IMI Latest News

The IMI Alumni Network will host a career directions event on the evening of Thursday, January 28th.

As the New Year is often a time for taking stock and setting new goals we thought it would be useful to hold a short evening workshop on managing your career.

This will also be a chance to catch up with old classmates and network with other IMI past participants.

Managing your career and goal setting

Followed by drinks reception & finger food

Thursday, January 28th 2010

6pm – 8pm

IMI Conference Centre, Sandyford, Dublin 16

The IMI is developing its Alumni Network in 2010 to continue to support recent IMI programme participants and graduates as they transfer their learning back to their workplaces.

For more information on the IMI Alumni Network click here.

IMI celebrated the achievement of the largest number of programme participants in recent years at the Graduation Ceremony held on December 4th.

A total of 107 graduands from eight IMI programmes were conferred with the following awards;

IMI Diploma in Management (HETAC Certificate in Management)

IMI Diploma in Executive Coaching (HETAC Certificate in Executive Coaching)

IMI Diploma in Strategic Marketing Management (HETAC Certificate in Strategic Marketing Management)

IMI Diploma in Business Finance (HETAC Certificate in Business Finance)

IMI Diploma in Strategic Human Resource Management (HETAC Certificate in Strategic Human Resource Management)

BA Degree in Management (HETAC BA in Management)

Business Development Programme & Grow Your Business Programme(HETAC Diploma in Business Development)

IMI Certificate in Frontline Management (HETAC Certificate in Frontline Management)

The ceremony was led by Dr. Simon Boucher, Registrar & Head of Graduate Studies, IMI and Dr. Phil Nolan, Chairman of Council of IMI, presented each graduand with their parchment.

Special guest at the ceremony was Prof. Seamus Smyth, the Chair of Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) marking the fact that a number of the awards made were accredited by HETAC for the first time this year.

The sense of achievement and excitement that buzzed around the IMI Campus on the day was well deserved and perhaps even more so, as IMI Registrar Dr Simon Boucher noted, given that the past year was probably the most difficult to be a manager in Ireland. The additional 170 hours of in the classroom, with the same again in preparation and background reading not to mention the 15,000 words of assignments that these managers had put in over the past year made their achievements even greater.

This year’s ceremony also saw the introduction of our Student of the Year awards. These awards, voted for by class members, recognised the one individual their peers thought made the greatest commitment to teamwork and overall contribution to the group’s learning during the year.

The following were awarded Student of the Year Awards:

Aidan Pierce - Diploma in Management

Tom Hennessy - Diploma in Executive Coaching

Richard Barrett - Diploma in Strategic Marketing Management

Kieran Nash - Diploma in Business Finance

Karen O'Connor - Diploma in Strategic Human Resource Management

Brian Nolan - Business Development Programme

Eileen Hassett - Grow Your Business.

The IMI Report on the proceedings of the recent IFA Economic Forum on Farming and Farm Industry Leaders was published today.

The report contains 15 key action points for the agri-food industry, including the need to invest in the primary production base, reducing bureaucracy and other uncompetitive costs in the economy, protecting farm families from price and income volatility, and regulation of the retail sector to rebalance the food supply chain.

The forum ‘Harnessing Farming, Food & the Green Economy – A Smart Route to Recovery’, took place on November 3rd. The purpose of the forum was to focus on the short-term challenges which the Irish agricultural and agri-food sector is now facing and to develop an action plan for the sector.

The IMI was asked to observe the forum and report on its key recommendations.

Launching the report, IFA President Padraig Walshe called on the Government to immediately take on board the key action points identified so that the agriculture and agri-food industry can overcome its short-term problems and set about delivering on its potential to increase exports and create jobs.

Report on the Economic Forum ofIrish Farming & Food Industry Leaders

Read more here: IFA News

In this month's Managers on Management interview Charles Butterworth, CEO of Vodafone Ireland talks about change management and how it needs to be implemented holistically across an organisation.

Click here to read the interview in full.

Managers on Management is a regular series of interviews with key practising Irish managers and thinkers in the science of management.

