and Labour Activation Measures 45 6. Business Process Outsourcing & Shared Services and the South East Region 50 7. Higher education and Research 63 8. Local
Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation of 14 september 2011 for input to the preparation of an employment action plan for the South East region.
It includes inputs from Enterprise Ireland (EI), IDA and SFI, Fás, the HEA and Fáilte Ireland and other stakeholders,
The policy focus needs to remain over the next three to five year period on the continued upgrading of the existing base of enterprise.
There is a need to increase the contribution of employment and value-added from exporting manufacturing and internationally trading services enterprises,
A continued shorter term focus on attracting a replacement activity to Waterford is essential (including a focus on business process outsourcing BPO)/ international services activities),
A. Development of the Regional Gateway and Effective Promotion of the Region Waterford and the South East region have undergone a period of catch up in terms of infrastructure investment
graduate output and recognised research strengths and a growing enterprise base in modern sectors. Specifically the development of the Belview Strategic Site is a particular advantage for manufacturing and services businesses.
The restructuring of the local authorities in Waterford, combining the City and County Councils is welcome
and areas of opportunity should be developed by means of a coordinated approach, involving the enterprise agencies, local authorities and other regional stakeholders.
A2. Accelerated Development of the Waterford Gateway A review of the Planning and Land use and Transport Strategy (PLUTS) and the Strategy for Economic, Social and Cultural Development of Waterford City 2002-2012 should be undertaken under the auspices
Particular attention should be brought to bear on barriers to enterprise development including: completion of the Viking Quarter and Historical Quarter an integrated regional tourism marketing strategy that incorporates multiple locations and attractions within the region.
The Government has committed to completion of this initiative as part of the Infrastructure and Capital Programme 2012-16 announced on 10 november 2011;
B. Upgrading the Regional Enterprise Mix The enterprise development agencies will adopt a‘spotlight on Waterford
Stimulating Entrepreneurship and new business start-ups The analysis demonstrates that the South East has the potential to increase the level of entrepreneurship and sustainable new business start-ups.
EI will continue to work in collaboration with the County Enterprise Boards (CEBS) and intensify promotion activities in the region.
In co-operation with the CEBS additional Ideagen and Enterprise Start events will be held in the region in 2012 building on those in Q4 2011.
SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS The Enterprise Platform Programme to incubate early stage businesses will recommence in a new format in Q1 2012.
Initiatives will focus on entrepreneurship and management training, one stop shop/online knowledge base, awareness raising and micro-finance.
and upgrading of existing enterprise base The analysis highlights a clear need for continued focus on securing the sustainability
and upgrading of the existing enterprise base and identifying new business opportunities. IDA Ireland will continue to focus on sustainability and growth opportunities through intense engagement with client companies in the South East Region.
EI will continue engagement with established clients in the region to discuss potential opportunities. A very close relationship is maintained with these clients by the Development Advisers
and an intensive round of new meetings started in September. A number of projects have been identified in Q4 2011 to be developed further, particularly in the food sector.
In addition, EI will: -systematically reach out to companies on a one to one basis that would have less active interaction with EI,
-continue to support enterprise led initiatives in the region, in particular the Spirit of Enterprise Forum and FUSE.
A concerted regional approach focused on building a supportive business environment within the region informed by the needs of the sectors highlighted below should be advanced.
A focused and regionally coordinated approach needs to be taken to define opportunities specific to the region within the national context,
and to drive actions to mobilise the regional ecosystem to improve its attractiveness for enterprise investment1.
Existing structures (such as the RPG Implementation group), could be adapted to bring together sectoral expertise within the enterprise agencies and other relevant bodies (e g.
and other relevant stakeholders as and when appropriate. Tourism: build on the progress achieved to date under the Fáilte Ireland operational plan for the region.
There are significant opportunities to increase national primary production in the dairy and beef sectors, by up to 50 percent,
Engineering and Services Sectors in WIT and additional workshops will be held in Q1 2012. Cleantech: There is potential to build on regional strengths in construction and engineering,
and leverage regional assets such as Waterford Port, road and rail links to exploit opportunities in renewable energy supply chains.
and IDA and EI will continue to engage in discussions on supply chain opportunities for the region.
-A clear value proposition and coordinated marketing is required to realise opportunities in the cleantech sector for the region.
the agencies will have a spotlight on Waterford for Lifesciences investment and seek to develop collaborative initiatives in connected health
and Silver-technologies. 1 Including entrepreneurship, indigenous investment and foreign direct investment SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS Internationally trading services.
With improved access, broadband and the research and graduate output in the region, Waterford has the potential to develop activities in areas such as Cloud computing, egames, international and financial services, ecommerce and other content businesses.
EI and IDA will continue to pursue opportunities in these areas building in particular on the evaluation and research strengths in the region.
A key part of developing the enterprise base in the South East region is to ensure that the management has the capability
WIT is particularly strong among Iots nationally in terms of enterprise relevant skills development, research and linkages.
There is scope for greater HEI/enterprise collaboration and to build further on the success to date in research commercialisation to underpin enterprise growth in the region.
A programme of structured engagement between the key research groups in the Iots within the region
and the enterprise agencies sector teams and SFI should be developed and implemented over the coming 12 months to:
-identify potential collaboration opportunities with existing enterprises in the region; -identify research partnerships with other HEIS nationally
and the marketing of the region for mobile investment particularly in emerging sectors (including cleantech, biotechnology, Cloud, digital media (& egames) and advanced manufacturing.
and BPO related activity in the South East The enterprise development agencies are taking steps to try to secure additional investment in contact management
IDA actions underway IDA is very active in seeking to win additional investment for Waterford utilising the skill sets of the Talk Talk employees, the ready-togo facility and the Gateway location
and commenced engagement with relevant companies to highlight the attractiveness of this facility as a potential opportunity for a Greenfield investment or as an expansion opportunity.
Enterprise Ireland actions underway EI is progressing a number of actions to support the Talk Talk workers impacted.
Mentor appointed to one group of employees exploring business opportunity in call centre related activities. EI is undertaking a broader range of initiatives within the South East region to intensify their efforts on start-ups.
The fall off in opportunities in construction and traditional manufacturing has a particularly hard impact on certain occupational groups, in crafts and production operatives.
Fás Training Services will continue to provide appropriate training options in 2012 across a wide range of courses,
In October 2011 Skillnets announced an investment of €250, 000 for the immediate provision of training for Talk Talk employees,
and relevance of education and training responses to future enterprise needs and to identify any gaps in provision.
On 17 october 2011 Skillnets announced an investment of €250, 000 for the immediate provision of training for Talk Talk employees,
Job Opportunities in personal services Review the potential for further employment in the personal services areas and any barriers to jobseekers taking up opportunities available in the region.
E. Progressing Regional Infrastructure Priorities Forfás has undertaken a review of infrastructures nationally in the context of enterprise development objectives of the agencies,
In addition, a number of road infrastructure projects have been prioritised by the enterprise agencies as set out below.
where improved road infrastructure would improve access to Cork and Shannon for air services. The Government has committed to providing capital and operational funding to Waterford Airport post 2012
which the Government has committed to deliver by PPP as part of the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Programme 2012-16 announced on 10 november 2011.
SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS 1. Background and Context Introduction All of the regions in Ireland have potential for economic growth and employment creation.
and the need for continued focus at the national and regional level on both maintaining competitiveness, identifying new opportunities and building on strengths.
ongoing structural adjustment within the regional economy and the region's unique locational factors, including a dispersed urban configuration with a less than dominant regional Gateway and for many parts of the region, international accessibility
and sectoral potential with a view to focusing attention on specific actions required to support enterprise potential and employment creation.
QNHS, Q1 2007,2011 16 Although services employment has grown in the South East, at least in the period up to 2007,
26.2%452,000 21.6%485,700 26.9%Other Services 75,900 34.7%70,500 37.5%863,300 41.3%731 600 40.5%Source:
P (Education) and Q (Human Health and Social work)- P&q may contain private sector employees 5 Employment in companies that are clients of the enterprise agencies;
Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland, Shannon Development and Údarás na Gaeltachta 6 Based on total employment reported in CSO QNHS Q1 2010 5,
EI has 430 clients in the region employing 18,237 people, with exports of over €2. 2bn and purchases of €2bn in the economy.
