for the purposes of our discussions we are considering groups of enterprises producing a critical mass of business activity that have significant impact on the local economy through investment, employment, infrastructure and profitability.
one which is the result of strategic leadership from private sector investment, central government initiative, local authority economic stimulation,
and then monetise financial or resource investment. Mike Lynch (founder of the company, Autonomy) says:
Multiple Clusters Pru Ashby, Director at Tech City Investments, articulated the competitive advantage that London enjoys as a leading global creative cluster comprised of these‘hotspots'.
§Investment. Finance, incentives and speed of response are strong attractors.§§Business Climate. Optimism, excitement, peer group membership, association with success, public and industry profile, recognition all factors influencing where entrepreneurs
growing and managing the enterprise Investors commercial, private, local authorities, foreign investment Financial service providers banks, providers of credit, insurers Talent developers/universities interdisciplinary talent,
A particular strategy that we have observed is to replace deteriorating performance in traditional industry sectors with investments to promote
Investors are becoming aware of the value of this sector on a long-term basis. Investment decisions need to be based on a full understanding of the culture of the sector,
how the case for public and private investment can be more persuasive; how talent flows in to the industry can be broadened and managed;
green economic growth and impressive returns in investment are lost not. The authors are keen to discuss with readers how the research agenda can be progressed.
Inside-out and outside-in flows entail patent licencing, technology-based acquisition, joint-ventures, non-equity R&d investments
and have suggested two complementary investment models 66. The first is the‘private investment'model, which assumes that innovation can be funded by private sources
and that private returns can be appropriated from such investments 67. The second is the‘collective model'
which fosters innovation through direct public investments in public knowledge goods 68. This model also progressively employs policy instruments to promote private investments in R&d 69.
Examples of such policy instruments are competition policies, tax policies, and subsidies. Therefore, prior to the OI era, innovation came about either through private R&d spending in firms or through government investments in the public sphere 70.
A vast range of social resources, such as retired skilled workers, and the valuable knowledge of former staff, have been excluded generally from the task of advancing the frontiers of innovation.
OI scholars state that in the OI era companies should tap into this large external pool of know-how to gain new ideas while at the same time move unused ideas outside the company 3. This leads to a large, valuable stock of knowledge for others
Besides private and public investments in R&d we also need to include a vast range of social resources that could be used in OI.
Companies are recognizing that a judicious use of IT can lead them toward increases in sales and returns on investment never before possible.
Their spending ratio ranges from 1. 02%to 3. 99%,representing vast investments in IT,
Becher cites the adage that marketers know that half their marketing investment is wasted but do not have any idea which half.
which efficiently delivers the appropriate supporting infrastructures (both physical and soft) to create competitive and attractive locations for foreign and indigenous business investment.
and make strategic investments now that pump-prime the potential of each of the regions to position them as key contributors to Ireland's national growth
Investment Priorities,(Fitzpatricks Associates, Consultants, Doehlg and Forfás, 2004), and complements the NCC report: Our Cities:
and sectoral diversity and/or clustering Skills & Education an analysis of the skills, educational attainment and education resources Knowledge and Innovation research and development investment and activity, collaborations and inter-linkages between HEIS and firms,
between firms and customers Economic Infrastructures Access and Connectivity transport and broadband infrastructures recent investments and ongoing infrastructure needs Quality of life based on factors relevant to the attraction of mobile investment
and prior to the development of the NSS, land use and infrastructure investment decisions at county and city levels were made not in the context of a regional framework.
OVERVIEW, FINDINGS & ACTIONS 8 Actions The Enterprise Development Agenda Enterprise investment plays a crucial role in achieving balanced regional development.
Prioritise and target investments (national, regional and local) in a coordinated and complementary way that accelerates the development of the gateways Reinstate the GIF at the earliest opportunity.
It is important to leverage the investments made in the regions to date17 and to harness the potential of the hubs,
The development agencies can also play a vital role in influencing investments in infrastructures specific to enterprise (and in some cases sectoral) needs.
The dispersed nature of Irish population patterns makes returns on private investment more difficult to achieve.
Recent measures by the European Commission27 to facilitate public investment in broadband infrastructure acknowledge the wider spillover benefits for economic and social development
and suggest that insufficient private investment in this area is not unique to Ireland. The broadband debate has been ongoing for many years in Ireland,
The government needs to develop an investment plan to deliver on its broadband strategy. The plan should explicitly state where
and when government investment will take place to address market failure, particularly in the provision of:
and An awareness of the factors that influence enterprise investment decisions and prioritisation of infrastructure investments and actions that address the needs of enterprise.
