LEO Dublin City Local Enterprise Development Plan 2016

LEO Dublin City Local Enterprise Development Plan 2016

Table of Contents Executive Summary... Section 1 - Context... 1 Socio-Economic Profile of Dublin City... 1 LEO Dublin City Team... 4 Resources... 5 Summary of main achievements from 2015... 6 Dublin Action Plan for Jobs 2016 2018... 9 Customer Care Survey.10 SWOT Analysis... 10 Marketing and Communications Strategy... 12 Section 2 - Vision/Mission and Strategic Objectives... 14 Local Enterprise Office Dublin City Vision... 14 Strategic Objectives and actions... 14 Section 3: Associated Actions and Activities... 16 Local Enterprise Week... 16 National Ploughing Championships... 16 National Women s Enterprise... 17 Student Enterprise... 17 Enterprise Awards... 18 Trading- Online Vouchers... 19 Irelands Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) Competition... 19 Micro-Finance Ireland... 20 Showcase... 21 LEO Competitive Funds... 22 Section 4: 2016 Actions and Events... 24 Four LEO service areas:... 24 AREA 1: Business Information & Advisory Services... 24

AREA 2: Enterprise Support Services... 26 AREA 3: Entrepreneurship Support Services... 29 AREA: 4 Local Enterprise Development Services... 29 Protocols... 30 Stakeholders... 30 Economic Development and Enterprise SPC members:... Error! Bookmark not defined. Economic Working Group members:... Error! Bookmark not defined. Key Initiatives:... 32 Specific Demographic Groups... 33 Section 5: Performance Metrics... 37 Section 6: Risks and New Initiatives... 38 Identified Risks for LEO Dublin City... 38 New Initiatives for LEO Dublin City in 2016... 39 Appendix... 40 Client Case Studies... 40 Table of Key Actions to be Taken in 2016... 48

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs), which are an office of the local authorities, act as a First Stop Shop for anyone seeking information and support on starting or growing a business in Ireland. Our role, as LEO Dublin City, is to drive the development of local enterprise, putting local micro and small business at the heart of job creation in the city. We support business start-ups and work to increase the job potential of new and existing micro and small businesses with information, advice, training, mentoring, seminars and selective financial support. The Economic Development and Enterprise Office had a very busy and successful year in 2015. Throughout the year, our office supported 57 businesses through our flagship feasibility, priming business expansion grants, directly supporting 99 jobs in Dublin City. Further financial assistance was afforded to businesses in the city via the Trading Online Voucher (TOV) scheme (89 vouchers) and support for businesses applying for loans from Micro Finance Ireland (MFI) (20 applications). A wide range of soft supports were also made available to new and established entrepreneurs with 1759 people attending 77 different training courses that address a wide range of topics, and a further 361 mentoring assignments throughout the year. Throughout 2015, LEO Dublin City took part in a range of different events, programmes and initiatives, both locally and at a national level. These included, but were not limited to, Start- Up City, the Local Enterprise Village at the National Ploughing Championships, National Woman s Enterprise Day, Food Academy, the Student Enterprise Awards, the National Enterprise Awards and the Irelands Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) awards. For the coming year, we are looking forward to continuing to be involved in most of the above, while also adding the following to our involvement: Design 4 Growth programme Local Enterprise Week Regional Woman s Enterprise Day European Enterprise Network In 2016, LEO Dublin City will continue to provide an excellent first stop shop service for businesses and to use efficient social media promotion and marketing to heighten awareness of the services and supports available to them, from both the LEO, and from other associated agencies and organisations. We will continue, via our four service areas, to:

Support entrepreneurs, owners and manager in accessing financial supports and enabling them to plan, grow and sustain productivity, innovation and competitiveness; Providing access to training & mentoring supports to an increased number of participants Support business in accessing and participating in exhibitions, seminars and networking events Promotion of the Micro-Finance Ireland Loan Fund Promotion of Online Trading Vouchers Liaise directly with Enterprise Ireland regarding the progression pathways for new and existing clients Refer enterprises to relevant support services Support sectoral networks to promote the development of clusters Promote the National Enterprise Awards Collaborating and ongoing work with other agencies Deliver and participate in a range of enterprise related events This Local Enterprise Development Plan for 2016 provides a detailed framework for building upon the successes to date and ensuring that enterprises and entrepreneurs continue to receive efficient and quality supports from LEO Dublin City to sustain and develop their business and new markets.

SECTION 1 - CONTEXT SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROFILE OF DUBLIN CITY Dublin is the political, cultural and economic capital of Ireland and is home to some 527,612 people and host to many more workers students and visitors on a daily basis. The population of Dublin continues to grow, however the increase has not been uniform, with the inner city areas seeing a larger increase. While the Dublin Economic Monitor showed continued progress across a range of key economic performance indicators in 2015, not all of the residents of Dublin have equal access to the benefits and opportunities that are accruing from these achievements. Dublin City continues to face key challenge in ensuring that all citizens can contribute to, and share the benefits of, living in the capital city. This plan will aim to make training, support and financial aid available to all residents of the city to help spread the benefits of Dublin s growing economy across the social spectrum. Dublin City is the economic hub of the Dublin Region, which in turn is the economic hub of the Irish state. A diverse economy with 156,000 people commuting into the city to work everyday, it is a source of employment and income for an area well beyond the city itself. Dublin is a centre for Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Banking and 1

Finance, Retail, Tourism, Construction, Food/Restaurant/Cafés, Dublin Port, Higher Education, Healthcare, Cultural and Entertainment activities and Government. Dublin is a well connected, globalised city and has twinning agreements with Liverpool, San Jose, Beijing, and Barcelona, in addition to having a digital city twinning agreement with Guadalajara, Mexico. This Local Enterprise Development Plan will cover the 12 months from 1 st January to 31 st December 2016 for the Economic Development and Local Enterprise Office Dublin City s range of economic development and enterprise support services to clients. 2

