it@cork news

Call for Training Requirements 2012 ...

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 11:41:00 GMT

Dear All,

Call for Training Requirements 2012 ......

We are delighted to announce that we are planning YOUR training requirements for 2012 now. To help us with our planning, can we please ask you to to:

1. Let us know what training your company requires for 2012 and send the details to: marie@itcork.ie. You should include the course title and number of people you will send on it. Also let us know If you are happy to host the training in-house and open to external delegates attending.

We are always happy to discuss your requirements with you so feel free to call us on 021 4868180 or email marie@itcork.ie

it@cork chairman and org recognised as one of top business videos in 2011 by Silicon Republic

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 11:27:00 GMT

A look back at some of the various business videos on Siliconrepublic.com during 2011, including interviews with the ITLG, the IDA and it@cork.

The economic climate dominated 2011's business landscape in Ireland. Technology and industries like biopharma remain the few bright spots in the Irish economy and the leading areas of job creation, thanks to the efforts of IDA Ireland.

It was also a year that saw entrepreneurs and business leaders emerge, offering hope for the future and ultimately a better way of doing things.

Denis Collins' inspired leadership of the it@cork industry group shows how the technology industry can positively impact on a region, for example.

In Silicon Valley, Irish business leaders like John Hartnett are mobilising the diaspora and establishing Irish economic outposts in Silicon Valley, Hollywood and Wall Street, while in Iceland, the emergence of an ideas economy is the key to economic recovery.

To view interviews, click here :

Reminder to complete : Cork Chamber Employment Skills Survey

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 10:41:00 GMT

Dear it@cork members,

One of the most important challenges facing the Cork region is equipping our current and future workforce with the skills to compete in the global market place. It is vital that our workforce is equipped to meet the needs of companies and the challenges of both globalisation and technological advances.

Cork Chamber has developed a regional Skills & Education Needs Assessment which aims to build a picture of the type of graduates companies are seeking, the role of internships and work placements, current vacancies and employer preferences when up-skilling employees. The survey is supported by key stakeholders in the region including IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, IT@Cork and Cork City and County Enterprise Boards.

The survey is being conducted in cooperation with the higher education institutions in the region and will prove valuable in articulating the needs of employers to them.

This comprehensive survey should take no longer than 15 minutes to complete and should be completed by the managing director or human resources section. It is possible to save the survey and return to complete it if required. All participants will receive a copy of the survey results which will provide valuable information on education and skills requirements and availability in the Cork region.

Click here to begin the skills survey or visit https://Corkskillsneeds2011.surveyconsole.com

If you have any queries please contact Seán O’Leary, Policy and Research Executive, sean@corkchamber.ie.

Thank you for your assistance on this important matter.

Renew your it@cork Membership /Join by 31 Jan 2012 and avail of 10% Discount .....

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:23:00 GMT

Why Join?

Membership of it@cork provides the opportunity to make new business contacts, learn the latest in technology trends and heighten your company profile. The organisation provides IT professionals from all sectors with opportunities to meet and develop an appreciation of the resources and activities of the IT market in Cork.

Remember all employees of member companies enjoy the benefits of membership.

Members of it@cork enjoy the following exclusive benefits:

Events & Conferences

    * Free attendance at our monthly information and networking events. it@cork runs more than thirty events and conferences throughout the year.
    * Discounted registration fee to the it@cork Technology in Business Conference and other events
    * Meet and interact with the industry from all sectors at events

Raise your Profile

    * Members are invited to submit their latest news items and press releases for publication in the newsletter and for a limited time on the website
    * Member presence in the online directory on www.itcork.ie
    * Member listing in the it@cork Annual Review circulated to thousands of members and contacts
    * Presenting at future events. it@cork encourages members to submit event proposals for consideration.
    * Sponsorship opportunities for member companies
    * Access to subsidized training. In 2009 it@cork member companies received €50,000 worth of subsidized training through it@cork’s partnership with the Software Skillnet.
    * Promotion of your business through member-to-member offers

Keeping you Informed

The it@cork website - www.itcork.ie - has now become a valuable resource for technology professionals. The All Industry events area offers a snapshot of what is happening in the industry nationwide. Members are also kept informed through the blog (http://blog.itcork.ie) and the monthly email newsletter which includes member news and upcoming events.

Connect with it@cork members

it@cork members are invited to join the it@cork LinkedIn and Facebook groups and follow it@cork on Twitter (itcork).
Annual Membership Rates Per Annum - Pay by 31 January 2012 and receive 10% off membership 2012...