More recent developments and investments have seeded the basis for change and future growth, although the challenges remain significant.
and cross border development funds for investment There has been a reduction in the number of‘unskilled'within the labour force over the past decade
although prioritised investments at a national level, as well as the need for community buy in (e g. in the grid infrastructures) may have implications for its timely realisation.
provides an attractive environment for enterprise investment, for tourism development and from a lifestyle choice perspective.
new start ups and informal investments 32 This is an extract of regional level actions included in the full report it is noted that some of the regional actions could be replicated across other regions 33 http://www. delni. gov
and investments have been attracted to the region in recent years37. The region is also developing expertise in telecommunications and software development,
Entrepreneurs(%of Adults) Informal Investment Activity(%of Adults) Border 12.8 5 3. 1 7. 9 2 Dublin 10.5 3. 8 3. 6
Returning to export-led growth requires that we create an environment that is conducive to attracting foreign direct investment (FDI
and make strategic investments now that pump-prime the potential of each of the regions to position them as contributors to Ireland's national growth
and that today, internationally, cities are competing with cities for enterprise investment. It also points to the fact that urban areas play a key role in driving the development of their hinterlands,
and attracts and retains foreign investment. The following factors of competitiveness were developed to facilitate analysis of the regions,
and sectoral diversity and/or clustering Skills & Education an analysis of the skills, educational attainment and education resources Innovation research and development investment and activity,
collaborations and interlinkages between HEIS and firms, between firms and customers Economic Infrastructures transport and broadband infrastructures recent investments and ongoing infrastructure needs Quality of life based on factors relevant
to the attraction of mobile investment and labour/talent Leadership and Strategic Capacity outlining relevant organisations and indications of locally driven initiatives and outcomes 4 Forfás,
Gateway Investment Priorities Study; NCC (2009) Our Cities: Drivers of National Competitiveness; Fitzpatrick Associates (2009) Preparation of a Gateway Development Index (Stages 1&2) FORFÁS REGIONAL COMPETITIVENESS AGENDA:
New investments in recent years particularly in the Lifesciences sector, have boosted manufacturing employment and have helped to offset decline in the more established manufacturing sectors.
Key investments in the electricity network are required to satisfy future demands, and the broadband offering in the region needs to be improved to support future enterprise potential.
and retaining internationally mobile skilled people attracting knowledge intensive internationally mobile Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) A variety of lifestyle choices can be accommodated in the diverse physical landscape and settlement patterns across the Southeast region.
Recent infrastructure investments in the region are welcomed, and will enhance the physical access and connectivity of the region, both nationally and internationally.
Further investment will be required to enhance future economic development potential. FORFÁS REGIONAL COMPETITIVENESS AGENDA: REALISING POTENTIAL:
for attracting investment from foreign and indigenous companies, stimulating entrepreneurship and enabling companies based in the region to grow
and increasing the attractiveness of the region for inward investment. The‘Sunny Southeast'has established an reputation for tourism, particularly domestic tourism, a market
As well as large scale infrastructural investments, access for the tourism market can also be improved through innovative initiatives using local facilities,
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,
Much of the growth is accounted for by investments by overseas companies into the region such as AOL (Carphone Warehouse;
Future business investment within the region in international and financial services will require advanced, high quality and competitively priced broadband infrastructure and access to data centre capacity.
Unum and IT Carlow The software development capabilities at IT Carlow were a key attractor in the recent investment by Unum,
Enhancing the Business Environment The region has many of the building blocks in place to attract investment from foreign and indigenous firms.
SOUTHEAST 22 Stimulating Entrepreneurship Whereas mobile investment tends to be attracted to the larger urban areas, there is potential within the region to create competitive environments to attract a concentration of new company start-ups in the hub towns and other locations.
The development agencies contend that the future needs of enterprise require investment in Next Generation Networks
Eirgrid has suggested that the following investments in the Southeast's electricity grid are necessary; An investment of approximately €830m to upgrade approximately 490 km of the existing network
and to build new infrastructure; 27 Iarnród Éireann have announced recently the commencement at the end of November 2009 of a new express train from Waterford City to Dublin (Monday to Saturday) departing at 7:
Water and Waste Water Substantial investment in the region's water and waste water infrastructure has been undertaken in recent years through the individual local authorities.
Continued investment in water services under the current NDP aims to address remaining capacity shortages.
and MNCS in the region-for example, include relevant indigenous companies as demonstration sites on inward investment itineraries
Water/Wastewater Continue with planned investments in water and waste water infrastructure to ensure forecast deficits in key centres do not arise. 31 Iarnród Éireann have announced recently the commencement at the end of November 2009 of a new express train from Waterford City to Dublin (Monday to Saturday
and targeting new foreign direct investment through a broad range of initiatives. In conjunction with Forfás they influence policy by providing on-the-ground information about the real issues facing business (in areas such as infrastructures, education and regulatory environment.
