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Moving to Ireland

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Re: Moving to Ireland

#31

Post by ncremins »

Kudos wrote: post #30
ncremins wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Stagnant is definitely not the right word for the IT industry in Ireland. It's anything but. There have been some huge native successes in the industry in such a short time frame. Look at the likes of soundwave or the guys in trustev whom are winning startup awards left right and centre. The amount of meet ups help make the IT industry in Ireland thrive. There barely goes a week without there being an event on someti…

Don't forget Intercom, who've hired around 10 people over the last year. Edit: 10 people in Dublin, I think their headcount is double or triple that in total.

Forgot to mention them and I'm typing on my phone. That growth has all come in the last 8 to 10 months too. Stagnant my ass :)

Re: Moving to Ireland

#32

Post by EamonLeonard »

nandemo wrote: post #19

One piece of advice that's missing: be sure to be born in Europe.

If you're from outside EU / EEA and are looking to startup something, this might be helpful:

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/types_of_emp...

http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/en/Start-a-Business-in-Ire...

If you're looking to work, you need a company to sponsor you, there's a green card programme, and in practice, it's not that difficult to get in if you're a programmer with a CS degree or equivalent experience. Sure there are forms and red tape... but it's not as many hoops to jump through as moving to the US.

More info on work visas / green cards for Ireland here: http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/migrant_work...

Re: Moving to Ireland

#33

Post by AoifeNiC »

anjc wrote: post #2

Do you still think that there's a dynamic fast-paced IT industry here? I'm a native, and to me it feels, for the most part (excluding some exceptional companies), stagnant and dependent on cheap non-EU labour.

Stagnant is the complete opposite of how to describe all the events and activity going on at the moment! IT is buzzing in Dublin right now.

Re: Moving to Ireland

#34

Post by tonyennis »

anjc wrote: post #2

Do you still think that there's a dynamic fast-paced IT industry here? I'm a native, and to me it feels, for the most part (excluding some exceptional companies), stagnant and dependent on cheap non-EU labour.

Probably unintended, but the ambiguous phraseology you used might give people the wrong impression of the Irish tech scene.

I can only speak for Dublin and I'd guess other comments are also referring to the capital. Some points I would add:

On top of tech giants mentioned previously, more recently: Airbnb, Dropbox, Qualtrics (Announced friday)

Large number of high quality domestic companies. Intercom, Datahug, Logentries...

Massive amount of free networking events. Great sense of community and willingness to help among them.

Several high quality incubators. NDRC, Wayra

Great government support & funding. IDA & Enterprise Ireland

Europe's largest technology event is held here. This October will have ~10k attendees, 8k flying in from outside Ireland. Disclosure: I work here

There's an article about moving to Ireland in Hacker News top 10

A few links published in the last 7 days alone:

http://www.irishtimes.com/business/sectors/technology/tech-f... http://www.siliconrepublic.com/start-ups/item/34294-ndrc-rec... http://blog.websummit.net/2013/09/19/a-letter-to-irish-start... http://connormurphy.blogspot.ie/2013/09/a-letter-from-irish-...

Re: Moving to Ireland

#35

Post by bhickey »

ithkuil wrote: post #21
nandemo wrote: post #19

One piece of advice that's missing: be sure to be born in Europe.

nitpick: probably you mean "be sure to have a citizenship in a EU country or Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway", which has nothing to do with the place somebody is born.

In this regard, Ireland has some exceedingly generous right of return laws. If you have documented lineage from an Irish grandparent, the process of obtaining citizenship is completely painless.

I obtained citizenship by this route in 2004 and was able to live and work in the UK with no visa requirement.

Re: Moving to Ireland

#36

Post by ajtaylor »

EamonLeonard wrote: post #32
nandemo wrote: post #19

One piece of advice that's missing: be sure to be born in Europe.

If you're from outside EU / EEA and are looking to startup something, this might be helpful: http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/types_of_emp... http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/en/Start-a-Business-in-Ire... If you're looking to work, you need a company to sponsor you, there's a green card programme, and in practice, it's not that difficult to get in if you're a programmer with a CS degree or equivalent…

I was working in Ireland until 2011, under the older work permit scheme. The major downside to this scheme was that the permit was tied to the employer - lose your job and you have to start all over. This is what happened to me right as the housing bubble was bursting, so we decided to leave the country rather than try to find a new job and deal with the time, expense and hassle of new paperwork. The Green Card sounds like a nice upgrade. I wish it had been available when I was first applying for my job.

