Hosted by NUI Galway, in conjunction with the Whitaker Institute, the Innovation Cities Roadshow, Galway, will impart expert insights into leading business issues and practical ideas on how you can develop your business performance.

Workshops and Talks include:

• INNOVATION IN PRACTICE, Dr. John McKeon, CEO, Allergy Standards Ltd.
• WHAT INNOVATION MEANS FOR BUSINESS, Dr. James Cunningham, Director, Whitaker Institute for Innovation and Societal Change, NUI Galway.
• FUNDING INNOVATION, Mr. Joe Greaney, Director, WESTBIC.
• INNOVATIVE MARKETING, Dr. Ann Torres, J.E. Cairnes School of Business and Economics and the Whitaker Institute for Innovation and Societal Change, NUI Galway.
• NEW WAYS OF WORKING THROUGH MOBILE TECHNOLOGY, Jonathan Rutherford,
  Head of Enterprise Marketing at Vodafone Ireland.

Provided by Organization:
Whitaker Institute for Innovation and Societal Change

Irish Times Innovation

Philip McKiernan

Following our spring talk by Prof Robertson our summer lunch and learn was given by Philip McKernan, the well-known coach, speaker and author who gave a great talk fuelled with passion and meaning.

Philip, originally from Dublin has established himself as in demand speaker in North America and works around the world with individuals and companies. Last year he worked with the Canadian Olympic team in advance of the London games.

In his 1-hour lunch and learn talk Philip explained how we are conditioned to strive toward goals based on what our mind believes we “should” be doing, rather than following our intuition and thus living a happy and an authentic life.

During his talk Philip drove home his message about what he calls the “Authenticity Code” and how you can stop living in your head, and start living based on your intuition.

From an entrepreneurship and innovation point of view “intuition” may sound a bit ‘left brained’ however if business is about persuasion clearly an authentic blue print is a necessary business skill along with trust and integrity.

To prove the point a quick Google found that as recently June 15^th 2013 at the Stanford Graduate School of Business John Donahoe, eBay CEO, told a group of degree candidates during the graduation ceremony, at the Frost Amphitheater. “For me, creating a life and career filled with impact and meaning is about leadership,”

John, who received his MBA from Stanford in 1986, encouraged his listeners to focus on “being an authentic, purpose-driven leader, to learning throughout your life, to building character during the tough times, and to having a career and a life that is fully enriching and rewarding.” Echoing exactly many of the messages that Philip gave during his talk.

As well as authenticity Philip teaches people to become more intuitive and not to rely on the mind, so people ‘know’ as opposed to ‘think’ they are on the right path. He has created a way of living called Soulset, which allows our lives to flow.

Thanks Philip to contributing to another great TTEC lunch and learn talk.

Thanks also to Philip as he has made an e copy of his book available here. Click here to download.

Other events coming up

• October Tony Buzan www.tonybuzan.com
• November Mark Vicor Hansen

With thanks again to Jane from www.seminars.ie

Lunch Time Talk given by Ian Robertson, Professor of Psychology at Trinity College Dublin
by Dr John McKeon

John McKeon, Ian Robertson & Bridget Noone

Trinity College’s very own Prof Robertson was on the John Murray show yesterday on RTE radio one speaking about how the effects of power can influence brain chemistry and behaviour.

The context was the recent ‘Anglo tapes’!

As we prepare for our next Lunch and learn on Friday 12^th July 2013 I wanted to take the opportunity to recap on the excellent lunch and learn that Prof Robertson gave back on March 20^th of this year.

As you may well know Professor Ian Robertson is Professor of Psychology at Trinity College Dublin and was the founding Director of Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience. He is a member of the Royal Irish Academy.

Ian Robertson is also author of “The Winner Effect: The Neuroscience of Success and Failure” so you can see why he was asked by RTE to comment on the culture issues we have recently heard in the banking world!

Ian gave a wonderful talk to a packed audience in the Science gallery about how to leverage the science of success to get more success with particular reference to brain chemistry.

The content, strategies and tactics of the talk were all extremely relevant to entrepreneurship and new enterprise growth. Wearing a red tie at business meetings and the mystery of the cichlid fish were favourites of mine. Read his book to find out more!

In his key note address Prof Robertson asked questions like; What makes a winner? Why do some succeed in business, and others fail? And why do a few individuals end up supremely powerful, while many remain powerless?

Ian explained that the ‘winner effect’ is a term used in biology to describe how an animal that has won a few fights against weak opponents is much more likely to win later bouts against stronger contenders.

