“Walk on by!”

Just over a week ago Ex Ophelia left these shores to be followed very quickly by the oh so terrifying, storm Brian.

Brian was never a name that, in all honesty, struck fear into any man (sorry Brians of this world)! To me, this name will be forever associated with the BBC children’s, stop animation TV series, “The Magic Roundabout”.

Those of a certain vintage, will recall that the snail in the Trilby hat, was called Brian. He never did anything exciting, or frightening for that matter. Episode after episode, he would do nothing more than wander ever so slowly and aimlessly, around the set and that roundabout. He attempted to dish out the odd piece of advice, but never an angry or cross word was uttered, by “Brian the snail”.

If these weather themed names were to be maintained, then I think that the next few storms should have been called; Coral, Dougal or Dylan and not forgetting Ermintrude, the pink coo! None of these names would strike terror into any human being.

Caroline is the next designated storm for Ireland and the UK. Followed, coincidently enough by a Dylan. I assume not identified with the dozy, lethargic rabbit, from “The Magic Roundabout”? Apparently named, after the real Bob Dylan! There is even an Iona, a Hector, a Larry and a Winifred!!! I doubt there’s a scary forename, amongst this year’s chosen 21.

Is it me or has anyone else noticed, that the storms bearing female specific gender, are more wrathful and angrier than the male counterparts? I know I may have just opened up an astronomic can of worms with this statement, but it does seem so!

In the midst of saying goodbye to one storm and welcoming another, the Government’s post-budget road trip was cancelled last week. On safety advice both Leo and Paschal, quite rightly, chose to park the company jet, save on a wee bit of fuel and leave visiting Waterford City and County until a future date.

There was much excitement in many a local Fine Gael Councillor’s household, with this imminent visit of the two most powerful men in Irish politics. We even heard on thegrapevine, that they were coming to announce securing the circa €61,000,000 for our North Quay development. Alas, we will have to wait just a wee bit longer for this project to get over the line. In the meantime we continue to anticipate and be intrigued by the many other reported developments apparently in the pipeline, supporting this SDZ.

I just hope that these two TDs actually manage to find their way to Waterford. To date, this Government’s record has not been overly encouraging. Let’s face it, we are a priority to neither of these Dublin-Centric power brokers.

No good news on the money front!

But fear not, as we read about Waterford taking the lead in building a tranche of brand new council houses. The work of one Councillor doing another solo run, apparently! Yet our Minister is also claiming credit for this miracle delivery, of 31 new housing units in Waterford City. Read the small print! You’ll see that these have been scheduled, planned, designed and talked about for some significant time. They should have been provided long before even Ex Ophelia appeared.

Red tape and bureaucratic shenanigans, by senior civil servants, conspire to hold this project up. Sounds familiar? Not for the first time we have had to wait for someone else to line up his or her ducks.

Building council houses on Local Authority owned land has to be a simple, quick process, doesn’t it? By all accounts it’s not. There are many, many hoops to jump through. Why does everything have to be sooooo complicated? Can we not just make the right decisions and deliver on the “Programme for Government”?

Ex Ophelia and Brian have walked right on by Waterford, en route to another destination. They came promising so much and gave us a very small insight into the dormant power of nature. I am sure that they’ve both left plenty in the tank.

Will we get as excited when Leo and Paschal next storm into our City? I leave that for you to consider, dear readers.

Made of Waterford – Thank you Luke!

In two days time we will ALL be out watching the St Patrick’s Day parade, in our local parish. Some may even be lucky enough to be participating. Many will be looking for friends and family, to shout “Well Boy”, or “Well Girl” to. What’s guaranteed is that locally, regionally, nationally and internationally, the world will quite literally be turned green on Friday 17^th March. A unique access to the world even if it is “Just for one day!”

That is of course, unless you live in the good old US of A. Where for some reason, they have adopted this festival as their own and renamed it “St Patty’s Day”! Just who the hell is “St Patty” and he certainly wasn’t around when Luke first thought of and dreamed up the idea.

I have no doubt that when the indefatigable, Enda meets with The Donald, this wrong will be righted and next year it will be called “St Donald’s Day”!

 

One can only imagine the conversation, when they are gathered around that Waterford Crystal bowl, filled with shamrock, (not the traditional US four leaf clovers) and Enda starts asking about the undocumented Irish. The Donald will boot this to touch and soon the conversation will move on to his great margin of victory and the number of Electoral College votes that he actually won.

Or maybe, at the very last minute, he might just refuse to give Enda an audience at all. Because his favourite Irish golf course in Limerick, was once refused it’s very own “Wall”, by the local Council. Something to do with snails, if memory serves me correctly.

Whatever happens this Friday, rest assured that there will be very few who know that the parade they are watching or marching in, was actually created by one of our own. Brother Luke Wadding, an Irish Franciscan friar, who was born in Waterford on 16^th October 1588. There is actually a wee, inconspicuous, statue of this man outside Greyfriar’s Abbey or the French Church, as it is also known, halfway up Greyfriar’s Street, just past the Municipal Art Gallery.

