Fingal’s Kianda Technologies Hoping for Glory at National Enterprise Awards
File photo, taken prior to the Covid-19 pandemic
One of Fingal’s most impressive businesses, Kianda Technologies, have been announced as a finalist for this year’s National Enterprise Awards (NEA). The awards, an initiative of the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs), will take place virtually on the 11th February.
Kianda Technologies were selected to represent LEO Fingal at the awards and will compete against 29 other finalists for a prize fund totalling €50,000.
Kianda Technologies were founded by husband-and-wife team Derya and Osvaldo Sousa. The company provides an easy-to-use automation platform helping businesses replace manual processes with intuitive online applications, to eliminate inefficiency and increase productivity. Currently with a customer base across the globe, Kianda is transforming business processes in HR, quality, finance and more.
Kianda has grown from strength to strength in the last couple of years, having won the Best Start Up / New Business award at the Fingal Chamber Awards in 2018, as well as being one of three Irish tech companies featured in RTE’s ‘Boost my Business’ for their resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Co-founder Derya Sousa was also chosen to represent LEO Fingal as a ‘Leading Light’ at the National Women’s Enterprise Day (NWED) in 2020.
The finalists in this competition represent a diverse range of businesses that are supported by the LEOs across the country. Now in their 22nd year, the awards celebrate small businesses and includes awards that recognise excellence in exporting, sustainability and innovation along with 8 regional awards and an overall National Enterprise Awards winner.
This year also sees the addition of two new award categories that reflect the challenging business conditions that companies have faced in 2020. The Pivot Award will be presented to a company who has successfully pivoted their business in the face of challenging conditions in the last 12 months. The Brexit Ready Award will be presented to a company who have excelled in their preparation for Brexit particularly where it would have created specific challenges for them as a business.
Minister for Business, Employment and Retail, Damien English TD, said; “Through the National Enterprise Awards we celebrate the very best in small local companies who are leading in their field of business expertise. Over the past 20 years the awards have been the benchmark for excellence in micro-enterprise across the country. Looking at the list of winners, finalists and participants through the years it is easy to be inspired by our talented businesses and people who are the backbone of outstanding Irish entrepreneurs, many of whom are trading successfully across the globe. This year’s finalists are no different with some exceptional companies shortlisted. The very best of luck to all finalists and no doubt they will continue to grow beyond this and become part of Ireland’s growing international business community.
Chair of the LEO Network and Head of Enterprise in Fingal, Oisín Geoghegan said: “It has been a challenging year for small businesses, so this is a chance to highlight positive stories and businesses who have excelled in the face of unprecedented challenges. These businesses have been through a rigorous process of judging, auditing every aspect of their business and this in itself can be a huge benefit to them as they plan for the future. Whether they win or not these finalists are well positioned to follow in the footsteps of the great companies that have gone before them including Fingal winners such as Simtech Aviation, IFS Ltd., Keoghs Crisps and many other Fingal businesses that have gone on to win at National level.”
The National Enterprise Awards are one of several initiatives that the LEOs run to foster entrepreneurship across the country. Others include Local Enterprise Week, the Student Enterprise Programme and National Women’s Enterprise Day.
Local Enterprise Offices are funded by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland. Established within the Local Authorities in 2014, LEOs are an essential resource for any entrepreneur looking to start a business or any small business that is looking for support or advice to help them grow. The LEOs work with many thousands of companies and start-ups across Ireland in a diverse range of sectors offering mentoring, training, expert advice and financial supports to small businesses. For more information see www.LocalEnterprise.ie/awards