Employment by Economic Sector - Dublin 000's 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 32.4 33.3 61.1 71 39.4 45.7 32.7 27.8 33.8 24 43.6 42.5 48.1 57.4 36.5 36.2 35.8 38.4 34.7 35.7 81.9 83.7 52 33.3 38.6 36.6 75.3 76.4 43.8 43.9 32 23.9 29.9 22 47.1 46.4 54.3 50.1 42 39.2 46 30.2 34.5 34 78.9 77.3 20.3 26.3 61.1 52.3 39.8 44.4 2006Q2 2009Q2 2012Q2 2015Q2 Other NACE activities Human health and social work activities Education Public administration and defence, compulsory social security Administrative and support service activities Professional, scientific and technical activities Financial, insurance and real estate activities Information and communication Accommodation and food service activities Transportation and storage Wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles Construction Industry 3

LEO DUBLIN CITY TEAM Greg Swift, Hea d of Enterprise Senior Enterprise Developer Officer Administrative Offi cer Administrative Offi cer Enterprise Executi ve Assistant Staff Officer (Gra duate) Business Advisor Assistant Business Advis or Admi nistrator Admi nistrator Admi nistrator Admi nistrator Admi nistrator LEO Dublin City team, December 2015 4

RESOURCES The Economic Development and Local Enterprise Office Dublin City is part funded by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and operates under a Service Level Agreement (SLA) between Dublin City Council and Enterprise Ireland. Now fully integrated into DCC, the office has 13 staff focused on our enterprise and economic development portfolio. The SLA agreement contains a comprehensive list of actions that will deliver a full range of services to encourage individuals to consider starting up a business. In addition, supports will also be provided for existing businesses that will lead to job creation. Under the SLA, timely reporting of key performance metrics has been highlighted as central to the agreement. LEO Dublin City and Economic Development Budget 2016 Activity Exchequer Funding Other Funding Total M1 Budget (Grants Funding) 412,574 304,427 717,000 M2 Budget (Mentoring & Training & Projects Funding) 387,423 170,000 707,423 European Globalisation Adjustment Fund 15,000-15,000 Total * 1,439,423 *Figure excludes salary costs 5

The services being provided for in this plan are in the following 5 areas: 1. Business Information & Advisory Services 2. Enterprise Support Services 3. Entrepreneurship Support Services 4. Local Enterprise Development Services 5. Economic Development Section The enterprise budget for 2016 will be administered by staff in this office reporting to the Centre of Excellence (COE) in Enterprise Ireland. Additional funding such as the Enterprise Ireland/LEO competitive fund will be applied for as it becomes available during the year. LEO Dublin City will continue to implement the Online Trading Voucher Scheme in 2016 and the European Global Fund (EGF) for those affected by the downsizing of Lufthansa in Dublin. Economic Development activity in the City will be funded by Dublin City Council. SUMMARY OF MAIN ACHIEVEMENTS FROM 2015 In 2015, LEO Dublin City 57 businesses received approval for grant funding to a (gross) total value of 1,024,654 (in grant and refundable aid funding), comprising of 699,293 in grant aid and a further 331,361 in re-fundable aid. Refundable aid is financial assistance that is due to be paid back by the businesses. The creation of 99 jobs will be directly supported through this funding will support the creation of 99 jobs, with the potential of XX further jobs to be created by 2018. The grant approvals were made up of 17 feasibility study grants, 31 business priming grants and 9 business expansion grants. A total of 670,029 grant approvals were carried over from 2015 into 2016. The refundable aid account has a remaining balance of 1.24 million owed from outstanding refundable grants. ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT SURVEY LEO Dublin City carried out an Annual Employment survey in 2015 and recorded a client company base of 298 with a total of 1,420 people employed. This translates to a net increase of 230 LEO Dublin City supported jobs in 2015. 6

Job Details 2015 (client base 298): Gross No of Full Time Jobs Created in Enterprise funded by LEO Dublin City in 2015 Gross No of Full Time & Other Time Jobs created in Enterprise funded by LEO Dublin City 307 1,420 Total Jobs Growth 2014 230 Job Details: 2015 No of Projects to be Funded by LEO Dublin City 48 No of Jobs Associated with Funding from LEO Dublin City 75 TRAINING 2015 was a very productive year for training in LEO Dublin City. 77 different courses and workshops were delivered, including Start Your Own Business courses, Accelerate, Hi Start, up-skilling workshops, half day training modules, seminars and management programmes, to 2010 participants. The gender breakdown on this training was 734 males and 1,025 female participants. 7

DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENTERPRISE / ENTREPRENEURSHIP CULTURE IN DUBLIN CITY In 2016, LEO Dublin City will continue to promote a culture of entrepreneurship in Dublin City, starting with fostering enterprise in our youth. The LEO Dublin City Schools Enterprise programme will once again be run in the first half of 2016, with 30 secondary schools targeted for participation. Furthermore, it is also anticipated that the successful Ireland s Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) competition will be run again, with entrants from Dublin City receiving support from our office. In addition to this, we will continue to engage with, and support, the 3 rd level colleges in Dublin City such as DCU, DIT, NCAD, NCI and TCD. Throughout the year, 17 Start Your Own Business (SYOB) Programmes, catering for 240 prospective entrepreneurs, will be held for individuals to obtain and/or develop the necessary skills and knowledge to assess the marketing and financial viability of their business idea. These will consist of 12 regular SYOB programmes and five Kick-Start programmes especially designed for food businesses. We also support a number of networks for start-ups and expanding businesses: The Start Your Own Business Network - provides the practical help and solutions to the problems faced by an individual setting up a business or in the early expansion stage. The Dublin Food Chain - provides a marketing and networking platform for the many outstanding food and drink producers based throughout Dublin city and county. The Women in Business Network - allows for women to share their experience in business and to learn from each other and to hear from key-note speakers The Plato Programme - connects large multinational parent companies with the ownermanager of an SME, allowing for the parent company to provide support, expertise and mentoring to the smaller enterprise. 8

