Proposed Training Programme for 2015
Proposed Course
Start Your Own
Business
Retail
Development
Programme
Course Description
Aimed at those preparing to set up or have
recently set up in business. Topics to include:
 Legal aspects of starting a business
 Market research
 Sales and marketing
 Financial considerations
 Preparing a business plan
Aimed at retailers with a focus on improving key
retail skills and driving sales upwards. Topics to
include:
 Developing aggressive sales growth
strategies
 Strategic retail management
 Buying and negotiation
 Merchandising and display best practice
Idea Generation
Aimed at those thinking of starting a business, but
Bootcamp
are not sure what it is about or where to start.
Topics to include:
 How to get from idea to opening stage
 Social welfare implications
 Financial options
 Overview of tax and legal obligations
Everything You
Aimed at owner/managers of small businesses.
Need to Know
Topics to include:
about Taxation and
 Tax registration and compliance
VAT
 Revenue/VAT/PAYE/PRSI
 Income and Corporation Tax
 Self assessment
 Effective financial management to avoid
penalties and take advantage of tax
planning opportunities
Computerised
Aimed at those setting up a computerised accounts
accounts for the
package. Topics to include:
small business
 Sales and purchase ledgers
 Bank reconciliations
 Maintaining books
 Credit control
 VAT and reporting
Costing, Pricing
Aimed to provide owner/managers with the skills
and Cashflow for
and knowledge to understand the key financial
the Small Business flows within a business. Topics to include:
 Calculation of costs
 Establishing costing procedures
 Mark up and margin
 Relationship between costs and pricing
Duration
Half day general
overview workshop +
6 evening workshops + 1
day follow up clinic to
review business plans
(More than one provider
may be selected to
deliver this programme)
4 day workshops and 1
on-site visit
Or,
Open to alternative
proposals
Half day workshop
4 evening workshops
3 evening workshops
and 2 on-site visits
1 day workshop

Getting Started
with Ecommerce Selling Online Making Ecommerce Work
Ecommerce
Advanced Exploiting the full
potential of the
digital single
market
Social Media
Marketing for the
Small Business
Introduction to
Intellectual
Property Protecting Your
Business Idea
Cashflow management, budgeting and
controls
Aimed to provide small business with skills to set
up and streamline their ecommerce platform.
Topics to include:
 Training needs analysis agreement of
strategy and the basics
 Content generation and internal systems
 Entering content, testing transactions, IT
skills and infrastructure
Aimed at owner/managers who have already
established a presence and are trading successfully
online but who want to take their business to the
next level. Topics to include:
 Conduct baseline audits and agree
strategy/KPIs
 Content and photography
 Payment methods and currency
 Shipping and logistics
 Third party shops
 System integration
 Marketing
 Accounts and stock control
 Management information systems/reports
Aimed at owner/managers who are new to the
world of social media tools to build an online
brand. Topics to include:
 Establish your online PR
 Introduction to Facebook
 Introduction to LinkedIn
 Introduction to Twitter
 Using different platforms
 Making connections
Overview and understanding of the different types
of intellectual property and how it applies to
business. Topics to include:
 Overview of protection and branding
 Protections that should be considered
 Trademarks – what is protected and how
to protect your trademarks
3 full day workshops and
mentoring on site visits
(10 hours per
participant)
Building a basic website
Or,
Open to proposals but
should contain a
combination of
workshops and
mentoring visits
sufficient to help
businesses accelerate
growth through
increased sales
5 full day workshops and
mentoring on site visits
(20 hours per
participant)
Or,
Open to proposals but
should contain a
combination of
workshops and
mentoring visits
sufficient to help
businesses accelerate
growth through
increased sales
1 day workshop
1 day workshop

