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Summary of ideas submitted in the Innovation category…

• Promote homeowners with large gardens and certain skill sets to open-up a part of their garden for the construction of a temporary low cost office accommodation. The homeowner may receive equity in the business and provide skills and experience to the entrepreneur.
• Implement system (similar to EI innovation voucher system) to link start up companies to mentors/entrepreneurs with necessary skills/experience. Could potentially lead to investment opportunities for mentors and allows new companies benefit from advice.
• Legislate to have a passive RFID tag included in /attached to all future light bulbs. Given that all rooms have at least one light bulb this would provide for a very reliable and accurate indoor positioning system.
• Provide startup support for new innovative companies which aim to supply to the Irish market. Gap currently exists between small start ups and larger export driven ventures (Enterprise Ireland).
• My idea is to reward companies that innovate to improve business. This would be in the form of entrepreneurial awards accompanied by cash prize. Innovation examples could be Irish companies that expand abroad, companies that expand their product portfolio and other positive risk taking like this. A public recognition such as the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award ceremony could be given to these companies but also some kind of financial incentive would be helpful, e.g. a cash award or grant.
• Allow people to switch from fixed to variable mortgage rate without incurring interest or penalties.
• Export electronic toll collection devices like transponders - Countries like Japan have a major shortage.
• Ensure that Research and Development (R&D) that is undertaken by universities is given a commercial perspective and hence is more likely to be applied in practice.
• Establish a Government based Innovation Development Team to aid inventors conduct further research in order to establish whether an idea has potential. If this is deemed to be the case the team could endeavour to have the idea proposed to already establish Irish companies in order to bring the invention to market more quickly.
• Shift focus of Government grants for new business from financial support to mentoring the grants for which will be held in a ‘mentoring’ fund. If a company qualifies for this fund they will also qualify for low cost bank loans. The fact that the company has been pre approved by the government will reduce the criteria applied by the bank. Subsidise out of work accountants, lawyers etc. who provide free services and advice to start up business.
• Approach colleges in order to tap into creative ideas of existing students. Each county enterprise board should set up a committee which entrepreneurs could approach in order to match the entrepreneur up with individuals who have the experience and knowledge in this area.
• Start a cross linking campaign for company’s websites. The aim of this is to boost the company’s page ranking thus increasing the likeliness of an individual clicking on the site through the use of search engines.
• Retrain unemployed solicitors and barrister in the areas of patenting in order to allow them get involved in start up projects.
• Encourage innovation in the workplace. Workplace innovation is all about “new ways of doing everyday things in the workplace”, from HR management to the organisation of work and working practices. This means moving away from the traditional ‘command-and-control’ style of management to a more collaborative and participative approach based on high levels of employee involvement and engagement.
• Allow small companies pay per use for expensive software as opposed to having to invest in a large amount of money upfront in software which may not be used daily.
• A forum should be set up so rather than just complaining people would be able to describe the impact of the problem and suggest solutions for same.
• A facilitator should be put in place to allow people with experience in the renewable energy sector return to college to complete a PhD in the area. Existing students may have the contacts but individuals with experience in the area would bring an increased practical knowledge to the area.
• Endeavour to provide essential services to startup business e.g. premises, broadband, expertise etc. In addition the government should provide a guaranteed income (110% of earnings prior to start up) for the first year of operation.
• Highly skilled public sector workers should be allowed take a career break in order to work for start up businesses during which time the government will continue to pay 50% of their wages.
• Create an entrepreneurial role (similar to ‘The Apprentice’) for a period of 12-18 months. This person will then be released to establish themselves as an entrepreneur with the skills acquired as an entrepreneur and with the financial backing of the original sponsor.
• Make entrepreneurship/mini companies a mandatory subject for transition year students to allow them learn some vital lessons for the future.
• Create a Facebook style social network to enable start up companies to link up with potential venture capitalists.
• Attach a compactor to wheelie bins in order to fit more rubbish in.
• Successful entrepreneurs should be available to coach/mentor the innovative ideas coming from our third level students.
• Establish a type of ‘inventors club’ to allow people share the ideas/experiences and provide valuable advice to one another.
• Establish a committee for each province to assess inventions/ideas. Any feasible ideas could then be put forward to government and tendered out to potential manufactures who could undertake R&D, marketing etc with an aim of eventually marketing the product.
• Provide young, talented but inexperienced individuals with more experienced mentor support and rather than drawing the ‘unemployment benefit’, set them to work with modest grants building new products and services.
• R&D and innovation should be aided by practical experience and knowledge of the industry in order to come up with products which the consumer actually wants
• Government should provide grants to ensure that all cafes, shops etc. have wi fi access in an attempt to encourage the more computer based businesses
• Enable a mentoring facility between start up companies and experienced professionals
• Government should employ students to do work such as marketing. Accounts etc. Would enable students to gain experience while also giving something back in exchange for a free education.
• Top engineers, manufacturers etc should endeavour to design and build our own trains, darts, metros etc. rather than importing them.
• Encourage large established organisations to take equity stakes in new companies in areas where government grants may not be available.
• Install oxygen tanks in homes to save on energy bills and to reduce ones carbon footprint.
• Skilled people who are receiving unemployment benefit could teach an aspect of their skill to other unemployed people in exchange for which they could receive some form of additional unemployment benefit.
• Existing empty office space which is owned by the state should be offered at token prices to professionals recently made redundant in order to allow them start new businesses. Furniture/appliances from liquidated companies could provide cheap furnishings.
• Businesses starting out should get the first 2 years without paying local council rates to help encourage business.
• Set up a “Festival of Ideas” called Croíate. This could be an informal way of getting entrepreneurs together to network, share ideas, get feedback on their ideas and get advice - a conference without the suits so to speak.
• Establish an “Ideas Marketplace” leveraged by the big companies to expand their R&D capability. The big companies could use it as a means of solving problems using outside experts and could reward contributors who provide solutions.
• New businesses don’t realise the amount of services available from the County Enterprises Boards. Ideas Evenings should be established in local parish halls, where potential start up businesses can get an initial evaluation on their business idea and advice on how to proceed, delivered in an accessible, non jargon format.
• A new organisation should be established that is linked and supported by the likes of enterprise boards, business incubation centres, third level colleges (especially the ITs) and Enterprise Ireland - an organisation that is commercially aware yet has a charitable status (and is socially responsible because of its status).
• Create a system whereby individuals can make their savings available to small businesses in the form of microfinance, allowing cash to be put into small businesses on a small scale, reducing risk to those putting the cash forward, allowing those businesses that are solid and stable to get access to much needed funds without being paralyzed by the crisis of confidence affecting the banks. Individuals can choose which businesses they can invest their cash in, and can set the rate of return they expect from their investment.
• Provide a facility whereby individuals with cash to invest can provide interest free funding to indigenous companies.
• We need to invest in developing the self-awareness of our people and help them understand themselves and others so as to unleash their potential by reducing interference such as conflict, fear and self-doubt.
• The government should start a peer to peer lending platform (like zopa.co.uk or prosper.com) where Irish people who need to borrow money can place an ad and be funded by Irish people who which to lend their savings on the web site in order to get a higher return than they are getting on their savings.