Graduate Membership: €20 plus VAT
Companies with between 1and 15 Employees: €150 plus VAT
Companies with between 16 and 75 Employees: €300 plus VAT
Companies with 75+ employees: €500 plus VAT
Platinium Packages available* - Please contact Marie Fitzpatrick for more details : Tel: 021 4868 180.

*Bundled Packages Available in the form of: Sponsorship, Advertising (web, ezine etc), Speaking engagements, and product placement at events/training etc.

Complete the online 'Join Us' form today to become a member!

Join Tenego Partnering for a Webinar on January 17.....

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:37:00 GMT

Join Tenego Partnering for a Webinar on January 17.....

Do you accept what seems like the industry standards of 10% to 15% for services OR is this down to what you can negotiate?

Why pay 10%? Why Pay more than 10% and why not pay less?

Do you know what a Lead is worth to you OR what a completed delivered sale is worth?

Find out how you can calculate how much Commission you should pay your Partners by registering for this webinar.
Title: How to Calculate Partner Sales Commissions
Date: Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Time: 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM GMT
After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.
System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/789938630

Recent Blog from TechSceneNYC

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 17:55:00 GMT

TechSceneNYC

A blog by MarketSprint's CEO, Niamh Bushnell.

Hello everyone! This blog offers an insider's view on what's going on in the New York Tech scene. I'll be reporting on events I've attended, trends I'm observing and I'll also interview some key local players to give you access to their perspectives.

Please e-mail me at TechSceneNYC@MarketSprint.com if you have industry topics you'd like me to cover, questions or just to say hello.

Happy New Year everyone!

For this month's post I'm sharing my contribution for the new book "101 Questions about Launching your Business" soon to be published by San Francisco based Women 2.0.

I'm answering the question "How do I talk to potential customers?" I hope you enjoy it.

How do I talk to potential customers?

Believe me, early sales are pure relationship sales. You're the visionary, they're the early adopter and if you have what it takes to sustain this dynamic the sale will happen.

A genuine and persistent curiosity about your customers' work is a great starting point but the magic happens when you've figured out how to translate your solution into a solid prescription for their pain.

It takes time and experience to perfect customer conversations but hopefully the below is a useful guide for those of you just starting out.

• Sell your vision - The vision is always more important than the nitty gritty of the product so make sure you've connected with your customer on the vision first, the rest will follow.

• Establish your street cred - You don't have to be an industry veteran or even an industry insider to have credibility with a new customer. Early on, tell them about yourself; where you've worked recently, big name clients or innovative projects you've worked on, investors you're working with and anything else that will help establish you as successful and capable in their minds.

• Come armed with value - Before each potential customer meeting, research the person and their company. Then sit quietly for a moment and ask yourself - what can I say or do to bring value to this person immediately? What insights can I deliver to them, what resources can I share with them? How can I help them right now?

• Ask a little, listen a lot and then pitch - Establish your customer's key pain points or motivations for the discussion first. Then customize your pitch using examples that are compatible with their worldview and experience.

• Show don't tell - It's important to steer clear of formal, lecture like presentations. Instead, look for opportunities to use a visual aid like a demo, an infographic, a photo or a pie chart, or even a couple of customer logos to emphasize a point of importance.

• Be confident - You might not be an expert but that doesn't mean you don't have something of value to discuss. Be well prepared, respect your customer's time, ask all of the "stupid" questions you want to ask and enjoy the smart exchange of ideas.

• Ignore initial objections at your peril - If not, they'll come back to haunt you in a never-ending sales process death spiral! If yours is a hosted solution and your potential customer says, "We generally like to keep applications behind the firewall" do yourself a favor and find a new early adopter customer. There'll be time (and resources) enough to tackle this particular opportunity again later.

• Understand your customer's buying process early - Develop a clear and realistic view of the hurdles involved in selling to this organization as soon as you can. Try asking about other solutions they've purchased, young companies they are working with, the steps they would follow if they were interested in engaging with your company. Active listening will help you immensely here, not only to get a sense of the sales cycle but also the potential of the person to bring the deal over the line for you.

• Talk money without fixing a price - The topic of money brings lots of focus to a conversation. Its helpful to get some sense of the value you're offering even if you're still figuring out your price or pricing model, so talk estimates, ranges, and potential payment structures, then pay close attention to the verbal and non verbal reaction.