DUBLIN ACTION PLAN FOR JOBS 2016 2018 The Dublin Action Plan for Jobs 2016 2018 is to be launched in January 2016 and will have considerable input from the four Local Enterprise Offices in the Dublin region. The overarching aim of the plan is to work towards achieving sustainable full employment and having a further 66,000 people in employment by 2020. In order to achieve this, the plan sets out six specific themes, within which LEO and local authority actions will be key activities. The six themes are: To realise a step up in enterprise performance and be internationally competitive, innovative and productive Develop Dublin s global reputation for a number of key sectoral hubs Enhance Dublin s standing as a world-class start-up city Be a home for 21 st century talent for enterprise Be a city of the world that feels like a village Be an ideas capital where innovation is the way of life Should the plan be successful, in addition to having 66,000 more people in employment, there will be: An unemployment rate of 6% An increase in the number of start-ups by 25% An increase in the survival rate of start-ups in the first five years by a minimum of 25% At least 430 FDI investment delivered over the period 2015-2019 An improvement in the capacity of Irish owned agency supported enterprises to grow to scale by a minimum of 30% across a number of turnover thresholds An increase of 20% in RD&I expenditure in foreign owned entities An increase of 20% in numbers of Irish owned enterprises engaging in RD&I activities More collaboration involving enterprises and state funded research institutes, delivering at least one third more collaborations and seeding intensified clustering activities A doubling of enterprise investment in training and upskilling for employees A delivery of a 7 percent increase year on year in visitor numbers to reach 6.2 million and a doubling of spend by visitors to reach a total of 2.5billion 9

CUSTOMER CARE SURVEY LEO Dublin has taken account of our ranking in the nationwide Customer Care score and satisfaction ratings. We strive to provide a holistic customer experience to all existing and prospective entrepreneurs who wish to avail of our office s support and considering this, we will be taking a number of steps to improve our performance in 2016. These include: Introducing the Symposium phone answering service Providing all staff with social media training Reviewing LEO Dublin City e-zine recipient list Identifying the needs of the customer by carrying out a survey of clients needs and addressing them The above steps are being taken to ensure that all staff are fully trained and endeavor to fully engage with, and assist, customers. SWOT ANALYSIS Strengths Driver of the EU s fastest growing economy Ability to attract and produce an educated workforce Strong and established financial services, technology and education sectors Good business environment and a strong multinational base City of global scale Excellent quality of living and abundance of supporting assets Much improved transport infrastructure 10

Strong tourism base Well established supports for start-ups Weaknesses Interregional competition and a lack of understanding of the national importance of Dublin s global role Relatively poor and expensive residential broadband infrastructure Shortage of residential and commercial property coming on stream leading to rapidly increasing rent and prices. Opportunities Leveraging the existing FDI clusters to attract new entrants and create spin-off enterprises Increased collaboration across public and private sectors Enhancing the built fabric of the city centre Connecting to emerging cities and building relationships Growing innovative industries and gaining competitive edge in growth areas such as the digital, green and marine sectors Developing Dublin s Smart City capacity Threats Lack of investment in critical infrastructure (roads, water services) Lack of physical connectivity will undermine competitiveness Competition from emerging markets Fragile economic recovery Ireland s sensitivity to global economic downturns Shortage of an available water supply to facilitate expansion of the city 11

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY The Local Enterprise office will utilize a number of different methods to market its products and services to entrepreneurs and potential entrepreneurs. Staff meetings take place monthly to ensure that staffs are up to speed with the latest offerings available to customers and have clarity on the delivery targets for the coming months. Numerous forms of marketing, communications and PR are used to gain as much free publicity as possible for entrepreneurship and LEO services including the following; E-newsletters are sent fortnightly to keep clients informed of new initiatives and to highlight case studies of LEO clients. The LEO Dublin City website, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter accounts are updated with relevant enterprise events, activities and relevant information. The LEO avails of radio and TV interview opportunities to promote the LEO to potential clients. Journalists frequently request contacts for articles about entrepreneurship. Regular networking has developed our contacts with the enterprise ECO system in the City area. The LEO supports certain events such as the Social Enterprise Awards, Dublin Smart City s events and Awards such as the Trinity Engineering Awards. Running a Local Enterprise Week with some key events including a Your Business Day, a European Enterprise Network Event, a Smart Cities Event and an Enterprise Space symposium, co-ordinated on a regional level with LEO Fingal, LEO South Dublin and LEO Dún Laoghaire Rathdown. LEO executives and representatives make presentations for groups interested in enterprise such as the Ignite Academy, New Frontiers, Springboard Programme and 3 rd level students to promote entrepreneurship. 12

LEO executives participate on judging panels of Business Awards such as the Irish Franchise Association, Restaurants Association of Ireland, Bank of Ireland Start Up Awards and Dragons Den type competitions in 3 rd level colleges. A digital kiosk in the office offers first stop shop information to visitors. Promotional materials include branded pens, pull-ups, notepaper and other marketing collateral are developed to promote the LEO services. Case studies are developed on a number of companies supported by LEO each year Award winners of IBYE, Dublin City Enterprise Awards and Schools Enterprise Awards are profiled and promoted through various forms of communication and PR 13