Luke persuaded the Pope that St Patrick’s Day, should be recognised by the Holy Catholic Church, as a feast day. Such was his authority and power within the Church that he was granted his wish and the date of 17^th March was designated as the day we would feast for St Patrick. Luke, had too many enemies in Rome and as a result, was never made a Cardinal. He did however support the fight against English rule and in particular the fight against a certain Mr Oliver Cromwell. He sent very large sums of money and not insignificant amounts of gunpowder, to Ireland, to help the cause.

Luke, with I have no doubt some help from “His higher force”, would of course have been delighted that Cromwell never actually took his beloved City of Waterford. “Urbs Intacta Manet” is the City’s motto and long before The Donald had any of HIS walls, Waterford’s walls actually stood strong and proud against the mighty all conquering Oliver.

The Feast Day of St Patrick has in many respects lost its religious connotation. There are very few who will actually attend mass or church on the morning of this day. Perhaps the pressure to get our glad rags or costume ready and be in position for the parade start is just too much. What is certain, is this day gives so many the opportunity to break their Ash Wednesday and Lent promises. For twenty four short hours all thoughts of abstinence can be forgotten and more importantly forgiven.

For so many, St Patrick’s Day is about the parade and a celebration of all that is good about our local communities. It is also about being Irish and the reconnection of those Irish roots, which so many millions around the world hold on to with an amazing sense of pride.

It is unfortunate that we in Waterford do not push the Luke Wadding connection more. A son of Waterford has after all, created St Patrick’s Day. Yet, so few know of this association. 

A Political Disaster-Class!

Is it just me or is anyone else shocked, annoyed, p@#$*d off and distinctly uncomfortable with the delay in forming a new Government? Was the election not seven weeks ago and yet we are still waiting to hear and read about the make-up of the next Dáil?

We all know that the wheels of Government tend to turn very, very slowly, but they appear not to be moving at all on the important issue of actually governing this country. It just goes to prove that the Humphreys of this world, which so famously amused us during the early eighties in the UK sitcom “Yes Minister”, are the people actually running this country.

Despite no Government, at the time of writing this article, this country continues to run and function efficiently enough. We have not yet turned into a lawless anarchistic state with angry hordes taking to the streets to demonise our political class thus begging the question just what have our newly elected representatives been doing for the last seven weeks?

Have we the tax payer just been subsidising one big Dublin shindig?

Is this not a clear case of demonstrating just how unproductive the political system is in Ireland? Were we to benchmark the productivity over the last seven weeks I am quite sure that the outcomes would not make good reading. Businesses and employees are constantly being told to be more productive, be more streamlined and yet the very people championing this mantra are themselves not practising what they preach. Never have I witnessed such ineptitude and incompetence.

Does it really take seven weeks to get round a table, bash a few heads together, forget historic playground jibes and “barter a better deal for the people for Ireland?”

Of course it should not.

The people, on 26^th February, gave a mandate for a new type of political representation and yet those elected seem to have forgotten this and now seem to be once again ploughing their own furrow for the betterment of who? There was just one chance to sweep the political map clean and start afresh? But we are back once again to sweeping the same dirt round and round the room.

Being openly pro all things Waterford, these delays are not doing our City, County and the greater South East any good what so ever. The longer the negotiations, (or should that read child’s play?), go on, the more and more we lose focus, on the very issues that need to be fixed to get us back to some sort of viable economic stability.

Wander around our City on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and even a Thursday and you will see very few people out spending money in our retail heart. We are still in that third tier of Ireland’s economic recovery and our disposable income is one of the lowest in the country. This elephant in our room will not go away and longer the procrastinations and childish bickering that goes on in Dublin the more our economic issues will fade as a distant election manifesto memory.

So who should we blame for the delay in getting on with governing? Well, I would blame ALL politicians for not sorting this mess out. People need to swallow their pride and find a solution that suits the county and not a solution that suits the politicians.

 

I wonder if we paid our politicians based on results, actions, productivity and delivery would we be in a different place? I do not know of any business or organisation for that matter, that would pay staff for what has in actuality been seven weeks of inactivity and downtime!

Finally, I must say that our TD’s are all looking extremely smart, save one or two exceptions, with new suits, perfect hair, and new gunas, on that satellite channel Oireachtas TV. Clearly, they have been spending their time wisely, seeking the advice of Gok Wan.

Though some have evidently engaged Trinny and Susannah for styling tips!

Today’s headline - tomorrow’s fish supper wrapper!

“Today’s headline - tomorrow’s fish supper wrapper” is a phrase often used back home, in Scotland, when referring to the millions of fish and chips, or deep fried mars bar takeaways, that are still wrapped in the previous day’s unsold national and local newspapers. Both the broadsheets and redtops are recycled for this very purpose and for some reason your fish supper always tastes better wrapped in newspaper.

This much worn phrase implies that no matter how good or bad a printed headline is, in the vast array of news print we have available, it undoubtedly has a very limited lifespan. The sensationalism of a newspaper headline is more often than not extremely short lived and therefore all too easily forgotten!

