When the British men's 4x100m relay team won Olympic gold in Athens it was one of those glorious examples of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.

As a motivated, focused unit, the runners had performed above themselves to achieve something which on paper - and according to most of the pundits - was beyond them.

Helping businesses punch above their weight is one of the main aims of the Hub 100, a membership-led group designed to help chief executives and managing directors in Brighton and Hove achieve their goals.

The scheme, launched in September 2002 by the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA), is for businesses with the most potential and most hunger.

Size and turnover are not important. Members range from small web design companies to the subsidiaries of major travel companies and tailors to structural engineers.

The key criteria is ambition, combined with a degree of credibility.

Members have to pass a rigorous vetting procedure by accountancy firm Baker Tilly before joining the Hub and show that they are serious about achieving growth.

So far the Hub claims to have helped its 20 longest-standing businesses achieve combined revenue growth of 37 per per cent - or £38 million - since February 2003.

The Hub, which now has 103 members, involves work groups, seminars and a business friend scheme which teams up CEOs and MDs.

It is meant to go far beyond traditional networking and while active participation is not mandatory the Hub is publicly funded and members are expected to earn their place at the table.

To make the scheme as cost-efficient as possible, meetings are held in the boardrooms of member companies rather than expensive venues.

In its first full year it is estimated Hub members collectively contributed more than 1,000 hours of their time to meetings which take place during work hours.

Hub managing director John Burns said: "The aim of the Hub 100 is to take some cherry-picked, ambitious companies and help them achieve their ambitions.

"The more they put in the more they are likely to get out of it and while we haven't chucked anyone off as such, a couple have withered on the vine."

The Hub is still funded by SEEDA which has ploughed £500,000 into the project but its role as sole provider is about to come to an end.

From next month the Learning and Skills Council, and possibly Sussex Enterprise, will help fund the initiative. An annual membership fee of £500 will also be introduced.

Mr Burns said: "In the worse possible scenario the membership fee could lose us about a third of our members but we still have a very steady stream.

"Over the next three years we are going to have to make it one of our priorities to find alternative sources of funding - including commercial sponsorship - to make the Hub sustainable.

"But obviously we will have to be very careful when doing that not to compromise the benefits that our members enjoy at the moment."

Currently, there is a governing board, chaired by broadcaster Simon Fanshawe.

Members include Bill Taylor, managing director of Brighton Sheet Metal, Pete Tyler, managing director of Neilson Active Holidays, Greg Roach, director of XPS Printers, Tony Nisbett, managing director of Helmstone Communications, Emily Aitken, executive director of Wired Sussex, and Scott Marshall, head of economic development and regeneration for Brighton and Hove City Council.

Mr Roach said the Hub - now based in Old Steine, Brighton, had enormous benefits for the city's economy.

He said: "One of the huge things about the Hub is putting CEOs in touch with others so they know what services are on offer on their own doorstep.

Since joining 12 months ago we have started using local suppliers whereas before we might have been going to London."

For more info visit www.thehub100.com