Breakfast seminar reveals enterprise as an 'art form'

The Ulster Society of Chartered Accountants and Invest Northern Ireland have jointly hosted the second of a series of breakfasts revealing what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur.

The latest speaker of the Vision to Reality Breakfast Series, Enda O’Coineen, spoke about how, after establishing almost twenty successful businesses in Ireland and in Europe, he regarded entrepreneurship as an art form.

Mr O’Coineen said: “Many of us regard entrepreneurship as an exotic French word and are unsure of what it really means. What entrepreneurs share is the will to create success, to make something happen. It is this, rather than simply the desire to make money which really motivates entrepreneurs. It is not an exact science.”

Speaking about the challenge of stimulating entrepreneurship in Northern Ireland he said: “What makes a successful entrepreneur is someone who is a leader, an organiser, someone with financial know how. It is a mixture of about ten different things.

“Entrepreneurs need to make a psychological adjustment. Instead of finding ten reasons why an idea won’t work, we need to think in terms of why a business idea should be successful. As well as that though, entrepreneurs need to be prepared to lead from the front, which is sometimes more easily said than done.”

John Hannaway, Chairman of the Ulster Society of Chartered Accountants said: “The Vision to Reality Series shows that people with an idea and the drive to make it happen can create a successful thriving business. Enda is truly a serial entrepreneur with an impeccable record of business start-up going back nearly 30 years. I believe that getting an insight into how he has achieved this helps us to understand the mindset of the entrepreneur and the steps that we need to take to make Northern Ireland a more entrepreneurial society.”

Professor Terri Scott, Managing Director of Entrepreneurship and Enterprise at Invest NI said: “Entrepreneurship drives innovation, competitiveness and growth so it’s vital that we encourage and support more people to get involved in starting and growing businesses. Invest NI welcomes the opportunity to work with the Ulster Society of Chartered Accountants in providing a platform to celebrate success and learn from experiences.”

The next in the series of Vision to Reality events features John Russell, Managing Director for Europe of the Harley-Davidson motorcycle empire and is scheduled for March 29.

Details are available from the Ulster Society of Chartered Accountants on 028 90 321600.

(SP)