Success changes the chemistry of the brain, making you more focused, smarter, more confident and more aggressive. The effect is as strong as any drug. And the more you win, the more you will go on to win. But the downside is that winning can become physically addictive.

By understanding what the mental and physical changes are that take place in the brain of a ‘winner’, how they happen, and why they affect some people more than others, he answered the question of why some people attain and then handle success better than others.

With particular relevance to early stage business he also explained what makes a winner – or a loser – and how we can use the answers to these questions to understand better the behaviour of our business colleagues and employees.

This coming Friday 12^th July 2013the Trinity Enterprise Network will be hosting Philip McKernan for a Lunch and Learn at The Tower, Trinity Technology & Enterprise Campus – 12.30 – 2.00 pm. Phillip will be giving his talk on The Authenticity Code

Further reading:

http://www.thewinnereffect.com/

John McKeon, Rob Oliphant & Minister Jimmy Deenihan

Thursday, March 14th – Minister Jimmy Deenihan TD, travelled to Toronto, Canada as part of the Government’s St Patrick’s Day programmes which involved a breakfast business meeting in downtown Toronto with key members of the Canadian business community.

This year 19 Government Ministers travelled to 21 countries across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia for a series of trade and investment focused programmes.

Whilst in Toronto, Minister Deenihan will undertake a number of engagements including an Ireland/Canada Business Event with Enterprise Ireland and a promotional event with the Irish Dairy Board. 
Exports from Ireland to Canada increased by 24% in 2012, and promoting growth in both trade, community and cultural links between Ireland and Canada (population 34 million) will be a focus of Minister Deenihan’s visit.

As part of the business breakfast event he met the CEO of the Asthma Society of Canada, Rob Oliphant and John McKeon CEO of Allergy Standards to announce the continued groeth of their strategic alliance.

Minister Deenihan will also review the Toronto St Patrick’s Day Parade and will view the greening of Niagara Falls accompanied by Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland.

Minister Deenihan commented “Representing Ireland abroad is a privilege and a responsibility.  Having our National Day recognised and celebrated internationally is a huge opportunity to tell a story to the world about Ireland – about our skills, about our strengths, and about our recovery. Canada and Ireland are closely linked, both in our past and in the present.

Reflections by Dr John McKeon, Serial Entrepreneur, based in TTEC

Last Friday (23 November 2012) we had a wonderful ‘lunch and learn event’ in the beautiful scholarly surroundings of the Long Room Hub, a fabulous building between the 1937 Reading Room and the Provost’s Garden. It was a wonderful crisp autumnal afternoon and every one delighted to gather in advance of the talk for food and hot drinks. After some quick hellos and exchanges of business cards the event began to fill with an excellent crowd.

Dr Tony Humphreys

In the classic Harvard Business Review article, “Managing Oneself,” Peter Drucker wrote, “Whenever you make a decision or take a key decision, write down what you expect will happen. Nine or 12 months later, compare the results with what you expected.” Drucker called this self-reflection process feedback analysis and credited it to a 14th-century German theologian.

Even considering the above I think it is fair to say there was a little bit of cynicism in the air about how a lecture on self-awareness would be relevant to the busy group assembled. The audience represented the diverse group that makes up the Trinity Enterprise Network including members of the TCD entrepreneurial ecosystem, start up companies, teaching staff, MBA students, PhDs, undergraduate and various entrepreneurial support staff of the college including Technology Transfer Officers.

Tony opened his slides with a quote from How Leaders Become Self-Aware by Anthony K. Tjan Harvard Business Review July 19, 2012. Becoming aware of dealing with your inner core is at the centre of leadership effectiveness and development. The more acutely you are aware of it, the better you will be as a leader.”

In business and leadership there is a tendency to focus entirely on the ‘macho stuff’ like business plans, strategy and tactics. Tony would argue authentic leadership and real business toughness is often closer to the Socratic statement ‘know thy self’.

He also referred to the Plato quote “Citizens of Athens, aren’t you ashamed to care so much about making all the money you can and advancing your reputation and prestige, while for truth and wisdom and the improvement of your souls you have no thought or care?” This is an alarmingly relevant quote for our recent crisis of leadership and systems failures both here and abroad.

Tony argues that without personal maturity and self awareness we develop a mindset of unconscious defensive leadership and this can result in being an ineffective team leader. Characteristics of Unconscious Defensive Leadership include avarice, bullying, cosy cartels, secretiveness and arrogance. These traits of leadership kill an atmosphere of openness and safety for knowledge workers. Clearly these leadership traits are not conducive to innovation amongst teams with dismissiveness, unavailability and unapproachability often being the order of the day.

