The Dublin commissioner for startups role has been axed

DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL has announced that the Office of the Dublin Commissioner for Startups will be restructured when Niamh Bushnell steps down from her role as startup commissioner.

The move by the council means that no replacement will be hired for the outgoing Bushnell, who leaves the office next month.

As part of the restructuring plans, the duties of the Office of the Dublin Commissioner for Startups will be split between The Digital Hub, led by Fiach Mac Conghail, and the Ryan Academy centre for innovation at DCU, from the start of April.

Based in the Liberties in Dublin, the Digital Hub will now look after the monthly Brekkie event, the Dublin Globe newsletter and the Tech Concierge service which helps showcase Dublin’s startup scene to visitors.

The DCU Ryan Academy will manage the mentoring for scale programme. All these services will continue to be run from the Office of the Dublin Commissioner for Startups base in Custom House Quay.

Dublin City Council and the Ryan Academy have been the two major backers of the initiative since it was set up in 2014. There were also a number of other stakeholders who put money behind the project.

Mac Conghail told Fora that the city council will continue to fund the services it has taken over until December 2017.

He said the Digital Hub will undertake “a further evaluation before the end of the year to decide the future of the Tech Concierge, the Brekkie and Dublin Globe”.

Niamh Bushnell

Pilot project

Last year, Bushnell announced she would leave her position as head of the office in April after more than two years in the role.

The office, which was established in 2014, was set up to promote Dublin as a location for fast-growing tech firms to base their operations.

Speaking to Fora, Bushnell said even though the commissioner role doesn’t exist any more, her office has created a “solid base” for those in the Ryan Academy and the Digital Hub to build on.

“It was important for there to be a commissioner from day one. The title carries a lot of weight and opens a lot of doors here and internationally. Going forward I think we’ve created a solid base for what Fiach can do going forward,” she said.

“It’s kind of doesn’t matter if the role is there or if the title is there as long as the city is doing a great job of promoting itself as a tech and innovation hub.

“I think it is important that there is a strong leader to that activity and Fiach ticks that box very well. So his title is secondary I think.”

Under her leadership, the office also established other services such as TechIreland – a database of companies and organisations involved in the Irish startup sector. Bushnell said she will continue to lead this project over the coming months.

TechIreland's database

Bushnell was recently appointed to the board of FoodCloud – a non-profit startup that redistributes leftover food from grocers and businesses to charities.

She joined the board alongside Ryanair co-founder Declan Ryan, Brendan Dempsey, John Dunphy and Colum Gibson.