[ad_1]
Based in Killarney for over 60 years, Liebherr is widely regarded as one of the most iconic examples of successful foreign direct investment in Ireland.
The Liebherr Story charts Hans Liebherr’s arrival in Killarney in the 1950s, and details the innovative community leaders who persuaded him to set up shop in the town. The story follows the company from its establishment in 1963 to its present-day position as a world leader in the supply of container handling equipment.
Liebherr Container Cranes, founded in Southern Germany in 1949, is one of the largest construction equipment manufacturers in the world and includes over 140 companies across all continents. In 2021, it employed more than 49,000 staff and achieved combined revenues of over €11.6bn.
Tom Foley began employment with the company as a trainee fitter/welder in 1963, progressing through several management positions, including Works Organisation Manager and Human Relations Manager. He retired in 2009, after 46 years of service with the company.
He outlines the story of how Liebherr came into being, at a time when Killarney was still a rural backwater. When Hans Liebherr arrived in the town, initially to look at its possible potential as a factory site, a delegation of local business people arrived unannounced at the Great Southern Hotel to enthusiastically demonstrate to the German industrialist what Killarney had to offer.
It was a daring excursion that paid rich dividends in the decades to follow by persuading Herr Liebherr to locate his facility in an area that was remote from port facilities, had inadequate infrastructure, poor services, and little industrial experience.
The book details what Liebherr meant for a rural community mired in the economic stagnation of the 1950s, why he subsequently branched into the hospitality industry with three hotels, and how his companies have endured and prospered in spite of many challenges.
“Were it not for the intervention of those Killarney business people, somebody else, in some other hotel, in some other town, perhaps even in some other country, would be standing here, launching The Liebherr Story,” said Tom Foley.
For over 30 years through seven printings, the book has taken readers through all the stages in starting a business, including: getting started; researching your idea and market; writing your business plan; and financing.
This latest 8th edition has an added final chapter, Moving to Ireland to Start a Business, offering advice to non-residents on business incentives, business structures and taxation, and residency requirements. The book also includes the most comprehensive directory available of State, EU and private sector organisations that provide assistance to start-ups and small businesses.
“It seemed to immediately strike a chord with the emerging class of Irish entrepreneurs, many of whom have found their way not just onto the national stage, but internationally too,” the author explained of the early editions. “It is to them — and not to me — that the real credit must go. Ireland’s entrepreneurs have proved themselves, time and time again, through two recessions and a global financial crash. They have made a name for themselves — and for Ireland — for innovation, forward-thinking, teamwork and clever execution.
“In 2023, I am struck by how much has changed — most of all, in public attitude towards enterprise, small business and start-ups. Where previously the ‘proper job’ — one with a pension after a lifetime of service — was the be-all-and-end-all, there’s now a genuine interest across Irish society in entrepreneurship.”
At a time when coffee shops are opening every week across the country, this seems a timely manual for all aspiring café owners. “ If you read this book and absorb its contents, once you have secured a site and stocked up with the minimum necessary equipment, you will be able to serve your first cup of coffee within seven days,” promises Darcy Millar.
“It won’t be easy — it may even be the hardest working week of your life — but it is certainly doable. I know because I have done it myself.” The book includes a seven-day countdown to opening, with tips on cost-effective shortcuts and a list of key pitfalls to avoid.
As the owner of two bustling coffee shops in Copenhagen, Millar offers a complete practical guide to opening a modern coffee shop, covering every aspect with detailed, step-by-step advice on subjects from the essentials of how to brew good coffee to design and fit out a venue that suits your aims, whatever the budget.
How to strike a balance between takeaways and sit-down business; how to promote your coffee shop via social media; how to attract and retain the best staff; how to interact with customers and build a regular clientele which is the lifeblood of any café. “There is much more to running a successful coffee shop than pouring a good coffee,” he says.
“It is the story of my personal experience as a student funding my living expenses through part-time jobs in hospitality, gradually training on the job as a barista, before finally founding my own one-man coffee shop in Copenhagen – with a minimal budget but plenty of sheer enthusiasm. Less than four years later, my two bustling Darcy’s Kaffes are busy seven days a week on prominent streets in Copenhagen, and I employ 18 staff. This book tells the story of how I did it, and shows you how you can do it, too.”
This new book is a follow-up to Corporate Social Responsibility: A Guide, published by Chartered Accountants Ireland in 2012. Since then, corporate social responsibility (CSR) has evolved into the broader and deeper concepts of responsibility and sustainability.
Risks such as climate change have become so large and systemic that companies can no longer afford to ignore them. Corporate responsibility is no longer a ‘nice-to-have’ tactic to enhance reputation, but a necessity for long-term survival. A Professor at the Kemmy Business School, University of Limerick, Killian is a Chartered Accountant with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, a masters in business studies and a PhD in taxation.
“Sustainability in business has never been more urgent,” she says. “At the same time, however, the word ‘sustainability’ is so overused that it risks losing its meaning. This book aims to clarify what it is to do good business and to build sustainable value both within the organisation and spilling over to external stakeholders.
“The text will take the reader beyond issues of philanthropy or ‘greenwashing’ to real practical measures that can and should be taken to build a business that is economically, environmentally and socially sustainable.”
This is promoted as an operational manual for entrepreneurs that reveals how the esoteric techniques of the CIA can help anyone find their voice, discover their potential, and thrive in the world of business.
Agent-turned-entrepreneur Rupal Patel shares the unique skills she developed as a woman field agent in the high-octane, alpha-male world of the CIA, and combines those clandestine insights with her experience as a business leader and mentor.
She reveals how methods such as Profiling and Situational Awareness help amplify strengths and build resilience; how game-changing new frameworks like Identity Driven Leadership and Personal Energy Mapping instil drive, purpose and conviction; and how the CIA mindset encourages you to remake the rules to find your own path and reach your goals.
Patel’s career has taken her from military briefing rooms in jungles and war zones to corporate boardrooms and international stages. During her time as an analyst and field agent at the CIA, she advised four-star Generals, earned War Zone service medals, and was recognized by the CIA Director for her “superior support to the President of the United States.”
After leaving the CIA, she earned an MBA from London Business School and started her first award-winning business over 10 years ago. “I’ve developed a deep resilience that was forged in fire during those challenging early years. I’m able to confront challenges more quickly and with less inner turmoil. There will always be new challenges to face in life, but what’s important is that you develop your resilience muscle to handle these situations better.”
[ad_2]
Source link