The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton TD has announced the membership of the new Government Entrepreneurship Forum, chaired by Sean O’Sullivan. The members of the Forum include: Joe Cunningham, serial telecoms/software entrepreneur, inventor of the SMS message; Noelle O’Connor, entrepreneur behind TanOrganic; Tom Keogh, entrepreneur behind Keogh’s Crisps; Ray Nolan, serial software entrepreneur, including Worky.com; Daniel Ramamoorthy, representing local and international entrepreneur networks; Tom Cooney, Professor of Entrepreneurship at DIT; and representatives from the Department of Jobs, Enterprise & Innovation and Enterprise Ireland. Initial membership of the Forum will be supplemented at different meetings with representatives and experts from different areas of the economy.
The Forum will meet regularly over the coming months and prepare a policy statement for Government on entrepreneurship, which it is intended, will contain discreet actions for inclusion in the 2014 Action Plan for Jobs.
Speaking prior to the first meeting of the forum, Minister Bruton said: “67 percent of all new job-creation comes from businesses in the first five years of existence. That is why supporting entrepreneurship and start-up activity is a central part of our Action Plan for Jobs.” He added: “I am convinced that by developing and implementing an ambitious and realistic plan in this area we can deliver an increase in the numbers of entrepreneurs and in the number of successful start-ups, and make a major contribution to the jobs and growth we need”.
Chairman of the forum, Sean O’Sullivan said “there is a clear and urgent need for the people of Ireland to make more jobs. This may seem impossible, like some kind of fantasy, that jobs can be created out of thin air. But that’s what entrepreneurship is, creating opportunity and economy out of courageous people discovering and creating market needs, and filling them. If not us, who? If not now, when?”