Sunday Times article  A couple of weeks ago i had the pleasure to help all the FREE networking opportunities around Ireland when i did an interview with the The Sunday Times , which are orgainised by individuals or companies in the interest of enterprise , i spoke of how i find it amazing how many entrepeneurs give so willingly of their time to share their expertise with people who may be starting out or are looking to branch out . As a person who works for home and sometimes need the advice of an expert it is a consolation to know that their are events you can attend or people you can turn to , to ask for help , i have been previlaged to meet some many wonderful business people at these events whom i now consider friends and mentors to whom i turn to .

Some of these events are : http://opencoffeemallow.wordpress.com

Bizcamp in limerick which was held in March of this year was an amazing events with talks given by some great business people.

Another new iniative that has been set-up and looks really promising is B.O.N  (Business Owners Network)  The Business Owner`s Network (BON) is a group set up strictly for business owners. Once a month we invite members to meet with us in Bewley`s Hotel in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.
 

If you to find networking in your area why not search the events section on http://www.whatswhat.ie  where you will find uptodate info on all these events .

I look forward to continuing supporting these events and would encourage you all to attend where and whenever you can as it is really worthwhile and time well spent !!

The Sunday Times article in full !!!

“ Grainne Sherlock was working in hotel management when she attended BizCamp, a free seminar in Limerick which took place last March. Organised by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, it helped her decide to launch her own business.

In May she set up Local Discount Ireland, through which consumers can buy discounts at a range of shops and venues across Ireland.

She would have made the leap into enterprise anyway but, she said, the seminar certainly helped.

“Just seeing how many people had already done it or were thinking of doing it, gives you courage. It’s a case of, if they can do it, so can I,” said Sherlock.

“What was also great was that it showed me just how many successful entrepreneurs are willing to give their time and advice to people starting out.”

The most recent BizCamp (www.bizcamp.ie) seminar took place last Saturday, with almost 500 attendees. 

“Delegates ranged from people starting their third business to people in full time employment considering going out on their own,” said Keith Bohanna, a serial entrepreneur and BizCamp co-founder.

“In a normal conference you spend a lot of money listening to experts who are flown in from abroad to tell you what to do and what not to do. By far the most valuable part of the day is the networking opportunities it affords you with your peers. So, we decided to turn that around, have no key note speakers, no words from sponsors, just have a portion of the delegates speak about their own experience starting a business.”

Speakers are vetted in advance and the only rule is that they cannot use the event to make a sales pitch.

“Because they share their experience it is a learning event. People come away uplifted, empowered and with useful contacts,” said Bohanna, who is planning two further events next year.

BizCamps are one of a growing number of free supports available to anyone thinking of taking the leap into enterprise.

Another option is the series of Open Coffee events that take place across Ireland. Again free to participate in, they provide a social, learning and networking opportunity to meet with fellow entrepreneurs.

“One of the things I noticed when I went out on my own in 2000 was how isolating it can be,” said James Corbett, founder of Open Coffee Limerick and boss of Daynuv, which provides 3D virtual reality software for the education sector.

“You can interact on the Internet but nothing beats a face to face talk. Open Coffee is like a local support group for entrepreneurs. You talk about issues that arise, you get advice and, in some cases, business is done as a result of them. But mainly it’s about support.”

They are open to all, “The more the merrier,” said Corbett. “They are highly informal and very friendly.”

Limerick Open Coffee meets on the first Thursday of every month at 11am at the Absolute Hotel.

In other areas groups meet more frequently, and may be more formally structured in that there is a talk before the chat, but in each case they are open to new people.

To find your nearest, check out www.opencoffeeireland.ie or see the Open Coffee Ireland group on www.linkedin.com.

Also free is The Business Owners Network, a networking forum set up three months ago by entrepreneurs Ian Byrne and Bob Flynn.

Built around the speed dating format, the monthly events take place at Bewleys Hotel in Dublin, with typically around 180 participants, each divided into two rows of 90.

Each entrepreneur gets to make a two minute pitch to each delegate, with the possibility of doing business, finding partners or investors along the way.

This network too is can be found on the Linkedin.com website (www.events.linkedin.com/FREE-Business-Owners-Network-Event/pub/123400) and has 200 registered members.

“It is particularly well suited to people who have lost their job and are thinking of a start up idea – come along and pitch it,” said Bob Flynn, who also heads up Sales Academy, a sales consultancy.

“It is free and is about getting people out there promoting their business, doing business and generally beating this recession.”

The next Business Owners Network event takes place on October 7^th from 6pm to 9pm.

Another recent initiative has been the establishment of the Small Business Can (www.smallbusinesscan.ie) website, which is backed by Ulster Bank. It arose on foot of research commissioned by the bank into what small business owners want in terms of a resource. 

“What we found was that they wanted a one stop shop for experiential support, not management 101 or finance 101,” said Greg Byrne, one of the site’s organisers and a marketing consultant.

“They wanted to find out what other real, small business owners have learned, to gain insights from real people who are either going through, or have been through, what they are going through.”

The site is free to use and its most popular feature is its Insights Exchange section. “That has been rampant since we set up in April 2009. It allows you post a query about some issue you are facing and getting an answer within hours,” said Byrne.

The site has had 25,000 visitors so far, has 2,500 registered users, and, to date, has covered around 500 topics “all of which are very real issues for the business owners involved”, said Byrne.

“And it is totally free. All we ask is that users give back in terms of giving people the benefit of their own experience and answering other people’s questions if you can.”

Bank of Ireland has turned to enterprise expert Brian O’Kane of OakTree Press to create its new free resource for aspiring entrepreneurs.

The result is an online start your own business training course (www.bankofirelandstartupcourse.com). Delivered by email, the course consists of seven modules covering everything from market research to business plans and finance. 

O’Kane’s own website, www.startingabusinessinireland.com, is another invaluable resource for anyone starting out.

Dublin City Enterprise Boards is running a free Start Your Own Business course in the Ilac Library, Dublin throughout October and November (www.dceb.ie) as well as a series of free open coffee mornings for new entrepreneurs. The next one takes place 14^th October at 9.30am.

Applications are also being taken for the free one year Synergy Enterprise Platform Programme at the Institute of Technology in Tallaght.

Aimed at offering full time, practical support for budding entrepreneurs, it offers qualifying participants the chance to get back 50% of their previous year’s salary, to a maximum of euro 30,000 (www.synergycentre.ie).

This last is the option Luke Brennan, founder of Digidave.co.uk, took two years ago when establishing a business supplying the UK market with networking equipment online.

Once UK ISPs stared giving away the same equipment for free, the course helped him fine tune a change in direction “it’s hard to compete with free,” said Brennan, who employs three people and has a turnover of euro 1 million.

“Doing the course was terrific,” said Brennan. “Not only was it free but we had experts come to talk to us, there were networking opportunities, and the good advice you learn sticks in your head and comes in useful later.”