The David Manley Emerging Entrepreneurship Awards 2009: in conversation with Rowena Neville

Posted by: Krishna De | Posted on: January 23rd, 2010 | 10 Comments | Posted in: Ireland, Technology

This week I had an invitation to attend the ‘David Manley Emerging Entrepreneur Awards’ – unfortunately I was not able to attend – however I did have the chance to ask Rowena Neville the Chair of the Awards Organising Committee about the awards. Here is what she had to say.

Krishna: What is the origin of the Presentation of the David Manley Emerging Entrepreneur Awards 2009 and how are they different to other awards?

Rowena: I should probably take a step back first and tell you something about the man they are named after, and what was different about him.

When he died in 2002, David Manley was president of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce and Chair of Business to Arts. He was only 50 when he died, but had packed a huge amount into those too few years. I would be here for a long time telling you about all the organisations he was a member of, all the causes he championed, all the businesses he was involved with.

When I was first asked to get involved with these awards about 4 years ago, the late great Jim McNaughton told me that David was always questioning what else he could do – he constantly found ways to use his experience, his network and his resources to help the guy on the way up, and in particular he was passionate about the arts and his community.

This led to the establishment of the ‘David Manley Emerging Entrepreneur Awards’ by a number of his friends in business and in the Dublin Chamber. Those awards grew organically over time to develop their unique proposition – supporting the 3 areas of social, arts and business enterprise, and making the award the gift of time and expertise.

The aim of the awards is to identify high potential entrepreneurs to help them accelerate their plans. There is a cash prize of €10,000 and a package of real support and time valued at over €100,000, it is the largest award of its kind, and we operate nationwide.

This year the awards evolved further. Flying the flag for the cause of entrepreneurship is very important to us, and we knew we needed to ensure it stayed high on the agenda of Government, the media, and educators. As a first step, for the first time ever, we introduced a Media Award to reward journalists and members of the media who have done more than just gloss over, who have given time, space and resources to delve deeper – providing potential entrepreneurs with food for thought.  This year’s winner was John Murray, of RTÉ Radio’s The Business recognising his dedication and commitment to regular coverage of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurs.

Krishna: What are some of the trends that you have noticed in the submissions for 2009 versus 2008?

Rowena: I spoke with Alfie Kane, the chair of the judging panel, and he said the job becomes more difficult each year as the entrants get more adept at putting together their business case. The quality of applicant has grown year on year, as has the strength of their offering.

Krishna: What do you look for when making the awards?

Rowena: We encourage the Jury Panel to look for an organisation that has at its core a sustainable business idea that adds value to its communities.

Krishna: What was the differentiating factor for the award winner in the business sector? (if they are using new techniques, technologies and strategies)

Rowena: This years award winners were RendezVu, a virtual e-learning platform to support students in developing their language skills.

Ex-Baltimore Technologies employees, Paul Groarke and Garrett Hussey, saw that there was no convenient way for most students learning languages internationally to practice their language skills, as travelling to foreign destinations is expensive and impractical. This problem is particularly prevalent in the Far East, where there are over 500 million people learning English. RendezVu provides learning through Virtual World technology and uses a ‘gaming’ approach to attract and maintain students’ interest.

The Jury for the awards felt that RendezVu had developed a model that added value to themselves (obviously), to students, schools, parents, and ultimately to the country and the economy.

Krishna: How can people find out more about the 2010 awards and the nomination process.

Rowena: Information on registering interest for the 2010 Awards can be found on the website. The call for entries goes out early Summer each year, so keep an eye for the launch. Thank you Krishna for the opportunity to talk about the awards.

Comment from Krishna: If you are a new business, be sure to check back on the ‘David Manley Emerging Entrepreneur Awards’ site to learn how you could enter this years awards.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Listen to John Murray on RTE The Business show on Saturdays – find details of the show here – or listen to the podcast.

Follow The David Manley Awards on Twitter @DMAwards

Disclosure: I was invited to the David Manley as a result of my role as an Ambassador for Female Entrepreneurship