Making the announcement, Minister Bruton said: “If we are to rebuild the economy and create the jobs of the future in Ireland, we must not only continue to attract high-end multinational
companies, but we must also crucially ensure that more high potential small businesses can establish and expand here.”
The minister believes that “an indigenous engine of economic growth” is what is required if Ireland wants to create a successful future that everyone in the country is hoping for.
For this to be achieved Mr Bruton says that three elements must be fulfilled. Firstly, costs must be reduced and red tape must be eliminated. Secondly, access to finance must be improved and finally, a need to promote Irish innovation revolution. This, according to Bruton, can be achieved through government supports thus ensuring that start-ups can benefit from the vast experience of multinationals in Ireland.
Mr Bruton added that many of the 24 companies are operating in precisely the innovative sectors that the government is targeting for growth: clean tech, life sciences, ICT and financial services. “This comes on the back of Ireland’s continued improvement in world innovation rankings – 13th in the 2011 Global Innovation Index, up from 19th in 2010,” said Bruton.
“My plan to create an indigenous engine of economic growth will ensure that Government actions are directed towards ensuring that more companies like these can establish and grow and provide the basis for Ireland’s economic recovery.”
Commenting on the announcement, Greg Treston, Head of High Potential Start-Ups and Scaling at Enterprise Ireland said: “These 24 companies come from a broad range of sectors, confirming that there are significant opportunities for new export-focussed business start-ups … Enterprise Ireland is working closely with these companies in building their business and their
international market presence.”
According to Mr Treston these are ambitious companies, with highly innovative products and business development strategies that will enable them to gain a foothold in global markets, driving jobs and export sales growth at home.
The Epoch Times spoke to Mr Gary Murphy, Managing Director of MI-Zone, one of the companies singled out as a high potential start-up. MI-Zone manufactures and sells miniaturised, low-cost, electronic, remote Personal Asset Locator Devices which enable you to tag valuables such as laptops or even a person and thus monitors the proximity of the item to a mobile phone via a small active Bluetooth tag.
Mr Murphy said that Enterprise Ireland’s help has enabled the Company to actively recruit.
“It has definitely helped us to get in additional people that we need … if we didn’t have the funding we would not be able to do that,” said Mr Murphy.
“It’s critical that we get this help … the banks aren’t lending, if we did not have the help and assistance of Enterprise Ireland, not only on a financial but on a guidance role I don’t know where we would be, I don’t even think we would open the doors,” said Mr Murphy.
The financial assistance according to Mr Murphy is amazing and much needed. However, Enterprise Ireland also provide so much more in terms of guidance and advice that can’t be measured.
“If we have an issue and we need to look at costs that may be too high, we go to them and ask them what they think, they are basically like a bigger brother,” said Mr Murphy.
With respect to help for breaking into international markets Mr Murphy said that Enterprise Ireland provide a network on seminars in this area, the next of which is due to run in September in Dublin’s RDS, which he hopes to attend.
Presently MI-Zone are focusing on the production of their Electronic Tag which is due to be produced by Flextronics in Cork.
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