SECTION 2 - VISION/MISSION AND STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES LOCAL ENTERPRISE OFFICE DUBLIN CITY VISION Local Enterprise Office Dublin City will provide supports to entrepreneurs and small businesses to ignite a vibrant enterprise and innovation culture in order to create and sustain jobs in Dublin city. With the stronger role and remit in enterprise and economic development, Dublin City Council will develop initiatives that will aim to improve the quality of life for its citizens and communities and develop a thriving city. STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES AND ACTIONS Maximise Business Potential Deliver support services that equip entrepreneurs, owners and managers with the knowledge to plan, grow and sustain productivity, innovation and competitiveness, as well as encourage greater technology uptake Collaborate with Enterprise Ireland Enhance communication with Enterprise Ireland to facilitate potential progression of companies from LEO to EI, facilitating access to relevant EI financial, business and research facilities First Stop Enterprise & Business Support Solution Provision of first stop shop activities in respect of Business Support, Enterprise Development and Promotion, including Signposting Make It Easier to do Business 14

Provide supports, guidance and solutions that make it easier for entrepreneurs, owners and managers to identify opportunities and implement actions to start-up, grow and survive within a competitive business environment Promote a Best Practice Enterprise Culture Act as the catalyst and advocate for the establishment of a best practice enterprise culture among start-ups, micro and small businesses; also promoting enterprise and self-employment as a viable career option among the wider population. Environment for Start-Ups Implement actions and initiatives that create awareness among potential entrepreneurs of the types of supports available, thereby improving the conversion rate of business ideas to fullyformed enterprises. The implementation of each of the above objectives, including activities, outputs and outcomes, is analysed in detail in Section 3 and also in Appendix I. Each activity to be carried out by LEO Dublin City is linked directly to each of the six objectives listed above. 15

SECTION 3: ASSOCIATED ACTIONS AND ACTIVITIES LOCAL ENTERPRISE WEEK Dublin City Local Enterprise Week will take place from the 7 th to the 13 th of March 2016 and will focus on a series of areas that all start-ups need to master in order to establish and sustain new and vibrant businesses. A programme of events, to be held in locations around the City, will be promoted containing a range of topics, key speakers and micro businesses who will share their experience with the audience. Dublin City LEO will also collaborate with the other three Dublin LEO s to provide shared events and to promote a listing of events available at morning, lunch time afternoon and evening slots across the city. NATIONAL PLOUGHING CHAMPIONSHIPS The LEO Network will have a Local Enterprise Village tent at the 85th National Ploughing Championships which will be held in Screggan, Tullamore Co. Offaly, from the 20th to the 22nd of September 2016. LEO Dublin City will be sponsoring a number of their clients to be among the 70 small businesses that will be given an opportunity to showcase their products during the three days of the Championships. In 2015, two LEO Dublin City businesses, the Irish Photo Archive and the Dublin Cookie Company, promoted their businesses to visitors of the ploughing championships and members of LEO Dublin City staff were also in attendance to offer information and advice to potential, and existing, entrepreneurs. We will also once again have staff present at the championships in 2016. 16

The Irish Photo Archive s stand in the Local Enterprise Village at the National Ploughing Championships 2015 NATIONAL WOMEN S ENTERPRISE From 2016 onwards, a Regional Woman s Enterprise Day will replace the national format that existed up to 2015. Last year, the National Women's Enterprise Day 2015 took place on October 21st and 22nd at Galway Bay Hotel, Salthill, Galway and consisted of a variety of developmental support actions, including inspiring speakers, information provision, exhibition of state supports for enterprise, facilitated business networking and one to one business mentoring. STUDENT ENTERPRISE The annual Student Enterprise Awards will once again take place in early 2016, run by the 31 Local Enterprise Offices, with the Dublin City finals to be held in the Printworks, Dublin Castle, on the 15 th of March. City winners will be chosen across three categories; senior level, intermediate level and junior level, and these will subsequently more forward to the 17

National Finals that take place in Croke Park on the 19 th and 20 th of April. The award encourages and enables students to get a taste for running a business and to develop an entrepreneurial mind-set. This year, the national competition will aim to build upon the 17,000 teenage entrepreneurs and 370 secondary schools who partook in 2015. From a LEO Dublin City perspective, we also hope to sign up 170 students across 7 participating Dublin City schools. Lord Mayor of Dublin Representative Councilor Larry O Toole meets students at the City finals of the student Enterprise Awards 2015 ENTERPRISE AWARDS 2016 will once again see the hosting of the Dublin City Enterprise Awards, with the winner gaining the opportunity to represent Dublin City at the National finals. The winner will be crowned on the 10 th of March, during the LEO Dublin City Enterprise week, and will proceed to the National Finals that will be held on the 9 th of June in the Aviva Stadium. 18

Lord Mayor of Dublin Christy Burke presents Paul McDonald of Sonitus Systems with the Dublin City Enterprise Award for 2015 TRADING- ONLINE VOUCHERS Our target is to approve 88 Trading Online Vouchers (TOVs) in 2016. TOV s area are a joint initiative between the Department of Communications, Energy & Natural Resources (DCENR) and the LEO networks, designed to increase the number of businesses trading online. Last year, LEO Dublin City approved 89 TOVs with a total value of 207,985. IRELANDS BEST YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR AWARD Summer 2016 will see the commencement, subject to agreement of funding and departmental approval, of the Ireland s Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE), when the Dublin City heat opens for entries. IBYE aims to find the promoter of Ireland s Best Business Idea, Best Start-Up and Best Established Business under the age of 30, before awarding one of them the title of Ireland s Best Young Entrepreneur. Last year, the winner of the Dublin City heat of the Best Start-Up Category, Isolde Johnson of the Cool Bean Company, progressed to the national finals of the competition. Isolde also won the Google Award for the best online promotion of a business at the national finals held at the Google European HQ in Dublin on the 7 th of December. 19

IBYE 2015 Dublin City winners Isolde Johnson, Jamie White and John Horigan receiving their awards from the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Críona Ní Dhálaigh MICRO-FINANCE IRELAND LEO Dublin City aims to support 30 Micro-Finance Ireland (MFI) applications through our office in 2016. These are loans of a value between 2,000 and 25,000, with flexible repayments of between 3 and 5 years and LEO Clients applying for MFI support can avail of a reduced interest rate of 7.8% (from 8.8%). In 2015, 20 applications were made through LEO Dublin City. 13 of these were successful with a combined to a total value of 204,500. 20