It is without doubt our ability to forget that has Government, aided by their very clever PR gurus, that regularly and without challenge allow contentious and controversial issues to be “shock news” for a relatively short period of time as they are aware that we all literally “forgive and forget” in the space of a few days.

We can see clear battle lines being drawn when unpopular decisions are about to be made. With a quantifiable time period for the bad press fallout and social media pillorying in place. Rest assured there are advisors upon advisors acting on behalf of the many Government departments, working away into the wee small hours calculating just how long a bad news story will run and last, and working out how to “ride out the chorus of protest and disapproval”.

It is these risk and reward calculations that allow Government to make unpopular choices and deal with a plethora of embarrassing headlines. Even though we have no official word as to who or what will constitute the makeup of the next Government we have already seen, read and forgotten the recent headlines over the retaining, recharging or ditching of water charges!

We will read with regularity over the coming few days and weeks claim and counter claim as more and more insider inter-party negotiation information is leaked to the press from all mainstream political parties, alliance interest groups and independents, who could well be holding the balance of power of the next Government – a throwback to the “good old days!”.

This in turn will create sensational and often spurious headlines with a view to creating shock and astonishment for the reader. However, we must be prepared to dig deeper beyond the initial headline to get at the truth of the story to formulate our own opinions.

Sometimes we can and will be swayed by headline grabbers who cynics might say are published by newspapers to increase sales. After all bad news seems to sell many more newspapers than a good news story headline.

To tackle the various hot ticket issues in the next few weeks we need in turn to voice our own opinions and concerns to those who will making the decisions behind closed doors and in the corridors of Dublin. After all did we not go to the poles to vote for change? This can of course be done on a very local level through our four newly directly elected members.

But be warned the clock is ticking on our opportunity to have our say and voice our opinion. But it is never too late to make that difference.

We are all responsible for creating our own headlines and making the printed news matter to us. The last things we need in Waterford and Ireland Inc is a whole series of newspapers headlines that will simply disappear into our green refuse bin. Ultimately biodegrading or being recycled into another sensational newspaper headline.

As tax payers and voters we must not be frightened or concerned about contacting and lobbying those very people we ultimately employ. We are all responsible for making change for the betterment of Waterford and the wider society in general.

Don’t let today’s headlines be tomorrow’s fish supper wrapper!

“I was there!”

Throughout our individual journey on this wee Island of green there will be many, many events that you will look back on in your own life’s history and remember fondly and then there are those seminal events that you might just have been lucky enough to be part of to be able to say to your family, children, grandchildren and friends that “I was there!”

Max Boyce, the Welsh comedian, entertainer and singer, would reminisce about being in the old Cardiff Arms Park watching his beloved Welsh rugby team sweeping all before them and creating many a rugby legend in the process. Max would recall these days in his shows, on television, and retell the associated stories around him being at such great matches that are now part of rugby folklore.

Luckily, in my short life I have been extremely fortunate to have been at a number of events that I too can proudly say “I was there!”

1990 Grand Slam

On the 17^th March 1990 a brilliantly dogged Scottish rugby team walked very slowly onto “God’s Golden Acre”, in Murrayfield, lead by the brilliant Captain that was David Sole. This was also the very first occasion that we sang “Flower of Scotland” as our own rugby anthem. Despite not being given one iota of a chance, by any of the national media and rugby pundits, a certain boyish Tony Stanger scampered down the right wing to score the games only try and by the end of the 80 minutes Scotland were Grand Slam Champions and “I was there!”

To mark this, our only third ever Grand Slam, I commemorated the occasion with a tattoo so that I could, every weekend and at every training session thereafter, annoy all my English rugby playing teammates, at the various clubs I played for in and around London.

I was also very lucky to have been invited to take part in the historic occasion that was the visit of Elizabeth II Regina to Ireland. Better still I was invited to meet and greet her in the Dublin Convention Centre along with other members of Irish business and various sporting stars. I duly travelled to Dublin, suitably dressed in my beloved kilt, and was part of this momentous occasion that befitted this modern day Ireland that we now live in. Who would have thought that this was at all possible when I first came to Ireland in the year 2001.

This was perhaps one of those one off events that truly deserved the phrase “I was there!”

Only a few years on from this event I was once again counting my blessings to be invited to travel to Dublin to take part in the 1916 Centenary Commemorations, this time as a member of the hard working voluntary group that is the 1848 Tricolour Celebration Committee.

In many ways being asked to be outside the GPO on such a significant occasion was very humbling. To be part of my adopted Nation’s remembrance of the 1916 Rising and the events that ultimately created the Ireland we now live in was to say the very least a great honour and something I will never ever forget.

GPO Dublin 27 March 2016

There are very few opportunities to be a part of an historic event and there are even fewer opportunities to attend such an event as a guest of the State. I am sure that every member of the Tricolour Committee felt the same way as I did as we sat outside the GPO. We would also attend all the events in Dublin Castle later that evening.

