Outsider helping to steer business towards the banks of the Shannon

They still call Mr Paul Sheane a blow-in around the Shannon region, even though he has been working with Shannon Development for 18 years. Although originally from Glenealy, Co Wicklow, he now immerses himself in the problems and challenges of the region and its population of more than 400,000 people.

He is conscious of the immense difficulties involved in developing an area counties Clare, Limerick, north Kerry, north Tipperary, south Offaly which historically suffered from gross underdevelopment and exceptionally high levels of emigration.

Despite this legacy, he has promised that between 1995 and 2000, some 23,000 jobs will have been created throughout the region by Shannon Development.

Like any large State company Shannon Development gets its share of criticism. Some commentators do not even accept it should exist: questioning the notion of a State-supported company dispensing grants and subsidies to private industry in an age where the State is reducing its role in many areas.

Mr Sheane, however, points out that Shannon Development does not expect to receive any State subvention by 2000 and promotes commercial projects which give a return, not ill-conceived white elephants.

He is seeking to eliminate the "all roads lead to Dublin" mind-set that sometimes infects even the most optimistic in the region.

"What we try to do is to approach things with public sector values, but solve them with private sector efficiency," he says. He adds that the company is not interested in just handing out grants, but instead wants to support "value added" projects which create sustainable opportunities.

As he travels through different parts of the Shannon region he can observe the large number of successful projects which the company has helped to develop. Their range is impressive.

While the company developed and operates the Bunratty Castle complex, it has also set up the National Technological Park in Limerick which is home to a plethora of growing software companies.

Flicking through the company's annual report, readers may be surprised at the sheer volume of projects Shannon Development is involved in.

While many of these are strictly business initiatives, Mr Sheane points out that tourism and heritage are also firmly part of the agenda. This gives his job a diversity he treasures.

While he may spend one day trying to woo a large multinational into the Shannon Free Zone, the next day might be spent looking at a list of locations for a links golf course.

"Our approach is that we look to support other people, but we are not afraid to get our hands dirty when the time arises," he says.

With millions of pounds to spend every year the local pressures are undeniable, with too many projects chasing too few pounds. However, the economic bottom line is the principle criterion for everything the company does, Mr Sheane insists.

"For example there are 6,213 people employed in the Shannon Free Zone, but while that is important, the key thing is to ensure we keep growing those numbers."

One example he cites is the call centre industry. Dublin was attracting almost all the call centre projects during the mid-1990s. But to give Shannon a slice of the action, the company established a specially-designed call centre building.

It then was able to ask companies, "why not come here when there is a specially designed building waiting for you". It has worked and several call centres have set up in the region in the last year.

The issues around Shannon Airport generate a lot of political heat in the region and many politicians have found their careers cut short when they were seen to be insufficiently supportive of the airport.

Mr Sheane realises its importance and says it is "one of the major tools to ensure we maximise the developments in the region".

He claims the Government needs to be more supportive of the airport and he says the greatest need is for new carriers.

"The Government should be working to get the airport a low-cost carrier. In addition there is a need for wider routes from the existing carriers," he says. He suggests the use of tax incentives might be one way to attract additional carriers into the airport.

Mr Sheane derives considerable satisfaction from "seeing things on the ground". Walking around the Castle Lane project which involves the restoration of St John's Castle in the centre of Limerick he mixed easily with staff and groups of tourists.

But outside Castle Lane he becomes agitated as he points to the small street.[NO ] outside. "This is one of the main arteries through Limerick and there are just two lanes every weekend this street is choked with traffic," he says.

He adds that there is no point in having tourist attractions if the road network which serves them is inadequate. Another problem for the region is catering for the increasingly different tastes of tourists.

"While some people like the traditional atmosphere of Bunratty, other groups are looking for something slightly different," he says. That is why the establishment of the Hunt Museum in Limerick adds a new dimension to a tourist package that sometimes looks a little old fashioned with its mix of banquets and ceilithe.

With such a large range of projects the possibility of backing a loser is never far away. "Obviously there will be some losers in our portfolio, because we take risks, but overall most of the things we get involved in produce a financial roll-over," he says.

Mr Sheane says the company does not want to be "risk averse" and has invested equity in many fledgling companies which do not necessarily have much of a track record.

"I think in previous decades when a new innovative project was proposed there was always someone there to say `we cannot afford that'. But now people are saying `look, this project can give a return in the long term if it is given a chance'."

He contends that regional policy over the years had been flawed in one respect. "We have over burdened the east coast and under-used the west coast," he says. He claims that in 1996, for instance, 70 per cent of economic development took place on the east coast. "We have to accept that the market has not been able to spread the opportunities around the country," he says.

He adds that endless traffic jams and spiralling housing costs in Dublin and along the east coast should tell us all something about how regional policy has been operating in the last 30 years. Not that any of this makes him pessimistic.

With companies like Dell and Cabletron in the region there is an energy in the air, he says. For example, while Dublin's aircraft maintenance operation, Team Aer Lingus, has been beset with problems, Shannon's equivalent, Shannon Aerospace, has been growing profitably for years away from the media glare.

As for the future of Shannon Development there is a lot of change in the pipeline, he says. "We are now a limited liability company and I could see a day when the Government might not be a shareholder in the company," he adds. But he insists this would not hold any fears for him and the company operates on a day-to-day basis as a stand-alone operation.