SHOWCASE Ireland s Creative Expo is presented by Showcase Ireland Events Ltd on behalf of the Design & Crafts Council of Ireland. It is promoted internationally by Enterprise Ireland, and through our Building Craft and Design Course, we will sponsor five businesses to take a place at the enterprise zone. In September 2015, we sought 12 applicants from craft & design enterprises who want to inject new ideas and approaches to product development into their practice. Over the course of five months, the 12 successful applicants are currently undertaking training in: Research Engage in design challenges Learn how to brand Cost and promote your product in the marketplace Nine days training Two tailored 1-2-1 mentoring sessions Following this, the 12 applicants will apply for the five Enterprise Zone positions available at the Expo which will take place on the 22nd to the 25 th of January 2017. In September 2016, we will again be seeking applications for businesses to take a place in the enterprise zone at the 2017 expo. 21

Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, meets participants from LEO Dublin City Showcase. LEO COMPETITIVE FUNDS Applications have been made for the following competitive funding opportunities. When funding decisions are made, we will commence to deliver on the projects that are successful in being selected for support. Initiative Name Initiative Description Initiative Cost EXPORT INITATIVE with Local Enterprise Office, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown as the lead applicant The Project is an innovative solution designed to foster Export business development and Sales. Amount applied for 145,000 FOOD INITATIVE with Local Enterprise Office, Fingal as the lead applicant. Support Dublin based food producers through video tutorials to enhance knowledge. Amount applied for 157,600 22

M1 INITATIVE with Local Enterprise Office, Fingal as the lead applicant The Local Enterprise Offices of Dublin City, Fingal, Louth, Meath and Monaghan have built this collaboration to develop a new regional and cross border business to business (B2B) stimulus intervention for SMEs in the format of two M1 Meet the Buyer Events 2016 and 2017. Amount applied for 240,000 PITCHING POINT INITATIVE with Local Enterprise Office, Dublin City as the lead applicant The aim of Pitching Point is to promote Dublin both locally and internationally, and to showcase the innovation and creativity that is currently happening in business, universities and other organisations throughout Dublin. A direct outcome of Pitching Point will be participants gaining access to a platform of possible financial supports, while also developing valuable sector specific contacts Amount applied for 150,000 PLATO INITATIVE with Local Enterprise Office, South Dublin as the lead applicant. The Programme is focused on SMEs across the Plato regions that wish to expand and grow. Amount applied for 179,925 THE TECH INITATIVE with Local Enterprise Office, Dublin City as the lead applicant Over an 18 month timeframe, each LEO/Local Authority in collaboration with Dublinked and other innovation partners will launch a series of open call outs to entrepreneurs, business, developers, designers and social enterprises to generate ideas for innovative products and services using city data and with the region as a test bed. Amount applied for 250,000 23

SECTION 4: 2016 ACTIONS AND EVENTS FOUR LEO SERVICE AREAS: The Local Enterprise Office network delivers its activities via four service areas. These are: Business Information and Advisory Services Enterprise Support Services Entrepreneurship Support Services Local Enterprise Development Services Throughout 2016, LEO Dublin City s work plan will see a wide range of activities take place under each of these areas, working towards an overall goal of providing supports to entrepreneurs and small businesses that will ignite a vibrant enterprise and innovation culture capable of creating and sustaining jobs in Dublin city. AREA 1: BUSINESS INFORMATION & ADVISORY SERVICES PROVIDE BUSINESS ADVICE AND INFORMATION PROVISION: First Stop Shop; for visitors to the LEO Dublin City Information from partner organisations, leaflets of services and upcoming events; information library and kiosk. Group Advise Clinics; We are targeting to have over 500 participants attending 50 group advice clinics where they can avail of free advice and information provided by a Business Advisor, with a Q&A session available at the end of the meeting. Briefings occur on a weekly basis to provide participants with information about all the government agency business supports available and further LEO supports including networks, mentoring or training. Library talks and seminars: 6 lectures in Spring and Autumn will be delivered in conjunction with Dublin City Libraries (160 participants). 24

Grant information meetings: LEO staff will be available to meet with prospective, and existing, clients to provide information on the financial assistance available to them from LEO Dublin City or other bodies such as MFI. 22 e-zines to be issued in 2015 to 13,000 stakeholders LEO Website, Student Enterprise Awards Website and Social Media updated regularly Provide information on, and access to, other government services that have SLAs, Protocol Agreements and MOUs with LEO Dublin City such as Revenue, Department of Social Protection, Enterprise Ireland, Companies Registration Office, Credit Review Office, Community Enterprise Centres. PROVIDE INFORMATION ON COST-REDUCING AND ENVIRONMENTAL MEASURES: Provide advice on energy efficiency, sustainable development and alternative renewable energy sources through establishing a relationship with the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI). Access to network of internal providers of energy efficiency, sustainable development and alternative renewable energy sources e.g CODEMA (City of Dublin Energy Management Agency) 25

AREA 2: ENTERPRISE SUPPORT SERVICES PROVIDE FINANCIAL SUPPORT Measure 1 Targets for Grants 2016 Type of Grant No Jobs Projections 3 year Jobs Total Feasibility 100% Grant 13 13 45 97,500 Priming Grant 26 45 100 390,00 Business Expansion Grant 9 17 80 229,50 TOTAL 48 75 225 717,00 Refundable Target 30% Projected Carryover Commitments 2016 350,000 LEO DCC will target approvals of 75 new jobs in 2016 through its financial supports with over 225 potential jobs over 3 years. The range of financial instruments in operation include supports for its clients with Feasibility Grants up to 15,000; Priming Grants for start up businesses and Expansion for growing existing businesses both up to 80,000 with percentage refundable. Trading Online Voucher scheme: Provide 89 Trading Online Vouchers to assist businesses wishing to move, or expand, their business online Continue to promote MFI funding to finance businesses and work with a large number of businesses to develop their applications to MFI. Each LEO application made through LEO Dublin City will receive a reduce interest rate of 7.8% (from 8.8%). 26

