World Quality Day Conference

Making Northern Ireland Competitive
Thursday 12 Nov 2009
9am – 4pm
Malone House, Belfast
International experts, including Google’s European director, will help probe the impediments to competitiveness in Northern Ireland and point the way to more dynamic and successful organisations.
The Conference will cover specific and urgent problems that hamper our competitiveness. Leading local organisations will also share their success [...]

Delivering through the downturn

How to deliver excellent customer service despite the recession.  Joe Goasdoué of BQF tells us how to thrive in the face of economic meltdown.
“40% of UK organisations could be wasting valuable time, money and resources by not doing enough to improve their business performance.  This indicates that organisations have the capacity to reduce costs by [...]

Business TV

The Belfast Telegraph have launched BT Business TV on their Business Website.  Bob Barbour, Director of the Centre for Competitiveness was interviewed on many topics by Gary Grattan.    Click on the link below for Bob’s interview on how the focus must be on Leadership Skills.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/bt-business-tv/bob-barbour-the-focus-must-be-on-leadership-skills-14395916.html
Many other business leaders were also interviewed and all the videos [...]

“Design Driven Innovation” Study Visit to Milan

In the early hours of Tuesday morning, 24 March 2009, twenty-three academics from Northern Ireland’s college and university community boarded a plane for Milan, heading off on a whistle-stop “Design Driven Innovation” study visit to Italy. Facilitated by Adrian Gundy, President of PDMA UK/Ireland and Paolo Zanenga, President of PDMA Mediterranean, the short visit was [...]

MICKEY MOUSE FIRMS NEED NOT APPLY: DISNEY TO REVEAL SECRET OF SUCCESS TO NI BUSINESSES

Disney is coming to Belfast, but the visit isn’t for the benefit of local children. Instead, Northern Ireland’s business community is in line for a magical tale from the creators of Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse.
 
Dozens of local firms will learn about Disney’s legendary approach to service from the Disney Institute at an event organised [...]

BIH Housing Association claims NI Quality Award

Winners in the Northern Ireland Quality Awards process are announced!

WORLD-CLASS MANAGEMENT TO BE RECOGNISED AT LEADING AWARDS

World-class organisations will be celebrated at our Northern Ireland Quality Awards on Thursday 29th January!

NEWRY SCHOOL COMES TOP OF THE CLASS IN UK EXCELLENCE TEST

The high standard of school performance in Northern Ireland has been underlined again in a leading UK assessment scheme. St Colman’s College Newry is the only school and one of only two public sector organisations to be presented with the prestigious UK Excellence Award for 2008. The leading grammar follows St Mary’s Primary School Altinure [...]

Energy, Productivity and Prosperity

Energy sustainability and security impact directly on the productivity of Northern Ireland firms and it is therefore important to think long-term about ensuring a sustainable and secure energy supply. The public sector should also take appropriate action towards sustainable energy solutions that will not only improve productivity but will create jobs and improve our economic [...]

Use “widespread-ness” and frustration – as a key source of opportunities

Products and services generally exist because they meet a need. Most often this need is real and tangible and can be readily enunciated.
 
In some cases of course the need may be “constructed” with clever advertising and brand positioning. For example who really needs a Louis Vuitton handbag, compared with the $2.00 Chinese look alike?
 
Putting aside [...]