Stimulate and support entrepreneurship Stimulate investment in R&d and innovation through financial supports, Intellectual Property advice,
Techsource (technology acquisition) Support company expansions and investment in capital and productivity initiatives Provide supports for training
IDA Ireland IDA is responsible for the attraction and development of foreign investment in Ireland. It is focused on securing investment from new and existing clients in the areas Of high End Rubber and Plastic Products 3%Nonmetallic Mineral Products 13%Basic and Fabricated Metal Products 13
%Computer Electronic and Optical Products Machinery and 1%Equipment 9%Transport Equipment 1%Other Manufacturing ICT Services 9%3%Business and Other Services
The IDA is focused also on emerging areas such as Clean Technology, Convergence and Services Innovation-areas that offer exciting new investment opportunities.
The IDA attracts overseas and inward investment by: Focusing on business sectors that are matched closely with the emerging needs of the economy
Compiling up-to-date statistics and facts for research into industry, the economy and foreign direct investment in Ireland.
Forfás Annual Employment Survey, 2008 A key activity for IDA in the regional context is the development of a strong value propositions for attracting high value foreign direct investment to the region based on its particular strengths
Its economic mission seeks to encourage new investment and employment opportunities in Gaeltacht areas. The Gaeltacht covers parts of counties Donegal
Attracting high value investments (especially in high technology services), both indigenous and from overseas, to the Gaeltacht Providing attractive property solutions for enterprise development in the Gaeltacht Working to upgrade services
In providing supports to both FDI and indigenous enterprise investments, Údarás operates within the same regional aid framework as EI and IDA and offers a similar suite of supports to enterprise as the other
Science Foundation Ireland Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) is the state agency that promotes investment in basic research,
SFI's stated mission is to help build in Ireland research of globally recognised excellence and nationally significant economic importance through strategic investments in the people, ideas and partnerships essential to outstanding research in strategic areas.
quality and standards and facilitating investment in tourism infrastructure. Thirdly, it builds human resource capability in the industry, investing in training provision and standards across the publicly supported educational system, through a training network of outreach centres and also via an executive and management development programmes for the tourism industry.
and development and also aim to address the lack of investment in Human Resource Development by business by tackling some of the real and perceived barriers to training.
It is key to stimulating enterprise investment, concentration and well-planned structured growth within a region.
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
the agencies will have a spotlight on Waterford for Lifesciences investment and seek to develop collaborative initiatives in connected health
indigenous investment and foreign direct investment SOUTH EAST EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN FORFÁS Internationally trading services.
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.
In October 2011 Skillnets announced an investment of €250, 000 for the immediate provision of training for Talk Talk employees,
On 17 october 2011 Skillnets announced an investment of €250, 000 for the immediate provision of training for Talk Talk employees,
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.
There were 11 investment/job announcements in the region from 2008 to 2011 of which five were for Waterford City and County.
Food Tourism, Supply Chain Project, Procurement Project, Service Cluster Ireland, Investment support, Business guidance, South East Diaspora, Technology Group.
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.
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.
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
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:
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.
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.
There is potential for new mobile investment; however, continuing change at a global level within the sector including the trend towards increased automation,
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
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.
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.
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.
As well as large scale infrastructural investments, access for the tourism market can also be improved through innovative initiatives using local facilities,
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,
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,
Realising Potential Future business investment within the region in international and financial services will require advanced,
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
On 17 october 2011 Skillnets announced an investment of €250, 000 for the immediate provision of training for Talk Talk employees,
This shift will involve employment churn as lower end activities move offshore and new higher order investments are realised.
The initial challenge is to win investment for Ireland in the face of intense global competition from larger scale countries.
and productivity through investments in technologies and/or to deliver niche services based on strong domain knowledge and expertise.
In general, foreign investment is attracted to the scale of the labour pool, and availability of multilingual skills in an urban area,
Despite intensified global competition, the IDA has announced 13 new investments and/or expansions in SSCS over the past 9 months
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,
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
and they aggressively seek new investments, both foreign (Greenfield and expansion) and indigenous, through new start-ups/entrepreneurship.
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
TSSG leads the FAME (Federated Autonomic Management of End-to-end Communication Services) SFI Strategic Research Cluster (a €5. 86m investment from SFI.
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
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
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
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.
with an attractive property solution and reference Lifesciences businesses, there is a need for a spotlight on Waterford for Lifesciences investment
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.
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.
