Research & Development

The issues identified are:

• Research needed on the sector
• Need to create champions
• Need F.D.I. - positive spin off for local industry
• Overlap/collaborate with other industries
• Another broadband initiative?
• Incubation units with education support

The priorities identified are:

1. Academic and industry interface
2. Research activities
3. Final year (university/F.E.) projects with prizes
4. Develop innovative products

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Skills & Training

The issues identified are:

1. Communication
• Between and within industry, key stakeholders and education providers-Communication is a priority both in itself and across all the other priorities.
1. Actions Suggested
• Looking at formal and informal networking events which include industry and students.
• Opportunities to cluster and partner to bid on international business opportunities.
• Functioning Industry led panel which includes digital industries.

2. Training
• Identification and delivery of training via a special interest group
2. Actions Suggested
• Education system is genuinely industry led and students coming out and having skills for and access to industry.
• Mentoring and apprenticeship model
• Providing continued professional development short courses which are in response to industries demand.

3. Export Skills
• Providing continued professional development short courses which are in response to industries demand.

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Market Development & Intelligence

The priorites identified are:

1. Market Intelligence
•Community building activity that facilitated networking
•Identify market needs to generate clustering
•Public bodies- connected thinking and doing

2. Export Development Programmes
•Public bodies to consolidate programmes and keep up to date with new and emerging digital marketing techniques
•Collaboration with education
•Online Portal for Industry Information

3. International & Local Best Practice
•Industry led examples-local/global
•Showcase N.I success and case study failures
•Branded industry

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Finance & Investment

The issues identified are:

• Actions must be of scale
• Emphasis on value creation
–growth does not equal employee growth
–distributed companies
• Developing winners
• Retention of IP
• Differentiation between seed & VC
• Need for web 2.0 strategy?
• Convergence of content & technology

The priorities identified are:

1. Competition fund
2. Creation of ongoing matching fund & better access to funding
3. Anchor client / research centre

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