Paperwork aside, Ireland is a fantastically beautiful country. I suggest you leave Dublin and head West to see the postcard Irish countryside. Get off the Motorways and onto the backroads. It will be well worth your while. :)

Re: Moving to Ireland

#37

Post by eshvk »

slashdotaccount wrote: post #22

I am constantly thinking about moving from the US to somewhere nice, please advise me some countries, here are my "wish list" of the country where I would love to live: - Civilized people - No extradition - Government is small and it respects people's freedom and privacy (which are protected by constitution), real freedom of speech, not the one when you can be arrested for a tweet, even if it leaked state secret or o…

Somalia might fit your bill. They have a non-functioning government. No working law enforcement. Not sure about the health infrastructure though.

Re: Moving to Ireland

#38

Post by krapp »

eshvk wrote: post #37
slashdotaccount wrote: post #22

I am constantly thinking about moving from the US to somewhere nice, please advise me some countries, here are my "wish list" of the country where I would love to live: - Civilized people - No extradition - Government is small and it respects people's freedom and privacy (which are protected by constitution), real freedom of speech, not the one when you can be arrested for a tweet, even if it leaked state secret or o…

Somalia might fit your bill. They have a non-functioning government. No working law enforcement. Not sure about the health infrastructure though.

But I'm sure it's a paradise compared to the cultural ignorance and savage tyranny of life in these United States...

Re: Moving to Ireland

#39

Post by rusureabouthtat »

tonyennis wrote: post #34
anjc wrote: post #2

Do you still think that there's a dynamic fast-paced IT industry here? I'm a native, and to me it feels, for the most part (excluding some exceptional companies), stagnant and dependent on cheap non-EU labour.

Probably unintended, but the ambiguous phraseology you used might give people the wrong impression of the Irish tech scene. I can only speak for Dublin and I'd guess other comments are also referring to the capital. Some points I would add: On top of tech giants mentioned previously, more recently: Airbnb, Dropbox, Qualtrics (Announced friday) Large number of high quality domestic companies. Intercom, Datahug, Logent…

>Several high quality incubators. NDRC, Wayra

I really wanted to believe this but after spending a good 15 minutes trawling through both of those incubator's portfolios, I'm left with the inescapable feeling that they're simply well polished investor fleecing vehicles with a specialization in putting lipstick on pigs...

How are any of these "startups" remotely likely to make any kind of respectable return for an incubator (and by extension the poor investors that have bankrolled it)?

http://wayra.org/en/startup/naymit?field_startup_area_del_pr...

http://www.ndrc.ie/projects/gotcha-ninjas/

http://www.ndrc.ie/projects/sneaky-vegetables/

http://www.ndrc.ie/projects/fred/

http://www.ndrc.ie/projects/busy-moos/

Color me very sceptical..

Re: Moving to Ireland

#40

Post by EamonLeonard »

rusureabouthtat wrote: post #39
tonyennis wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Probably unintended, but the ambiguous phraseology you used might give people the wrong impression of the Irish tech scene. I can only speak for Dublin and I'd guess other comments are also referring to the capital. Some points I would add: On top of tech giants mentioned previously, more recently: Airbnb, Dropbox, Qualtrics (Announced friday) Large number of high quality domestic companies. Intercom, Datahug, Logent…

>Several high quality incubators. NDRC, Wayra I really wanted to believe this but after spending a good 15 minutes trawling through both of those incubator's portfolios, I'm left with the inescapable feeling that they're simply well polished investor fleecing vehicles with a specialization in putting lipstick on pigs... How are any of these "startups" remotely likely to make any kind of respectable return for an incu…

Throwaway comment from a throwaway account. Stay classy.

Two obvious statements:

The vast majority of startups (incubated or otherwise) either fail, or plateau without giving a "respectable return".

Investment, regardless of the stage is risky.

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