• Always be open to learning something new - Take the time to explore outside the realm of your solution to get a deeper insight into your customer. Ask them about other solutions they are buying or would love to buy right now if they had the budget. Be genuine in your desire to understand their work.

• Act human - Use humor, anecdotes and personal insights where appropriate to allow the relationship connection to be made quickly and solidly.

• At every moment be professional - A high level of professionalism and consistency in your communications will give your customer the confidence that you can deliver a winning solution regardless of how many road bumps you both hit on your way to the finish line.

All the best meantime, Niamh

it@cork Chairman's Note - 2012

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 13:38:00 GMT

Dear it@cork Colleague, happy New Year.

We entered 2011 with many challenges, organisationally and financially, and deployed a strategy to make a difference, and then did it.

We achieved many things -- financial stability, strengthened brand, increased diverse board talent, relevant accountable workstreams, improved alignment between SME & multi-nationals, enhanced SME networking/topics with TechTuesday, premier Annual Conference and Java Conference, Premier Awards event with 50% yty attendance growth, publically acknowledged CSR model with Shine Ireland for Autism, Innovation That Matters, e3, multiple Skillsnet courses, Digital Cork, TechScene NYC and IT industry skills gap review amongst other achievements.

Wow!

This is a voluntary organisation with a limited staff, in an early phase of the growing cycle. Despite these challenges, we achieved results. Feel proud about these accomplishments.

Organisations that embrace positivity and collaborate for the common good are the ones that make a difference. We can also do better in many areas and we will focus on this in the year ahead.

2011 was a year of transition. 2012 is a year for increased execution and relevance, especially for SME sector. We encourage you to get involved.

On behalf of the leadership team, thank you.

We ask for your input and support at our AGM which is on tomorrow, Friday, 06 January 2012 at 6pm, the Maryborugh Hotel & Spa as well as your support for 2012.

.........."you ain't seen nothing yet".

Denis Collins, Chairman it@cork
Chairman, it@cork

Christmas Opening Hours - it@cork

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 12:47:00 GMT

Hello Everyone,

Just to make you aware , it@cork office will close at 5:30pm on Thursday, 22th of December and will not re-open again until Tuesday the 3rd of January 2012 at 09:00am.

Many Thanks, Marie

"Regionally Moving Office As Part of Collaboration Across Region"

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 09:28:00 GMT

In order to highlight the excellence of Cork's IT innovation ecosystem, it@cork will rotate its office location around a number of top class facilities in the region over coming years. This “regional spotlight” initiative will help expose these facilities to it@cork members and to promote the region to potential investors.

After enjoying many fruitful years at the NSC Campus, it@cork has now moved to the Rubicon Centre on the CIT Campus where it hopes to help shine a spotlight on the outstanding business incubation work that is being performed there. In the future, it@cork will move again. Suggestions from members in relation to new locations are always welcome!

New Address:-

it@cork
The Rubicon Centre
CIT Campus, Bishopstown, Cork, Ireland.

Telephone No: 021 4868180

For any queries, please contact Marie Fitzpatrick by email: marie@itcork.ie.

Munsters Tech Leaders Revealed at Prestigious Ceremony

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 12:05:00 GMT

Munster’s Tech Leaders Revealed at Prestigious Ceremony

220 people packed the Maryborough Hotel & Spa in Cork last night 24/11/2011, to hear the winners of the 2011 it@cork Leaders Awards. The awards were set up to recognise Leaders in Technology and Business Innovation in Munster. The event not only provided an opportunity for the tech community to recognise their peers who are driving success in the area, they also provided a platform for technology business leaders to meet in a relaxed celebratory atmosphere.

‘This is a unique event for tech companies’ explains Denis Collins, Chair of it@cork Board of Directors. ‘This is a unique event for the ICT industry and clearly demonstrates that Ireland Inc is open for business, driving global thought leadership, collaboration and value to the marketplace. This is just the start of further emergence onto the global stage, our IT industry is alive and well and will continue to be an integral part of growth for Ireland Inc ."

John Wall, Chair of the 2011 organising committee adds’ "We received over 100 nominations across seven categories and the standard was fantastic. The number of good projects with great people and strong aspirations should give us confidence that the future of the tech sector in Munster is in good shape."

