We already have a culture of entrepreneurship in Ireland, but we need to help businesses rebuild themselves in a sustainable way, something National Enterprise Week, with its focus on innovation, is designed to do

SMALL AND medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) form the spine of the Irish economy. There are some 230,000 of these companies, which are classified as those employing less than 50 people, and they contribute over €10 billion to the Exchequer annually and employ 900,000 people, according to the small and medium-sized business association ISME.

“Ireland is fortunate in that we have a very strong SME and entrepreneurial culture in the country already,” claims Bank of Ireland director of business banking Mark Cunningham. “Irish people have the drive, the energy and the business acumen. We have proven that time and again over the years and what we are trying to do in Enterprise Week is to further develop and encourage this culture.”

He believes that this business acumen is coming to the fore once again in the downturn. “`Companies and entrepreneurs are now getting back to basics and the focus is very much on building sustainable businesses. One of the major problems with this at the moment is the huge lack of confidence out there,” he notes.

He points to the fact that while there are still 1.85 million people employed in the country, there is a high level of uncertainty generally. “The savings ratio – the amount of people’s disposable income that they put into savings – has increased to 12 per cent,” he explains. “This is a huge increase on the 1 per cent or 2 per cent levels seen during the boom. People don’t have the confidence to go out and spend their money.”

This is in part what Enterprise Week aims to address. “We need to give business the confidence to invest again next year,” says Cunningham. “We thought we would see an upturn in capital expenditure and stocking up by businesses in the current quarter but this hasn’t materialised. However, all the commentators agree that next year’s economic numbers will be better than this year’s, and we want to build on this.”

Among the key objectives of Enterprise Week is to dispel the notion that there is little point in looking to the bank for money. “We are prepared to lend to and support businesses who are interested in growing. We are very much open for business and we want entrepreneurs to come in and talk to us to see how we can help, either with funding or advice. We have been saying this for quite some time but it is not surprising that businesses are a little sceptical given the amount of bad news that’s out there at the moment. Enterprise Week is an opportunity for us to demonstrate to businesses and entrepreneurs that we are here and ready to help. The last Enterprise Week in May was very positive in this regard with many business people telling us that they were glad to see Bank of Ireland hosting such an event. Hopefully by getting this message out there we will help generate some positive sentiment.”

A key focus of Enterprise Week this time around is innovation. “We are strongly committed to supporting innovation,” Cunningham notes. “And this week we have had the opportunity to play a role in the Innovation Dublin Festival. This morning’s event in the House of Lords in Dublin is part of the festival and throughout the week we will be giving innovative businesses the opportunity to showcase their products and services in our nationwide branch network.”

And Bank of Ireland is putting its money where its mouth is in terms of supporting innovation in the form of its €26 million Seed and Early Stage Equity Fund. The fund invests in start-up and early stage companies, with a focus on export-oriented, high-potential, start-up companies that operate in the technology, green tech, food and financial services sectors. It is managed on behalf of Bank of Ireland and the other partners, Enterprise Ireland and University of Limerick Foundation (ULF), by Kernel Capital.

The bank is also supporting innovation through its service offering. “Our business managers in the branches are dealing with innovative businesses every day of the week,” Cunningham explains.

“We are addressing this through building expertise in a wide range of sectors which will assist these innovative businesses. If owner- managers of these businesses come into our branches they will be referred to business bankers who will have an in-depth understanding of their needs.

“We are working closely with Enterprise Ireland and the venture capital houses in developing our expertise in this area. If you have an innovative business proposition, or indeed any business proposition at all, drop into one of our branches during Enterprise Week and see how Bank of Ireland can help.”

For more information on the events being held during Bank of Ireland’s National Enterprise Week, see allaboutbusiness.ie or contact your local branch