These enterprises account for 9 percent of EI clients and almost 20 percent of their large firms (employing greater than 250).
and over the early 2000s there was a shift in employment to more modern sectors with growth in employment in indigenous internationally traded services enterprises and in more modern manufacturing.
There are 11 companies that had employed up to 1, 000 at mid-2011 in customer contact and business services operations in the region.
There were 11 investment/job announcements in the region from 2008 to 2011 of which five were for Waterford City and County.
are international financial services (for example, Citi, PFPC, Unum, Zurich) and other international services (Rigney Dolphin, Netwatch, Intellicom).
Forfás Annual Employment Survey 2010 Small firms and entrepreneurship There are 20,947 micro enterprises with less than 10 employees in the South East region and an additional 1,
556 small businesses with between 10 and 49 employee taken together this is about 11.5 percent of the total small enterprises in the State7.
The region has a proportionally higher number of people employed in micro enterprises (those employing less than 10) than the average for the State.
Trend data over the period 2006 to 2009 shows that the number of small enterprises
EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS The GEM entrepreneurship survey found that the level of early stage entrepreneurship within the South East (in 2008) was compared relatively high to other regions in Ireland.
Overall, EI would view the level of entrepreneurship in the region as generally low. The level of HPSUS emerging from the South East is about half of
Food Tourism, Supply Chain Project, Procurement Project, Service Cluster Ireland, Investment support, Business guidance, South East Diaspora, Technology Group.
and provides each of the participants in the programme with the opportunity to identify products
and services which the member companies can then decide if they wish to bid for business.
Six learning networks, of entrepreneurs and owner/managers of SMES and micro-enterprises have been established three in Ireland and three in Wales.
The project is being undertaken by the Centre for Enterprise Development and Regional Economy (CEDRE), School of business, WIT in partnership with the School of management and Business, Aberystwyth University, Wales.
and will organise Ideagen and Enterprise Start events in the region. EI 8 The rate of early stage entrepreneurships is the highest in the South East across the regions,
10.7 percent, reflecting the highest rate of new firm entrepreneurship (6. 1 percent) combined with strong nascent rate8 (5. 1percent).
The region has the highest rate of early stage entrepreneurial activity among men, 15.5 percent (GEM Entrepreneurship in Ireland,
2008). 20 EI also launched a new format for the Enterprise Platform Programme in early 2012, to
which colleges were eligible to apply for funds. A joint initiative between WIT and Carlow IT was approved by EI in November 2011.
For the region overall, retention rates to Junior and Leaving certificate mirror the national average (Appendix 3). These improvements are linked most likely to the decline in the economy,
The occupational profile in the South East (as in all regions) has been affected by the economic downturn.
and Personal and Protective Services(-15 percent) have experienced also significant relative declines compared to the national averages(-13 percent and 6 percent respectively).
Employment in these types of occupations is highly dependent on personal expenditure in the local economy, which is impacted directly by employment losses more widely.
and nationally indicates reasonable demand for these types of occupations in the South East. Economic Infrastructures Broadband From an enterprise development perspective, the timely delivery of advanced broadband services in key urban centres is the top infrastructure priority.
The widespread availability of advanced broadband infrastructure and services is essential to realising future growth potential in existing and emerging sectors10.
It will also play a key role in supporting the growth of small business, capturing opportunities for productivity and innovation, supporting regional development, enabling greater public sector efficiency and marketing Ireland as a location for ICT-intensive FDI and R&d projects.
While the advanced broadband needs of ICT-intensive enterprises are met generally well in the large urban centres, businesses, particularly SMES,
outside the main urban centres have significantly less choice and less access to good quality services.
Forfás believes that Ireland should seek to have advanced an broadband infrastructure comparable with our key 10 Advanced broadband services are defined as services with speeds of at least 100 Mbps
and that are symmetrical and have low latency. SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS competitors.
however there is a need to extend the existing MAN to meet enterprise needs at the IDA strategic site at Belview and the Port area.
In addition, there is a lack of choice/competition in the backhaul provision within the region generally, from towns such as Kilkenny
which is important for ro-ro services to/from Ireland12. The Government has committed to deliver this investment by PPP as part of the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Programme 2012-16 announced on 10 november 2011.
Completing the Atlantic corridor from Galway to Waterford (including the N25) remains an important medium-term priority for the development agencies to support sustained economic growth and job creation.
Given the constraints on capital expenditure, the development agencies have prioritised two short sections along the corridor where there are particular bottlenecks (Gort-Tuam and the Croom-Mallow sections).
International connectivity is a key factor in mitigating the impact of Ireland's peripheral location in the eyes of potential investors and overseas customers.
percent went through Dublin Port. 13 Google maps 24 securing business friendly services that are faster
The South East's location makes it an important point of access for shipping services to and from Ireland.
Rosslare Europort offers passenger and freight services to the UK, France and The netherlands. It accounts for 8 percent of national ro-ro traffic
In general, with the exception of the Dublin-Waterford route, rail services are relatively slow and infrequent,
Water The provision of adequate and affordable water and waste water services is crucial to ensure the sustained growth and development of enterprise in the main urban centres.
Although Ireland has made substantial investments in water and waste water infrastructure in recent years further investment is required to address water and waste water capacity deficits in a number of key urban centres.
Forfás reviewed water and waste water supply and demand in all NSS centres in 2008. Based on an analysis of demand and supply, the priority in the South East region is additional waste water treatment capacity in Wexford town.
Forfás will be working with the Department of the Environment to update the water/waste water needs of enterprise in the NSS centres later in the year16.
In terms of the price of water and waste water services combined Kilkenny (€2. 89 per cubic metre) is the third most expensive local authority
while Wexford and Waterford county (€2. 66) are joint fifth highest. Though charges in Wexford declined by two percent between 2010 and 2011.
Waterford (€2. 35) and Carlow (€2. 30) are ranked mid-table on water services charges. The average price of water services in Ireland in 2011 is €2. 59 per cubic metre.
The lowest is Kildare at €1. 49 per cubic metre. Waterford City is served well in terms of water supply and wastewater treatment.
There are 3, 300 cubic metres of water a day available in Belview (Port of Waterford with the potential 14 Irish Maritime Transport Economist, April 2011 15 According to Cruise Ireland, cruiser traffic to Ireland created an economic benefit of around €60million (Ibid) 16 Reducing the high
leakage levels that exist in many NSS centres needs to be the first course of action taken by local authorities,
as it will increase the volume of water available to meet demand without necessitating significant capital investment in new water treatment capacity SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS to supply 9, 000 cubic metres
This represents a unique opportunity for water intensive industries to locate in the Waterford area
public policy has a key role to play in ensuring that the private sector invests in a timely manner to ensure the current and future needs of enterprise are met.
and 220 kv electricity stations to accommodate additional demand, in excess of projected demand, without the need for additional grid reinforcement17.
Forecasts for the period 2011-2017 indicate that all centres in the South East with the exception of Carlow is in a position to meet such demand (Table 4). Waterford has significant spare capacity available for new enterprise
Capability (MW) for Additional Demand at 220 kv and 110 kv Stations in the South East Station 2011 2014 2017 Arklow 80 80 70 Carlow
Eirgrid, Transmission Forecast Statement 2011-2017, April 2011 Significant investment in the transmission and distribution networks is planned over the period to 2025 to meet our renewables target
and to ensure that key regional centres can support energy intensive investment projects18. As the cost of network investment is passed directly through to energy users in the form of higher energy prices,
the timing of grid investment plans need to be reviewed to take account of the implications of reduced demand
and planning delays while ensuring that future enterprise needs are met. We also need to ensure more geographically focused renewables investment to minimise the amount of additional grid investment required.