PROVIDE TRAINING SUPPORTS Start Your Own Business (SYOB) and Kick-Start Your Own Food Business - 17 programmes, 240 participants Business Training Modules: 20 sessions of 4 hour training courses across various topics including, social media, finance and management development. Participants limited to 20 per class to maximise participation. Accelerate Programme: 2 Regional programmes including 1 Dublin City led programme, 6 Dublin city clients. Food Academy in partnership with other Dublin LEOs, Bord Bia and SuperValu 14 Participants Hi-Start: 1 Dublin Regional Programme with 2 participants from Dublin City with focus on escalating process of transferring potential start ups to Enterprise Ireland High Potential Start Up portfolio Export Awareness Initiatives: LEO Dublin City will be involved in 4 regional European Enterprise Network events, hosting one. Craft Sector workshops: 2 programmes with 20 participants from Dublin City Larkin Centre, with support from LEO Dublin City, will provide start up training to unemployed start-ups 120 participants MENTORING LEO Dublin City panel of 50 mentors will be used to carry out: One to One Specific Business Issue mentor clinics (1 hour). Full 6 hour Mentor Programme assignments to clients who are experiencing difficulty and newly approved clients as appropriate. An additional 4 hours extra mentoring is available if required. The target for 2016 will be 300 Mentoring sessions for One to One Specific Business Issues (1 hour) with a further 200 full mentoring assignments (6 hours). Inner City Enterprise (ICE), a not-for-profit charity established to advise and assist unemployed people in Dublin s inner city to set up their own businesses or create 27

their own self-employment, will be funded by LEO Dublin City to deliver 50 mentoring assignments to unemployed start ups. ACCESS TO DEDICATED BUSINESS NETWORKS: Women in Business Network: 8 events 240 participants PLATO Dublin: 18 month programme 5 groups Dublin Food Chain, 1300 members x 2 events (January Food Producer Showcase) Support the Guinness Enterprise Centre, Dublin Business Innovation Centre and NorDubCo which promotes the social, economic and civic development of North Dublin area Working with Chambers of Commerce and other enterprise groups to provide enterprise events and support networking opportunities Supporting Dublin City businesses to access and maximise use of national and international networks, including the Enterprise Europe Network Support 20 businesses in attending exhibitions and A Creative Industries Networking Event will be held in 2016 OTHER ACTIVITIES TO SUPPORT ENTREPRENEURSHIP: Continue to support the provision of enterprise space in Dublin City with our continued support of Digital Hub and the Guinness Enterprise Centre Arrange an Enterprise Space in the City events as part of Enterprise Week. Progression pathway for high potential start-ups and high growth companies to Enterprise Ireland including access to Business Angels, New Frontiers Programme etc. Design4Growth: LEO Dublin City will offer 50 businesses the opportunity to attend an introductory workshop which will provide an understanding of the importance of design strategy in business development. A team of design strategists will then be put in place to work with fifteen of these companies, developing a design strategy tailored to improve the business. Following this, five companies will also have the opportunity to receive continued mentoring in addition to a design voucher of 2,500 in order to implement the strategy. 28

AREA 3: ENTREPRENEURSHIP SUPPORT SERVICES Education 7 Secondary Schools will be targeted for participation in the Dublin City Student Enterprise Awards. The aim is to have 170 students participating across these schools in 2016 and the winner in each category, junior; intermediate and senior, will be chosen at the City final on the 15 th of March before representing Dublin City at the national finals in Croke Park. Female Entrepreneurship: Continue to support the Women in Business Female Entrepreneur Awards Awards: Continue to host and co-ordinate the Dublin City Enterprise Awards and the Dublin City heat of the IBYE competition. These will be used as advertisement for client companies and do draw public attention to their achievements. We will also promote the national competitions of each of these award programmes. Social Enterprise: Support Inner-City Enterprise (ICE) in the delivery of the Social Enterprise Awards. Judging: Supporting New Frontiers on Assessment Panel; Part of the Judging Panel of Start Up Awards (national awards sponsored by BOI); Trinity Engineers Award; Docklands Business Award AREA: 4 LOCAL ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES LOCAL ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES Local Economic and Community Plan (LECP): The 2016 LECP Action Plan (12 high level goals; 90 specific economic actions) will be implemented and monitored, and the 2017 Action Plan will be prepared Establish partnerships with other agencies through establishing SLAs and MOUs as set out in the Dublin City LECP. Promoting Dublin: Promotion of Dublin City as a destination for FDI through advertorial in special Financial Times publication, continued involvement with the Dublin Economic Monitor, supporting the Smart Cities and Dublinked. Dublin.ie: The office is responsible for the new city branding project, Dublin.ie, a website containing all the information about living in, working in or visiting Dublin. Working Space: A working group will be established in Dublin City Council to examine the issues surrounding the shortage of affordable work space in the City. 29

DCC SPC: LEO Dublin City will continue to provide the administrative support to the DCC Economic Development and Enterprise SPC and also the Council s Economic Working Group. Start- Up Commissioner: LEO Dublin City will continue to support the office of the Dublin Commissioner for Start-Ups PROTOCOLS Protocols and Memorandums of Understanding have been agreed with a range of organisations, including: Department of Social Protection Credit Review Board Fáilte Ireland Microfinance Ireland National Association of Community Enterprise Centres Skillnets ETBI Revenue These protocols govern dissemination of information, information signposting and interagency referrals. The Local Enterprise Office Dublin City has formal and informal engagement with the above Agencies/Organisations and works closely with them to assist in job creation and information sharing. The Local Enterprise Office Dublin City will seek to continue to implement these protocols on an on-going basis and review locally as required. STAKEHOLDERS Enterprise Ireland Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Department of Social Protection Revenue Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland Irish Exporters Association Irish Franchise Association Retail Excellence Ireland Dublin Chamber 30