A substantial Waterford contingent was representing the City on Sunday the 27^th March. As we travelled back down the motorway I have no doubt that everyone who attended the historic event last Sunday will in future years be saying loudly and proudly “I was there!”

As a footnote, I always wanted to add to and refresh my Grand Slam tattoo but after 26 years I have failed miserably to do so. Maybe next year?

Gie Her A Haggis!

The food of Champions!

In four days time, on Monday 25^th January, many Scots, the Scottish Diaspora and anyone with a modicum of Scottishness, from around the globe, will be celebrating “Burns Night”. An annual get together of friends and family that celebrates one of Scotland’s most famous sons and one of our greatest exports – Robert or “Rabbie” Burns, the Bard of Ayrshire.

Robert Burns was the son of a peasant farmer and he was born, in Alloway, Ayrshire, on 25^th January 1759 (note the Scots claimed this date long before Mr Guinness did!). In his very short life, he died aged 37 in 1796, he would become one of Scotland’s greatest cultural icons, a voice of socialism and liberalism, through the writing of some of the world’s best recognised songs and poems.

Perhaps one of his best loved songs is sung every New Year’s Eve or Hogmanay. Not many of you may know this but the song “Auld Lang Syne” was penned by Burns in 1788 and who could have imagined that one day this song would be one of the world’s most recognised tunes, some 200 years after the death of Robert Burns.

You may also have heard of poems such as “A Red Red Rose”, “A Man’s a Man for A’ That” and “Tam O’Shanter”. Burns even influenced Phil Coulter and the line in Ireland’s Call “Come the day and come the hour” comes directly from the start of the second verse from the Burns poem “Scots Wha Hae”, a song that for a time served as our unofficial national anthem.

Robert or "Rabbie" Burns

Robert Burns was without doubt one of Scotland’s first ever superstars, the Robbie Williams of his time. He was loved by the lassies and when he performed his poetry in the Assembly Rooms, in Edinburgh, the lassies flocked in there hundreds and thousands. The lassies just could not wait to hear his Ayrshire brogue and “risky” views. He performed his stand-up in what is now one of Edinburgh’s leading Fringe Festival venues and he was so liked, adored and admired by the fairer sex that he fathered 13 children that we know of.

Burns would be fondly remembered for the times he spent with his closest friends, in the local pub, sipping whisky, debating politics, telling jokes, embellishing stories and reciting his beloved poetry. He was comfortable with his friends and neighbours, and much of what he penned was inspired by those around him, those who told him of their trials and tribulations of the hard lives they were leading and having to endure on a daily basis – times never change!

And why, may you ask, I am telling you about one of Scotland’s national heroes and one of our greatest ever exports?

Well, I was eager to tell you about Robert Burns because one of our local German retailers is in fact stocking Haggis, from Scotland, and I am delighted to see that in this land of Saints and Scholars that one of my own is starting to get noticed.

If Burns lived here, in Waterford City today, I would like to think that he would be a loud and proud voice that stood up to authority and spoke for and on behalf of the people. He would have confronted his perceived injustices of Government and striven to make a better life for all the men and women of Waterford.

Creating a better life for all of us here in Waterford really does lie in our own hands. We must push Waterford to the forefront of Government debate and at the very least ensure that we are at the dinner table, with or without Haggis, as at the moment we are not even getting to look at the menu.

If you are going to try a Haggis on Monday night remember the “bashit neeps an’ chappit tatties”, lots of pepper on the neeps and of course a wee glass of whisky.

"I'm  hunting Haggis!"

“Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face, 
Great chieftain o the puddin'-race!

......

His knife see rustic Labour dight,
An cut you up wi ready slight,

......

But mark the Rustic, haggis-fed,
The trembling earth resounds his tread,

......

But, if ye wish her gratefu prayer,
Gie her a Haggis!”

On a sporting day of green Waterford City is turned orange!

Start line - George's Street.

I was fortunate to be asked to Chair the South Eastern Cancer Foundation Solas Centre's main charity fundraiser in 2015, namely the "South East Run and Walk for Life". As a fundraising event it is of huge significance to the Solas Centre so how could I refuse the request. Being involved has literally blown my socks off in terms of how important the Solas Centre is to so many lives right across the South East. 

In light for this my blog this week is the actual final press release I wrote covering the "Run and Walk for Life 2015". I am sure that readers will get a flavour of the event and how we plan to make the occasion even bigger in 2016. 

On Sunday 11^th October over 2,000 people ran, jogged, walked and crawled their way around the Solas Centre Run and Walk for Life courses. It was a day of great joy and huge positivity as thousands of people took on the challenge of the 10-mile running route or the 5-mile walking route.

All participants set off from Gladstone Street at 12:30 on the dot and proceeded down The Quay, up The Mall and then spilt, with walkers heading up John’s Hill and runners heading out towards the ring road, before turning back towards the City at the Ballindud roundabout. Both the runners and walkers passed the Solas Centre at the Williamstown roundabout before once again splitting and then converging once more to travel down the Dunmore Road and finally into the People’s Park and across the finish line. Once medals were handed out, every single finishing participant and their supporters enjoyed the Fun for Life, which continued late into the afternoon.

