many hurdles when building my business, made some mistakes and learned how to achieve these wins the hard way” says Rob, who has a three-year-old son, who he credits as one of his core inspirations for his latest venture. “I want to give people the tools to empower them to make that step, take that action towards success beyond the stars!”

This hunger to empower others to take action towards their own self-improvement will see Rob take on a new venture on top of ROCK, to support his community. Launching several new initiatives such as a mentorship and financial support campaign for young people interested in starting businesses, school visits, coding sessions and advice sessions on how to make AI systems such as Chat GPT less intimidating for the masses.

Later this year, Rob will also be launching a podcast and video series featuring several high-profile guests that aims to empower listeners to see their perceived failures or challenges into “steppingstones” into something greater, which is his biggest takeaway from Dance’s two decades in the business world.

Rob is keen to hear from his community. What do they want to know about being successful in their careers, or launching and scaling a business? He’s also interested in supporting on the rise of artificial intelligence and leveraging technology in such a tense economic climate. Contact Rob through his social media links: @RobDance_