In particular optimal wind sites in terms of electricity generation potential and proximity to the grid should be prioritised. 17 See Table 8. 1:
http://www. eirgrid. com/media/Transmissionpercent20forecastpercent20statementpercent202011-2017-webpercent20version2. pdf 18 Eirgrid originally estimated the cost of delivering Grid25 at €4 billion but in light of significant technology developments,
Broadband x Road network x Rail x Air services x Seaport x Water supply capacity x Waste water treatment x Waste
Rail access has improved also, with eight services daily to Dublin and a journey time of 2 hours and 20 mins.
its environment and people through all groups and agencies working together. As a member of THE WHO European Network of Healthy Cities Waterford will be working to address the following areas:
A Business Support Unit has been established within the City council to work alongside the enterprise agencies and undertake promotional activities for the City internationally.
The waterfordbusinessinfo. ie web portal has been developed by Waterford City council in conjunction with the enterprise development agencies.
IDA Ireland and Waterford Institute of technology have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to develop this site as Waterford Knowledge Campus. The MOU sets out the development objectives of the campus to host the knowledge economy,
and promoted, including an improving economic infrastructure base and skills supply, centres of excellence in research and the presence of a range of highly productive and successful exporting enterprises on
The region has a strong natural asset base in the quality of the natural environment and landscape as well as heritage sites and gardens,
engineering and construction within the region may find increased application in the context of opportunities in the green economy.
pharma and natural resource sectors and in services that can served to underpin future enterprise development. A variety of lifestyle choices can be accommodated in the diverse physical landscape
The good quality of the natural environment and landscape presents opportunities for further development of cultural and recreational assets.
the South East Enterprise Week; and the South East Spirit of Enterprise Initiative. Waterford is placed well for further enterprise investment (incl. large scale) with the availability of strategic serviced lands at Belview and Knockhouse and the Business and Technology Park at Butlerstown.
SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS Weaknesses The region has a distinctive settlement pattern with five relatively large centres of population,
including the Gateway of Waterford which has limited impact within the region over and above the other regional centres.
Entrepreneurship potential in the region rates comparatively well with other regions according to GEM research. However
The existing enterprise base is distinctive in terms of the above average proportions employed in manufacturing, construction and agriculture/food production.
and a skills mismatch (to varying degrees) with respect to new enterprise investment. As part of this structural change, some industrial relations issues have achieved national prominence resulting in some reputation loss for the region.
This presents a number of challenges for the region including reduced disposable income and its impact on the local economy and increased pressure on state services.
The region remains comparatively disadvantaged from international (especially transatlantic) air services (than other city regions Cork, Limerick,
Access to business friendly services to London and European hubs need to be strengthened. Although there have been improvements in water and wastewater infrastructures and services within the region,
additional wastewater capacity is required for Wexford town. Also, water charges in the region are amongst the highest nationally. 30 Broadband backhaul from the region is characterised by a lack of alternative providers.
however an extension of the MAN to service IDA Belview lands is required from an enterprise development perspective.
and Potential Introduction Based on current regional enterprise strengths as well as existing and developing regional assets (including skillsets, key infrastructures, natural resources, research and development activity, regional development initiatives etc.)
Agri-Food Globally, the agri-food industry has transitioned from being led largely production to being led by market demands.
'This has resulted in a growing demand for lifestyle related products such as health enhancing functional foods (e g. cholesterol reducing products.
Agribusiness also plays a significant role as part of a wider‘bio-economy, 'as scientific advances, consumer trends
and market developments create novel and nontraditional uses for natural resources (including agri-environmental products and services,
Amongst enterprise agency supported enterprise, the sector contributes the highest proportion of IEE (Irish Economic Expenditure) in terms of salaries and third party services and materials-higher than any other agency supported sector23.
centred around the following opportunities: The lifting of dairy quotas from 2015; Building new international markets in dairy, beverages, seafood and niche meat products;
New species development in the aquaculture sector to service growing international demand; High growth opportunity in functional foods/nutraceuticals to address the‘wellness'market;
and Ireland's‘green'image as a natural marketing lever in areas such as organic foods, dairy and fish. 19 The analysis here is based on desk research
and in-region stakeholder consultation carried out as part of the Forfás Regional Competitiveness Agendas (2009)
Teagasc's Role in Transforming Ireland's Agri-Food Sector and the wider Bio-economy 21 CSO, QNHS.
772 employed in enterprise agency supported food and beverage firms in the region, again considerably above the national average (food and drink represents 24 percent of agency employment in the South East compared with 16 percent nationally).
Fishing Ports are an important part of the economy along the South East coast, with Duncannon,
Realising Agri-Food Potential in the South East Harvest 2020 presents a particular opportunity for the South East region,
given its existing strengths in dairy and beef sector production and related engineering and services businesses.
Continuation of EI's role in enterprise development for firms operating in the sector, particularly in the areas of productivity improvement, market/product diversification and innovation;
Alignment of research with near term development opportunities in the region, i e. ensure that areas being researched can be exploited in the region;
Continuation of Teagasc advisory role to assist potential agribusiness entrepreneurs in the identification and exploitation of opportunities in the area (in co-operation with EI and CEB's,
and other enterprise support bodies); Support from regional and local authorities for the development of the bioeconomy in the planning process and in infrastructure provision;
Green and Cleantech Green enterprise is a high growth sector and encompasses a wide range of goods & services within the scope of environmental & natural-resource use,
management & protection. Key sub-sectors are: renewable energies; eco-building & construction materials; water/wastewater treatment;
Green enterprise has a pervasive impact on a variety of other sectors enabling innovation, productivity enhancements and greater customer and market reach.
and consumers operate on a daily basis. Such change can create additional opportunities. Ireland has a growing base of companies in the sector, with many engaged in leading edge R&d and innovative activities.
There are opportunities for growth in a range of areas: Renewable energy; efficient energy use and management, water and wastewater treatment, waste management, recovery and recycling, green ICT applications and software and environmental consultancy.
Cross sectoral opportunity areas include; green financial services, green tourism, agri-food and green transport. Key Regional Assets In terms of natural resource endowments, the South East has fewer natural advantages in the renewable energy sector than other regions,
and enterprise'with a focus on environmental technologies, including Envirocore, which is focused on the development of niche areas within bioenergy, waste management, bioenvironmental monitoring and high value commodity products from biomass,
and Geocore which includes expertise in civil engineering, construction, architecture and technologists to support industry in the development of testing,
investigation and analysis techniques for the built environment. Teagasc has its national headquarters in the South East,(at Oak Park,
The opportunities arising within the green and cleantech sector may offer existing enterprises new business opportunities,
and new employment opportunities for skilled individuals emerging from activities in decline. The Environmental protection agency (EPA) is located in Co. Wexford
and develop opportunities in this area. However, regional opportunity in green and cleantech enterprise will be optimised in the context of coordinated and urgent response from Government and relevant agencies in addressing key barriers at the national level.
Key actions include: Address licensing and regulatory barriers to renewable energy and continue to focus on development of smart grid.
Dof Finance/National Public Procurement Policy Unit, OPW, State-Owned Enterprises such as ESB, Board Gáis, Bord na Mona Develop an overall R&d
and coherence of current‘green'education and training provision (approx €25m €30m per annum) towards meeting the skills needs of enterprise within the sector-in line with recommendations made in EGFSN Green Skills report.
Universities, Institutes of Technology, FÁS, Skillnets, VECS, Enterprise. Rapidly progress policy measures that support financing of SMES (in particular the loan guarantee scheme.
DJEI, Dof, Financial institutions, Enterprise Ireland, VCS, Angel Investors Need to coordinate efforts between agencies with responsibilities for the development of Green and Cleantech sector in Ireland.
Within the South East, existing frameworks which have been developed (e g. the Bioenergy Implementation Plan steering group) can be advanced to deliver practical initiatives in the utilisation of environmental goods and services in the region.