The Government has committed to this project as part of the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Programme 2012-16.
New forms of innovation Innovation that aims directly to address social challenges must cope with specific barriers that cause under-investment
While the market economy has expanded hand in hand with democracy and increased investments in education and healthcare, the income gaps and power inequalities between the richest and the poorest, majorities and minorities, genders,
During the great Bangladeshi famine of the 1970s, he realized that the chronic poverty of rural populations was linked directly to their impossible access to capital, leading to a vicious cycle of low income, low savings and low investment.
and allow for a higher income, savings, investment and an even higher income. Starting with a very small experiment in the village of Jobra making microloans to women producers of bamboo furniture, he demonstrated the possibility to generate a profit.
Large-scale investments have to reinforce the right collaborative platforms for innovators and Social Entrepreneurs, and to invest in new forms of entrepreneurial and societal education. to name a few).
allow a more accurate assessment of social innovation investments and results; permit better monitoring of the actions that underlie social innovations (hence improving/accelerating policy learning;
here presented as investments by the firm in both tangible and intangible assets, for innovation pursuant to enhanced firm performance.
and productivity impacts of IT investments (see, e g.,, Huang and Liu 2005; Bharadwaj, Bharadwaj, and Konsynski 1999;
IT investments do not meet performance objectives (e g.,, Clegg et al. 1997), or that there is little or no relationship between IT investment and firm performance (e g.,
, Powell and Dent-Micallef 1997. Various arguments have been put forward as to why there is a lack of consensus in the value of IT investment.
For example, Powell and Dent-Micallef (1997) suggest that IT is now so readily available and,
and the role of time lag effects between investment in technology and its payoff (Sangho and Kim 2006).
Even then, only 4 percent of all new product innovations beat the expected return on investment (Nussbaum, Berner, and Brady 2005.
IT Investment With IT's increasing sophistication and usage, managers now consider the use of IT as a competitive tool used for the implementation of strategic plans and the support of firm core competencies (e g.,
As a consequence, investment in IT by firms has escalated dramatically in recent times (Devaraj and Kohli 2003.
Ravichandran and Lertwongsatien (2005) also found a direct relationship between investments in IT capabilities and firm financial performance.
IT Investment, Innovation, and Firm Performance Firm performance is enhanced when there are synergies among the elements of a system.
As such, investment in IT does not stimulate productivity and growth (i e.,, firm performance) without a number of complementary developments,
and IT investment) regressed on the dependent variable of Figure 1 Conceptual Model H3(+)IT Investment Innovation (Product/Process) Firm Performance (Return on Assets/Return on Sales/Sales Growth/Market
IT Asset Investment. Management information systems scholars (e g.,, Sakaguchi and Dibrell 1998; Mahmood and Mann 1993) suggest that an appropriate way to gauge a firm's emphasis ON IT is to look at their investments in IT assets (e g.,
, hardware, software, and personnel) relative to other competitors within the same industry. Drawing upon a scale developed
2) total IT investment;(3) number of IT employees; and (4) number of personal computers and terminals per employee.
the coefficient alphas ranged from a low of 0. 69 for a process innovation strategy to a high of 0. 88 for IT asset investment and firm financial performance.
p<.05) had positive associations with IT asset investment, resulting in H1 being supported. The squared multiple correlation (comparable to R2 in regression analysis) for this equation was 0. 11,
2. Process Innovation 2. 70 0. 89 0. 69 0. 31**3. IT Investment 2. 85 1. 04 0. 88 0
In order to optimize investment in innovation activities IT initiatives should be aligned with innovation. Second, SMES that compete with larger firms are able to level the competitive playing field by utilizing IT.
The extant literature on innovation reveals that through investment in product and process innovations, firms Table 2 Structural Model Parameter Estimates and Goodness-of-fit Statistics for Hypothesized Model (n=311) a Estimates
Growth 0. 15*2. 53 Value of IT Assets Total IT Investment 0. 15*3. 59 Producing Specialty Products Invest in R&d 0. 17*3. 11
either a product or a process-oriented innovation strategy with investments in IT enhance their firms'relative performance along two essential dimensions:
Perhaps, a lack of investment in IT over time may render the firm incapable of meeting customer requirements.
An Integrated View of Resource Investments and the Incremental-Choice Process, Academy of Management Review 18,760 782.
An Examination of the Effect of IT Investments on Firm Value: The Case of Y2k-Compliance Costs, Journal of Information systems 14,95 108.
Measuring the Organizational Impact of Information technology Investment: An Exploratory Study, Journal of Management Information systems 10,97 122.
A Lag Effect of IT Investment on Firm Performance, Information Resources Management Journal 19,43 69.
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