Reinvention will lead to transformation – Bruton

MINISTER for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, was the keynote speaker at the Shannon Chamber luncheon last Friday and told those present we need to “totally reinvent ourselves” in order to transform our economy.
In his keynote address, Minister Bruton said, “It is not about getting back to where we were but we really have to totally reinvent ourselves and that is an enormous challenge to everybody, not just those in business. Things did go wrong and people might say it’s not anything to do with an ordinary family but of course it is, because it was the decisions that families make and the career choices that are made that do make a difference to whether we are able to transform our economy.”
He highlighted the number of people who took up engineering and technology degrees between 2001 and 2010 was halved and commented, “The impact of the wrong road that was travelled in respect of property and banking also had its impact on the sectors that are our future”.
“We lost our export market shares, so we do have a huge task of transformation and it is enterprise that is at the heart of undertaking that. I believe that the Government has a huge part to play. People talk about creating jobs but I know that it is enterprise and you that create jobs but that the Government has to create the environment in which that is possible and that is the challenge we face,” he said.
However, while he admitted that things seemed “glum” at present, it was important to recognise what has been achieved to date, he spoke in particular of the restructuring of the banks and the securing of a better deal in terms of borrowing arrangements.
“We have become more competitive, that is reflective now as we are rewinning our export markets, we’ve had a good year in exports and an exceptionally good year from the IDA with 13,000 new jobs, a 20% increase on the year before. We are still a country whose business environment is still attracting the most innovative and creative companies in the world. We still have acute clusters of strengths. As a country, we are paying our way and starting to pay back the debts that have been built up. So much is about competence and it is very important we understand where we come from and what we are achieving. So the challenge for us is creating a new future. We can’t look back at what we were in the past,” he said.
The minister added, “If we are to create the jobs and growth we so badly need, we are going to have to undertake radical reform across the entire economy to make it easier for businesses to create employment. This means, above all, reducing costs, improving access to finance, providing better and more supports to job-creating businesses and putting innovation at the centre of everything we do.
“This will not happen overnight. We will have to grind out the reforms one by one if we are going to achieve the Government’s ambition of making Ireland the best small country in which to do business. They will be painful for some people, particularly in sheltered parts of the public and private sector and we will need support if we are to drive them through. However, if we are to build a strong economy with solid foundations, this is where the hard work must start. In next month’s Action Plan for Jobs, we will begin a rigorous, monitored process of driving changes across Government and the economy to improve the business environment and enable the creation of the jobs we need.”
Also speaking at the event, Shannon Chamber president, Damian Gleeson, said encouraging the growth and survival of existing enterprise “is as imperative for Ireland’s future economic growth as is the stimulation of entrepreneurship”.
Welcoming the efforts being expended by the Government and its development agencies on starting new businesses, Mr Gleeson called for a sustained and concerted effort by all involved in enterprise support, including the business community, to identify ways and means of growing the existing base of strong, indigenous companies.
Citing Shannon-based CREGG Group as an example of a company who, through lateral thinking, has simultaneously enhanced its existing operations and brought a major international brand to Shannon, ZAGG International, Mr Gleeson said, “A potential 130 extra jobs, announced last year by Minister Bruton and supported by Shannon Development, are being created by CREGG at Shannon, as a result of the company’s initiative to identify a company in the US with a similar process to itself and a desire to site an operation within Europe.
“This has had a positive outcome for Shannon/Ireland – 70 of the jobs have been filled in the past nine months. It has sustained the company’s existing base at Shannon and brought in new skills and new products. This level of initiative, where companies undertake direct intervention in the marketplace on behalf of themselves and Ireland, needs to be encouraged and acknowledged.
“More than ever before, Ireland needs businesses that have a sustainable future, both indigenous and multinationals. We should not be exporting an intellectual generation that has cost so much to educate. The onus is on everyone to stimulate entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial endeavour and to remove any impediments that hinder us from retaining our reputation as a location and nation of innovative renown.
“The business sector, both indigenous and multinationals, are struggling to survive and costs such as local authority charges and redundancy-associated costs are eating into their cash flows. Any alleviation of charges in these areas would ease some of the financial burden businesses are now faced with. We are operating in a period of unprecedented economic turmoil but it must be a case of all avenues explored to weather the storm,” The Shannon Chamber president concluded.