Leadership and enhanced focus on specific areas where returns can be identified will be required for the successful realisation of opportunities.
and a focus on‘wellness'provide high growth opportunities. There is also a greater focus on enhanced efficacy of treatments 27 Programme for Government focuses on the application of technological innovation in established sectors of the economy like energy generation and supply
transport, creative industries, high-value services and architecture and construction by identifying challenges, establishing priorities and developing strategies
which specify necessary actions to transition to more innovative approach 28 Assessment of The irish Ports & Shipping Requirements for the Marine Renewable Energy Industry, SEAI and IMDO,
There has been an increase in disaggregation of value chain activities within the sector creating opportunities for smaller companies to position themselves within the global supply chain with innovative,
technology intensive solutions, partnering opportunities, shared revenue deals and licensing. Multinational companies in the sector are tending to focus on activities where they have strengths and to outsource non-core activities (such as late stage manufacturing,
and services activities serving the Lifesciences sector e g. Dataworks (Waterford based Irish software company providing manufacturing control systems
and Eirgen (Waterford based Irish pharmaceuticals company specialising in formulation development and clinical trials supply services.
'30 Using enterprise agency supported companies as a proxy (Forfás, Annual Employment Survey, 2008) 31 Forfás Annual Employment Survey 2010.32 Ibid.
Lifesciences Sector Enterprise and Research Activity Realising Regional Potential The South East has additional capacity for growth in Lifesciences manufacturing with the availability of a utility intensive strategic site in Belview
There is potential for new mobile investment; however, continuing change at a global level within the sector including the trend towards increased automation,
and competition from lower cost locations will impact on employment levels overall and could result in a net reduction in employment within the region over the coming years.
and one which also offers positive spillovers into other aspects of the region's economy and society, such as quality of life improvements for the region's permanent residents,
and increasing the attractiveness of the region for inward investment. Key Regional Assets The‘Sunny South East'has established an reputation for tourism, particularly domestic tourism, a market
The diverse landscape and natural environment across the South East region, from rolling countryside and fertile agricultural land, to rugged uplands and expansive coastlines provides immense choice in terms of sporting
The rivers of the South East region Barrow, Nore, Suir, Slaney and Blackwater-are a unique feature of the landscape providing links between the physical, the historic, the environment and individuals.
An Enterprise Outlook 34 Regional Planning Guidelines for the South East Region SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS Family Fun:
Improve transport services to and within the region through actions to address issues relating to road, rail, sea and air services.
In the period March 2010 to September 2011, Fáilte Ireland awarded a total of €12. 2m for capital investment in tourism product development in the South East.
This included an allocation of €8. 6m for tourism capital investment in the Viking/Heritage Triangle project in Waterford City.
As the physical development of the Viking/Heritage Triangle reaches conclusion in 2012, it is planned to make a further and complementary investment in interpretation and product animation.
Fáilte Ireland has for some months been in discussion with Kilkenny Co. Co. regarding the development of a Medieval Mile project in Kilkenny City.
This will involve investment in the presentation and interpretation of Kilkenny's Norman heritage in an integrated and holistic manner.
A proposal to support an investment programme in Kilkenny over the period 2012/2013 will be presented to the Fáilte Ireland Authority in December 2011.
Under its Enterprise Support Programme, Fáilte Ireland has provided a range of business supports to 170 Key Accounts and tourism sector groups in the South East at a cost of €300k.
This investment falls within the Market development Programme which, in addition to conventional domestic marketing, seeks to support festivals and events as a key driver of visitors to locations in the South East.
Realising Potential Some challenges need to be addressed to enhance the contribution of tourism to the region's economy:
As well as large scale infrastructural investments, access for the tourism market can also be improved through innovative initiatives using local facilities,
in order to maintain the quality of the local environment. Product: Fáilte Ireland's strategy for the region is multifaceted based on a brand, building on key regional strengths:
A joint approach needs to be taken to developing the South East's tourism products by stakeholders and tourism promoters for the successful exploitation of particular market segments, especially domestic holidaymakers.
Internationally Traded Services (excluding ICT) 35 Today, a wide variety of services are traded internationally, including such activities as finance, insurance, computer-related activities, R&d, advertising, marketing, accounting and consultancy.
In addition, there is an increasing level of services activity taking place within manufacturing firms the so-called‘servicisation'of manufacturing.
Moreover, globalisation, along with the enabling technologies that underpin it, has seen the emergence of new and more complex business models.
Increasingly, multinational companies seek to maintain competitive advantage by out-sourcing, moving selected business processes to more economic or strategic locations,
This has generated a raft of new mobile investment activity in global business services (& global business services centres) to manage more complex global corporate structures and activities,
such as shared services, customer support and customer management, business process outsourcing, supply-chain/procurement, IT operations, human resources and finance/transaction processing.
Key Assets The South East has a lower than average proportion of employment overall in services activities.
employment in internationally traded services has been far more rapid. Employment levels in agency supported firms (typically internationally trading) almost tripled over the 2001 2010 period from a base of c. 2, 000 to over 5, 400.
Much of the growth is accounted for by investments by overseas companies into the region such as Sunlife Financial, State street, PFPC, Equifax and Citi,
and customer/technical support services. The region has built a sizeable portfolio of international financial services (IFS) companies
the 35 ICT Software & Services are considered separately below SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS availability of skilled people as against a tighter labour market in Dublin,
Realising Potential Future business investment within the region in international and financial services will require advanced,
However, the limited demand for language skills by the existing cohort of companies in the South East can result in reduced retention of graduates with such skills and perhaps reduced interest in acquiring language skills.
A detailed overview of the trends and opportunities in Business Process Outsourcing and Shared Services type activities is contained in Section 6. ICT Services & Software
What has been termed‘The New Software Economy'36 sees a number of trends that provide both opportunities and challenges for software companies,
more efficient ways of paying for software Vendors responding to these demands by embracing new delivery and pricing models, such as software as a service (Saas), infrastructure as a service (Iaas), platform as a service (Paas);
a distributed business model where different value adding activities are carried out where they can be done most efficiently
and cost-effectively 36 Enterprise Ireland (2009) Best Connected-Software from Ireland-A strategy for development of the indigenous software industry 2009-2013 42 The application of software technologies (such as
Services Oriented Architecture SOA, Open source, Web 2. 0 and Mash-ups) are continuing to drive the development of new applications
and business models The emergence of‘Cloud computing'is a key enabler whereby computing resources and functions are centralised,
in locations such as data centres and delivered on demand. Cloud computing is impacting the ICT industry in terms of the products
and services offered, how they are delivered and revenue models e g. online subscriptions rather than CD ROM.
while maintaining high quality IT services. ICT Impacts All Sectors: ICT today is more than an enabling technology.
it changes the way services are delivered e g. remote learning or healthcare and diagnostics, simulation (training), virtual reality (architecture and design;
it provides opportunities for new converged products and customised digital content (e g. micro apps, digital gaming);
Autonomic Management of End-to-end Communications Services. The TSSG's main area of research is communications software services
and it has developed strong expertise in the areas of distributed systems and service oriented architecture. The TSSG's commercial division has created also new companies
The companies typify the kind of activities associated with the‘new software economy'and include: Nubiq mobile website generation and personalisation;
Akruu on-line billing and accounting services; Hasf6 interactive radio; IMS-Stream Voip solutions. Realising Potential The Institutes of Technology in the region have adopted a focused approach in the area of software development
The TSSG's deepening expertise in the area of future internet infrastructure and services and its strong commercial focus provides the region with a strong platform for future indigenous and FDI enterprise potential.
ICT, Internationally Traded Services. The broader sector, including advertising, publishing and printing, encompasses firms that trade domestically as well as those trading internationally
consumer information (online publishing, digital publishing, location based services; and Infrastructure-such as NGNS, data hosting, etc.
and the growing dominance of the internet experience reflected in radically altered business models. The games industry in particular is showing very healthy and rapid growth globally.