The Excellence in Education award was the first to be presented and the winner was Presentation Secondary School, Ballyphehane. Fergal Brosnan, Managing Director, Berkley Group and chair of the Excellence in Education Judging panel explained: The judging panel found the approach by the school, teachers and students was fully integrated, and progressive , with each participant pushing the other to bring the most out of technology. Engagement by all participants was superb, inclusivity of all students, from the use for special needs, to utilising Technology within the extra curricular activities such as their Choir. The teacher based classrooms have benefited both the students and teachers, with each teacher effectively using technology as the new chalk”

The winner of the Green Technology Award was 3 Pro Energy Watch Ltd. Noel Dillane, IT Director, PepsiCo and chair of the Green Technology Judging panel explains : “The winner of the 2011 Green Technology Award has shown great innovation in identifying a common energy and money saving opportunity and addresses it with technical and motivational measures. Together, these provide a technical solution, that can be widely applied, and also draws the user’s attention to the wider need to consider energy use”
QUMAS won the Sustained Excellence Award. Brian Padden, Regional Manager, VMware and acting Chair of the Sustained Excellence Judging panel said: “The standard was fantastic this year and this year’s winner, QUMAS showcased consistent growth and strong contribution to the economy”

The winner of the Research and Innovation Project Award was MPSTOR. Enda Murphy, CTO, Lincor Solutions Ltd and chair of the Research and Innovation project award judging panel explains why they won. “The winner of the 2011 Research and Innovation Project Award has shown outstanding innovation in the development of their "Orkestra" platform which provides a unique approach to cloud data centre management. Founded in 2006, MPSTOR has built itself into one of the leading players in the data storage market using their "MPStackware" platform. With "Orkestra", MPSTOR provides data centers the ability to easily change their business model to become cloud service providers. Already in trial with a number of Tier 1 data storage companies, "Orkestra" promises to provide better utilisation of server, storage and network asses by reducing OpEx and CapEx costs for its customers"

Wistek Solutions won the High Growth Category Award. Celine Fox, Partner of KPMG and acting chair of the High Growth Judging panel said: “"In selecting Wistek Solutions as the award recipient from an excellent calibre of finalists, the judges felt they best personified a High Growth Company. Their growth in revenues, profitability, employment, product throughput and international expansion into Asia all pointed to a company on a consistent growth trajectory. Their work in reverse logistics and recovering and recycling electronic waste back into the supply chain of multinational manufacturers is a real Cork IT success story deserving of recognition with this award."

This year’s IT Dept Award went to the Cork Institute of Technology. Norma O’Callaghan, VP European Finance & Business Operations, Trend Micro EMEA and Chair of the it@cork Leaders Award judging panel for the leading IT Department explains why the award recipient was chosen. “While all entries provided excellent cases of the deployment of technology in industry, the winner of the Leaders Award stood out for the judges because of their exemplary and innovative approach to the delivery of Cloud computing across their organisation. The IT Dept at CIT has revolutionised the use of IT on campus, and has adopted a new and strategic way of provisioning education through technology. Spearheaded by the Head of IT, Gerard Culley, the activities of the CIT IT department has had enormously positive consequences for the students and the college, but as significantly for the Region and the ability to for academic and industry to work together. The adoption of this technology and the manner in which it was conducted (through close engagement with the students and staff), enables the college to be highly competitive in the provision of education, and provides a means for students, academics and the college administration to embrace technology in their day to day activities for the betterment of the college. The judges were very impressed by the vision and passion of the IT Department at CIT, and believed that they truly deserved to be recognised as Leaders in their field, and worthy recipients of the it@cork Leaders Award for an outstanding IT Department”.

The winner of the High Potential Start-up Award was ePubDirect. Michael Fitzgerald, Managing Director of Abtran and chair of the High Potential Start-up judging panel outlines the distinguishing merits of the winner. “In choosing the winner of this year’s High Potential Start-up Award, it was important to give credit to a company who had made significant strides to identify a unique market where they could excel on a global scale. Strong leadership and a vision followed by strategic efforts to gain competitive advantage were key criteria for the winner to meet and in the final stages it was unanimously agreed that this company stood out above all the rest. The judges agreed that this company showed the greatest potential and, of all the finalists, his company was clearly the most entrepreneurial. It was apparent that his intuition and understanding lead to seizing a global opportunity for service and success. In a time when it is difficult for new businesses to succeed, this company has demonstrated a expertise, passion and dedication. It is expected this company will reach great heights in the future.”

The after dinner speaker was Gavin Duffy, Dragon’s Den presenter.

ENDs
About it@cork

For further Press Information please contact Marie Fitzpatrick, it@cork on 021 2307011 or email marie@itcork.ie.
Pics by Gerard McCarthy 087 8537228

Many Thanks, Marie