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Wow what an amazing response to the Innovation Accelerator event. We’ve reached our 200 capacity and despite me removing some people who said they couldn’t go last night we’re back up at our capacity again.

So we’ve begged, borrowed and stolen and it looks like we can release a further 50 places today.

If the previous places are anything to go by then these places will go fast so please hurrry to avoid dissappointment, click here to register or go to http://short.ie/innovaccellreg

We still have a couple of places for those wishing expose their product to 250 people in the industry to take part in an Expo

If you want to then Register for the OpenDemo Expo here

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Hey there I recently announced the schedule but as we have so many of the local tech community and quite a few investors attending we’d like to really drive some value for startups. So we’re having an expo as well during the event.

We should have space for 10 startup companies (we might make this more if there’s a big response) in an expo space jammed right in the middle between our 2 main conference rooms to guarantee the most exposure we can give. It has limited space but is absolutely free for startups. The slots are assigned on a first come first served basis and there may even be some press and high profile people at the event too. So get your entry in as soon as you can I’ll be operating the first come first served rule as usual. The only qualifying criteria is that you are a startup company. The demoing companies will be notified on Friday afternoon 3pm at the latest.

Register for the OpenDemo Expo here

Demo companies will have a 36″ Cocktail style table to showcase their product. Signage can be erected behind the table. Please contact me if you have any questions. anton[at]digitalmediaforum[dot]net

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Hey there folks I’m delighted to announce that the schedule for the Innovation Accelerator event on the 24th of February is now live. I’m sure you’ll agree it’s a great lineup with some great speakers drawn from a wide area of the business, software and startup communities.

As you probably know this event is aimed at helping people get the business part of their technology business going. There will be talks on marketing, sales, company setup and HR as well as talks form startup founders about their experiences and lessons learned.

There will also be an opportunity to Demo your technology business at the event. More on that soon…

You can check out who’s attending and register through the links at the top of this article.

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Hey there folks here’s an update on the Innovation Accelerator event and some info on the who’ll be speaking, we’ll be keeping you updated here on developments as they happen.

The exact agenda has not been finalised yet, but we’ll let you know as soon as it is, here’s an idea of some of the speakers for now though.

Speakers include:

Steve Collins – Dr Steve Collins co-founded Havok in 1998 as a spin-out from Trinity College Dublin. Steve was initially CEO before becoming CTO and he later acted as chair of the company’s advisory board and a technical consultant. Havok was acquired by Intel in September 2007 for $110 million. Steve has recently announced a new venture, New-Game Tech.

Sheena Clohessy – With over 28 years of HR experience, Sheena is a strategic HR advisor to many Irish indigenous companies. She specialises in difficult people issues, mediation, bespoke training and psychometric testing for selection and coaching. Fresh from her recent appearance on The Apprentice, Sheena will be giving some practical tips on how to identify and recruit the best possible team to help build your business.

Siofra Flood – Siofra has over 10 years experience with Irish software companies, formerly holding the role of Corporate Counsel at Havok, and Legal Counsel at Silicon and Software Systems and IONA Technologies. Siofra has a wealth of experience in the areas of software licenses, support and professional services agreements, employment agreements, due diligence assistance and commercial legal advice.

Ronan Geraghty – A member of Microsoft Ireland’s Developer and Platform Group, Ronan is primarily responsible for working with Software and Service vendors from Ireland and Northern Ireland. Ronan runs Microsoft’s BizSpark Program aimed at delivering software, support and visibility to Ireland’s tech Start-ups.

Chris Horn – The co-founder of IONA needs little introduction. Dr. Horn is a non-executive director of a number of privately held software companies and business associations and advisor to a number of venture capital firms. He is also a former Director of Science Foundation Ireland, a former chair of the “Expert Group on Future Skills”, Ireland’s Educational Technology Investment Fund, and former chair of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce eCity working group; and a former chairman of the Irish Management Institute. Dr Horn regularly contributes to debate on Ireland’s high-tech industry and is a member of the Information & Communications Technology (ICT) working group at IBEC and was the founding chairman of the Ireland China Association. Dr Horn is a former member of the Board of Trinity College Dublin.

Paul Rellis – Managing Director of Microsoft Ireland, Paul is also Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce, a board member of IBEC, the Irish Management Institute and the National Digital Research Centre. Prior to being appointed MD, Paul was the Managing Director for Microsoft’s European, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Operations Centre, based in Sandyford, Co. Dublin.

Mary Ryan – Founder and director of Product Innovator Ltd., Mary recently won the Dublin City Female Entrepreneur 2008. Mary has over 17 years experience working in the finance and software industries. Before founding Product Innovator Ltd, Mary Ryan was Senior Product Manager at IONA Technologies where she worked with blue-chip customers including Credit Suisse, AT&T, BellSouth, GAD, Winterthur, Swisscom, SBC, Unicible and Zurich Insurance. Mary has a strong technical background, and a deep understanding of software markets built on years of experience with customer requirements gathering, product definition, product management, sales training, lead generation and customer relationship management.

Gordon Wilson – Gordon Wilson works as a Director of Corporate Finance and IT Development with Hilary Haydon and Company. Gordon heads up a team of accountants providing professional advice and consultancy services on a diverse range of issues, from mergers, acquisitions and disposals, business start-ups, corporate restructuring and refinancing, to consulting on IT and Management Information Systems for clients.

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As part of our partnership with Microsoft’s BizSpark programme, Digital Media Forum and Microsoft Ireland are delighted to bring you the Microsoft BizSpark Innovation Accelerator Event – an event designed to help accelerate the Start-up community in Ireland and Northern Ireland. This day-long conference will run on Tuesday, February 24th in the Radisson SAS Royal Hotel in Dublin’s city centre. Entrance is free of charge.
The aim of the event is to provide business guidance for Start-ups and anyone in Ireland or Northern Ireland who thinks they might like to start-up a tech company. The plan is to get together some of Ireland’s most experienced entrepreneurs and business people to share their stories about what makes businesses succeed and what are the pitfalls to avoid.
The Innovation Accelerator Event will feature practical sessions on business areas key to success of any Start-up such as Sales, Marketing, Finance and Legal. Participating speakers are coming from every area of the Irish tech community to help with this initiative. Seminar style-sessions will run alongside some panel discussions where our more experienced entrepreneurs can relate stories from the trenches.

About BizSpark

Microsoft BizSpark provides entrepreneurs with fast and easy access to Microsoft software including development tools and server products with no upfront costs, it provides discounts on the purchase of Dell hardware and preferential rates from Internet hosters, enabling companies to get their products and services online faster and more cost effectively. In addition, BizSpark start ups receive professional support from Microsoft as well as community-driven support from a range of Network Partners, such as the Digital Media Forum. BizSpark companies will also have enhanced opportunities to interact with and meet those in the venture capital community who are actively seeking investment opportunities. Microsoft’s BizSpark Programme is open to all tech start-up companies who are privately held, less than 3 years old and have less than $1m annual revenue developing a software product or service.
Find out more at www.bizspark.ie.