The South East is positioned strongly to avail of opportunities that will arise: The region already has an emerging strength in business process services
which form a key element in the digital economy, for example Ireland has attracted already major games companies from overseas who have sited their customer support
Games and digital media firms already located in the South East engage with the wider community nationally through the networking opportunities
the enterprise agencies have a role to play in ensuring maximum engagement, as do based regionally initiatives that provide opportunities for cross fertilisation amongst a range of capabilities (animation, the arts, music, IT,
health and wellbeing etc); and that The HEIS in the region get involved in initiatives such as the proposed game development/digital media‘hothouse'initiative,
Labour market Activation 2010 Labour market Activation Fund A number of education and training providers from the South East were successful in tendering for services under the 2010 Labour market Activation Fund.
and Investment 9 Places Bachelor of science (Level 7) Information technology 17 Places 42 Refer to Appendix X for data tables 46 Table 5. 1 Education Providers
HEA Fás FAS Training Services will continue to provide a wide variety of courses, including a growing number of evening courses, in 2012 in a wide range of locations across each county, building on the estimated 8, 200 participants in the South East in 2011.
FAS is estimating a budget spend for the Region of €18m for 2012, based on its assessment of the socioeconomic and industrial environment in the Region, together with research and analysis of employment opportunities in the South East Region.
Engineering-The Green Economy (Level 9) 30 Places Higher Certificate in Good Manufacturing Practice and Technology Biopharma-Pharmachem (Level 6) 15 Places Jobbridge
On 17 october 2011 Skillnets announced an investment of €250, 000 for the immediate provision of training for Talk Talk employees,
Work permits issued in the South East43 The number of new employment permits issued in recent times is indicator of the demand for labour that could not be met from domestic or EEA sources.
Most of the permits were issued to workers in the personal services occupations, agriculture related occupation, sales and healthcare.
A greater focus may be required in the provision of career guidance services and mapping out career paths,
Upskilling Boosting our human capital by enhancing education and skills levels in line with the National Skills Strategy and the needs of the‘Smart Economy'.
'Notwithstanding our current economic difficulties, other countries are also upskilling and we must do so to compete
There needs to be greater interaction between enterprise bodies, agencies and education and training providers in addressing skills demands in a systematic and coordinated way.
Education and training provision needs to have greater alignment with enterprise skills needs both current and future.
Structured internships and opportunities providing work experience opportunities within enterprise are hugely valuable in improving the success of students and job seekers.
Management capability has a positive effect on the level of upskilling undertaken by employees. 50 Acronyms BPO Business Process Outsourcing CC Contact Centre SSC Shared Services Centres
& Shared Services and the South East Region Background This analysis was initiated following the closure of Talk Talk,
with a view to identifying the potential for immediate opportunity in the sector for the displaced workers.
The enterprise development agencies are taking steps to assist the displaced Talk Talk workers, and these are set out at the end of this chapter.
The assessment of the BPO sector and the Shared Services activities in Ireland that follows indicates that:
This shift will involve employment churn as lower end activities move offshore and new higher order investments are realised.
From the perspective of FDI in shared services, IDA continues to work to attract Greenfield and expansion activities to Ireland45.
The initial challenge is to win investment for Ireland in the face of intense global competition from larger scale countries.
Evidence indicates that companies investing in shared services activities 44 A recent survey by CCMA indicates that 73 percent of the contact centre companies surveyed indicated that they anticipate a growth in employment.
The Accenture published report in 2010-Sustaining High performance in Shared services An Irish Perspective, stated that nearly half of the companies surveyed said the numbers employed in SSC in Ireland will increase in the next year 45 These can be either standalone activities
BPO, Shared Services and Contact Centres: Although the skills-sets are somewhat similar, it is worthwhile outlining the different perspectives and opportunities for the following:
1. Business Process Outsourcing 2. Shared Services Activities and Functions Foreign Firms 3. In-house Contact Centres 1 Business Process Outsourcing Business
process outsourcing (BPO) is the contracting of a specific business task to a thirdparty service provider.
includes both inbound and outbound call services including problem resolution, information provision, technical support (through from Tier 1 to Tier 3) marketing, sales lead generation,
Other ancillary functions such as cleaning services, catering services and fleet management services are also often outsourced to third party providers,
although these are outside the scope of this review. There is an important distinction that is not always readily understood between onshore outsourcing (which involves BPO that is contracted within the company's own country) and offshore outsourcing
Mercer and HP that provide BPO services to The irish market47. 2 Shared Services Shared services are different in that they are centralised activities within a multi-site global corporation.
Shared services have become a well accepted model for globally dispersed companies across a wide range of sectors such as financial services
Centralised business functions-providing services to a captive market of affiliates; and Customer contact centres servicing a global
Shared services centres based in Ireland are owned, in the main, foreign. Ireland has a strong track record to date as an offshore location for centralised customer support and shared services activities with companies such as Facebook, IBM, Dell, Google, HP,
Cook and others. 3 In-House Call centres Many large scale firms have‘in-house'contact centres to service their own customer base,
They are not, in the main, enterprise development agency clients. A Growing Global Market Because the global outsourced business services market includes a variety of disparate activities,
there are differing estimates as to the value of the sector depending on what is included in the scope.
despite some set-backs arising from the global economic crisis. Gartner predicted that the global outsourcing industry would see a 10-15 percent annual growth over five years up to 2013
Because of the nature of the activity (often internal to the global organisation), it is difficult to get an indication of the scale of Shared Services Activities.
However, it is a business model that is continuing to grow as the range of activities and functions being centralised expands.
Gartner 2009 49 Gartner, 2009 SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS An Evolving Business model and Considerations for Ireland When BPO emerged as a sector originally in the 80s,
The more advanced BPO service providers of today are much closer to their customers'business
KPO services include activities such as business research services, data analytics, patent research services etc. The increasing complexity of activities being outsourced often goes hand in hand with increased sensitivity of the related data
which may impact on a company's location decisions. 50 The corporate shared services activities are evolving in much the same way requiring a strategic partnership approach by The irish based subsidiary in terms of its relationship with affiliates and quality
Business services being outsourced Source: Everest Institute Global Trends in BPO, 2008 Advances in technologies are also playing a key role in how the sector is evolving.
The emergence of Cloud technologies also opens opportunities for innovative IT firms. In 2009 Gartner estimated that the proportion of BPO services sourced through the Cloud would grow from 5 percent to 20 percent by 2012.
Considerations for Ireland As a developed economy the sustainability of the sector in Ireland requires that companies based here continue to evolve to deliver the more complex,
sophisticated services required by the market53. The success of companies engaged in (relatively) lower margin activities here will be predicated upon the ability to innovate in business process improvements,
to deliver increased efficiencies and productivity through investments in technologies and/or to deliver niche services based on strong domain knowledge and expertise.
In terms of KPOS, Ireland has demonstrated already some success in attracting Clinical Research Outsource providers, and there could be further potential in areas such as Legal Process Outsourcing,
Research/Patent Support Services etc. Ireland has a good reputation in terms of its ability to understand
or annual fee with a service provider that hosts the call centre telephony equipment in their own data centre. 53 A number of existing operations have transitioned to offer higher order value services for example multilingual
knowledge based services. Technological developments and the evolution of the virtual call centre and home-based working54 should also offer considerable opportunities for regions throughout Ireland.
Aspects such as data protection and information security become increasingly important Ireland is positioned well with regard to Data protection legislation and neutrality,
and the Cloud computing Implementation Group is considering Ireland's proposition in the context of emerging opportunities in Cloud which would have direct relevance for this sector as it evolves.
The Sector in Ireland Shared Services Centres IDA supported companies There are 140 shared services centres (SSCS)( including contact centres),
within IDA's portfolio of companies operating within all sectors and providing a broad range of services (Figure 7). With a small number of exceptions,
In general, foreign investment is attracted to the scale of the labour pool, and availability of multilingual skills in an urban area,
since shared services was identified first as a new business model for large corporations with a global footprint.
shifting from the high volume, low value-add transaction based services initially being undertaken to increasingly complex and higher value-added activities. 54 The Contact Centre@Home Model technology Partners International
The most common functions performed by Irish Shared Services Organisations Source: Sustaining High performance in Shared Services An Irish Perspective, Accenture,
2010 In a report published by Accenture in 2010, Sustaining High performance in Shared Services An Irish Perspective,
found that: Ireland has a far greater proportion of high-end SSCS, with 25 percent considered Master operators compared with a global average of just eight percent;
Masters view their shared services as high performance businesses in their own right, and they invest in the practices
They see a continuous improvement model as an opportunity to increase scope and add highervalue activities,
Nearly half of those surveyed said the numbers employed in shared services in Ireland will increase in the next year;
52 percent of Irish respondents indicated a desire to expand the scope of services offered;
and to strengthen its capabilities in delivering integrated business services functioning as a 55 Key performance indicators,
Despite intensified global competition, the IDA has announced 13 new investments and/or expansions in SSCS over the past 9 months
ease of access to multilingual skills and competitive international broadband connectivity Ireland is an attractive location for Shared Services/Contact Centre activities.
