InterTradeIreland’s award-winning Go-2-Tender programme has been designed to help SMEs across Northern Ireland and Ireland to be more successful in bidding for and servicing public sector contracts. With its one-to-one, sector specific support and guidance, you can begin to take advantage of untapped opportunities in the all-island public procurement market. Under this programme clients can avail of my services to get assistance with;- Completing an “Invitation to Quote”- Identifying the potential public sector market for your company- Submission of a live direct award tender- Getting onto a framework- Completing PQQ’s

I work with small and medium sized businesses across a broad range of sectors. In particular I help businesses to deal with the following challenges:- Increasing sales- Attracting new customers- Identifying areas where the business is under performing and finding the right solutions- Securing loan approval - a well written business plan complete with financial projections will not only help you to get loan approval but will also help to secure better loan terms- Setting clear business goals to give your business more focus and direction- Independent expert advise to support your decision making process and to lessen the stress of major decisions In addition I am an active mentor on several Local Enterprise Office mentor panels.Refer to my website www.caseybusinessconsulting.ie for full details of the services I provide.

The Acumen programme provides financial assistance to businesses in the Republic of Ireland to help them develop or increase their export sales North of the border. It is aimed at small businesses with an annual turnover of less than £40 million (or euro equivalent) and which employs less than 250 people. When applying for Acumen support there are two options to choose from as follows;1) Full Time Sales Person - Many businesses face the challenge of funding and recruiting a dedicated professional to win sales in the cross-border market – Acumen can help. Acumen will fund up to 50% of the cost of a Sales Person’s salary in the first year. The maximum cost covered can be up to €43,124/£34,500 with Acumen paying up to €21,562/£17,250.2) Part Time Sales Person - As an alternative to hiring a full-time person in the target cross-border market, the Acumen programme can also offer you support towards employing a part-time sales person. The maximum cost covered can be €23,000/£18,400 with Acumen paying 50% and you paying the balance.The application and approval process is simply and fast. Approval is typically received within a few weeks of submitting the application.To find out more about the Acumen programme contact Denis on 086 222 9517 or by email at denis.casey@itiacumen.com.

Culcita specialises in the supply of a range of garden furniture and outdoor products. As Operations Manager I had responsibility for production, supply chain, quality, finance, HR, H&S and Maintenance.

As a Management and Business Consultant I work with small and medium sized businesses in Ireland. I specialise in;- strategic planning.- preparation of business plans.- margin improvement.- managing cashflow.- introduction of a systematic approach to business development which drives growth in revenue and the customer base.I am also an active mentor on several Local Enterprise Office mentor panels.Refer to my website www.caseybusinessconsulting.ie for full details of the services I provide.

CIL Precision Ltd is a precision sheet metal fabricator and subcontract manufacturer. It supplies products into the medical device and electronics industries and is certified to ISO 9001 and ISO 13485.I had overall responsibility for the general management of the business and established a clear vision and strategy for its development. I providing direction and support to the line managers and ensured that priority was given to actions that supported the strategic goals of the company. This focus delivered improved operating profitability through operational improvements, supply chain management initiatives, and a successful business development plan.My key achievements were;- successfully negotiated an agreement with IDA for funding of a 5 year capex plan.- improved the understanding of key business performance drivers. This was achieved by working closely with the financial controller in analyzing the company's cost structure.- gave direction to the business development team which resulted in increased business with existing customers and the acquisition of new customers.- together with the management team successfully increased the company's turnover by more than 40%.

My first challenge in this role was to establish a new structure for the front end sales organisation. I had full profit and loss responsibility for the business. I was responsible for delivering the sales targets for the division each year. I established relationships at senior level with key customers, supply factories and the global business units. In very demanding market conditions we maintained profit margins and grew the customer base.

I managed the sales team and was responsible for sales and business development. In this role I developed a strategic marketing plan and set out a clear direction for the company's future.My key achievements were;- developed and successfully implemented a price increase strategy.- successfully negotiated price increases on all existing contracts reversing the trend of price reductions that prevailed for the previous 10 years.- grew the company's UK padmount business from €100k pa to €2 million pa.- through networking identified a new market opportunity for the company in Sweden and successfully launched a product in that market in 2005. I grew this business to €2 million pa by 2008. This was the first new market successfully targeted in over 15 years.

I joined ABB Transformers Ltd in 1995 as an account manager. In that role I built relationships with key UK customers in the target market segment and converted these relationships into long term customer contracts. My duties included preparing and submitting quotations, negotiating contacts and once secured managing those contracts. I also had responsibility for managing contracts with existing customer in Ireland.

I worked for Kentz Corporation for seven year and during that time I was involved in projects that included petrochemical plants, airports terminals and Power Stations. I progressed from being a junior design engineering engaged on a project for ESSO to being the Lead Electrical Engineering working on two projects for Saudi Aramco. I was based in the UK for three years, Japan for one year and Ireland for the remaining 3 years.