Green Shoots in Ireland!

The students began their projects today in earnest.  I traveled around Dublin to visit each of the five, three-person teams as they got started, and I am humbled by the enthusiasm of the students, and the willingness of Irish entrepreneurial leaders to provide such a great learning opportunity for American students.

Each team is working on a real project that will provide real value to the organization (e.g., export strategy, marketing plan, competitive analysis, etc.). The students will be evaluated based on feedback from the company leadership, the quality of the project deliverables, and peer feedback.

In addition, each team is to interview an Irish business, government or social leader/entrepreneur and his/her team to determine leadership principles employed, strategic orientation, and organization development issues in the context of the course.

1. Bevan Cox, David Willman and Anna Ferreira are working with Andrew Parish at Sports Vantage.
   • The team here is working on cutting edge technology with two doctoral students at UCD.  This is truly a start-up experience!
2. Kaley Bundy, Yulia Pastukhova and Rahul Sukkala are working with Donal O’Brien at Abrivia.
   • This organization was started in 2006, and is at a similar stage as many of the small to midsize companies one would find in Denver, Colorado.
3. Scott Stewart, Katy Gorman and Mani Gudipati are working with Enda Madden at Groupnos.
   • This organization has strong ties to the US healthcare market and is delivering on an under-served need.
4. Patrick Hutchinson, Allie Ricks and Kelly McIlvride are working with Rod Condell & Chantel de Paor at Billfaster.
   • This is another pure start-up, and the team will be working hard at identifying key marketing opportunities.
5. Brett Bennett, Kate Wittman and Bob Prohaska are working with Eoin Costello  at at Startup Ireland.
   • This team has very specific deliverables to help establish the organization as a key accelerator for innovators in Dublin.

The students will be presenting their findings on June 16th at 6pm at the Tivoli Student Union in Denver, Colorado.  The public is very welcome to attend!