Tom Rooney Synergy Centre Supporting Enterprise & Innovation Information Literacy Seminar June 11 th 2014

Synergy Incubation Activity  Synergy Centre 1,000 sq..  Synergy Global at City West 1,000 sq..  Centre of Applied Science for Health1,500 sq..  Dedicated Research & 3,500 sq.. Enterprise Commitment

Our Programmes New Frontiers 1 - Part-time over 12 weeks - Focus on Qualified Professionals - Create multidisciplinary teams - Business case New Frontiers 2 - Since 2001, record of success - 6 Months to trading investor ready - Clinics, mentoring, peer learning - Alumni & networking Business Idea New Frontiers 1 Programme Business Idea New Frontiers 1 Programme Viable Concept New Frontiers 2 Programme Viable Concept New Frontiers 2 Programme Trading Business New Frontiers 3 Strategy Start up Trading Business New Frontiers 3 Strategy Start up New Frontiers 3 - Bringing product/service to market - Investment Procurement - Export & Job milestones

Client Companies o High technology and/or knowledge intensive o High export potential o High employment potential o Link with ITT Dublin o Willingness to embrace incubation concept o32+ Client Companies from 1 to 12 people

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Value of Information Literacy as a transferrable skill Relevance of Information Literacy Skills for Business

Information literacy Ability to (1) retrieve, (2) evaluate and (3) use information effectively

Awareness of term….. oThe term ‘Information Literacy’ is not common within the Business World – nevertheless these core skills are absolutely necessary to accomplish certain business projects oHow can businesses make informed strategic decisions without it????

Core Skills for…..industry progression oTo ‘acquire new information (from databases or through online search engines) about events and relationships in the external and internal environment ‘Environmental Scanning’

Environmental Scanning for established organisations As a way of managing organization strategies Supporting managers for the purpose of achieving the organization goals and objectives Supporting fundamental decisions about the future direction of an organization, its purpose, its resources and how it interacts with the world in which it operates (the environment of the organization)

For our Start-ups Companies oEntrepreneurs are very focused on the ‘new business idea’ oNeed to be able to take a step back and conduct ‘unbiased’ research to evaluate the ‘market potential’ for their new product service oInformation literacy skills are of huge Relevance in their ‘business evaluation’

Core Skills for…..our Start ups oBusiness Start-Ups must carry out Market Research when exploring the potential to develop a new product or service or explore a new market area market and identify its potential customers and its competitors oNew participant companies on New Frontiers Phase 2 are introduced to the extensive research resources of ITT Library on Day 1 of their 6 month programme

1. Retrieve Information oAbility to be able to formulate a proper search strategy to retrieve information from databases or online search engines oAwareness with regard unethical or illegal activities when hiring ‘open source or public domain information

2.Information Evaluation Skills oHow much information do we need and what is the quality of the information received. Is it :- oAccurate oReliable oTimely

3. Use Information oStrategic planning to support new product / service development (information which underpins the Business case for start-up) oFurther support planning for the expansion of business activities into new market areas / It continues throughout the lifetime of the business

Importance of Information Literacy oTransferrable skill into the workplace which is highly sought by employers in terms of their continuous business progression Today knowledge has power. It controls access to opportunity and advancement. Peter Drucker

Thank You