Book Buzz

With a BA in Small Business, Ron has lectured, trained and consulted extensively in the area of starting and growing a business. He has worked with businesses, enterprise support agencies and governments in Western Europe, the USA, and former CIS countries. His expertise in business development has led to frequent assignments on behalf of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development and the OECD. He was previously the manager of Invent, the commercialization gateway of Dublin City University, where he managed a portfolio of over 40 innovative technology ventures. A former business development director at Oak Tree Press, Ireland's leading business book publisher, Ron has also written best-selling business titles and workbooks published in Ireland, the UK and the USA. Ron believes that the major challenge facing businesses is the ability to respond appropriately and swiftly to the ever-changing business world. He believes that the ideas contained in books are the ideal platform for promoting fresh thinking.

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After gaining a BA and MA in social science in the UK, Yanky was a management and marketing communication consultant in Israel before moving to Ireland. He designs and delivers corporate training programmes in team building, communication skills, people skills and marketing skills. Yanky is a conference facilitator, speaking coach, entrepreneurship expert, and a much-in-demand motivational speaker who has addressed audiences in Ireland, the USA, the UK, Poland and the Czech Republic. Yanky’s business books include Fire In The Belly – an exploration of the entrepreneurial spirit, and Bookbuzz Insights 2011. He features regularly in the print and electronic media, and is a regular contributor on business books to BusinessPlus. Yanky is also chief editor of The Varsity Press, a non-fiction imprint in the self-publishing field. Yanky developed the Bookbuzz methodology for enhancing a company’s collective intelligence as part of his quest to understand why so many CEO’s claim that their biggest challenge is getting their senior executives to open their minds.

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With an MSc in Training and Human Resources Management  Alan has  over 20 years front line senior executive and consulting experience.  During the 90s he led some of Ireland’s leading brands -  Revlon, Roche Products Ireland, Bewleys, Allegro, Allied Foods, Shires, Aer Lingus and Irish Ferries, through a variety of quality programmes. He has consulted with  businesses of all shapes and sizes from  manufacturing, professional services, healthcare to voluntary organisations. This  gave keen insights  into how people drive business success and how important the people factor is  linked to the processes of any company. He was Country Manager for Brinks Ireland from 2004 to 2009 during what was considered the worst period of attacks the country has ever seen for businesses involved in the Financial services sector. Having been through seven Tigerkidnap episodes he got to see first hand the challenge of leading your team through crisis points while still having to do the day job of driving growth, both top and bottom line. He was elected President of the Irish Security Industry Association in 2009 the industry body which represents  approximately 60% of those employed in the industry (20,000) and turnover estimated at €1.2 billion.

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For 25 years, Barre has been working in the area of innovation with some of the world’s leading innovation companies and institutes. He has worked with Synectics Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.) and with the University of Chicago Graduate Business School. He was involved with the UK Department of Trade and Industry's Innovation Unit, and his work with Rolls-Royce earned him an accolade from Sir John Rose, Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce, who claims that Barre made 'an indelible impression' on the company.

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Dirk was in international banking before he became the managing director of NTGent, one of the larger professional theatres in Belgium. He left arts to become Senior Associate to Executive Learning Partnership, an international and committed network of experienced executive development professionals. He is also associated to MenT where he is designing and facilitating executive programmes on leadership and change management. He combines these activities with his Associate Professorship at the University of Antwerp. He holds a number of board mandates in profit as well as not for profit companies, and is a frequent speaker on a variety of subjects (finance, the arts, entrepreneurship, management) at national and international forums. Dirk was a freelance radio reporter for more than ten years for Belgian national radio, where he gave live commentary on soccer games.

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