Each month we will speak to some of Ireland’s most influential organisational leaders to bring you their thoughts, current concerns and key management advice. Find out more.

Dr Tom McCarthy, IMI Chief Executive was featured in an extensive interview by presenter Ivan Yates on TV3's weekly business show Business Matters on Sunday November 8th.

The interview covered the objectives of the IMI, the National Productivity Centre and the role of management capability in improving productivity, the benefit of management training and the IMI's business mentoring to small and medium size enterprises, as well as the role of the Science Advisory Council which Dr McCarthy chairs.

To see the interview on TV3.com click here.  

Dr McCarthy's interview begins at 17:57 mins into the show and lasts until 29:13.

Business Matters is TV3's new weekly business programme presented by entrepreneur, broadcaster and former senior politician, Ivan Yates.

The report prepared by the IMI on the series of economic working groups held during the recent Global Irish Economic Forum was presented to the Cabinet on Tuesday, October 13th.

This report was considered by the Government as part of a comprehensive overall report of proceedings at the Forum prepared by the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Statement by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Micheál Martin, T.D., on the publication of the Report on the Global Irish Economic Forum

Global Irish Economic Forum Report

ANNEX IV: Report by Irish Management Institute on Economic Working Group Discussions, 18 September 2009

The forum brought together 180 leading business figures from Ireland’s Diaspora at Farmleigh in Dublin’s Phoenix Park on September 18th and 19th 2009.

This first ever Global Irish Economic Forum was convened with two broad objectives: to explore how the Irish at homeand abroad, and those with a strong interest in Ireland, could work together and contribute to our overall efforts at economic recovery; to examine ways in whichIreland and its global community could develop a more strategic relationship with each other, particularly in the economic sector.

The Irish Management Institute was selected by the Department of Foreign Affairs to facilitate and capture ideas from the forum working groups at which delegates contributed ideas to shape Ireland’s future economic direction. IMI collated this data into a report which will be submitted to Government.

Drawing on methodical and careful preparation, and carrying out a well-defined and comprehensive plan for the facilitation of multiple high-calibre discussions, the Irish Management Institute’s long-standing reputation as a provider of professional facilitation services allowed us to make a significant contribution to this unique event.

For more information on the Global Irish Economic Forum click here. Both documents are also available on www.globalirishforum.ie and www.dfa.ie

If you would like to learn more about how your organisation can benefit from the Irish Management Institute’s professional facilitation capabilities please email customexec@imi.ie

IMI/NIB Survey of Multinationals in Ireland

The IMI /National Irish Bank Annual Survey MNCs published on Monday, 12th October, 2009 highlights that while in the past Multinationals in Ireland focussed on relatively low value added, low wage production, today they are far more likely to be engaged in high-end activities. The report shows that seventy percent of Multinationals in Ireland are operating at the high-value end of their global company as either a strategic centre for the company, a product or a region.

Download Report

Irish subsidiaries are actively pursing new investment according to the report, with three out of four foreign-owned subsidiaries trying to attract new mandates into the country, and 60% succeeding in doing so.

The quality of employment in Multinationals is generally very high, while for 59% of companies improving management skill is a priority for competitiveness.

As well as reporting the underlying strength of Multinationals in Ireland, the report identifies some considerable short-term challenges most especially in relation to the Ireland’s cost base which is seen as significantly higher than in comparable locations. While the greatest competition for Irish subsidiaries is from the UK (28%) and the US (17%).

Half of all foreign-owned companies in Ireland are managing senior personnel in other countries, the report highlighted.

"The change in the type of Multinational subsidiary we are attracting means that the type of skills we provide must meet the needs of these companies", Dr. Tom McCarthy, IMI Chief Executive said. "While we rightly talk about the need to provide more third level skills, we also have to ensure that we have the right world class management skills."

The negative impact of the current financial crisis is evident from the report also, as 43% of respondents this year expect the numbers they employ to decrease over the coming year - a deterioration from the 2008 survey.

Ireland’s reputation has diminished within the respondents’ global companies since the beginning of the current economic crisis according to 57% of respondents. For 11% of them, Ireland’s reputation has radically worsened.