Innnovation centre for start-up businesses officially opens its doors

WHILE in the county last Friday, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton, officially launched Ennis Innovate the Regional Innovation Centre in Ennis.
The new centre will provide support to start-up companies as they progress from business idea stage to commercialisation.
Based in the Shannon Development  Information Age Park in Ennis, the centre will support and guide companies through the start-up process and provide them with introductions and linkages to relevant support bodies and processes, ultimately improving their chance of success.
“This is the sort of thing we need to see happening more around the country,” Minister Bruton said. “We took a wrong turning and we have to reinvent the sort of economy we are. A key part of the Government’s plan to get growth and jobs back into the economy again is supporting start-up companies. Only a strong indigenous engine can create and sustain the levels of employment we need and in the Action Plan for Jobs, the Government will be implementing a series of measures to support start-up businesses.
“Ennis Innovate is a great example of a co-ordinated approach by Government, academic institutions and funding providers to support start-up business and job creation, I congratulate all involved and wish them every success.”
Ennis Innovate will be a resource for all start-up companies providing entrepreneurs with business skills, networks, facilities and supports necessary to navigate the business start-up process. The centre will provide participants with business acumen, concept desk space, mentoring, networking and facilities required to run a new business.
The new Innovation Centre is funded by NUI Galway, University of Limerick, Shannon Development, Clare County Council and Ennis Town Council and will also draw on the combined experience of its partners Clare County Enterprise Board and Clare Local Development Company in fostering and supporting enterprise development.
President of NUI Galway, Dr Jim Browne, told those present the universities have a major role to play in developing entrepreneurship and innovation in the Irish economy.
He said the initiative “will enable entrepreneurs in the West and Mid-West Regions to gain access to the support and skills they need to bring their businesses to the next level”.
Denis Sheehy, director of Enspire Renewable Technologies Ltd, which is a start-up business, outlined the benefits of the initiative and described the main issues as being financial, along with a gap in the knowledge base. “The Ennis Innovate programme creates a structure where start-ups are introduced to a centre of knowledge or excellence, they are introduced to experts in their field across a range of sectors then they transfer their knowledge to the start-ups, which gives them a real boost to know where the pitfalls are or where problems are. With that knowledge comes the ability to sort out the financials and it is that knowledge gap that is vital when you are a start up,” he said.

Magico seek minister’s support for project

MINISTER Richard Bruton met with eCommerce software company Magico on the final stop of his visit to County Clare.
The business, founded in Ennis 12 years ago by Paul Montwill, employs 10 people and their business primarily helps companies sell their products and services online.
The minister was given a demonstration of a new project the company is working on with the potential to get more Irish companies to sell their wares online, thereby opening up their market on an international scale.
Minister Bruton set up an online shop and website in under 10 minutes through the innovative eCommerce software platform.
During his meeting, Magico advised the minister they would be able to offer this new software to all small businesses free if the Government was interested in getting on board and initiating a rollout campaign nationally.
The minister was told the solution is currently being piloted in 15 companies and is suitable to any business that sells and can post or ship its product.
It was pointed out to the minister that in order to purchase many items online in Ireland, a non-Irish-based website must be accessed to do so, with the potential benefit of such sales leaving the country.
Minister Bruton commented, “We are looking for ideas like this so it sounds like something that would be very useful”.
Sean O’Kelly of Magico added this is also a useful tool for businesses selling to other businesses.
“Business-to-business ecommerce isn’t happening in Ireland at all, so when an Irish company gets online and they have stuff that other companies want to buy, then their visibility suddenly goes up and that’s really important, so it would involve the same software doing the same job but in a different way,” he said.
In conclusion, Minister Bruton pledged he would look into how the project could be advanced.