I'm so grateful to not only The American Ireland Fund but all of the Funds around the world that do so much to promote the Irish culture and create more understanding and connections among people.
- Hillary Rodham Clinton, US Secretary of State

List of Grantees

The Ireland Funds are strategically placed to ensure that grant recipients utilize resources efficiently. Our grant process ensures clear objectives with measurable results. We support vital work by determining the areas with most need and working with donors where their gifts can be most effective. Examples of the 1,200+ projects we have assisted are below.

Has your business plan

got spark?

Providing Access to Education: For post-graduate students and recent graduates, this Competition offers a top cash prize of €10k and an opportunity to pitch business ideas in front of leading entrepreneurs, executives and venture capitalists from the US and Ireland.

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The Ireland Funds Business Plan Competition

Overview

As part of our Promising Ireland Campaign, The Ireland Funds are committed to supporting Ireland’s economic recovery.
Now in its second year, The Ireland Funds Business Plan Competition aims to nurture creativity and hone entrepreneurial skills amongst recent graduates and postgraduate students – the early stage entrepreneurs who will play a crucial role in getting us back on our feet.

Candidates will have an opportunity to develop their business ideas and compete for a chance to win €16,000 in cash prizes and other supports.

General Guidelines and Eligibility

The Competition is open to post-graduate students and to recent graduates (those within one year of graduation) from universities and institutes of technology in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Applications must be made online between Tues 1 Jan - Thurs 28 Feb 2013.

APPLY

Judges

The Ireland Funds Business Plan Competition is made possible through the generous support of William (Bill) S. McKiernan, founder of CyberSource Corporation. Bill is an online commerce pioneer who propelled CyberSource to a leading world company, processing over $100 billion each year for 300,000 customers. In 2010, CyberSource was acquired by Visa, Inc. for $2 billion. Bill is Chair of the judging panel for The Ireland Funds Business Plan Competition, bringing his experience as a entrepreneur and as a judge of the Harvard University Business Plan Competition.

We are also very grateful to the following individuals, who served as judges for the inaugural Competition in 2012, bringing a wealth of experience in a wide range of industries and markets. The judging panel for the 2013 Competition will be confirmed soon so keep checking back!

Bill McKiernan – Founder of Cybersource - Co-Chair
Alan Foy – Blueface, Ireland’s leading cloud telephony company
Anne O'Leary - Kinematik
Declan Ryan - Irelandia
Ian Hyland - Business & Finance
Jack McDonnell – Founder of Transaction Network Services (TNS)
Jerry Kennelly – Founder of Stockbyte and of Tweak.com
Joanne Stuart – Director at Northern Ireland Science Park
John Duffy – Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW) Global Investment Bank
John Hartnett – Irish Technology Leadership Group
Marie O'Connor - PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
Marty Mannion – Summit Partners
Moya Doherty – Tyrone Productions
Padraic Brennan - Bank of Ireland (Business Banking Development Team)
Rory McInerney – Intel

Events

We are happy to come and talk to students and alumni groups whose members may be interested in applying to The Ireland Funds Business Plan Competition. If you want to learn more, contact us at the details below.

Resources

Harvard University Business Plan Competition – Check out the resources listed in the far right column! http://www.hbs.edu/entrepreneurship/bplan/

The UC Berkeley Start Up Competition Resources Page – UC Berkeley operate a similar competition and have compiled numerous resources for interested applicants. http://bplan.berkeley.edu/Compete/resources.html