Ryanair to cut 31 routes from Alicante
Following a decision by Alicante Airport to introduce extra fees, Ryanair has said it will cut 31 routes and 2,000 jobs from the Spanish base. The airline said the 80pc cuts will include slashing its aircraft base from 11 to just two, as well as decreasing flight routes from 62 to 31. Ryanair said it will now run less than 200 flights per week, compared to more than 600 previously operated. That will add up to a decrease of 2.5 million passengers per year. The airport’s operators AENA has decided to enforce the use of airbridges, which will add about €2m costs for Ryanair. The airline believes the airbridges are…
Read MoreLimerick brothers get US$2m from Silicon Valley investors
Limerick brothers, Patrick and John Collison, have received a US$2m investment from Silicon Valley, according to a report by TechCrunch. The brothers began working on the idea for their latest venture, Stripe, while they were studying at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University in the US. The company makes it simple for website operators to accept payments online. The brothers relocated to California to find funding for Stripe, which is now thought to be valued at about US$20m. The TechCrunch report states the company has already taken in a venture round of US$2m from Peter Thiel and Elon Musk, as well as Sequoia Capital, Andreesen Horowitz and SV Angel.…
Read MoreConroy strikes gold in Armagh
Irish-based gold exploration company Conroy Gold and Natural Resources announced good news from its drilling programme in Armagh this morning. At its Clay Lake gold target, the exploration company found that three more of its holes intercepted gold mineralisation, including 11.5m of 1.44g/t gold. It also discovered 53m of stockwork at 0.60 g/t gold, including 10.25m at 1.37 g/t gold. The Clay Lake area has been a massive success for Conroy, yielding the highest gold-in-soil values recorded by the company on its Irish exploration licences. Commenting, Chairman, Professor Richard Conroy said, “I am very pleased with the results which further confirm the potential of the Clay Lake target. Overall, we…
Read MoreStudy explores fan/brand relationship on social media
Regular posts, trustworthy brand news, new product information, contests and special offers are the five basic expectations fans have of brands on social media, according to new research from Millward Brown and Dynamic Logic, in co-operation with the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA). While these are the five health checks identified in the Value of a Fan report, five characteristics that can help pages stand out and drive a stronger brand response but may not all be appropriate to all brands, are a sense of fun, variety, innovation, interactivity and community. Value of a Fan suggests that successful pages deepen both brand equity and engagement. The research also notes that the pages generating the…
Read MoreJohn Kotter – The Importance of Buy-In
Dr. Kotter talks about why buy-in is so important for getting any significant idea passed through. How can you get the support you need and not watch a good idea die a slow death? This applies to small and large issues and to all manner of people trying to get their good ideas heard.
Read MoreMoriarty report to be sent to DPP – Taoiseach
Enda Kenny told the Dáil today that he has asked Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte to refer the Moriarty report to the Director for Public Prosecutions and to the Garda Commissioner. The damning report found that Michael Lowry, the then minister for transport, energy and communications, “without doubt” helped Denis O’Brien secure Ireland’s second mobile phone licence for his company, Esat Digifone, in 1995. Opposition has seized the opportunity to criticise the new government as six current ministers were cabinet members at the time of the bidding war. “This was a government decision. The principle of collective cabinet responsibility applies here. Of the present Government, six ministers sat around that table including the…
Read MoreKooky Dough to create 10 jobs in Dublin
A Dublin-based firm Kooky Dough announced this morning it is to create 10 new jobs following a major deal with Tesco Ireland. The firm, which appeared on RTE’s Dragon’s Den last night, has agreed a €550,000 deal with Tesco. Kooky Dough makes cookie dough mixes for home baking. Under the new arrangement, it will create two new Tesco own-brand lines for the supermarket’s stores in the UK and Ireland. All production will be carried out in Dublin. The Irish company’s co-founders Graham Clarke and Sophie Morris appeared on Dragon’s Den last night, where they turned down an offer from ‘dragon’ Gavin Duffy. Duffy had asked the pair to part with…
Read MoreRandox to create 242 jobs in Antrim
Crumlin-based pharma firm Randox Laboratories has announced the creation of 242 new jobs as part of a £16m investment. Growth and Expansion Plans The new jobs will be created in Antrim as the company hopes to expand its growth prospects. Recruitment is already underway for the roles, which will be in sales, marketing and production. Announcing the investment plans, managing director of Randox Laboratories, Dr Peter Fitzgerald, said, “We have set ambitious revenue targets for the next few years which will depend on increasing our sales and marketing activity and penetrating new markets.” Randox Laboratories’ Specialization and Reach Randox produces diagnostic kits to diagnose metabolic diseases and focuses on human health, helping…
Read MoreGathering the diaspora
There was never a more important time for this country to tap into the reservoir of goodwill represented by the US diaspora. Philippa Maister reports from Atlanta on the ongoing initiatives to encourage just this. By some estimates, there are 40 million men and women of Irish descent in the US. Now, more than ever, their ties to their distant homeland have become a strategic asset for Ireland – one that diplomats here are actively working to exploit. It’s not a very hard sell. As Ambassador Michael Collins noted recently in Atlanta, Georgia: “There’s a reservoir of goodwill that wants to be mobilised”. Speaking to a crowded room exuding a…
Read MorePharma boosts Kerry with almost 300 jobs
Three pharmaceutical companies have provided Kerry with a jobs boost today as 300 new positions are announced. The Irish Times reports today that the jobs will be created as part of phase one of the €4.7bn Global Pharmaceutical Centre of Excellence (GPCE) development in Tralee. The International Prevention Research Institute (iPRI), Global Research Services (GRS) and Optivia Biotechnology will between them create 282 jobs in Tralee over the next fifteen months. Recruitment is due to start for the research and development roles in May. The GPCE sees itself as a campus style facility with a corporate and commercial orientation. The project’s organisers hope that over 4,500 people will be working…
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