On such a big sporting day when the whole country had literally gone green, with the Rugby World Cup and Euro 2016, Waterford City was a sea of orange as far as the eye could see.

Commenting on the successful day was Michael Garland, Chair of the Solas Centre Run and Walk for Life, “On behalf of the organising committee we would like to thank ALL the participants, our sponsors, volunteers and everyone who gave up their time to help with the event.

Team Pete.

To see so many taking part was honestly just joyous and we knew at the end of Saturday night’s registration that the numbers were going to be very good. In fact we have exceeded our target of 2,015 participants and that is testament to ALL involved and verification that the Solas Centre holds a very special place in so many people’s hearts.

The introduction of the 5-mile walk has opened up a whole new group of participants and we will start planning the 2016 event in the next few weeks once we have had time to take on board all the feedback. We know that to bring the event to another level in 2016 we have to look at some aspects of combining runners and walkers and we will do this in preparation for next year’s event.

Once again we would like to thank ALL those who took part and ALL those who helped with the event. We look forward to seeing you ALL in 2016.”

As Chair of the Solas Centre Dr Brian Creedon is responsible for operating and running the Solas Centre, “As Chair of the Solas Centre I have to thank all involved from the Committee to the runners and walkers. We set a very ambitious target, in terms of numbers, and I am thrilled that we reached and exceeded that target.

Team Dog!

From the moment Mayor John Cummins officially started the event to the moment the very last walkers completed the course it was one of the most rewarding 4 hours I have so far experienced in all my previous Run for Life events. 2015 will be remembered as the event that literally put the Run and Walk for Life back on the map.

With such a large event we could not organise it without the support of our many sponsors and event partners. The main sponsors in 2015 were of course Datapac and Beat 102-103 and the likes of Waterford Council, Garda and other volunteer organisation rolled in behind the event. There are far too many to mention and we will in due course acknowledge everyone with an open “Thank you” night in the Solas Centre.

Once again we would like to thank all the 2,000 participants and we look forward to welcoming you all back in 2016.”

Mr Browne's boys made us look like a bit of a joke!

The per-referendum headlines last week were all centred around “The People’s Debate” with Vincent Browne, which was aired on Wednesday 20^th May.

I attended the live recording on Monday 18^th May having been asked to do so by the show’s producers. I was not sure what to expect but I was pretty sure, as with all these types of pre-recorded and edited shows, that what would go out on the evening of Wednesday 20^th May could either be great for Waterford’s stock or detrimental to Waterford’s stock.

Unfortunately, we got the later.

To set the scene. On the evening of the recording Vincent set the tone with the audience well in advance of any actual recording and he skilfully asked the audience what they wanted to discuss and debate. He steered us though all the hot and spicy topics for the debate and then brought in the three victims (TD’s), like gladiators entering the Coliseum. Only our Gladiators were armed with pen and paper and there was not a gladius or trident to be seen. Minister Paudie Coffey, John Halligan and Ciara Conway all entered the arena together, to a mixture of one or two muted cheers, lots of boos and much heckling from an audience clearly baying for blood.

The shows concept has now moved on from a debate to a shouting and venting match with the each weekly audience getting progressively more vocal and I feel that every week the new audience is trying to outdo the previous week’s show. There are approximately 24 more shows to be recorded and aired and I would hate to think what the audience’s mood or fervour will be as the show nears the end of its run. Clearly, the whole concept of debate has been lost and there are many angry voters wishing to vent and express their displeasure at their local TD’s and this platform is an ideal opportunity to do just that.

Regrettably, what we then get is a show that like so many others is edited to either be positive or negative about the City or Town where the recording took place. We must bear in mind that Waterford has to be even more positive than our competing Cities and Towns if we are to fast track our economic recovery, and the negativity that came from this recording will do Waterford’s stock absolutely no favours at all. And we have all seen the reality TV shows where clever editing has made contestants look like angels or devils, and when said contestant is evicted or voted out they are surprised that they have been portrayed in such a bad light. This unfortunately is the result of editing and often many of the good positive parts of such programmes are literally felt on the cutting room floor.

On the evening of the recording I know that there were a number of international business people, visiting Waterford, not too far from the programme venue and had they happened to wander into the debate I would hate to think what impression of Waterford they would have taken back to the States or Europe.

We have to be very, very careful of the PR we are producing for the City and County if we are in fact serious about bringing the City forward, seeking investment and ultimately reducing our unemployment rate. Shouting and berating politicians on national primetime television is not the way to go. Whether or not they deserve such vilification the circa 90 minutes of negative TV coverage is the last thing Waterford needs at the moment and we as citizens should be aware of that.

