Month: August 2021

Helen Murphy joins Cork Business Association as their Business & Communications Manager. A city native and self-confessed lover of all things Cork, Helen brings with her a wealth of experience of working with Cork-based businesses.

She spent over 30 years with successful local software company Statsols, primarily in international sales and marketing roles, facilitating the successful launch of new products to global markets and building long-lasting business relationships with international pharmaceutical giants, world-renowned academic institutions and government agencies in the USA, Europe and the Far East.

In more recent years, Helen has worked with high-tech start-up companies as part of the Enterprise Ireland Mentor Network. She holds a B.Comm and MBA from UCC and is also a qualified funeral and wedding celebrant.

On her appointment to the CBA Helen said “I am totally thrilled and honored to be afforded the unique opportunity of working with the Cork Business Association. The CBA has always been highly prized for the hands-on, practical yet strategic approach taken to issues that arise for its members. I hope to build on this reputation to enhance the service provided by CBA as we begin to see the city emerge, grow and flourish in the post Covid-19 era. Cork is a city on the rise and the Cork Business Association is in prime position to contribute to this recovery and see the city reach its full potential through the continued growth and development of its businesses.”

Helen invites all members of the CBA to give her a call or drop her an email to discuss any issues with which she can be of assistance and looks forward to meeting with everyone in person as soon as it is safe to do so.

CBA President, Eoin O’Sullivan, Directors and Executive are delighted to welcome Helen to the Cork Business Association and wish her every success in the role as CBA Business & Communications Manager.

Trigon Hotels cycled the distance from Cork to Dublin and back during a six hour spinathon in Cork City Centre last Friday. The event raised over €1,000 for Cope Foundation.

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Supporting staff as they readjust to life in the workplace 

Whether it’s the return to an established routine or for the social aspect, most employees will be delighted to get back to the workplace. And yet, in the process of returning, it’s possible that one or two employee conduct issues could arise.

That may be employees not following health & safety protocols, wishing instead to work remotely, or being uncooperative in the broader sense. Whatever the reason for an employee’s misconduct, it’s important that you address the issue and support them as they readjust to life in the workplace.

To brief you on how to do this, Peninsula are hosting a free webinar on Wednesday, 1st September at 11am that will cover:

• Managing employee resentment (on-site vs hybrid workers).

• How to handle employees who fail to observe health & safety protocols.• When to take disciplinary action and how to conduct proceedings.

Effective Absence Management

Picture this: You’ve recently reopened, customers are stopping by your business, and the future looks bright. But then, and without warning, one of your employees calls in sick. Or says they can’t make it in but won’t say why. This type of absence can be frustrating…and disruptive.

While sickness absence, or an employee requesting an extended break for another health reason isn’t uncommon, it can upset the flow of your business. How you react to each case of absence can make all the difference, and Peninsula want to show you how best to manage them.

To do this, they are hosting a free absence management webinar on Thursday 9th September at 11am. What you will learn:

• How employee absence can affect your business.

• The importance of consistently following procedure when handling absences.

• When absence becomes an issue, what can you do?

Updating Employee Contracts & Policies

As a business owner, it’s vitally important that your employment contracts and policies are up to date. But, staying on top of documentation isn’t always easy, with your attention centred on making your business a success.

That means your employment contracts and policies might not reflect the way your business currently works. For instance, you might now have employees working remotely, changes to make to your sick leave policy, or amends needed to policies affected by the Work Safely Protocol.

To help you review and update these vital documents, Peninsula are hosting a webinar on September 15th at 11am that will discuss:

• The difference between an employee contract and handbook.

• How to review and update essential employment contracts and policies.

• How to communicate changes to employees.

Restructuring: Workforce planning, employee upskilling, and redundancy

Restructuring is a HR term used to describe an internal change in a business to respond to evolving circumstances. At present, that translates to a business working to return to regular operating levels following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. To do that, employers may consider hiring more staff, upskilling their current employees, or perhaps letting some people go.

