Challenge: Apply for Funding

1 Introduction to Challenge

Find out about the tools and techniques used in the Challenge Programme which you can take away and use in your business. Attend one of our briefing events or we can call with you.  The purpose of this stage is to give confidence, insights and encouragement to business leaders, to demonstrate that with the right mindset, tools, skills and expert mentoring – you can transform your business in just nine months.

You’ll see how world-class companies excel in bringing products and services to market quickly and cost effectively. You will be asked to complete a short application form. This is then used to determine your suitability for stage two.

When you make it through to the second stage, you will take part in two separate one-day workshops to learn and apply a rapid commercialisation process to your business ideas.

2 Challenge Workshops

1. In the first workshop you will come together with other like-minded SMEs to practice the tools and techniques of Challenge.
2. In the second workshop, undertaken at your own premises, you will take on the ‘challenge’ by applying new learning, tools and techniques to your own company situation.
3. An experienced consultant will provide you with one-to-one assistance to agree your “innovation priorities”.
4. You can then apply for the in-company coaching stage

3 In-company coaching

If selected, your company will benefit from a specialist in-company coaching programme to guide you through the delivery of your plan. This consists of up to six days of 1-to-1 assistance (on your premises) at a pace and in a way that works for you to:

• Develop an effective growth plan to incorporate innovation at the core and improve business management, planning and strategic decision making
• Create (up to 70) additional ideas that can be developed in the future
• Learn and apply a rapid commercialisation process to ideas using techniques that minimise time, money and risk
• Create a strong culture of innovation and improve innovation management in the company

Since 2012, InterTradeIreland has helped over 90 companies to ‘transform the way that they do business’ in just 9 months by exploiting a highly profitable route to significant business growth.