Sustainable Learning Networks in Ireland and Wales Conference

1. How Irish Entrepreneurs use to form, develop and maintain a business network Ted Vickey

2. Who?

3. 1991 1994 2005 11 YEARS

4. What?

5. I am by EDUCATION an Exercise Scientist, I am by EXPERIENCE an Entrepreneur, I am by PASSION a Connector.

6. Where?

7. C R E R

8. Why?

10. Real networking is about finding ways to make other people more successful. Knowledge Time Connections Energy Resources Compassion

11. Social Capital and the role of LinkedIn to form, develop and maintain Irish Entrepreneurial business networks

14. “Entrepreneurship is the pursuit of a discontinuous opportunity involving the creation of an organization (or sub-organization) with the expectation of value creation to the participants. The entrepreneur is the individual (or team) that identifies the opportunity, gathers the necessary resources, creates and is ultimately responsible for the performance of the organization. Therefore, entrepreneurship is the means by which new organizations are formed with their resultant job and wealth creation”. Carton et al. (1998, p. 1) “Entrepreneurship is the pursuit of a discontinuous opportunity involving the creation of an organization (or sub-organization) with the expectation of value creation to the participants. The entrepreneur is the individual (or team) that identifies the opportunity, gathers the necessary resources, creates and is ultimately responsible for the performance of the organization. Therefore, entrepreneurship is the means by which new organizations are formed with their resultant job and wealth creation”. Carton et al. (1998, p. 1)

15. Entrepreneurship = Taking Risk

16. Entrepreneurs are:

17. Social Capital is … … the origin and the expression of successful network interactions (Cooke, 1999)

18. Social Capital benefits

19. Global populations Over 400M Over 75M Source: Wikipedia, May 5, 2010

20. 75M members As of Aug 2010 35M members 2008 10M members 2007 8.5M members 2006 4.4M members 2005 1.6M members 2004 85,000 members 2003 The Power of Growth

21. LinkedIn Global Reach Fastest Growing EU United Kingdom Netherlands France Belgium Denmark Germany Ireland 243k+ 106% increase in just one year!

22. Findings

30. Perceived benefits of LinkedIn (Irish) Strongly Agree Strongly Disagree (Vickey, 2010)

32. How powerful is social networking? How powerful is social networking? …it got this man elected President

33. Ted VickeyNational University of Ireland - Galwayted.vickey@nuigalway.ie @tedvickey www.linkedin.com/in/tedvickey