3-6pm

KFM Roadcaster

MERITS

Talking all things Big Business with the KFM Crew @ MERITS

3:30-8pm

Visit the Advisor Zone 

Lonsdale, MERITS

Free 1-2-1 session with experts and mentors in the adviser zone

3:30-7pm

Immerse in Virtual Reality

Content Lab, MERITS

Immerse and experiment in virtual reality in the MERITS Content Lab, get your own professional headshot and even demo your first podcast.

3:30-8pm

Exhibitor Zone

Ground Floor and First Floor, MERITS

Connect with business support organisations and register for specific LEO supports in the exhibition zone including Teagasc, AIB, Intreo Kildare, SBCI, Leader Rural Development Partnership, BOI, New Frontiers, HBAN, R&H SkillNet, IntertradeIreland, The Intellectual Property Office, KWETB, Microfinance Ireland, Connected Hubs and more!

4:00pm

Minister James Lawless, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, to launch Kildare Skills Audit

4:15pm

Bringing the Magic Back To Marketing with Jennie McGinn

Shackleton, MERITS

Find the joy in engaging your customer and bringing your product and business to life - from shoestring budgets to collaborations and "surprise and delight" tactics, this session will leave you motivated, energised and ready to have fun with your marketing. Jennie Mc Ginn is a serial retail and marketing entrepreneur. She's worked with everyone from Kildare Village to Chupi, Lifestyle Sports, Dublin Independent Fashion Week and London College of Fashion. Having founded multiple ecommerce businesses, Jennie now consults across brand, marketing and customer experience and delivers straight-talking, no-nonsense and uplifting content.

5pm

NETWORKING

5:30pm

Government Procurement Opportunities for SMEs with Minister Emer Higgins, Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform

The Communications team at the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) have been working on a video-based case study with the Kildare-based SME Green IT.

The purpose of the case study is to highlight the OGP’s work around SME inclusion and to encourage SMEs to bid on OGP frameworks. Some themes in the video are green public procurement, consortium bidding and OGP information sessions. 

5:50pm

Becoming Investible

Shackleton, MERITS

Halo Business Angel Network (HBAN)  is focused on creating investor groups/syndicates across the island. Learn exactly what they look for and how they work with exceptional start-ups!

6.30pm

NETWORKING

7:00pm

Launch of Kildare’s Business Owner’s Guide: Supports for business by Minister Martin Heydon, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

Shackleton, MERITS

This Business Owner’s Guide has been developed to ensure that Kildare’s business community takes advantage of the dynamic supports available to their business. The aim of this publication is to assist entrepreneurs in Kildare to navigate the range of financial and non-financial supports available at the various stages of business development. These stages are defined as Pre-start, Start-Up and Business Expansion. Our hope is that this guide will aid business development and, ultimately, job-creation in the region.

7:15pm

Unlocking financial opportunities for your business

Join the LEO Team, Maynooth University and The SBCI's Brian Colgan to answer all of your questions around funding growth

8:00pm

Be on Social without Being on Social

Shackleton, MERITS

Meet Michael Corcoran of We Are Frankly! Michael has 12+ years of experience in social media marketing, "At Ryanair, I ran its social media. I let my work do the talking (most of the time), and I think I'm doing ok at it. You can call me the Aldi version of Gary Vee.

Now it’s time to speak Frankly. "Michael advocates that business owners REALLY need to start to think about the role social plays for your brand or business. If you try being all things to all people, you are more than likely diluting your effort, and adding to the sea of vanilla corporate sameness.

Alchemy can show us the best ideas or strategies don’t make rational sense. The problems we have could very well be solved by letting go of logic and differentiating yourself.

We’ll talk:

• Different ways to be on social without ‘being’ on social - to solve a problem or utilise an opportunity for a brand and business on social

• Take some examples of how to use social beyond just posting content and wasting time and money.

• Look at the four key variables that should influence your strategy before deciding what role social can play to REALLY try to add value over time. And lastly, a bit about how Ryanair did it.