Dublin Bids/ Dublin Town Community Enterprise Centres Digital Hub Guinness Enterprise Centre International Development Authority Microfinance Ireland Local Community Development Committee Local Development Companies/ Partnerships St. James Hospital Enterprise Committee Dublin BIC Grangegorman Development Agency Microsoft Allied Irish Bank Ulster Bank Trinity College Dublin Dublin City University National College of Ireland National College of Art and Design Dublin Institute of Technology Innovate Dublin National Digital Research Centre Larkin Unemployed Centre Carmichael Centre NorDubCo CODEMA Bank of Ireland 31

KEY INITIATIVES: Below is a list of the key activities that will be undertaken by LEO Dublin City in 2016. These will range from high level activities such as awards that reward entrepreneurship and innovation and the facilitation of network events such as the Dublin Food Chain and the Women in Business Network, to our day-to-day services of providing mentoring, training or grant information to businesses looking to start up or expand in Dublin City. Key Actions Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Local Enterprise Week x Irelands Best Young Entrepreneur Award x x School Enterprise Programme/ National Student Enterprise Award x x x Dublin City/ Denis Colleran Award (part of National Enterprise Awards) x x Dublin City Female Entrepreneur of the Year Award x Part of the Judging Panel of Start Up Awards (national awards sponsored by BOI) Trinity Engineering Student Entrepreneurs of the Year Awards Supporting New Frontiers on Assessment Panel x x x x x x PLATO x x x x Dublin City Enterprise Network for Women x x x x Dublin Food Chain x x x x 32

Dublin Food Academy x x x x Enterprise Start Up Network x x x x Export Support Companies to attend Trade Shows Abroad x x x x Craft Training Programme x x x Mentoring x x x x Financial Instruments (Measure 1) x x x x Start Your Own Business Courses x x x x Business Advice Clinics x x x x Library Talks/Seminars x x Business Training Modules x x x x Grant Information Meetings x Your Business Day x Ezine x x x x SPECIFIC DEMOGRAPHIC GROUPS WOMEN The Women in Business Network is a Local Enterprise Office Dublin City initiative, ideal for women running their own business. Being an entrepreneur can be a lonely business and the network provides opportunities to share experiences, learn from other women and network. 33

Each year, LEO Dublin City s Women in Business Network host the High Potential Business and the Rising Star awards. The 2015 awards were presented at the house of Lords in December with Niamh Herrity of Pink Kong Studios and Mairead debláca of Mairead Deblace Jewellery winning the respective accolades. Niamh Herrity of Pink Kong Studios, winner of the LEO Dublin City Women in Business Network 2015 Rising Star Award, pictured with Pauline Logan, LEO Dublin City Women s Network Co-ordinator, and Greg Swift, Head of LEO Dublin City. 34

YOUTHS The Dublin City heats of the IBYE and Student Enterprise Awards competitions will be once again hosted by LEO Dublin City, subject to approval. MIGRANTS Diversity in the Economy and Local Integration (DELI) fosters more efficient local policies in support of migrant-owned SMEs and migrant entrepreneurship as part of wider diversity and inclusion policies. It is an 18-month joint project of the Council of Europe and the European Commission and is carried out in co-operation with the Migration Policy Group. Both the Council of Europe and Migration Policy Group share the responsibilities of the overall coordination and implementation of the project. Dublin, as the capital city of Ireland, hosts a large migrant community which makes up about 21% of the City s population. Dublin City Council (DCC) has taken a proactive and leadership role at city level to respond to new migration and its impact on the city. Dublin always encourages the development of migrant entrepreneurship and supports their inclusion into local economies. In line with the focuses and objectives of DELI, Dublin works together with DELI partners on further examining local interacting socioeconomic factors to explore approaches to enhance the contribution of migrants to local economies and to make the entrepreneurship more accessible for all at different scales. More specifically, a number of tools are designed for research, outreach and local partnership within the lifespan of the DELI project. 35

DCC Integration Strategy: LEO Dublin City has taken a proactive role in the development of the DCC Integration Strategy and the office has six actions attributed to it. 36

SECTION 5: PERFORMANCE METRICS Table 1: Summary of Key LEO Outputs and Targets 2015 / 2016 2015 Targets 2015 Outputs 2016 Targets Value of Grants Approved Feasibility 97,500 128,454.40 97,500 Priming 390,000 719,200 390,000 Business Expansion 229,500 177,000 229,500 Value of Grants Paid Feasibility 78,000 80,083.21 78,000 Priming 312,000 406,456.02 312,000 Business Expansion 183,600 115,525.18 183,600 Jobs Associated with Funding FT / OT / WTE 1 392/24/204 Total Employment in LEO Clients (Year start) FT 1389 1169/262/1300 1169/262/1300 / OT / WTE Gross Jobs Created / Lost 75 426/176 Full Time Created / Lost 307/97 Other Time Created / Lost 119/79 Whole Time Equivalent (WTE) Created / Lost 230 Total Employment (Year End) FT / OT / WTE 1464 1,420.5 Training Total No. of Courses Run Total No. of Participants Mentoring Total Number of Mentoring Assignments Total Number of Mentoring Clinics 37 1659 77 1759 300 1,560 300 3,013 1 These figures derive from GMIS lockdown grant approvals for the LEO rather than from the AES. 37 1659 500 1800 37

