Despite their economic and social importance, family businesses remain an understated aspect of Ireland's economy.  This will be one of the key points highlighted by UCC President, Dr Michael Murphy in his opening address.  Dr Murphy will reflect on how, in Ireland's history, emphasis has always been placed by policy makers on attracting foreign investment from multinationals.  However, Ireland's experience is not unique as many of our fellow member states of the European Union have endured similar experiences.  Dr Murphy welcomes recent measures taken by the European Commission to identify the support family businesses require throughout Europe to survive and considers that "a key aspect of University College Cork's mission is to support the local, regional and national economy and to positively influence the future of business in Ireland."

The keynote speaker, Dr Andrew Keyt from Loyola University, Chicago, will discuss some of the key lessons learnt from America's successful family businesses and how these businesses manage family and business communication.  Dr Keyt has served as a manager in two family owned firms and as a member of his own family partnership, Keyt Consulting, has experienced the challenges of family business first-hand.

Liam Nagle of Sisk Group and Robert Meier of Bosch UK will outline how two family businesses have developed together a partnership which has survived for over fifty years.  According to Liam Nagle, the secret to success of the Bosch-Sisk partnership is due to the fact that both businesses are family based and their relationship is built on trust and taking the long-term view.  Sisk Group continues to develop and grow its business based on a family ethos, values and relationships, which according to Liam Nagle, has allowed them to grow organically and to diversify into new fields such as Healthcare.  

Robert Meier of Bosch UK will examine the role of trust and other values in the success of Bosch.  "The Bosch values are considered as the foundation upon which the successes of the past were built and upon which we build our future.  Our values incorporate everything you would expect from Bosch and they apply wherever we do business in the world," he said.

Dr Maureen Gaffney, who will speak on the issue of emotional intelligence and family business leadership, will lead the afternoon session. She will draw on her considerable research in the area of emotional intelligence and will highlight the fact that the only statistical difference between great and mediocre leaders is their capacity to understand and care about other people.  She will outline key emotional intelligence competencies for family businesses.

Due to the generous sponsorship of Ulster Bank, this year's conference will build on the success of the previous two events by offering a full day event including workshops on issues of interest to family businesses which will allow participants to draw on the knowledge and experience of experts including Pat McArdle of Ulster Bank, Terry Prone of Carr Communications, Garvan Corkery of Ronan Daly Jermyn, Philip MacKeown of Musgrave Group and Orna Stokes of Ulster Bank.  Dr Joan Buckley, Director of the John C. Kelleher Family Business Centre is confident that "this conference will offer family business members the opportunity to learn more from experts in the family business area.  In addition it will allow the opportunity for participants to share and explore their experiences in family businesses in a secure setting.  I am very pleased that we are able to offer such a full programme this year, and we are most grateful to Ulster Bank for their partnership in this."  

Tom Leahy, Regional Director South of Ulster Bank, said: "We are delighted to be associated with UCC and the Family Business Conference. We aim to provide the best support and advice to family businesses who represent the driving force for the future of the economy and look forward to continuing our support to local businesses with our global capabilities."

Pictured at the opening of the conference today (October 19th 2007) are: Mr Tom Leahy, Ulster Bank, Dr Michael Murphy, President, UCC, Dr Joan Buckley, Director, JCK Family Business Centre, UCC, Professor Denis Lucey, Acting Head of College, College of Business and Law, UCC and Mr Mark Whitaker Group Chief Executive, Johnson and Perrott Motor Group.

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