On Friday 2nd June, InterTradeIreland’s Innovation Boost programme Project Manager’s received their market leading Postgraduate Diploma in Innovation Management from the William Clinton Institute, Queen’s University Belfast in recognition of their work in delivering innovative projects within small businesses across the island. It also recognises their commitment to life-long learning in advancement of technology transfer within small business.
Hosted by InterTradeIreland, the graduation event recognised the contribution of 17 graduates from across the island and their role instilling innovation into their businesses. The awards ceremony, which took place at the William Clinton Institute, QUB, also awarded the ‘Mary Breslin Award’ to graduate Ashleigh Moore who achieved academic excellence whilst delivering a project which aimed to develop the necessary scientific and technical knowledge and processes needed for the design, development and manufacture of innovative Ceramic Coatings (CCs) for the aftermarket automotive applications.
Speaking at the graduation, Alison Currie, Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at InterTradeIreland, said:
Firstly I’d like to recognise all the graduates on achieving their Postgraduate Diplomas. I would also like to congratulate Ashleigh Moore on achieving the coveted Mary Breslin award which recognises her dedication to her academic work but also her commitment to both project delivery and personal development.
Today is an opportunity for all the graduates to reflect on the valuable experience they have gained leading within a small business on the island. It is also timely to acknowledge their contribution in support of delivering innovation and creating change to advance and deliver economic impact. InterTradeIreland is proud to have played our small part in supporting the careers of these graduates as they continually strive to inject innovation into the heart of their business activities. This unique experience will have provided the opportunity to develop new skills, build contacts and receive mentoring from leading academics. As you progress in your career, I encourage you to continue using the energy and resilience demonstrated in the delivery of each of your projects to propel and drive continued innovation on the island.
InterTradeIreland’s Innovation Boost programme has supported more than 800 participants to date and offers science, technology and engineering graduates a unique opportunity to step into a project management role and fast track their career, with the benefit of academic mentoring throughout. The programme, which provides up to £56,000/ €67,900 to eligible companies, supports businesses across the island of Ireland as they strive to develop new innovative products or services or to improve their processes, creating revenue, making savings or encouraging investment, and takes their thinking from ‘not now’ to ‘now we can.’
