Taking Care of Business: one-stop-shop free event where 27 State bodies
come together to meet small businesses in Dublin
· Event will allow small business owners to informally ask questions and
get advice from a diverse mix of Government Agencies
· Presentations will focus on key regulatory requirements and the
assistance available to help entrepreneurs develop their businesses
· Event is supported by SFA, Chambers Ireland, ISME, RGData, ACCA and the
Hardware Association of Ireland
15th September, 2014
The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton T.D.,
together with the Minister for Business and Employment, Gerald Nash T.D.,
today (Monday) launched a one-stop-shop event for SMEs, start-ups and
potential entrepreneurs called ‘Taking Care of Business’.
This free event will take place on Thursday 16th October in the Printworks
Conference Centre in Dublin Castle.
The half-day event is specifically targeted at people thinking of starting
a business as well as small business owners and managers. Attending the
event will allow entrepreneurs to:
· Better understand the key regulations that affect them so that they can
focus on the main task of running their business;
· Meet experts from a broad range of public bodies in an informal setting;
· Find out about advice and supports that are available from across the
public sector.
This initiative of the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation will
bring together 27 State bodies in each location and builds on a pilot event
in October 2013 in Dublin Castle, which was attended by over 500 people.
The feedback from the pilot event was overwhelmingly positive (see Notes
for Editors).
The State offices and agencies represented will provide information across
a wide range of areas, including:
· Tax, employment and Health & Safety obligations;
· Legal requirements for setting up and running a business;
· Requirements in areas such as food and environmental safety;
· Advice on government procurement and intellectual property;
· Assistance and supports from enterprise agencies and Local Authorities.
Minister Bruton said: “Two thirds of all new jobs come from start-ups in
their first five years of existence, and we are putting in place a range of
measures through the Action Plan for Jobs to provide better supports in
this area. One crucial area is awareness – the Government has a range of
great schemes to support start-ups and small businesses, however many
business are simply unaware of them. As part of our drive to encourage more
start-ups and support more SMEs, we are determined to better promote these
schemes and encourage more businesses to take them up.
“Taking Care of Business” is part of a wider effort to communicate better
with business and promote awareness and understanding of the full range of
Government supports that are available for start-ups and the SME sector.
This event will allow small business owners to informally ask questions and
get advice from a diverse mix of government agencies. I urge businesses to
take part and look forward to being involved on 16th October.”
Minister for Business and Employment Ged Nash said: “It is essential for
SMEs to make the most of the advice and supports available to them so I
encourage entrepreneurs and those thinking of starting a business to
capitalise on this chance to hear from a wide variety of agencies, in one
location.
“This will also be a great opportunity for people to ask questions and
raise individual concerns face-to-face with staff from across the public
sector. The Department is committed to engaging with the small business
community and this event will help SMEs to better understand the regulatory
environment”.
A number of representative bodies from industry are supporting the event
and will be available to talk to attendees on the day. ‘Taking Care of
Business’ will be opened by Minister Richard Bruton. Donal de Buitléir,
Director of Publicpolicy.ie will Chair the first set of presentations. Gina
Quinn, CEO of Dublin Chamber of Commerce and Senator Feargal Quinn will
Chair the remaining sessions.
To register for the event and for more details including the running order
of presentations and the full list of State Bodies attending, please visit
www.takingcareofbusiness.ie. Early booking is strongly advised as there are
a limited number of places available.
ENDS
Notes for Editors
There will be two separate strands running concurrently with presentations
from State bodies in one area and information stands manned by staff from
these bodies in a separate area. The concise presentations will focus on
key regulatory requirements as well as assistance available to help
entrepreneurs develop their businesses. Experts will be available at the
information stands to speak directly to attendees and answer questions
throughout the event.
Results from surveys of the event last year include:
· 89% of attendees surveyed found the format mixing presentations and
information stands worked well;
· 80% agreed that their business would benefit from having attended the
event;
· The broad range of agencies in one location and the engaging
presentations were cited most often as the best aspects of the event.
The State office and agencies represented at the event will be:
· Local Enterprise Boards
· Revenue Commissioners
· Enterprise Ireland
· Competition Authority
· Companies Registration Office
· Environmental Protection Agency
· Food Safety Authority of Ireland
· Health and Safety Authority
· Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement
· National Employment Rights Authority
· Office of Government Procurement
· Department of Social Protection / Intreo
· Data Protection Commissioner
· National Standards Authority of Ireland
· Microfinance Ireland
· Credit Review Office
· Dublin County Council
· Solvit (informal problem-solving network for EU citizens and businesses)
· Patents Office
· IntertradeIreland
· Enterprise Europe Network
· European Commission
· Supporting SME’s online tool (Access to Finance)
· Skillnets
· Solas
· Pension Authority
· Injuries Board
‘Taking Care of Business’ is supported by SFA, Chambers Ireland, ISME,
RGDATA, ACCA, IBEC and the Hardware Association of Ireland.
The twitter hashtag for the events is #TCOB14