Web 2 Ireland

Bill Liao, serial entrepreneur, co-founder of Xing and philantropist has just indicated that he wants to bring TechStars to Ireland!

If you don’t know what TechStars is, in their own words:

Get your startup funded and off the ground while learning from the best. Get up to $18,000 in seed funding for your new company, plus the chance to pitch to angel investors and venture capitalists at the end of the program. At the end of the three month program, it’s your company. TechStars is the best way to get your new company off and running and on a path to success. TechStars companies get 40+ educational opportunities during the program. Learn from over 50 highly accomplished mentors.

I’ve only met Bill briefly and have his book Stone Soup on my desk waiting to be read. His energy and positivity is infectious. Given what he has achieved both in business and through his work in Neo/WeForest, I have no doubt TechStars is going to happen and deliver results for the startup community here.

LouderVoice is currently on the Genesis Enterprise Programme in the Rubicon Centre in CIT. I can’t recommend it highly enough. These schemes give people the opportunity to start a business with a support infrastructure around them. The advice and training alone are worth their weight in gold.

Brian O’Malley from EI in Sligo contacted us to tell us about the West and Midlands version of this programme:

An Open Evening will take place in the Innovation in Business Centre(IiBC) at GMIT Castlebar on Wednesday 21st Jan from 5pm 8pm outlining the 2009 Midlands & West Enterprise Programme (MWEP), commencing in March 2009, for people interested in starting their own business.

The one-year programme is a collaboration between GMIT and Athlone IT, and provides entrepreneurs with business skills, networks, facilities and supports necessary to navigate the business start-up process. It is delivered in GMIT's campuses in Galway and Mayo, and in Athlone IT.

Applications are now being accepted.

Anyone interested in signing up for the course should ideally have a number of years industry experience and have the enthusiasm and drive necessary to develop and grow a successful business. The MWEP may also be of interest to expatriates who are hoping to return home to set up their own business in the West of Ireland. Participants may apply to Enterprise Ireland for CORD funding, which could provide up to 50 per cent of previous year's gross salary.

The MWEP provides participants with business acumen, office desk space, mentoring, networking, facilities, and supports necessary to help them in establishing and running their own businesses. Participants should have a business idea with growth and export potential.

For further details, please contact Maria Staunton who is the business incubation manager at GMIT Castlebar on 094-9043198 or maria.staunton@gmit.ie