And just to emphasise my point of how positive PR makes us feel better and makes the Country look better we only have to assess at the impact the referendum vote on Friday 22^nd May will have on Ireland Inc. There can be no doubt that this voting issue received worldwide attention and will well and truly put Ireland on a very positive footing as the only country in the world to pass such constitutional change.

And what this says about this for every green county goes way beyond the actual vote and this change will, in time, make Ireland a much better place for investment and I am absolutely sure that the issue of equality will be one of the investment criteria that many a multi-national will now look at when seeking investment in Europe. As real equality says an awful lot about a country and its people and this will NOT go unnoticed.

Back to the debate. I received a phone call on the morning of Wednesday 20^th May asking me what I thought of the Monday night recording. I stated the obvious and said that I felt there was a lot of negativity in the room and depending on how the programme would be edited it could show Waterford in a good or bad light. I also commented on the performance of our TD’s and on the strength of this I was asked to appear on the live post-show analysis programme. I duly travelled up to Dublin to, in my mind, set the record straight about all the positive stories around Waterford at the moment. Alas, there was simply insufficient time to get all my points across and in the very short time I was given to speak I tried to get in as much positivity about the City and County as possible.

The lessons to be learned are very clear. If we are to put Waterford on a national television platform those participating must be mindful of the audience that will be watching the final edited programme. As I have said on many occasions we are ALL responsible for job creation, positive reinforcement and talking positively about this great City and County. We ALL have negativity in our lives but when the opportunity arises we must switch on our positive gene for the betterment of everyone and sadly for “The People’s Debate” we missed that opportunity.

 

Finally, I could not sign off without once again saying a gargantuan “Well done Ireland” in the referendum vote on 22^nd May. Whilst, I could not vote myself the overwhelming YES vote was a huge endorsement by the people of Ireland and to see so many people engaged in the debate was extremely positive, upbeat and heart-warming. 

I wonder if there will be as much enthusiasm for the next General Election!

Negative Ninnies & Numpties not wanted here!

A fine Scottish word not used enough.

The first ever AGM of the Waterford Business Group (WBG) takes place in The Granville Hotel on Tuesday 26^th May 2015. This will in many ways be a historic moment for the Committee and the Members of this organisation.

As one of the founding members the WBG I can proudly say that the work ethic of the Group is second to none and the subsequent results achieved, by this entirely voluntary body, have over the last twelve months been nothing short of remarkable.

I sometimes have to pinch myself and quite literally say “Did we really achieve and influence so much in only two years since the Group’s foundation!”

The answer is of course a big fat YES! Driven people can achieve so much by working together.

Organisations set their foundations for success by the very people that drive said organisation and when you are specifically dealing with voluntary committees then the dynamic formed from within that committee will lead either to short-term failure or long-term achievement.

 

So, how do you ensure that your Committee is dynamic, positive, enthusiastic, committed and driven to achieve continually changing goals? And let face it most Committees are, to put it quite bluntly, lazy, weak, devoid of creative ideas and in reality are “closed for business!”

There are a number of critical guidelines you should consider when at the formation stage of any group or organisation to ensure your committee is fit for purpose. And here are few of my tips for building such a strong Committee:

·       You must ALL bring a “Can do attitude” to the group – negative ninnies and numpties are not wanted here!

·       An infectious enthusiasm is a prerequisite – let us start working together and achieving real results.

·       Leave your prejudices outside the Committee – first impression are not always right or correct.

·       Agree the Committee and Organisation’s goals – clearly defined goals will keep focus and set a course for achieving real results.

·       Members MUST have a mutual interest in overcoming obstacles – if you simply give up at the first NO, then the Committee will fail to tackle the challenges that lie ahead.

·       Learn to develop the Committee and Organisation – be prepared to adapt and change.

·       Set up a good communication structure - POOR communication within the Committee is one of the biggest problems within a group.

·       Set your ground rules early – members need to know what is and what is not acceptable.

·       What happens in the Committee stays in the Committee – confidentiality is essential and vital if there is to be trust from within the group.

·       Participants must be present to have their say – you cannot be an absent Committee Member and expect to contribute to the groups goals. If you are not there you have no say and you might even introduce a miss three meetings and you are OUT policy!

·       Disagreement is part of the process – this is also necessary to move the group on and must be directed at the task in hand and never at an individual from within the Committee.

·       At ALL times respect must be shown to fellow members – listen to fellow members, each member has the right to say “No”, each member has the right to disagree and each member has the right to express their own opinion.

Once you set out the above ground rules and guidelines then a Committee can get on with the process of delivering the Organisation’s goals. But before you progress you may wish to make sure that the makeup of the Committee is fit for purpose by ensuring you have the following personalities within the Committee:

·       The Plant – creative, imaginative, solves difficult problems

·       The Resource Investigator – enthusiastic extrovert, communicative, develops contacts

The Specialist!

