REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT THE ANNUAL LUNCH OF THE SMALL FIRMS ASSOCIATION
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT THE ANNUAL LUNCH OF THE SMALL FIRMS ASSOCIATION BURLINGTON HOTEL, THURSDAY, 2ND SEPTEMBER, 1999
Is mór an pléisiúir dom bheith i bhur measc inniu ag an ocáid seo agus tá me buíoch díbh as an chuireadh a thug sibh dom teacht anseo.
I am delighted to be here as your guest today and I would like to thank the Small Firms Association and especially Pat Delaney, for this opportunity to address you all, on the occasion of your Annual Lunch.
I would like to begin by paying tribute to the contribution that the small business sector has played, and continues to play in Ireland’s economic and social development. By any standards Ireland has enjoyed remarkable economic and employment growth over the past decade and I believe that the Small Firms Association deserves a great deal of credit for its role in this success. You have worked tirelessly over a number of years to promote small business in Ireland, to improve the business environment for your members and to keep the interests of small business at the top of the agenda. That has not always been easy. It took a great deal of perseverance and dedication – a refusal to give up – indeed the very characteristics that make entrepreneurs successful. Today, that commitment has paid off and we are now seeing evidence of a strong and vibrant small business sector, which is contributing significantly to our economic and social prosperity.
I am aware, however, that being a small business entrepreneur is still not easy. Small businesses are quite often driven by a small number of highly motivated people, or by one person with the support of a spouse or children. There are frequently enormous pressures placed on owner managers, not least because the finance underpinning the business may come from their own resources, or be borrowed, using their family home as collateral. They are the ones who put their neck on the line and are totally dependent on the success of the venture.
As if this pressure were not enough, they must usually be multi-skilled to a quite extraordinary degree. One individual may have to play the role of personnel manager, financial controller and marketing expert, all rolled into one. Small businesses must demonstrate flexibility in adapting to a rapidly changing environment and respond quickly to new market conditions and changes arising from economic restructuring, technological change and new production methods. Yet, many enterprises have limited time for analysis of the business environment in which they are operating. This is why the role played by the Small Firms Association is particularly vital - furthering the collective interests of small business and assisting directly with the range of services you provide.
Because of their characteristics, small businesses, not only in Ireland but globally, are in a position to take full advantage of new opportunities arising from the greater emphasis on outsourcing and sub-supply for components and services. There are also new opportunities resulting from easier access to European and world markets and the advent of global information networks. It is now widely accepted in Ireland and throughout Europe that the attributes of successful small enterprises - flexibility, responsiveness and adaptability – are among the prerequisites for success in the new open global economy.
For a country with Ireland’s history of unemployment and emigration, a particularly heartening feature of the last decade is that economic growth has been translated into rapid expansion in employment, providing us with the opportunity to unleash the full potential of our workforce. Numbers employed have grown by just under 3% per annum in the 1990s overall, and by more that 4% per annum over the last three years. Unemployment, which peaked at almost 16% in 1993, has fallen sharply and is now at just over 6% and still falling. Young people who might have emigrated, have stayed in Ireland; former emigrants have returned and women’s participation in the labour force has begun to rise rapidly. Small enterprises have been one of the lynchpins of that success, and it is in all our interests that their capacity to succeed is maintained and supported in the future.
Despite the tremendous strides that Ireland has made during the last decade, much remains to be done to ensure full employment for all our workforce and to promote a greater inclusiveness in Irish society. This is a matter which concerns all of us, not least the small business sector for it impacts both on the general welfare of society, and on specifics such as the continuing availability of skilled labour. The current favourable market conditions present us with both the resources and an unprecedented opportunity to successfully tackle these issues. Social inclusion is sometimes perceived as a euphemism for cocooning people or fostering a dependency culture. In fact, its aim should be to enable those who suffer from disadvantage to help themselves, to be active participants in the mainstream, restoring a sense of dignity and self-respect that has been eroded over such a long period of time.
Enabling people to access the jobs which are now available, is one of the keys to this. This means ensuring that training programmes are linked to the skills required in the marketplace; providing ‘second chance’ education and, in particular, improving completion rates in primary and secondary schools.
As we look to the future, a central question will be how to safeguard our economic growth while enabling all sections of society to benefit from the prosperity that will bring? The answer lies in sustaining the type of partnership which has served us so well in the past. By working together and in harmony, we have transformed this country and unlocked the full potential of the Irish economy for the first time. Wage moderation has sustained competitiveness and growth, leading to greater employment and increased revenue. This in turn has funded increased expenditure targeted at the more vulnerable sections of our society. It has been a win-win situation, and everyone has a stake in seeing that it continues.
Throughout all that time, the small business sector has been at the forefront in contributing to Ireland’s remarkable success. I believe that by continuing to harness the energy and vitality of this sector and by working hand in hand with all partners in society, we can all continue to achieve extraordinary results. This generation in Ireland is in a very unique and blessed position, equipped with the tools, the insight and the imagination it is poised to effect the next phase of our transformation – that phase will take us beyond poverty, away from the margins, to full social inclusion. Small businesses will be at the heart of that transformation.
I would like to congratulate your Chairman, Kieran Crowley, and all those associated with the Small Firms Association for your role in supporting and giving voice to the needs of small enterprise. I wish you continuing success in the future.
Go n-éirí go geal libh.