Galway Chamber

‘Gathering Four Decades of Innovation in Action’ took place in GMIT on Monday. The showcase event for the GMIT Business School was addressed by European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Máire Geoghegan-Quinn.
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The latest Action Plan for Jobs published on Friday outlines a number of key reforms that should do much to create the right environment for job creation. Reforms, such as the creation of incentives to get those in long term unemployment back to work, could have a significant impact.
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This column is at risk of turning into a potted Business 201 Lecture, having discussed networking and marketing in the past two weeks. This week it’s the turn of sponsorship, prompted by the good news on Monday that local man Pat McDonagh and Supermac’s will sponsor both the Galway Senior Football and Hurling teams for at least the next two years and possibly longer.
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Networking is a word that has become very much part of the daily business vocabulary. It has many definitions, including: a)‘a supportive system of sharing information and services among individuals and groups having a common interest’; b)’Creating a group of acquaintances and associates and keeping it active through regular communication for mutual benefit.
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Galway Chamber members kicked off 2012 with a statement from President Declan Dooley citing the challenges the year would bring, particularly in the areas of consumer confidence and access to credit for business.
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I was delighted to be a guest at the IMDA Awards Dinner last Thursday night in the Radisson Hotel. IMDA is the Irish Medical Devices Association. It is the organisation whose aim it is to promote the development of a sustainable Medical Device Technology (MedTech) Sector.
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I had the pleasure of chairing the annual KPMG Budget Breakfast in the Ardilaun Hotel last Wednesday. As usual, there was a large attendance and as usual NUI Galway’s Professor Tom Boylan delivered a master-class on the macroeconomic and international context for the Government’s 2013 Budget.
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There’s a fresh smell of paint in the Coyle household, so Christmas is definitely on the way. And there has been a definite sense of Christmas following the launch of the Christmas Market and the switching on of the Christmas lights.
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In advance of next week’s Budget, there are a couple of issues that need to be highlighted this week. Firstly, the timing of the Budget is tough. Christmas time is the big spend time. As I said last week traditionally we spend more in the run up to Christmas than we do at any other time of the year.
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In a recent article, consumer affairs journalist Conor Pope estimated that households in this country on average will spend a whopping €2,000 each this Christmas. His estimation is more than double the €966 predicted by Deloitte.
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At a prestigious event in the Connaught Rooms in Covent Garden, London last Friday night, Galway was awarded ‘Great Town of the Year’ by the Academy of Urbanism, having beaten off stiff competition from 50 towns and small cities across Ireland and the UK.
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This year Galway Chamber’s Pre-Budget Submission to Government is titled ‘Create Confidence, Cut Costs of Employment’ based on what our members consider to be the most crucial needs and wants of the business community.
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Entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of any business community. They are the visionaries and the risk takers. When the 2012 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards were presented last month, a group of outstanding Irish entrepreneurs were recognised for their achievements.
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Chambers Ireland, the umbrella organisation of affiliated Chambers in Ireland has called on the Government to deliver on Local Government reform. In a statement they said that the Programme for Government made the reform of Local Government a major priority and now, the organisation on behalf of affiliated Chambers is calling on the Government to fully implement reforms in areas such as water charges, local property taxes and business rates and also in the structure of local government without any further delay.
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