Gazette
16 Gazette 21 March 2013
dublinlife
Pamela Cullen, Paul Hennessy, Orlagh Kilbride and Bindu Nai of Abbott
Abbott ranked as one of Ireland’s Best Workplaces 2013 Abbott, the global health care company, has been recognised as one of Ireland’s Best Workplaces for the progressive work practices and innovative employee programmes in place at Abbott facilities around the country. Two Abbott sites in West Dublin were part of the ranking achieved at the Best Workplaces Awards 2013, including Abbott Medical Optics in Liffey Valley and the company’s commercial operation, Abbott Laboratories Ireland Ltd, Citywest, which was presented with a Laureate in recognition of 10 years’ consistent ranking in Ireland’s annual Best Workplaces list. The awards were hosted by the Great Place to Work Institute at a gala dinner in the Burlington Hotel, Dublin last week. Abbott is one of the largest healthcare companies in Ireland, with a diverse range of operations spanning manufacturing, commercial and shared services around the country, however, it applies a universal approach to maintaining excellence in the recruitment and retention of employees. Six Abbott facilities, spanning five business divisions, collaborated on this year’s Best Workplaces entry including; Abbott Medical Optics, Liffey Valley Dublin and Westport; Abbott Established Products Division, Santry, Dublin; Abbott Laboratories Ireland Ltd, CityWest Dublin; Abbott Diagnostics, Longford and Abbott Ireland Pharmaceutical Operations
Sligo, now trading as AbbVie. Margaret Morrissey, country HR director, Abbott, accepted the award on the company’s behalf. “We are delighted to receive this recognition from the Great Place to Work Institute. We are an innovation-led company that maintains our competitive advantage by exploring and maximising opportunities in all aspects of our business. We are only able to do this through our talented and engaged employees, who are our greatest asset. “We are committed to providing a high-trust environment, and fostering open, transparent and direct relationships with all our employees. This means that as a company we can continue to innovate and best serve patients with products that improve lives. Being named one of Ireland’s Best Workplaces is a welcome acknowledgment of our commitment to progressive work practices and providing learning and development opportunities for each employee.” Examples of some of the progressive initiatives in place at Abbott include the Live Life Well initiative, which inspires, engages and empowers employees to embrace a holistic approach to their physical and mental wellbeing. Also Ideas into Action is an initiative which enables employees to identify opportunities for improvement across a number of categories including culture, cost savings, environment, knowledge and process improvements.
business
Ten steps to financial freedom A fool and his money, as the saying goes, are soon parted (although I prefer James Van Den Bosch’s quip that “a fool and his money are some party”), but fools aren’t the only ones afflicted this way. Many highly intelligent people find themselves with financial problems, too. This is because your IQ has absolutely nothing to do with how well you manage your money. What is considerably more relevant is your attitude to the stuff and your timing. If you want to survive (and prosper) during the current economic recession you need to focus on your personal finances. If you shudder at the thought, remember as I have said before that the only boring thing about money is not having enough of it. One other point before we consider how to transform your finances in 10 easy steps. If you run a business, what holds for your personal finances, holds for your corporate finances, too. Step one. Get a plan, Stan (apologies to Paul Simon ) If you want to transform your finances the first thing you need is a sound financial plan. Set short, medium and long-term goals. These might be such things as “pay off all my debts” or “sort out my retirement.” You can’t go forward until you know what you want to achieve. Step two. Stop digging. You can’t get out of a hole if you keep digging. If you have a financial problem – such as debt – then stop doing anything that might be making it worse. Step three. Be patient.
It is difficult to get rich quick, but very easy to do if you take it slowly. By the same token, you won’t solve any financial problem by being in a hurry. Step four. Work out a budget. Budgeting has nothing to do with self-denial - it is simply about making a plan for how you will spend your money over a specific period. Start by working out your current position. Calculate your income and expenditure over a typical year (breaking it down month by month). Then draw up a list of your assets and liabilities. Step five. Waste will seriously damage your wealth. For years, my children would roll their eyes when I went round the house switching off lights or complained when they were talking on the telephone for too long. Eventually, they were persuaded that what I was doing was worthwhile when I offered them a percentage of any utility bill savings we could make as a family. Now, more than ever, you need to cut out all waste. More next week! Contact John with your money questions at jlowe@moneydoctor.ie or visit his website at www.moneydoctor.ie. John Lowe, Fellow of the Institute of Bankers, is founder and managing director of Money Doctor
enterprise ireland: Government at showcase
California trip boost for start-up businesses Enterprise Ireland took part in a High Potential Start-up Showcase for Irish business this month in Silicon Valley in California opened by Minister for Small Business John Perry last week. Minister Perry announced that 1,600 jobs would be created in start-up businesses in Ireland this year. The start-ups in question number 97 and have received financial support throughout 2012 from Enterprise Ireland. The minister said that €300 million in sales would be generated by these companies in Ireland within the next three years. The companies featured come from a wide range of sectors including
key technological areas that have been targeted by the government for growth in the last year. These include: financial services, ICT, games, pharmaceuticals and medical devices. The showcase also included 60 early stage entrepreneurs supported by the Enterprise Ireland Competitive Start Fund and representatives from the 2012 New Frontiers Entrepreneur Development Programme. Greg Treston, Enterprise Ireland Head of High Potential Start-ups and Scaling, said: “Enterprise Ireland has continued to introduce new initiatives to provide the right support at the right time, at all stages along
Sam Nayagam, 10n2 Technologies, David Byrne, Enterprise Ireland, and Sean Corbett, Adaptive HVM who were at the showcase
the start-up journey.” At the Enterprise Ireland Potential Start-ups Showcase, Minister Perry said: “The Government’s Action Plan for Jobs places innovative entrepreneurs and businesses right at the heart of the drive to accelerate jobs growth and economic prosperity. Ambitious, export-focused projects like those featured today and supported by Enterprise Ire-
land, are central to this, and will play a critical part in achieving the levels of growth and employment that we need. “During the last two years, this government has delivered a series of measures aimed at putting the best supports in place and creating the right business environment so that indigenous companies can grow their businesses.”