Simple account
keeping through
Excel
Start Your Own
Online Business
Financial and
Business
Management
Programme - How
to financially
control your
business
Marketing and
Sales for the Small
Business
Copyright – what is protected and the
importance of keeping records
 Patents – how to get protection and
alternative protections
Aimed at those with basic Excel skills who wish to
use the package for basic accounting within their
business. Topics to include:
 Processing purchase/sales invoices, credits,
sales invoices, lodgements, cash payments,
VAT returns, wages and salaries, bank
reconciliation
 Extracting of information from purchases,
sales book, cheques journal, cash book and
posting to nominal ledger
 Posting of wages journal and opening and
closing stock journals to the nominal ledger
 Extracting of information from nominal
ledger to trial balance, to profit & loss
account, to balance sheet
 Explanation of trial balance, profit & loss
account and balance sheet
Overview of issues, requirements, problems and
opportunities commonly relating to the
establishment of any online business. Topics to
include:
 Online trends and growth areas
 Who is the Digital consumer?
 Business planning
 Legal issues
 Digital marketing
 Operating costs and funding opportunities
Aimed at providing owner/managers with the tools
to access accurate information and financial
reports. Topics to include:
 Basic principles of accounting
 Principle concepts, profit and loss
accounts, balance sheet, cash flow, etc.
 Cash flow management, budgeting and
controls
 Costing, pricing and break even analysis
 Working capital management
 Sources of finance and funding
 Key performance indicators to include
setting goals and monitoring performance
Providing owners/managers with practical skills
and tools on how to create and develop marketing
and sales skills applicable to their business. Topics
to include:
 Market research and segmentation
 Customer profiling
2 days workshops
1 day workshop
4 day workshops and 3
on-site visits
4 evening workshops
and 1 on-site visit
 Marketing strategy/plans
 Advertising/promotional materials
 What makes people buy?
 Identifying sales process
 Closing sales
Digital / Internet
Aimed at providing owner/managers with the skills
marketing –
to use their website to market and promote the
Getting the Most
business. Topics to include:
from Your Website
 Understanding the internet
 Selling online
 Search engine optimisation
 How to get listed and pay per click
 Updating your website for search engines
 Submission techniques
 Analysis of website statistics
Guide to Public
Aimed at owner/managers who want to enhance
and Private Sector their skills in submitting tenders for work for the
Procurement public and private sector and to be able to use the
How to Submit a
e-Tenders website to its maximum potential.
Winning Tender
Topics to include:
 Tendering fundamentals
 Instruction on the usage of e-Tenders
 Designing and writing a bid document to
succeed
 Evaluation criteria
Exporting for the
Aimed at owner/managers considering exporting
Small Business
to provide key elements of successful exporting
and knowledge to take a proactive planned
approach to exporting. Topics to include:
 Market research in a new country
 Cultural differences
 Currency issues
 Other key factors required for export
 Importance of an export plan
In
For anyone setting up a new business or updating a
business/starting a business plan with an existing business, it is
business – why you important to write an effective business plan and
need a Business
to keep updating and reviewing the plan. Topics to
Plan
include:
 What exactly is a business plan - why write
one?
 How to write a business plan – business
writing skills
 The content and structure of the business
plan
 Who is the business plan for?
Pulling Power for
Aimed at owner/managers who want to increase
the Local Retailer
footfall and spend in their premises:
 The future of the market town retailer
 Identifying innovation and growth areas
4 evening workshops
Or,
Open to alternative
proposals
1 day workshop
4 evening workshops
1 day workshop
1 evening workshop

Are You Mentally
Fit For Your
Business
The importance of branding and
merchandising
 Top tips for retaining the shopper
 The importance of an online presence
Aimed at business people to help them stay
mentally strong and perform despite the
challenges of business. Topics to include:
 Mental fitness – how to measure this, track
progress and become even fitter
 Postcards from the Edge – real growth and
development happens at the edge of
comfort. How to move from coping to
succeeding despite being in the panic zone
 The Value of Worth – how self-worth
becomes team worth becomes company
worth and customers love dealing with
high worth people, teams and companies.
How to create a business of high worth,
energy and engagement
 Keeping resilient – how to recover quickly
from setbacks, where to focus the effort
and how to stay on track
1 evening workshop