People are like dolphins: you can’t hit them as they just swim away. Likewise financial incentive based programs will only get you so far as a leader. With the mobility of the modern workforce a true deep understanding of self first will give you the emotional maturity to understand what truly motivates your team and how to meet their needs for significance and contribution.

With personal reflection Conscious Mature Leadership is developed. Characteristics of a mature leader include accountability, authenticity, fairness, and understanding. With a conscious mature leader at the helm companies have an atmosphere of openness, encouragement, belief in opportunities and active listening. Obviously this makes a much more effective working environment for innovation, brainstorming and gives confidence to your team to develop and contribute new ideas.

It is fair to say across many sectors in society we have seen a loss of leadership and personal accountability by people hiding behind systems. Tony emphasised that these are not ‘systems failures’ as behind every system if you dig deep enough there is an individual who has to be prepared to have personal accountability. ‘Computer says no’ will not cut it going forward.

Tony closed his talk by emphasising again the simple but profound take away message that the most important principle of business management is personal maturity. If things are not going to plan with your team start by looking in the mirror. Don’t wish the problems were less, but work on becoming better yourself.

There then followed a lively Q and A with Tony running through some very practical methodologies for getting the concepts he discussed into the day to day functioning of your teams. Implementing these principles from the time of Plato and Socrates will foster innovation and creativity and an atmosphere of respect and fun. The days of command and control leadership are in the past.

Clearly any reliable strategies that can increase the speed of creativity and the power of trust in an organisation will make a very real difference to the bottom line. Perhaps the macho KPIs and targets stuff is just ‘playing office’ until we get the mature leader issue dealt with?

An open discussion along these lines with our co-workers sounds like a very good business decision rather than airy fairy stuff!

We hope to have one more lunch and learn seminar for the Trinity Enterprise Network before the end of the year so please contact us at email: ttec@tcd.ie if you would like to receive the details.

Books by Tony Humphreys

Leadership with Consciousness

Work and Self

John McKeon with Tony Buzan

Today I attended a great workshop with one of the great thinkers of our age Tony Buzan.

His basic principle of mind mapping has enormous cross over to ‘the art of sales’ as well as ‘the science of start-up’.

An outstanding speaker, Tony Buzan, is the creator of Mind Maps, the originator of the concept of Mental Literacy and author of numerous bestselling books on the brain and thinking.
He is the author of over 200 bestselling books on the brain and learning. His classic Use Both Sides of Your Brain, has sold more than two million copies world wide

Tony is a great guy and was great fun to meet and share some entrepreneurship ideas with him after the work shop.

Here are what some pretty important members of the business community are saying about Tony.

Buzan shows corporate executives how to hotwire their creative energies.”
Forbes Magazine

Tony Buzan has done it again… make your mind work better.”
Ken Blanchard, author of the multimillion bestselling book The One Minute Manager

Here are some great tips from Tony on how Mind Mapping can save you time?

One of the simplest and most effective ways to use Mind Mapping and boost your productivity is to begin each week by spending half an hour creating a Mind Map version of a to do list. This will give you a snapshot overview of your tasks that you can prioritise according to deadlines and importance. Having it laid out visually can also help you split your workload into realistic chunks of time.

1. Begin by creating a central idea with the date at the centre.

2. Add on main branches for key tasks or projects that you need to accomplish or work on that week.

3. From these main branches, draw child branches with names, events, sub-tasks, deadlines or other keywords that make up the specific actions needed to complete the bigger task.

4. Look for links between different tasks. Does one task directly impact another? Draw relationship arrows to demonstrate this.

Weekly Task Map

As you build your Mind Map you can get a clear picture of your workload and view each task objectively. You can determine what’s important and what’s not, see how certain projects will relate and impact on other tasks, and block your time to achieve optimum productivity.

The Mind Map format means you can see the whole picture in one glance, which can be invaluable when time is short. Whilst your colleagues are tearing their hair out, lost in the scribbles of their messy To Do List, you can maintain a serene air of calm and control as you know exactly what needs doing and where you are with it.

Now here’s the kicker… If you need to be completely ruthless with your time, follow on with optional steps number 5 and 6…

5. What is the main goal of your job right now? Is it to generate revenue, satisfy customers or ensure product quality? Figure out one key goal and replace the date in the centre of your map with it.

Generate Revenue

6. Review the tasks on your map. How many directly correspond to the goal in the centre?

Any tasks that will not help you achieve that goal, delete them.