To find out more about restructuring, including the risks, join Peninsula's free webinar on Wednesday 22nd September at 11am where our expert presenter will cover:

• The importance of defining why you may need to restructure your business.

• How to handle the redundancy/lay-off process.

• Risks of restructuring and post-restructure challenges.

Cork city’s architecture, design and food festival, Design POP, returns to the streets of Cork this August 27th - 29th. Enjoy architecture, food, and design through a series of outdoor architectural pavilions, events, and conversations. As part of this year’s line-up, the festival will hold two free exhibitions:

THE MILKING STOOL PROJECT - sponsored by Abbey Woods

Location: The Secret Garden, Nano Nagle Place

Friday 27th August - Sunday 29th August

Admission FREE

The Milking Stool exhibition, sponsored by Abbey Woods, is a celebration and showcase of the diverse talent of furniture designers throughout Ireland. By challenging each designer to embody their unique design style through the medium of the humble milking stool. This is a unique opportunity to create a modern reinterpretation of this traditional form.

“Milking stools were normally carved from elmwood with legs of ash wood. Most were three-legged so that the milkmaid could lean forward into the cow without toppling over. On uneven ground, three legs are more stable than four.”

The challenge is to create a stool out of one piece of hardwood timber, all designers will be given the exact same amount of material to create their designs. The stools will form an exhibition that will be displayed in the secret garden in Nano Nagle Place  for the duration of the weekend. The furniture pieces will be sold during the festival, and each designer will receive the full amount of the winning bid for their work.

Design POP has selected a number of Ireland’s leading furniture designers to take part in this challenge/ exhibition: multidisciplinary designer-maker and craftsperson Sara Murphy; timber fanatics with a passion for designing and making beautiful personable objects, Sam agus Nessa; Colin Harris from his rural studio in Newcastle Co. Dublin; Brian Tyrell of Bear Creation; furniture designer and maker currently operating out of Benchspace in Cork City, Rory Drinan; Warren Hayes of Coolree Design  Studio and workshop; Utrecht native Ben Gabriel; Cian O' Driscoll of Cian's Creative Concepts; modern journeyman and Dearcán Bursary Awarded Craftsman 2019-2020, Joe Bishop; Adrian Duyn of Joop Duyn & Sons; David Scannell of Five Horizons Design with Foley & Crowley Architects (James Crowley and Feargal Foley), and Studio Harris with Daniel Gill.

Descriptions of each stool can be found here: https://www.designpop.ie/exhibitions-shop

RIAI - BISHOP LUCEY PARK EXHIBITION

Location: Cork Centre for Architectural Education, Douglas Street, Cork

10.30am - 6pm, Saturday 28th August 2021

Admission FREE

RIAI along with Cork City Council will present an exhibition of the winner and shortlisted entries for the Architectural competition for Bishop Lucey Park. The 12 boards will be displayed in the CCAE (Cork Centre for Architectural education) exhibition space from 10:30am-6pm on Saturday the 28th of August.

There will also be a panel discussion between Cork City Architect Tony Duggan, Sandra O’Connell Director of Architecture and Communications at the RIAI, and the winners of the competition Hall McKnight Architects, 4pm, Saturday 28th August at CCAE, Douglas Street.

The Festival programme, it’s biggest yet, also includes 7 free pop-up pavilions across Cork city, and over 15 free and ticketed events at Wandesford Quay. Visit www.designpop.ie for full details.

Design POP is supported by Backwater Artists Group, Cork Printmakers and the Lavit Gallery through the Arts Council of Ireland's in The Open – Faoin Spéir award: A curated programme of multi-disciplinary, inclusive arts activities in community outdoor spaces running from July 2021-April 2022. #InTheOpenFaoinSpeir

Design POP is also made possible with generous support from Cork City Council and LEO Cork City.

www.designpop.ie

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Twitter / @designpopcork

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All fairies and superheroes are invited along to Cork City's new Playful Culture Trail this weekend, for some dressing up cultural fun before heading back to school.