·       The Coordinator – mature, confident, would make a good Chairperson

·       The Shaper – challenging, dynamic, thrives on pressure

·       The Evaluator – strategic, discerning, judges accurately

·       The Team Worker – cooperative, perceptive, diplomatic

·       The Implementer – disciplined, reliable, efficient

·       The Finisher - painstaking, conscientious, anxious

·       The Specialist - single-minded, self-starting, dedicated

Your Committee can of course be made up of a combination of the above and a number of other talents but these are the very basic requirements, in my experience, that are needed to ensure a Committee will achieve the goals that the Group or Organisation set themselves.

The Finisher - boy do I need one of these!

Luckily, the Waterford Business Group have the above skill set and much, much more from the Committee members, and this is why at next week’s historic first AGM the Group will review it’s many, many achievements since the formation in 2013 and set out its goals for the coming twelve months ahead.

Whilst many readers may not be aware of the work covered by the Waterford Business Group I can assure you that they will be working very, very hard over the next twelve months to regain the City’s status as the fourth City of Ireland.

But this cannot be done by individuals alone. So we must ALL support the great work ethic of the many excellent voluntary organisations working on behalf of the people of Waterford.

To this extent I applaud every one of these voluntary organisations that are making a REAL difference to ALL of our lives.

Just what is networking?

Ring any bells?

"Just what is networking?"

This is a question I am often asked as a business person and also as someone who is involved with numerous committees and organisations. There is of course no one answer fits all to this questions and you must find what appropriate forms of networking are suitable for your business, your voluntary committees, your social scene etc.

But if you are in business it is something that you need to build as part of your own personal make-up and as part of your business structure. Failure for any business to network is a failure to cement the very foundations around what your business stands for. Networking is a statement of branding and as such it is the real face of any business and the visible tangible part of a business’s profile.

Therefore it is essential to understand just what all this networking entails.

Some people might advocate that “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted, but the trouble is I do not know which half!” And with this in mind we know that the marketing landscape has changed inextricable in the last number of years.

Gone are the days when we could literally just stand and shout “Come and buy my products and services!” This type of sales and marketing has once and for all been destroyed as the ever fading Celtic Tiger ran off to find a new home.

A singular emphasis on advertising as part of your marketing mix will lead to ever increasing diminishing returns. We are bombarded with advertisements literally every second and minute of our day. And with our addiction to smart phones and social media we could see between 1,000 and 3,000 adverts a day! With so much information to absorb is it really any wonder that a business needs to find new ways to connect with customers and clients.

TRUST drives our business environment and here are some interesting statistics:

·       66% of the economy influenced by personal recommendations

·       88% of people will buy from companies they TRUST

·       85% of people will not buy from companies they DISTRUST

It is therefore essential for businesses to build TRUST with their customers and clients by being visible and tangible. And the most effective way to do that is by networking with customers and clients.

Cool business card.

So having established that networking is about building TRUST with existing and potential customers and clients we need to set out a few ground rules.

1.     Networking is NEVER about simply collecting business cards

2.     Networking is NEVER about just handing out dozens of business cards

3.     Networking is about converting contacts into word of mouth referrals

In addition to the above we need to be very clear that at any networking opportunity it is never about YOU it is ALWAYS about the other person. You must take steps to communicate effectively with the person you are speaking to and that involves listening, understand and not simply hearing what they are saying to you. Communication is always a two-way street and the very best networkers understand that they have to be an active listener.

At any networking event it is essential that you constantly ask yourself “What is YOUR brand?” Because to be in business today our most important job is to be head marketer for a brand that is called YOU! We need to understand that brand ME communicates our personal story, demonstrates what attributes that sets ME apart, states how YOU want to be positioned in the market place, defines your company/business and clearly distinguishes YOU from other competitors. Brand ME is not about bragging it is about defining YOU as a person other people can TRUST and as a person that people would want to do business with.

An early establishment of goals for any networking event is fundamental. Who are you trying to meet – customers, strategic partners or referral sources? I am here to generate new business over what timeframe? How much time will I allocate to networking? Where can I get the best value for my time?

We have all experienced this!

Once you have established the goals we need to network effectively and to do this we must remember that we are NOT selling the event. We need to start a conversation and therefore you need to be able to introduce yourself. We need to get to know the person, ask open ended questions and we must build trust. One of the most important aspects that people often miss is that you need to have a firm, strong and dry handshake and also carry good quality business cards and not the ones often advertised on TV, that feel like they are made of recycled cardboard. After shaking hands you more often than not give a person a business card and these two actions alone could define whether or not you have found a new customer.

Asking the right questions is also essential as it;

·       Separates the professionals from the amateurs.

·       Shows that you are concerned with helping them achieve success

·       Gets them to tell you how to sell to them

Follow up is essential.

Finally, one of the most important parts of networking that is often forgotten is the post event evaluation and follow up. You must be able to assess the success of an event, should you go back to a similar type of event, prioritise who to contact, decide who to contact within 24-48 hours, who to contact within one week and who never to contact.

Enjoy your networking ad we are all social animals and in general we are hardwired to interact and meet people. There are of course a few exceptions and these people need to be avoided at all costs.

“A brand is no longer what we tell the customer it is – it is what customers tell each other it is.” – Scott Cook.