It sounds brutal, and it is, but it is also a very good cleansing exercise to help you re-focus and give you more time to spend where it matters. So much time is wasted by just assuming that something has to be done; that it’s important because it is part of the routine.

Get ruthless and take courage from the knowledge that if anyone demands to know why you have decided not to do a certain report, or attend a particular meeting, you can say that you are focusing your time on something far more beneficial for the company.

Have a go at using Mind Mapping instead of your usual To Do List and try making time bend to your will for a change

John McKeon & Robin Sharma – Entrepeurship Seminar

Today I was at a really interesting event organised by the Irish Centre for Business Excellence  at the Convention Centre, Dublin.

The event was billed as; Come and be inspired by the internationally renowned leadership expert, Robin Sharma. During this seminar the bestselling author of THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRARI, THE GREATNESS GUIDE and THE LEADER WHO HAD NO TITLE will give you profound insights. You will quickly come to see why when Fortune 500 organizations need a speaker with a proven track record of delivering leadership presentations that inspire, engage and deliver real business results, they go to Robin Sharma.

He is indeed a really inspiring speaker and his interactive seminar was packed with relevant points for start-up and early stage entrepreneurs. I had a lovely chat with the great man after the event and interview him on his success rituals and habit patterns. He came across as extremely sincere and was very approachable.

Here’s a synopsis of his ‘explosive productivity tips’ so you get big things done and make your life matter!

Robin Sharma’s 21 tips to get you to your best productivity:

#1. Check email in the afternoon so you protect the peak energy hours of your mornings for your best work.

#2. Stop waiting for perfect conditions to launch a great project. Immediate action fuels a positive feedback loop that drives even more action.

#3. Remember that big, brave goals release energy. So set them clearly and then revisit them every morning for 5 minutes.

#4. Mess creates stress (I learned this from tennis icon Andre Agassi who said he wouldn’t let anyone touch his tennis bag because if it got disorganized, he’d get distracted). So clean out the clutter in your office to get more done.

#5. Sell your TV. You’re just watching other people get successful versus doing the things that will get you to your dreams.

#6. Say goodbye to the energy vampires in your life (the negative souls who steal your enthusiasm).

#7. Run routines. When I studied the creative lives of massively productive people like Stephen King, John Grisham and Thomas Edison, I discovered they follow strict daily routines. (i.e., when they would get up, when they would start work, when they would exercise and when they would relax). Peak productivity’s not about luck. It’s about devotion.

#8. Get up at 5 am. Win the battle of the bed. Put mind over mattress. This habit alone will strengthen your willpower so it serves you more dutifully in the key areas of your life.

#9. Don’t do so many meetings. (I’ve trained the employees of our FORTUNE 500 clients on exactly how to do this – including having the few meetings they now do standing up – and it’s created breakthrough results for them).

#10. Don’t say yes to every request. Most of us have a deep need to be liked. That translates into us saying yes to everything – which is the end of your elite productivity.

#11. Outsource everything you can’t be BIW (Best in the World) at. Focus only on activities within what I call “Your Picasso Zone”.

#12. Stop multi-tasking. New research confirms that all the distractions invading our lives are rewiring the way our brains work (and drop our IQ by 5 points!). Be one of the rare-air few who develops the mental and physical discipline to have a mono-maniacal focus on one thing for many hours. (It’s all about practice).

#13. Get fit like Madonna. Getting to your absolute best physical condition will create explosive energy, renew your focus and multiply your creativity.

#14. Workout 2X a day. This is just one of the little-known productivity tactics that I’ll walk you through in my new online training program YOUR PRODUCTIVITY UNLEASHED (details at the end of this post) but here’s the key: exercise is one of the greatest productivity tools in the world. So do 20 minutes first thing in the morning and then another workout around 6 or 7pm to set you up for wow in the evening.

#15. Drink more water. When you’re dehydrated, you’ll have far less energy. And get less done.

#16. Work in 90 minute blocks with 10 minute intervals to recover and refuel (another game-changing move I personally use to do my best work).

#17. Write a Stop Doing List. Every productive person obsessively sets To Do Lists. But those who play at world-class also record what they commit to stop doing. Steve Jobs said that what made Apple Apple was not so much what they chose to build but all the projects they chose to ignore.

#18. Use your commute time. If you’re commuting 30 minutes each way every day – get this: at the end of a year, you’ve spent 6 weeks of 8 hour days in your car. I encourage you to use that time to listen to fantastic books on audio + excellent podcasts and valuable learning programs. Remember, the fastest way to double your income is to triple your rate of learning.

