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 Innovation Challenges for SME’s 

Cllr. John Ryan 
CHAIRPERSON ENTERPRISE AND PRODUCTIVE 

INVESTMENT SUB-COMMITTEE 

 



FACT 

Over 90% of all businesses in Ireland are 

in the SME sector 

 

 



FACT 

Last Year of the total Business 

Expenditure on research and 

development 72.4% was carried out by 

foreign owned firms and only 27.6% by 

SME’s.  
(Forfas BERD 2007/08)  



FACT 

If the Irish SME sector is not engaged in 

Innovation – The Indigeous Irish 
Business Sector is not engaged in 

Innovation 



Agenda 

• Barriers and Challenges Faced by the 
SME sector 

• Learning from the Leaders 

• Key Recommendations  



 



Barriers to Innovation for SME’s 
 

 Lack of willingness to invest in upskilling and human 
resource development 

 Lack of strategic thinking 
 Absence of management capability 
 Third level institutions not seen as ‘SME-friendly’ 
 Costs 
       Enterprise Ireland 

 

 Time 
 Knowledge of Available Resources 
 Availability of Finance 
 Lack of Broadband Penetration in the Regions 



Overcoming Access and Cost 

Barriers 

Knowledge Base  

 Innovation Road Show (Push) 



Overcoming Access and Cost 

Barriers 

Knowledge Base  

 Innovation Road Show (Push) 

Better Interactions between the SME’s and 
Higher Education Institutions (User Friendly) 

Reduce the Local Authority cost burden from 
SME 

 



The Global Innovation Scoreboard (GIS)  

• The Global Innovation Leaders - Finland, Sweden, 
Switzerland, Japan, the US, Singapore and Israel 

 

• Next Best Performers – Germany, Denmark, 
Netherlands, Canada, UK, Republic of Korea, France, 
Iceland, Norway, Belgium, Australia, Austria, Ireland, 
Luxembourg, New Zealand 

 

• The Follower Countries – Hong Kong, Russia, 
Slovenia, Italy, Spain, Czech Republic, Croatia, Estonia, 
Hungary, Malta 

 

• Lagging Countries: Lithuania, Greece, China, Slovakia, 
South Africa, Portugal, Bulgaria, Turkey, Brazil, Latvia, 
Mexico, Poland, Argentina, India, Cyprus, Romania 

 



Learning from the Leaders 

 Germany:  

The Steinbeis Network  
 

 Sweden:  

Vinnväxt  
 

 Spain:  

Asturias and Cantabria 
  

 

 

 




 Collaboration between industry 

and the academic community 

will not just happen but it 

needs to be facilitated and 

encouraged.  



Policy Paper Recommendations 

• Coherent strategy to stimulate innovation at a 
regional level as a matter of priority. 

• Promote channels of access to the full range of 
R&D and Innovation opportunities 

• Review the issue of local authority rates and 
charges 

• Knowledge Bases and Innovation Roadshow be 
established  

 

 



Policy Paper Recommendations 

• Examine ways to make 3rd Level Sector more 
SME friendly  

• Freedom for SMEs to use Innovation Vouchers 
as they deem fit – not just in HEIs. 

• Commercial vehicle to drive Innovation 

• Further Investigation of Clustering 

• Part-time Innovation drivers 

• Development of more Innovation Centres 

 

 



Thank You for your Time