Business back-slapping exercises divert attention from creating jobs

Belfast Briefing:What is it about doing business in Northern Ireland and "gala" award ceremonies? Not a week goes by without at least one special celebratory black-tie event that inevitably involves that most clichéd of phrases: "And the winner is . . . ", writes Francess McDonnell

The latest back-slapping exercise has just been hosted by the regional economic development agency, Invest Northern Ireland. As part of National Enterprise Week, it held its very own "Celebration of Enterprise" gala dinner.

More than 250 people were asked to take part in this invitation-only dinner, in association with Ulster Bank, which the agency said was designed to "celebrate and showcase local enterprise".

There is nothing wrong with celebrating local enterprise. Who would want to detract from the achievements of companies or individuals who are doing well? But why go into business in the first place? To make a profit - to get results?

So do the North's business entrepreneurs really need a nice dinner laid on by Invest Northern Ireland at the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum for simply doing what they are supposed to?

It is not just local entrepreneurs that Invest Northern Ireland likes to entertain. An important part of its job is to attract new inward investment to the North and, of course, this involves entertaining potential new clients. Latest financial accounts for the agency show that it spent more last year than ever before on hospitality costs.

In 2006, Invest Northern Ireland spent £47,000 (€65,600) on hospitality; last year the bill jumped to £83,000 (€115,900).

There are several reasons for this, according to the agency. Firstly, catering costs increased. In addition, Invest Northern Ireland hosted a greater number of "client meetings and activities in 2006/07".

It also opened a new headquarters in Belfast during 2007 and invited existing clients to come and visit, which contributed to the overall hospitality bill.

The £83,000 spent last year also includes the cost of providing tea, coffee and refreshments for internal training courses, recruitment programmes and board meetings. According to the agency, more training courses are now held in house at its headquarters, so it will save money on this in the future - unless of course it cannot decide who will be charge of putting the kettle on.

This year Invest Northern Ireland's annual report highlights the achievements of some of Northern Ireland's best known inventors - from John Dunlop, the creator of the pneumatic tyre, to Dr James Drumm, the man behind the rechargeable battery.

People often forget the North has a great track record when it comes to innovation, which is probably why Invest Northern Ireland has established its rather tackily named "Hall of Fame".

Despite the name, it is a brilliant idea because it focuses on the real and tangible achievements by great innovators and great entrepreneurs such as Dr Peter Fitzgerald of Randox Laboratories and Dr Ivan McCabrey from Mivan.

Now Orla Corr, managing director of the Tyrone-based McAvoy Group, has become the first woman to join the Hall of Fame. The McAvoy Group was set up by Orla's father in 1972. Today it designs and manufactures a range of modular, timber-framed, steel-clad and steel-framed permanent and relocatable buildings. It employs more than 250 people and has an estimated turnover in the region of £30 million.

Orla is the second generation of her family to work in the business and follows in the footsteps of her mother Maura, who helped build what was initially a small firm into a thriving company.

The success of the company today masks a tragedy that is part of the bitter legacy of the Troubles. Orla's father Séamus McAvoy was shot dead in a terrorist attack in the early 1980s - it was this tragedy that forced Maura McAvoy to leave her career as a teacher and go into the business.

She built a company that her children, particularly Orla, embraced, but it was Maura McEvoy who did the groundwork for her daughter to become the first woman to enter Invest Northern Ireland's Hall of Fame.

Orla Corr's vision and determination has made the McAvoy Group an international success. She has grown and expanded the business and both Orla and her family deserve to be recognised for their success.

In acknowledging the achievements of the McAvoy Group, Northern Ireland is celebrating the contribution family businesses have made and continue to make by creating jobs and growing the North's economy.

New government statistics show the North currently has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the United Kingdom. The rate now stands at 3.8 per cent, but there is also a significant number of people who are either unwilling or unable to seek work.

Figures show there is an estimated 552,000 "economically inactive" people - a worrying increase of 22,000 on last year.

In the last 12 months there have been more than 2,000 redundancies in the North.

Perhaps it is time for a little less back-slapping, fewer gala dinners and let the entrepreneurs and the business leaders get back to doing what they do best - providing work.