A sizable 42% of firms consider Ireland’s long term economic stability to be weak, with pessimism stronger among Irish rather than foreign-owned Multinationals.

Main Findings:

• Seventy percent of Multinational Corporations (MNCs) in Ireland operate at the high-value end of their global parent, being the strategic centre for the company, a product or a region;

• Irish subsidiaries are very active in seeking new investment. Three out of four were trying to attract new investment, with 60% successful;

• One of Ireland’s main competitiveness problems is it’s cost base - 86% cite energy costs as being particularly high;

 • Ireland’s reputation has diminished during the current economic crisis, with 42% considering Ireland’s long term economic stability to be weak;

• The greatest competition for Irish subsidiaries is from the UK (28%) and the US (17%) - not China or Eastern Europe;

• While historically, Ireland has fared badly in terms of measures of infrastructure quality, recent high rates of investment seem to have reduced this as a concern;

• For 59% of companies, improving management skills is a priority for competitiveness;

• The level of personal taxation was identified as a barrier to attracting expatriate staff by 40% of respondents, though Ireland was perceived as being very safe;

• The quality of employment is generally very high, with 37% of MNCs employing a workforce of which between 1% and 10% have a PhD;

• A significant majority expect trading conditions to remain very difficult for the next 12 months.

Irish business has experienced unprecedented upheaval and uncertainty over the last twelve months. This wave of insecurity presents business leaders with a major human performance challenge according to Dr Simon Boucher, Head of Graduate Studies at IMI and Programme Director of our new Diploma in Leadership.

“Periods of extended change and confusion can affect employees in many psychologically detrimental ways. Organisations are finding that staff performance can be undermined by risk-aversion, pessimism, and increased levels of political behaviour. Even more damaging however is when the uncertain environment erodes the fundamental sense of trust between managers and the people they lead”.

There are six key factors that increase the level of trust between staff and leaders – whether you are a line manager or a CEO, recent UK-based research published by Management Today magazine has shown. “Several issues have a major bearing on the level of trust between staff and a leader. These include the consistency of leader behaviour, the perception that the leader has integrity, the leader’s level of openness, whether or not the leader is perceived as fair and the level of interpersonal understanding that the leader demonstrates”, explains Dr Boucher.

“Interestingly, the most important factor affecting the level of trust between a leader and their team is whether or not the leader is perceived to be personally competent in their job”.

According to Dr Boucher, different factors are of relatively greater importance in building trust depending on a leader’s seniority. “For line managers who deal with their teams on a daily basis, interpersonal openness and understanding are particularly important. For CEOs and other senior leaders who come into contact with the rank and file on a less frequent basis, perceptions of integrity and competence are of relatively greater importance in building trust”.

Whilst a basic awareness of these factors can go some way towards improving trust within organisations, Dr Boucher believes that leaders should take more proactive steps towards improving work relationships. “A pre-requisite for leaders who want to build trust is to develop a clearer understanding of the impression that they make with others. Tools such as executive coaching, 360 degree feedback and psychometric assessment all contribute towards building more trusting and effective working relationships.”

The IMI’s new Diploma in Leadership combines these tools with practical workshops in areas such as organisational psychology, influencing skills and relationship management in order to help leaders build more effective and trusting relationships with the people they lead.

Click here to find out more about the Diploma in Leadership or contact our Sales Team on Freefone 1800 22 33 88 or my email to sales@imi.ie.

The 40 companies shortlisted for the 2009 Deloitte Best Managed Companies were announced on October 4th. These companies will go on to compete in Phase Two of the Deloitte Best Managed Companies Programme which will culminate at the IMI Symposium to be held on March 5th 2010.

40 companies from across the island of Ireland are in the running for ‘Best Managed’ designation.

The Best Managed Companies Awards will recognise twenty indigenous Irish companies across the island of Ireland which are operating at the highest levels of business performance.

The shortlisted companies are drawn from a variety of industries including travel, hospitality, manufacturing, IT and financial services among others. All provinces throughout Ireland are represented with Leinster and Munster leading the pack with 20 and 11 shortlisted companies respectively.