Ireland's Strengths in Shared Services Centres Strength in Ireland Requirements from Companies Expertise Ability to secure functional expertise across a range of activities such as finance, IT, customer management,
There are other companies within the EI IT portfolio that also provide outsourced services, employing circa 150
Services offered by these companies are delivered through The english language in the main, although there are some multilingual capabilities.
The indigenous BPO companies face stiff competition from the larger global players based here not only for new business opportunities within the domestic market,
but also for skills and labour. 56 http://www. idaireland. com/news-media/announcements/58 Future growth opportunities exist particularly in the financial services sector
EI is also working with these firms to capture opportunities for internationalisation particularly in the expanding market in the UK for outsourced services in the more immediate term.
and/or to retain existing customers against intensified global competition. Innovative approaches are being adopted which involve offering a blended model,
delivering services from Ireland as well as a lower cost location. Companies need to keep abreast of the pace of change in IT platforms and technologies
They offer services direct to consumers ranging from reservations, to problem solution, cross selling and up-selling.
Opportunities for Ireland The sector globally is growing and evolving. The activities encompassed within BPO/SSC now span a broad spectrum ranging from high transaction/low margin through to higher added value knowledge intensive services.
Global competition is intense and Ireland cannot afford 57 Cost reduction remains a key driver,
even in the context of an evolving sector and other considerations such as skills and expertise 58 These activities are captured not under a specific NACE code Some EI supported companies such as Diagio
as a leading BPO location can offer low cost services yet is also pursuing its own strategy to move up the value chain.
Delivering Integrated Business Services functioning as a strategic business partner to the organisation; Within Shared Services, Ireland has the potential to provide higherorder solutions to firms based on a strong competence in management and decision making capability, risk and regulatory management,
business process engineering and languages But needs to continue to enhance the skills base so that it meets these more complex requirements.
Operating as a Centre of Excellence specifically targeting key knowledge intensive services and building domain expertise (e g.
Community Management & Analytics (games), Document Management Services for regulated sectors, Contract Research Outsourcing, Legal Process Outsourcing.
Expanding Ireland's ability to offer multilingual services both through increased language capabilities within Ireland's indigenous population,
and open to non-EU nationals (as appropriate to address specific enterprise needs61). Vertical sectors that offer potential for growth include financial services, games, online consumer business,
and increased efficiencies could provide considerable opportunity for the growth of the indigenous sector. Cloud Technologies may offer opportunities for innovative IT companies to deliver IT infrastructures,
applications and services on an outsourced, managed basis-in effect, these companies would become part of the BPO sector.
Challenges While there is potential for future growth there are also a number of challenges some of which are well known in terms of enhancing Ireland's business environment.
For the indigenous companies, access to finance (investment and working capital) is cited as a challenge. 60 Many companies indicate a preference to source native speakers for contact centre activities in jobs requiring Nordic languages, for example,
these are most likely to be filled by native speakers 61 For example Forfás recent study indicates the need for a specific suite of skills to service customers in the non-EU markets, such as Turkey The Games Sector in Ireland
, An Action Plan for Growth, Forfás 2011 60 Ireland's overall costs of doing business have a direct impact on the pricing of services offered in a sector that is fundamentally about cost arbitrage.
There are increasing pressures on firms to reduce costs and to increase value their own management capabilities in terms of cash flow management, cost containment,
Often individuals see BPO/Contact Centre as offering limited career opportunities, as a stepping stone into an organisation that offers wider potential,
and to offer career progression opportunities will become an even greater challenge62. Although not regarded as a barrier today, the availability of,
Many of these activities can be delivered from anywhere in the world to anywhere in the world-enabled by telecoms and internet technologies and presents opportunity for SMES and regionally based firms However
despite significant improvements, issues remain in terms of access to competitively priced broadband infrastructures and services. Actions Business Environment:
It is critical that the necessary actions are taken to ensure that Ireland realises structural changes in the costs of doing business,
The ongoing study by EGFSN on Key Skills for Enterprise to Trade Internationally (scheduled for completion early 2012) should ensure that the needs of both BPO
and Shared Services Centres64 are taken into account, including language skills and cultural awareness. The SSC/BPO sector should be promoted actively nationally to highlight the range of career options
The National Recovery Plan 2011-2014 identifies the potential for shared services to increase efficiencies
Outsourcing options should also be considered as part of the overall solution which could in turn offer opportunities for Irish based BPOS to develop scale. 62sustaining High performance in Shared Services An Irish Perspective, Accenture,
and Policy Priorities sets out the suite of actions required to address barriers to investment,
focused on areas of pro-investment regulation, infrastructure planning and investment and demand stimulation. There is a need to enhance backhaul capacity for the region
Agencies/firms The BPO/SSC sector/activities are key areas of focus for the enterprise development agencies,
and they aggressively seek new investments, both foreign (Greenfield and expansion) and indigenous, through new start-ups/entrepreneurship.
The Enterprise development agencies also continue to work with existing firms through transformational change initiatives:
innovation in business process, business models, technologies etc. productivity enhancements, re-skilling and up-skilling. EI is proactively working with firms to identify
and target opportunities for internationalisation: EI's Prospecting Unit will undertake a review of the BPO sector,
in particular the changing business models of customers (driven by new technologies, the Cloud, data processing capacity, social media etc. and mega-trends such as ageing, globalisation of financial services, carbon reduction,
The Prospecting team's work will focus on emerging export opportunities which the companies could hope to start generating revenue from in the next 2-5 years.
The relevant industry associations, Shared Services Forum and CCMA could play a role in this regard.
Agency Responses In relation to Displaced Talk Talk Workers66 IDA Ireland IDA has been very active in its quest to win additional investment for Waterford utilising the skill sets of the Talk Talk employees,
and commenced engagement with relevant companies to highlight the attractiveness of this facility as a potential opportunity for a Greenfield investment
or as an expansion opportunity. 66 Extracted from their direct submissions to the Minister for Jobs,
Enterprise and Innovation 62 Operations Divisions in Ireland have targeted overseas companies based in Ireland and in the region to bring the facility and its skilled workforce to the attention of potential investors.
Enterprise Ireland Immediate Talk Talk Related Activities Undertaken Enterprise Ireland participated in the agency information day for employees held at end September 2011.
Idea generation and start your own business workshops for employees of Talk Talk in co-operation with the Waterford City Enterprise Board took WIT.
A mentor was appointed to one group of employees exploring business opportunity in call centre related activities.
Enterprise Ireland is undertaking a broader range of initiatives within the South East region to intensify their efforts on start-ups.
SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS 7. Higher education and Research Waterford Institute of technology (WIT) Waterford Institute of technology is particularly strong among Iots in terms of enterprise relevance and linkages.
While much of WIT's enterprise interactions involve companies from outside the South East region it does have a number of engagements with firms in the region,
learning and research within an inclusive student-centred environment to foster graduates of distinction who are ready to take a leadership role in business, the professions, industry, public service and society.
with the capability to significantly underpin the Priority Area of Future Networks and Communication. The Pharmaceutical and Molecular Biotechnology Research Centre has also been identified as a major RTD centre that will underpin the Priority Area of Therapeutics as part of the current Research Prioritisation Exercise.
and on the wider converged communications industry, particularly in managing networks and in developing innovative new services for those networks.
