Recession… what recession?
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SOHO Solo’s don’t do recession.
Or rather, they don’t embrace the collective doom and gloom that’s gripping the nation at the moment. That was the overriding impression following the SOHO Solo conference “Reinventing Oneself in these Challenging Times” in Kinsale last Friday.
Photographs and audio files from the event should be available later in the week, and will appear here and/or over on the main SOHO Solo Ireland blog as soon as they are.
Keynote speaker Lord David Puttnam gave a fascinating account of how dogged determination, unshakable self belief and the ability to embrace and adapt to change helped him rise from being a school-leaver with just 3 O-Levels to become a successful international film producer. He went on to acknowledge the entrepreneurial spirit in his adopted home of West Cork, and to lament the fact that, despite tremendous advances in communications technology, many of the brightest, most dynamic young people in rural Ireland are still forced to leave in search of success.
Lord Puttnam also stressed the absolute imperative for Ireland to address its woeful broadband services, warning that unless the Government starts to takes connectivity seriously, the country is destined to become a global backwater in the “golden age of informtion”. He dirided the Government’s decision to privatise Eircom, and predicted that it would be looked back on as an act of vandalism — vandalism that affects all of our lives, every day, and that ultimately hurts the competitiveness of Ireland Inc. on the global stage.
The overriding message of the day was upbeat: one of optimism and opportunity. I for one left the conference inspired. All of the speakers brought their own unique perspectives and insights to the podium, and highlighted the potential for smaller, more nimble enterprises to outmanoeuvre larger competition as opportunities continue to unfold.
It was stirring stuff, and talking to other SOHO Solo’s, Enterprise Board clients and entrepreneurs in the room afterwards you’d be hard pressed to detect any sign of a recession going on at all.
Overall the outlook for SOHO Solo’s in southwest Ireland is incredibly bright. The single biggest stumbling block to retaining and attracting enterprising individuals is the lack of decent connectivity. We need real broadband to reach Ireland’s rural communities (not, as John Prendergast from Aonach called it, “some vague, broadband-like substance”), something that goes far beyond what the much-hyped National Broadband Scheme is set to deliver.
But the conference wasn’t about broadband, it was about people and their ability to adapt and innovate in challenging times… and that was demonstrated in spades.
So thanks to all the speakers, and the organisers… in particular Jackie Gowran SOHO Solo Coordinator for Cork City who did the bulk of the legwork for what was a very successful conference.
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