The Lord Mayor of Cork Cllr. Colm Kelleher is encouraging families to visit the city's galleries, museums and attractions, which have been given a playful makeover this summer.  And those that dress up in their favourite costume this weekend could be in with a chance of winning the ultimate play day out in Cork City for 2 children and 2 adults, with entry to 4 attractions of their choice on the trail, a mini tea party with hot chocolate and pastries for the children and coffee for the parents at St Peters Cork, and a €50 Vibes and Scribes voucher.

The Playful Culture Trail features 30 fun and playful places where kids can explore the city's culture, heritage and green spaces through play.

Commenting, the Lord Mayor said, "The Playful Culture Trail is a fantastic initiative, which Cork City Council is proud to be a key sponsor of.  Our museums, galleries and attractions have come together to make their spaces more playful to encourage more children and families to visit.  The idea is to make kids VIPs so they get excited about culture and our city's heritage from an early age, which is wonderful.  Culture helps to develop thinking skills, build self-esteem, and improves resilience as well as broadening horizons and encouraging curiosity.  I'm really looking forward to exploring more of it with my own children".

When children go to the city's cultural attractions, they're given a fabulous tote bag with unique activity sheets at each location, crayons, a bookmark and pure cork pen and are sent off on all sorts of challenges from investigation work, to sketching superheroes, crosswords, word hunts, scavenger hunts, and colouring!  The pack also contains a colourful and child friendly map which highlights 30 child friendly places to explore the city's culture, heritage, and green spaces through play.

So, what can you do on the trail?

1. Scoot down the marina
2. Explore with coke zero bikes
3. Go otter spotting along the lee
4. Have a picnic at Bell's Field
5. Find Bláithín the lizard
6. Make a daisy chain at Nano Nagle Place
7. Find out your 'bog' age at The Butter Museum
8. Get locked up at Cork City Goal
9. See underground at Triskel Christchurch
10. Get in the stocks at Elizabeth Fort
11. Find the medieval bowling ball at Cork Public Museum
12. Fire your imagination at the city library
13. Play chase or fly a kite in the lee fields
14. Skim a stone across the Lee
15. Float a paper boat on the lough
16. Star gaze at Blackrock Castle Observatory
17. Find the centre of the labyrinth at St Finbarre's Cathedral
18. Discover the playground at Old Cork Waterworks
19. Pose like a sculpture at the Crawford Art Gallery
20. Find the right time on one of the 4 clock faces of Shandon
21. Play pooh sticks at the Glen River park
22. Make a wish on the witches wishing steps at Blarney castle
23. Run over the shaky bridge
24. Balance on a silver ball at Fitzgerald's Park
25. Find the little boys on the rubble of St. Peter's
26. Find the shiny tree in Fitzgerald's Park
27. Do the UCC art trail at the Glucksman
28. Find the Cork town walls at Bishop Lucey park
29. Hunt for medals at the military museum, Collins Barracks
30. Treat yourself to sweets in Lenihan's, Shandon

And one of the biggest hits of the trail is searching for Bláithín the Irish lizard, the trail mascot who is playing hide and seek at lots of venues!

This project is part of an overall mission to make Cork a playful, child friendly, active city  and was developed in collaboration with all of the participating museums, galleries and attractions in Cork, in partnership with Playful Paradigm, Cork City Council, Cork Local Sports Partnership, Pure Cork, and Bus Eireann.

Some venues are free and others offer family rates.  For more see purecork.ie/playtrail. #LetsPlayCork #ActiveCorkCity.

Harley’s Street Food Market launched with tacos, burgers, cocktails, and coffee

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Cork City's Playful Culture Trail joins in celebrations of International Youth Day by inviting kids to discover, explore and play

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Trigon Hotels hopes to make everyday interactions a little easier for customers with hidden disabilities. The Cork based company is the first hotel group in the Republic of Ireland to become Just A Minute (JAM) Card friendly.  Read more

Cork City Council is inviting applications from city centre-based businesses, institutions, local community-based groups and residents associations to its City Centre Placemaking Fund.

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