TSSG leads the FAME (Federated Autonomic Management of End-to-end Communication Services) SFI Strategic Research Cluster (a €5. 86m investment from SFI.
Through its Masters in Communication Services the TSSG has delivered up-skilling and training for staff in local companies.
With ongoing investment by SFI and EI in the TSSG, its leadership role in European projects, its cluster Of high Potential Start-up and its strategic partners with international leaders in the internet and model networks
and services the TSSG is positioned well to support economic development in the South East. Pharmaceutical and Molecular Biotechnology Research Centre The Pharmaceutical and Molecular Biotechnology Research Centre has also been identified as a major RTD centre that will underpin the Priority Area of Therapeutics as part of the current Research Prioritisation Exercise.
has undertaken 59 enterprise collaborations (total value €4 million), secured €14. 7 million in applied research funding from EI and generated 5 campus spin outs, 2 start ups and 2 campus spin-ins.
The TSSG has created 11 spinouts in the mobile services/internet application space. Feedhenry now employs over 30 people,
and is ranked 4th nationally in terms of projects completed with enterprises (101 from 2008 to 2011). SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS Table 7. 2:
Enterprise Ireland Incubation and Enterprise Platform Programme (EPP) EI have provided over €4m for the establishment and management costs of two campus Incubation Centres in Carlow IT and Waterford IT.
Carlow IT also has an EPP as a hub for entrepreneurship and training activities in the region.
The Enterprise Platform Program which is part of Arclabs in WIT has supported the creation of 200 companies employing 350 people.
Enterprise Collaboration The Industry Services Office within the School of Research at WIT promotes and facilitates interaction between the Institute and external organisations.
As noted above WIT collaborates with a wide range of companies on Enterprise Ireland-supported Innovation Partnership projects and the Innovation Vouchers scheme.
In a similar manner, the Department of Computing Maths and Physics has put together A level 8 course in Business Systems analysis specifically for Sunlife.
WIT has multidisciplinary links with the Health Services Executive (HSE), e g. its research training programme to healthcare workers and its co-ordination of a series of master classes for HSE hospital managers on healthcare management.
The School of education and Professional Development collaborates with Enniscorthy Enterprise Support Unit to deliver a range of further and higher education programmes in Wexford.
cooperates with Wexford County Enterprise Board and County Wexford Partnership to deliver education and training programmes for SME owners and industry in the Wexford area.
Business & Humanities (Business Communications, Management, Humanities, Sport, Media & Marketing) Science & Computing (Computing, Networking, Science & Health) Engineering (Built Environment, Electronic, Mechanical and Aerospace
in conjunction with PNC Global Investment Servicing in Wexford. Research areas include: Industrial design and product innovation (Designcore), interactive applications software and networks (Gamecore), geo-environmental technologies (Geocore) and software development (the IT has collaborated with Unum in relation to the development of a software
Carlow is also a hub for entrepreneurship training activities such as the Enterprise Platform Programme that operate out of the hot-desk space at the incubation centre.
IDA and SFI and the CEBS in seeking to further develop the linkages and impact of WIT with enterprises in the South East region.
and ideas to underpin enterprise development in the region, as it is essential that the core research strengths built up to date through the PRTLI,
and oriented around national priorities and the specific development opportunities of the region. Conclusion The higher education sector in the region can play an increasing role in meeting the growing educational needs of the employed
it will be for the higher education institutions in the region to work collaboratively towards the achievement of this status. 70 8. Local Governance The ability of a region to realise its economic potential hinges very much on the ability of key regional stakeholders to act cohesively-in support of key enterprise
Despite the challenges of regional cohesion, there are good examples of where the regional stakeholders have acted collaboratively to achieve certain regional goals-for instance,
or the organisation of'Enterprise Week'which is coordinated through the Spirit of Enterprise Forum.
There is an opportunity through the existing regional authority and/or Spirit of Enterprise Forum to provide strong leadership
and a space for constructive debate on overarching strategic issues, not least the accelerated development of Waterford City as the regional Gateway.
Environmental Issues, Water Services and Waste Management; Energy and Telecommunications; Education and Health care; SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS Agriculture, Marine and Rural Development;
The enterprise agencies, IDA and EI are part of the Steering/Implementation Committee for the RPGS in the South East.
and there is much stronger appreciation of the enterprise development agenda in the process compared to the first set of RPGS prepared in 2004.
Spirit of Enterprise Forum The Spirit of Enterprise Forum is integrated an interactive group of agencies and bodies involved in the promotion and encouragement of enterprise and entrepreneurship in the South East region:
including the South East Regional Authority, Enterprise Support Agencies, Higher education institutions, Primary and Post-Primary Teaching, Research Organisations, Entrepreneurs, Industry Representatives (indigenous and multinational), Local government
, Research Centres and the WIT Centre for Entrepreneurship. The Forum meets every quarter and one of its key achievements has been the establishment of a Spirit of Enterprise Week:
a week of intensive advice, inspiration and training to stimulate entrepreneurship and business growth, that includes a variety of events that are coordinated throughout the South East region. http://www. spiritofenterprise
. ie/Waterford Gateway Historical Quarter The City council have been progressing the development of a‘new'historical quarter in Waterford City.
An element of this was facilitating the relocation of the Waterford Crystal Showroom and Visitor Centre to The Mall and the other elements are coming on stream below.
ie This is a joint initiative led by the Waterford City Development Board involving the main enterprise development agencies in Waterford City (CEB, IDA, EI, SEBIC,
and 72 facilitate access to the services of the enterprise agencies and to generally promote Waterford City as a location to invest
and export gains over the period 2000-2007, in particular in new sectors for the region such as Lifesciences and international services.
The policy focus needs to remain over the next three to five year period on the continued upgrading of the existing base of enterprise.
There is a need to increase the share of exporting manufacturing and internationally trading services, to develop‘new'sectors in the region
A continued shorter term focus on attracting a replacement activity to Waterford is essential (including a focus on BPO/international services activities
A. Development of the Regional Gateway and Effective Promotion of the Region Waterford and the South East region have undergone a period of catch up in terms of infrastructure investment
graduate output and recognised research strengths and a growing enterprise base in modern sectors. Specifically the development of the Belview Strategic Site is a particular advantage for manufacturing and services businesses.
The restructuring of the local authorities in Waterford, combining the City and County Councils is welcome
and areas of opportunity should be developed by means of a coordinated approach, involving the enterprise agencies, local authorities and other regional stakeholders. 74 A2.
Accelerated Development of the Waterford Gateway A review of the Planning and Land use and Transport Strategy (PLUTS) and the Strategy for Economic, Social and Cultural Development of Waterford City 2002-2012 should be undertaken under the auspices
Particular attention should be brought to bear on barriers to enterprise development including: the extension of the Waterford CITY MAN to service the Belview Strategic Site
B. Upgrading the Regional Enterprise Mix The enterprise development agencies will adopt a‘spotlight on Waterford
Stimulating Entrepreneurship and new business start-ups The analysis demonstrates that the South East has the potential to increase the level of entrepreneurship and sustainable new business start-ups.
In co-operation with the CEBS more Ideagen and Enterprise Start events will be held in the region in Q4 2011.
The Enterprise Platform Programme to incubate early stage businesses will recommence in a new format in Q1 2012.
Initiatives will focus on entrepreneurship and management training, one stop shop/online knowledge base, awareness raising and microfinance68. 68 See individual submissions to DJEI from CEBS, Kilkenny, Waterford,
and upgrading of existing enterprise base The analysis highlights a clear need for continued focus on securing the sustainability
and upgrading of the existing enterprise base and identifying new business opportunities. IDA Ireland will continue to focus on sustainability
and growth opportunities in its intense engagements with client companies in the South East Region EI will continue engagement with established clients in the region to discuss potential opportunities.
A very close relationship is maintained with these clients by the Development Advisers and an intensive round of new meetings started week commencing 19th september In addition,
-convene additional First Flight workshops in Waterford further to the workshops convened with enterprises and Mentors in October/November 2011 which focussed on the UK, North america and Asia.
A concerted regional approach focused on building a supportive business environment within the region informed by the needs of the sectors highlighted below should be advanced.