The companies are through to the second phase of the competition, where they will demonstrate to the judging panel how their organisations are meeting their strategic objectives and adding value to their businesses. 

“Given the vastly changed business environment, we know that business and management success can no longer be defined as increased sales or turnover. For that reason, when deciding this year’s winners, the judging panel will be taking a holistic view of the companies looking at their performance in relation to their peers and the industry that they are operating in.”  Kevin Sheehan, Partner, Deloitte said.

Kevin Dempsey, Managing Director of Kevin Dempsey Distributors Limited, a Best Managed Companies Award winner last year, commented on the benefits the shortlisted companies will now receive as part of the phase 2 process:

“This second stage of the process is a good opportunity to sit down and focus on company strategy which we found was of great benefit in ensuring that we were meeting our objectives. What’s more, we got practical insights and advice from our coaches in Deloitte and Bank of Scotland (Ireland) as part of this process. This outside perspective was one of the major advantages of participating in this awards programme, particularly in light of the very challenging trading period that we were heading into in 2009 and it has certainly resulted in our business being in a stronger position as we now head into 2010.”

The judging panel, chaired by Denis Brosnan and including IMI Chief Executive Dr Tom McCarthy, will be looking at a broad range of criteria when deciding this year’s twenty best managed companies - including strategy, capability, commitment, financials and growth potential across all key functions of the business.

This is the second year of the Deloitte Best Managed Companies Awards which are open to companies from all 32 counties on the island of Ireland. 

The shortlisted companies are:

• Abbey Tours (Dublin)

• Advanced Innovations (Limerick)

• Archers (Mayo)

• The Barry Group (Cork)

• Castlecool (Monaghan)

• Celtic Forwarding (Dublin)

• Designer Group (Dublin)

• FMI (Dublin)

• FreeFlow (Kerry)

• Galway Bay Hotel (Galway)

• The Gift Voucher Shop (Dublin)

• Glennon Brothers (Longford)

• GoldCore (Dublin)

• The Jacob Fruitfield Food Group (Dublin)

• Java Republic Roasting Company (Dublin)

• The Jelly Bean Factory (Dublin)

• KTL (Kildare)

• Mount Charles Catering (Antrim)

• NPP Group (Dublin)

• Omega Mechanical Services (Derry)

• O’Reilly Transport (Dublin)

• Park Rite (Dublin)

• PFH (Cork)

• Qumas (Cork)

• RFL Steels (Kildare)

• Rhyno Quality Feeds (Kerry)

• Right Price Tiles (Cork)

• Roches Feeds (Limerick)

• Sea Cargo Services (Cork)

• Shabra Group (Monaghan)

• Shandon Travel (Cork)

• Singularity (Derry)

• Strongline Autoparts Ltd (Dublin)

• Tara Oil (Limerick)

• Taxback.com (Dublin)

• TG Eakin (Down)

• Tipperary Crystal (Dublin)

• Tour America (Dublin)

• Version 1 (Dublin)

• Wilsons Auctions (Antrim)

Find out more about the Deloitte Best Managed Companies Awards.

The Board of Forfás, the national policy advisory body for enterprise and science has appointed Dr Tom McCarthy as Chair Designate of the Advisory Science Council.

IMI Chief Executive Dr McCarthy, will take over from Ms Mary Cryan as Chair of the Council from November 2009. 

The Advisory Science Council (ASC) provides policy advice to the Irish Government on medium and long term science, technology and innovation (STI) issues and contributes towards the development and implementation of a coherent and effective national strategy for STI.

Providing the primary interface between stakeholders and policymakers in the STI arena, the Council’s Mission is: to bring the experience, excellence and independence of Ireland's science, technology and innovation practitioners to the heart of Government policy to ensure the application of scientific endeavour for the benefit of the people of Ireland.

The Council gathers the expertise and experience of fourteen members who are recognised leaders in their fields of expertise. Members of the Council come from academia, enterprise and professional sectors. The Council includes a representative from Forfás, who also provide research and secretariat support.

Dr McCarthy has been a member of the Council since its foundation in 2005.

Related Link:  Science Advisory Council News.