Pictured are (l to r) Tom Mackey, Chairmain of Limerick City Enterprise Board and Eamon Ryan, CEO of Limerick City Enterprise Board
Some information on the vital role which Limerick City Enterprise Board played in the local economy in 2011 and will continue to play in 2012:
Tom Mackey, Chairman of Limerick City Enterprise Board recently announced details of job creation supported by the Board in 2011 together with details of the Board’s training and development support provided to Limerick City businesses during the year.
369 new jobs were created in 2011 by businesses grant aided by the Board, this was comprised of 241 full time and 128 part time jobs. As at December 2011 and taking into account company closures and job losses during 2011, there was an overall net gain of 100 full time and 61 part time jobs or 161 additional persons in employment in the City in small business supported by the Board.
84 new businesses started in 2011 with the support of the Board, most of them employing 1-3 people. These figures include the businesses supported by Limerick City Enterprise Board through funding from the DELL European Globalisation Fund (EGF).
Overall, 225 businesses in the City, supported by the Board, now employ 1499 full time and 535 part time persons. While some of these businesses are new others have been in business since the Board started its work in 1993.
Eamon Ryan, CEO of Limerick City Enterprise Board said today, “We were delighted to be able to play our part in assisting job creation by businesses in Limerick City during 2011. It was a difficult year for many and 2012 is set to be challenging also. However, Richard Bruton, Minister for Jobs Enterprise and Innovation has confirmed that the Board’s budget for small business support in 2012 will be retained at the same level as in 2011. This means that the Board can continue to support individuals who wish to start or expand a small business in the City. While it is unlikely that as many new jobs will be created in 2012 it is expected that the creation of at least 50 new jobs in the City will be supported by the Board. In addition a full Training and Development programme will be available to all business owner managers to help them to sustain, develop and grow their businesses for the future.”
A major focus for Limerick City Enterprise Board during 2011 was assisting those with business ideas to get those ideas off the ground, the technology and software sectors were very strong, in particular start ups by graduates of the University of Limerick and LIT. In addition, those former employees of Dell who qualified for grants from the Dell EGF fund were a significant part of the Board’s focus for 2011.
As part of Limerick City Enterprise Board’s ongoing commitment to small business training and development, 1000 participants took part in some aspect of the Board’s training and development programme in 2011, 372 of these were male and 628 female. This figure shows an increase of 231 on the comparative 2010 figure.
The training and development programmes of the Board are divided into seminars and workshops, mentoring and advice, skills training and development programmes, business development programmes, management development programmes, and networking opportunities.
There is a significant trend emerging towards ebusiness programmes such as Online Marketing, Social Media, Using eBay, Facebook Marketing and this area of training was oversubscribed, attracting over 150 participants.
There was a strong demand for traditional programmes on basic bookkeeping, branding, business planning and marketing with over 200 participants in this area.
Start Your Own Business Programmes were run for 64 participants during the year and Management Development Programmes like Accelerate (11), PLATO (20) and a special Management Development Programme for Owner Managers in the Childcare sector (11) were very well supported.
General networking events, including Women in Business events, continue to be in demand and had an attendance of between 30 and 70 depending on the speaker.
The CEBs in Ireland were established by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise & Innovation with responsibility for promoting Enterprise through training, mentoring and financial assistance.
CEBs provide direct grant support to new and existing enterprises, and are uniquely positioned to understand local needs and know the background and track record of those applying for support and assistance.
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