A focused and regionally coordinated approach needs to be taken to define opportunities specific to the region within the national context,
and to drive actions to mobilise the regional ecosystem to improve its attractiveness for enterprise investment69.
Existing structures (such as the RPG Implementation group), could be adapted to bring together sectoral expertise within the enterprise agencies and other relevant bodies (e g.
and other relevant stakeholders as and when appropriate. Tourism: build on the progress achieved to date under the Fáilte Ireland operational plan for the region. 69 Including entrepreneurship,
indigenous investment and foreign direct investment 76-A particular focus is required in relation to regional product and brand development for the South East region and Waterford City in particular.
Agri-food: There are significant opportunities to increase national primary production in the dairy and beef sectors, by up to 50 percent,
as set out in Harvest 2020, and the South East has considerable potential in this regard. Value adding can be increased, with for example the development of consumer food industry,
Engineering and Services Sectors in WIT in Mid october 2011 and further workshops are planned for 2012.
and leverage regional assets such as Waterford Port, to exploit opportunities in renewable energy supply chains.
-A clear value proposition and coordinated marketing is required to realise opportunities in the cleantech sector for the region.
with an attractive property solution and reference Lifesciences businesses, there is a need for a spotlight on Waterford for Lifesciences investment
Internationally trading services. With improved access, broadband and the research and graduate output in the region, Waterford has the potential to develop activities in areas such as Cloud computing, egames, financial services, ecommerce and other content businesses.
Management Development A key part of developing the enterprise base in the South East region is to ensure that the management has the capability
and the enterprise agencies sector teams and SFI should be developed and implemented over the coming 12 months to:
-identify potential collaboration opportunities with existing enterprises in the region; -identify research partnerships with other HEIS nationally
and the marketing of the region for mobile investment particularly in emerging sectors (including cleantech, biotechnology, digital media (& games) and advanced manufacturing.
and BPO related activity in the South East The enterprise development agencies are taking steps to assist secure additional investment in contact management
IDA actions underway IDA has been very active in seeking to win additional investment for Waterford utilising the skill sets of the Talk Talk employees
and commenced engagement with relevant companies to highlight the attractiveness of this facility as a potential opportunity for a Greenfield investment or as an expansion opportunity.
Enterprise Ireland actions underway EI is progressing a number of actions to support the Talk Talk workers impacted.
Idea generation and start your own business workshops for employees of Talk Talk in co-operation with the Waterford City Enterprise Board took place in WIT
Mentor appointed to one group of employees exploring a specific business opportunity related to the call centre sector.
The fall off in opportunities in construction and traditional manufacturing has a particularly hard impact on certain occupational groups, in crafts and production operatives.
and relevance of education and training responses to future enterprise needs and to identify any gaps in provision.
The Skillsnet investment of €250, 000 in Q4 2011 is welcome in this regard. D4. European Globalisation Fund Continue to progress the application for workers who have lost employment to benefit for training and other support under the European Globalisation Fund.
Job Opportunities in personal services Review the potential for further employment in the personal services areas and any barriers to jobseekers taking up opportunities available in the region.
E. Progressing Regional Infrastructure Priorities Forfás has undertaken a review of infrastructures nationally in the context of enterprise development objectives of the agencies,
A number of road infrastructure projects have been prioritised by the enterprise agencies. These are important to improve the functioning of the region itself and its connectivity with other regions and the access to essential service.
where improved road infrastructure would improve access to Cork and Shannon for air services. The Government has committed to providing capital and operational funding to Waterford Airport post 2012
The Government has committed to this project as part of the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Programme 2012-16.
0. 0 1. 1 Accommodation and food service 11.3 102.9 6. 0 5. 7-26.1-16.8 Information and communication 4. 4 70.5 2
scientific and technical 7. 5 102.9 4. 0 5. 7-9. 6 1. 0 Administrative and support services 6. 2 61.9 3. 3
or value-creating performance, of an economy. However, GVA is an imperfect value creation 71 The value of the region's output less intermediate materials
and services used in its production. Latest available regional data is for 2006 86 metric for a number of reasons,
Number of active enterprises by size and region, 2006 and 2009 2006 2009 CAGR 06-09%of national 06 percent national 09 All persons engaged
Number of persons engaged in active enterprises by size and region, 2006 & 2009 2006 2009 CAGR 06-09%of national 06%national 09 All persons engaged
Number of employees in active enterprises by size and region, 2006 and 2009 2006 2009 CAGR 06-09%of national 06%national 09 All persons engaged
the unadjusted national rate is used as the benchmark. SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS Table A12 Retention of graduates within the region, class of 2008 (county of origin and percent retained in the same county) County of Origin
is another indicator of the demand for labour that could not be met from domestic or EEA sources.
Department of Enterprise, Jobs and Innovation. According to table A16 overleaf, there were just under 300 new work permits issued in the South East region in 2010.
Most of the permits were issued to workers in the personal services occupations, agriculture relayed occupation,
sales occupations 0 1 0 0 1 2 Other occupations in sales & services 1 3 4 2 2 12 94 Craft
0 1 Other craft and related occupations 1 0 0 0 0 1 Personal services 11 18 38 15 15 97
Dublin Call-text solutions Dublin Sky Livewire Dublin Manpower Dublin Conduit Dublin Sportingbet. com Dublin CPL Managed Services Dublin Reed Recruitment
Dublin Meridian Global Services Dublin Roar Promotions Dublin Popgap Games Dublin Lex Consultancy Dublin Zynga Dublin SAGE Dublin UPS Dublin
Process Outsourcing A Broad Range of Services and Activities Customer Contact Centres Customer Supports Dealing with Inbound calls to manage customer queries-multiple channels including voice,
email and chat on a 24/7/365 basis (e g. making or verifying reservations Technical support Services Round the clock technical support and problem resolution.
Business Processes Transaction processing Data entry/conversion or indexing services to various verticals including e g.
risk assessment, patent writing, IP services, legal research services etc. Contract Research Outsourcing Managing clinical trial processes, often across multi-sites and multi-jurisdictions.
Clinical data management Supply Chain/Procurement services Managing supply chain activities including Order to Cash,
logistics, forecasting and planning services, vendor management, etc Document Management Services Compliance with records management filing, retrieval, destruction etc.
IT services Including fully managed services, or elements of IT services including e g. data hosting, Software as a service, Infrastructure as a service,
Platform as a service etc. 102 Appendix 7 Business Process Outsourcing An Evolving Sector From Business Process Outsourcing to Knowledge Process Outsourcing Characteristics BPO Professional Services/KPO Business
Process Standard Nonstandard, knowledge-intensive Drivers Costs, Labour Value, time to market, scale flexibility Stage of Industry development Mature Relatively young,
evolving Risks Leveraged by infrastructure and processes Data security, IP leakage Target Economies of scale Domain expertise Depth not size Challenges Attrition, wage inflation Skills availability, regulatory limitations
In activities that involve HR services or Finance/Accounting an understanding of country specific policies,
Domain expertise (specific to a vertical sector), risk management, global partnership management, advanced technology and computing skills, analytics etc are increasingly relevant as the sector evolves toward knowledge intensive services.
Business Process Outsourcing and Services Centres based in South East October 2011 Company name Location Activity Detail Ownership Technology Sales Leads Ireland Carlow Sales development for business-to-business technology companies Irish Glanbia Kilkenny
HR and recruitment services Irish UNUM Carlow Services centre Foreign State street Kilkenny Fund administration and services centre Foreign Mycroft Waterford Financial services/Software.
Newly established Irish base Foreign Citi Hedge fund Services Waterford Hedge fund administration services Foreign Sunlife Information Services Waterford Software development, business administration
and technical helpdesk services for Sun Life's North american divisions Foreign Ubiqus Waterford Translation Services Foreign SRAM Waterford Back office shared services Foreign Equifax
Wexford Credit assessment bureau-business services centre Foreign PNC Financial Wexford Fund administration and services centre Foreign Ridge Telemarketing Carlow Outbound telemarketing,
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