Many of us have great ideas, cumulatively millions of them every day, but the difference between having an idea and commercialising it into a marketable product is significant. It's the difference between something happening and not.
One of the greatest entrepreneurs of all time, Michael Dell, started his computer company with a few dollars in his University of Texas dorm room, and it has grown into the massive company that it is today. He had the idea and he made it happen, that's the important bit.
This week is Microelectronics Week and MIDAS Ireland, the representative body for the microelectronic sector, is forecasting that one third of the new jobs in the semiconductor sector are expected to come from indigenous companies -- this is a minimum of 650 R&D jobs over the next five years with further positions created indirectly.
The sector is thriving and it's important that we nurture our graduates and entrepreneurs so that the hub of activity in the start-up community can continue to grow in this country.
When I started RedMere I was joining a growing list of Irish technology and semiconductor companies that produce world-beating technology for global markets in everything from networking equipment to high definition TVs, tablets and smartphones.
RedMere pioneered a new technology called Active Cables (video cables with embedded devices to improve their performance) and is now the leader in the field. So how do you go from an idea to a business?