#19. Be a contrarian. Why buy your groceries at the time the store is busiest? Why go to movies on the most popular nights? Why hit the gym when the gym’s completely full? Do things at off-peak hours and you’ll save so many of them.

#20. Get things right the first time. Most people are wildly distracted these days. And so they make mistakes. To unleash your productivity, become one of the special performers who have the mindset of doing what it takes to get it flawless first. This saves you days of having to fix problems.

#21. Get lost. Don’t be so available to everyone. I often spend hours at a time in the cafeteria of a university close to our headquarters. I turn off my devices and think, create, plan and write. Zero interruptions. Pure focus. Massive results.

Keynote Speaker: Professor Donald Siegel, Dean of the School of Business and Professor of Management at the University at Albany, State University of New York, USA

Innovation management is moving towards an open innovation model with industry, universities and governments collaborating to support scientific development, wealth creation and publicly beneficial activities. Industry-University research and innovation collaboration is one of the core features and elements of this open innovation model. With the increasing globalisation of research activities, and significant funding of public science and technology, the open innovation approach is being adopted by more industries. This is now a significant challenge for companies, large and small. How best can they respond to these significant changes in research, development and innovation?

Market opportunities and business needs can influence the direction of research exploitation in an open innovation context. The challenge for companies is to seek out the appropriate set of collaborators in open innovation environments to fit their strategic needs. The increasing complexity of needs and demands from consumers, societies and citizens – coupled with the time and resource requirements in developing new breakthrough technology and innovations – places third level institutions as critical players in the development and exploitation of new knowledge. Public funding of science and supports for entrepreneurship are critical enabling factors to supporting industry- university research, development and innovation.

International experience of industry- university research, development and innovation proves it is complex business that requires a broad range of supports and skills from public funded universities and state laboratories, state support agencies and private sector entrepreneurs and companies. It also requires significant levels of professional services support. It has the potential to yield market-leading positions for industries and entrepreneurs based on scientific knowledge and excellence.

This conference will provide practical insights how best business, academics and policy makers on the island of Ireland can exploit industry- university research, development and innovation to best effect in context of our economic recovery.

Professor Donald Siegel, University at Albany, New York, will deliver a keynote address each day:

Day 1: Research on Academic Entrepreneurship: Lessons Learnt

Day 2: Economic Growth and Academic Entrepreneurship: Lessons and Implications for Industry, Academia and Policymakers

In the two-day Conference programme, a number of business leaders and academic experts from both sides of the border will explore why the exploitation of industry and university-based research, development and innovation (RDI) is crucial to the development of a sustainable economy. Delegates will also hear the results of cutting-edge research into innovation and entrepreneurship that is being undertaken in our third level institutions on the island of Ireland.

The Conference will be of interest to business leaders and senior managers in all industry sectors including SMEs, senior managers in the public and third sector and anyone with a responsibility for the strategic development of a business or organisation. The first day of the Conference (12 June) will be of particular interest to academic researchers with an interest in innovation and entrepreneurship.

The 2012 Conference is being organised by the Institute for Business, Social Sciences and Public Policy (formally Centre for Innovation and Structural Change) at National University of Ireland, Galway.

I attended this forum to today which was a very informative strategy session. Some great speakers with real insight.

Republic of Korea: Connecting with an Industrial Powerhouse

Date: Friday 29 June 2012

Venue: Enterprise Ireland, East Point Business Park

The Irish Exporters Association’s Asia Trade Forum  will introduce Irish businesses to the Republic of Korea and provide an opportunity to learn from on-the-ground experiences of Irish CEO’s. This event will cater for CEOs and Managing Director level executives from organisations that are interested in developing trade with Korea, as well as those already active in the market.

Speakers included:

• Ambassador Kim, Republic of Korea

• Tom Coyner is an experienced industry veteran with over 25 years executive experience in Asia. During 2010, Tom completed writing of the definitive guide to doing business in Korea: “Doing Business in Korea: An Expanded Guide”.

• Colin Lawlor is commercial director at Bianca Med Limited a winner of Innovation of the Year award.  He has significant and ongoing experience of doing business in, and exporting to, South Korea.

• Paul Buchanwill speak on behalf of the EU Gateway Programme which currently sends two missions a year to South Korea:
  • Healthcare and Medical Technologies (18-22 March 2013)
  • Energy and Environmental Technologies (10–14 June 2013)

Our sponsors are Ulster Bank, William Fry, Grant Thornton, Enterprise Ireland, Etihad Airways. Newstalk is our media partner.