SECTION 6: RISKS AND NEW INITIATIVES IDENTIFIED RISKS FOR LEO DUBLIN CITY Risks that can adversely affect the achievement of the objectives outlined above. Not enough finance to meet demand Actions to mitigate this risk Request more funds; Partner with other organizations; Consider EU projects; Reduce range and frequency of financial support Failure to comply with financial requirements Ensure staff have financial training Quality reduction of Mentoring/Training due to budget constraints Skills shortage/ Experienced staff leave Training costs increase Spreading limited funding to meet capacity of Dublin city Engage in staff training in DCC and COE/EI where available; recruit with some level of skills; Seek interns; Contract out some work Continue to work closely with trainers to be innovative about how training can be delivered cost effectively. Promote training programmes to ensure high levels of attendance 38

NEW INITIATIVES FOR LEO DUBLIN CITY IN 2016 DESIGN 4 GROWTH LEO Dublin City will, in 2016, offer 50 businesses the opportunity to attend an introductory workshop which will provide an understanding of the importance of design strategy in business development. A team of design strategists will then be put in place to work with fifteen of these companies, developing a design strategy tailored to improve the business. Following this, five companies will also have the opportunity to receive continued mentoring in addition to a design voucher of 2,500 in order to implement the strategy. 39

APPENDIX CLIENT CASE STUDIES CASE STUDY OF THE COOL BEAN COMPANY, LEO DUBLIN CITY CLIENT AND WINNER OF THE GOOGLE AWARD FOR BEST ONLINE PROMOTION OF A BUSINESS AT THE IBYE 2015 NATIONAL FINALS. Introduction Sarah O Connor and Isolde Johnson were both working really long hours and at the end of a hard day we yearned for something healthy and tasty to eat but couldn t find anything that hit the spot. Becoming more aware of the food that they were putting into their bodies and the effect it was having on their overall health and well being, they were also uninspired by the ready meals on offer as many were over processed and contained large amount of salt and sugar. They both loved beans and were noticing the growing trend of gourmet beans on toast popping up in brunch places around Dublin. The more research they conducted, they found about all the benefits that beans have and decided to pursue the idea of producing a healthy, quick, bean based meal. Cool Beans were born! LEO Dublin City Support Cool Beans approached LEO Dublin City when the business was just an idea. Originally, they received a Feasibility Study grant which enabled the company to complete extensive market research and product development. Subsequently, they were last year awarded a Priming Grant which helped with the salary costs. All the way along they offered mentoring and advice from people who have experience in start ups and the day to day challenges of running your own business. Cool Beans have found these supports to be invaluable when starting out with limited funding. 40

Products Isolde and Sarah s research led them to develop bean based meals in a pot across three different flavours, original tomato, sumptuous smokey and hot hot chilli. Packed with protein, the beans are super healthy and tasty while also being really quick and easy to make. Each of the flavours has different traits. The Original Tomato Flavour is full of protein & fibre, supercharged with antioxidants and provides a slow release of energy to keep people feeling fuller for longer. Alternatively, the Smokey Paprika Flavour is Low in fat and calories, and has a low GI which will curb your cravings for sugary foods. Finally, the Hot Chilli Flavour is for coliacs and can improve cholesterol levels, promote digestive health and increase energy levels. Packaging Using the creativity of Neworld Designs, the Coolbean branding was brought to life. The beans are sold in bright coloured, 200g, pots. Future Plans The Cool Beans team like to dream big and their ultimate ambition is to be an internationally recognised food company providing new and interesting convenient solutions in the healthy eating market. In the shorter term we will be expanding our presence in the Irish and UK markets adding new retailer listings and new products. Cool Beans is growing quickly. This time last year they had only one full time employee of but now have three, with the intention of taking on another 2 full time in the coming months. This is a crucial time for the company and with so many opportunities, they need to ensure that they have a strong and dedicated team to drive sales and increase the brand awareness in Ireland and the UK. To do this, the team are currently exploring the idea of raising investment for the next phase of our growth. 41

Isolde Johnson, Co-founder of the Cool Bean Company, Overall LEO Dublin City IBYE winner 2015 and also winner of the Google Award for best online promotion of a business at the IBYE 2015 national finals. 42

CASE STUDY 2: KARA MAHER, OWNER FROCK N FABULOUS OCCASION WEAR BOUTIQUE Frock N Fabulous Occasion Wear Boutique received a priming grant from LEO Dublin City in 2011, and subsequently a business expansion grant in 2015. My name is Kara Maher and I am the owner of Frock N Fabulous Occasion Wear Boutique. I founded Frock N Fabulous 4 years ago, starting from my Kitchen table!! I bought a beautiful range of designer hats from top Irish milliners and set up an online hat rental business which I grew before adding the dresses and accessories at a later stage. I come from a business and Finance background. My previous job before I set up Frock N Fabulous was as finance manager for a car dealership but as I felt that I needed more training with regards to setting up a business, managing budgets, taxation, human resources etc, I enrolled in a business development programme with LEO Dublin City. From there, I was given coaching and mentoring in relation to growing my business. Frock N Fabulous has been very much a "stepping stone" project. After 6 months of doing online hat rental from my home, I moved the business into lovely premises in Dundrum where I grew the stock levels, staff levels and the overall business in general. At each stage I checked in with my mentor for advice and guidance, helping with business plans and projections. After a year in Dundrum I knew I had to take the business a step further and moved into Drury Street. Without taking a huge risk with rent and rates, I rented the basement from an alterations business on Drury Street. This proved to be a huge success with footfall being the main advantage and having such a great location in the city centre. Our two years in Drury Street was a huge success and we brought in an exclusive bridesmaid collection which also proved to be a big hit and is now responsible for over 50% of the overall business. We eventually outgrew our Drury Street premises, finding that on busier days, we were losing business as we couldn't cater for the numbers coming into the store. 43