LE Aoife a sad loss for Waterford City.

It was with great shock that I read last week that the Government had decided to “gift” the LE Aoife to the Maltese Government to help with the humanitarian crisis currently faced by this small island nation strategically situated in the Mediterranean, and an ideal target destination for those having to flee North Africa.

Whilst I applaud the Government’s rapid response to the crisis currently affecting many Mediterranean countries, surely there should be a coordinated Pan-European response to the problem and it cannot be the sole responsibility of Ireland to come up with an individual solution. There are many, many asset rich Mediterranean and European countries that are far better placed than Ireland is to offer relatively modern patrol vessels suitable for the Maltese Armed Forces exacting needs.

The fact that it now appears the Maltese Government and the Maltese Armed Forces deem the LE Aoife “unsuitable for the role” begs the question why was the LE Aoife offered in the first place? Was there sufficient pre-offer discussions? Or was the Minister genuinely offering help in response to the crisis? I believe the Minister indisputably wanted to help and in his eagerness to do just that offered the LE Aoife without completing a suitability study. 

What is absolutely sure is that the decommissioned LE Aoife is 100% suitable for a proposed plan to bring her to Waterford City to play a central role in a proposed nautical museum piece and would also play an essential role in a South East, 170 kilometres, Maritime Trail around some key South East’s maritime destinations.

This plan was put together by me, James Doherty and Eddie Mulligan (now Cllr Eddie Mulligan) who due to his career association with the Irish Navy took the lead role in the project.

The Maritime Trail project, with the LE Aoife at its very heart, was launched in July 2013 to the then Mayor of Waterford City and the Minister of State at the Departments of An Taoiseach and Defence. Additional presentations were made later that year and a full final business plan was due to be presented to Waterford Council this week. The business plan to bring the LE Aoife to Waterford City had been researched and benchmarked against similar projects in Ireland and in the UK such as the Dunbrody (New Ross) and Jeanie Johnston (Dublin), The Mary Rose (Portsmouth), The Discovery and Unicorn Frigate (Dundee) and HMS Belfast and Cutty Sark (London). The project would have been supported by volunteers and the manufacturing and engineering firms of Waterford City.

There can be no doubt that the LE Aoife would have been a significant tourism draw to Waterford City and would have tied in with the Viking Longboat and possibly a restoration project for the Portlairge dredger.

Three iconic ships on display, on The Quay, in Waterford City – now that would be a mouth watering prospect.

We still hold out hope that the decision can be reversed and the LE Aoife can now be “gifted” to Waterford City for the maritime project. If she does have to sail away to Malta then we wish her Godspeed.

Should we see the LE Aoife sail off into the sunset we have to be very cognisant that this is yet another potential project that Waterford City has once again missed out on. A project that would have had a significant social and community contribution, as well as generating much needed local income.

We have seen recently a repeated story of projects leeching out of Waterford City all too often, I am afraid.

Only last week we read a statement in the local media that a Dublin based architect had “won” the rights to the design for the Michael Street shopping centre development. Apparently, this company had been engaged for some time and possibly as far back as 2013. I understand that the original design and planning work for this development was done by a Waterford City based architect.

Do we not have to ask the question why was the Waterford based company not engaged to finish a project they had been involved in for so many years?

I also learned last week that the new fire station design work had also been “won” by a Dublin based company and low and behold one of the suppliers for internal furniture comes from Northern Ireland – now where is the sense in that!

You have to applaud the Office of Government Procurement for working towards getting best value for money for tendered projects and therefore our taxes. However, there must surely at the very least be a social aspect to accepting tender bids that must take into account local businesses and the simple fact that a local business will put money back into the local economy.

Rest assured the Dublin based companies are taking money OUT of Waterford’s economy and is there ANY contribution coming into our local economy from the appointment of a company from Northern Ireland?

One of the biggest Government contracts has been “won” by a company from the USA and they are working from a European base in the UK. So just how is this company contributing to the Irish economy? Is there any money coming back in terms of vat, taxes and other contributions?

When tender projects are conceived surely there has to be an acknowledgement to local companies to allow them to tender and then take into account the fact these local companies employ local people, who spend locally, pay local commercial rates and other forms of local taxes.

We must ask ourselves are we happy to let more and more contracts go outside of Waterford?

Someone must take a lead role in ensuring that Waterford companies can at the very least compete with other larger organisation for Government contracts. There has to be a built-in social aspect to any tender and we do need our leaders to stand up and fight for Waterford businesses.

I am constantly reminded that if your company is the wrong side of the Jack Lynch Tunnel you will not secure business in Cork. If you are outside of the M50 you will not secure business in Dublin.

Can we not write local government tender contracts that require a business to be “on site” within 30 or 40 minutes? This would at the very least ensure a local company can compete for a contract.

What we do need are people who want local companies to compete for local projects and we need them to put their hand up and proactively ask local companies to step up to the mark.

As Henry Ford once said, “Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress and working together is success.” Maybe this is where we should start? 

ENDS