Enterprise Ireland £10 Acceleration Fund

The acceleration of the adoption by Irish companies of best eBusiness practice is a major priority for the Government. The growing awareness among Irish companies of the need to become e-enabled is witnessed by the fact that more than 183 applications for investment proposals were received by the Fund from companies throughout Ireland. In total funding of
over £25 million was sought by these companies. There is no doubt that the £10 million allocated to the102 successful projects under the eBusiness Acceleration Fund will help to speed up the development of significant scale projects to assist Irish companies take advantage of the eBusiness opportunity.

The 102 projects were approved across a range of industry sectors including Print & Packaging, Food, Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals, Engineering & Electronics, Consumer Products, Construction and International Services. The projects were approved in
companies throughout Ireland and included funding for feasibility/R&D costs; the development of e-business systems and processes; staff training; recruitment of
specialist skills; and capital investment. The maximum amount of funding for any one project was limited to £250,000.

This initiative was developed as a response to the strategic importance of eBusiness for Irish companies and will play an important role in raising awareness and in accelerating eBusiness capability throughout Ireland's industry base. The benefits of this initiative will impact not only on those companies receiving direct support from the Fund but also on their customers and suppliers. Enterprise Ireland will closely monitor these102 projects as they evolve. The lessons learned will be made available to other companies contemplating similar investments.

County Enterprise Boards Initiative

The Empower initiative was launched in July, 2000. Under the initiative each of the 35 Enterprise Boards are providing E-Business Services and Incentives to Micro-Businesses, including:
· An awareness Campaign;
· Technical Assistance Grants;
· Mentoring Assistance;
· Training in the Implementation of E-Commerce Solutions; and
· Local and Sectoral Electronic Networking.

Chambers of Commerce of Ireland - PRISM II

This project commenced in 2001 and emerged from a highly successful pilot project for SMEs carried out under the EU Adapt Initiative in 1998-99 called the Prism Project. It involved 25 chambers of commerce and was managed centrally by the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland (CCI).
The impact of PRISM was predominantly in the area of awareness building among SMEs of the importance of the internet and e-business. The Project had two core elements -

• Internet Information Seminars hosted jointly by Eircom, Indigo and the local Chambers to build awareness and stimulate demand for the internet.
• An Internet Business Strategy (IBS) Training Course for SMEs delivered by the local chambers. This programme helped SMEs grasp the essentials of the internet and Ebusiness, develop a strategy for going on-line, or improving their presence on-line, and learn the basic skills for using the internet effectively.

Over 3,300 SMEs attended the Internet Information Seminars at 30 centres, making this by far the most extensive awareness-building exercise concerning the internet among SMEs in Ireland. In addition, 32 chamber staff were trained to act as part-time Instructors for the IBS Training Course. They, in turn, delivered the course to over 400 SMEs.

The Primary aim of the PRISM II project (at a cost of £1.5m) is to build on the success of the pilot Prism Project. The objective however, will be e-business capacity-building with SMEs as distinct from internet awareness-building. CCI is satisfied that the original Prism project (reaching over 3,300 SMEs) along with a range of other awareness-building measures has significantly increased the understanding among SMEs of the how e-business can impact their competitive position. What is now needed is to help SMEs in real and practical ways to respond to the e-business challenge.

This project will

1. Provide E-business Strategy (ESC) Training Courses to over 2,000 SMEs by the middle of 2002.
2. Provide a national network of local support and advisory services to SMEs through the chamber of commerce network, facilitated by 9 E-business Project Officers.
   
3. Create at least 18 E-business Networks of SMEs to explore new and innovative approaches to SME adoption of e-business.
   
4. Create E-business Strategy Alliances for SMEs at local and regional level between the State Agencies, Higher Education, County Enterprise Boards, Area Partnerships, Banks, Large Businesses and the social partners.
   
5. Engage in an on-going series of local E-business Awareness activities with local partners, using the positive experience of local SMEs as the catalyst for further SME adoption of e-business.
   
6. Facilitate primary and secondary research into e-business and its impact on the SME sector both nationally and in an international perspective.