Google is offering classes to give Irish start-up founders an edge

6 Apr 2022

Image: © William/Stock.adobe.com

The Google Startup School will host a series of free virtual classes to help Irish founders upskill and boost their business.

Founders of start-ups in Ireland will soon have access to a training programme and resources to build and scale their businesses through the Google Startup School.

Starting 13 April, founders and their teams will be able to join free virtual classes organised by Google in association with Dogpatch Labs and Enterprise Ireland. Here, they will learn how to harness the power of Google tools and products such as Analytics, Ads and Cloud.

The classes, which will take place every Wednesday and Thursday for six weeks, will also include training sessions on securing funding, expanding internationally and becoming a successful founder. Class sizes are set to be capped so that everyone has a chance to interact.

“It’s no secret that Ireland is well known for its entrepreneurial start-up culture and building successful start-ups. We want to continue our contribution to nurturing the start-up community and providing free access to this training is one way of doing that,” said Paddy Flynn, VP of Geo operations at Google.

Some of the training sessions will be led by start-up leaders including Pat Phelan, who co-founded Sisu aesthetic clinics after selling anti-fraud start-up Trustev. Other names include Alison Sheehy, digital marketing lead at Gym+Coffee, and Ryan Scott, CEO of DropChef.

Jake Phillips, ecosystem development director at Dogpatch Labs, said the Dublin hub is focused on providing a “valuable community for start-ups” and that the Google Startup School “will be another great avenue for start-ups to access expert knowledge to grow their businesses”.

Unlike in a structured course, classes in the Google Startup School programme can be registered for individually to suit the specific needs of founders and start-up leaders.

This is not Google’s only initiative in the start-up space. Last month, it announced the 2022 call for its $4m Black Founders Fund aimed at tackling inequality in VC funding. The company also has a Grow with Google programme for small and medium-sized businesses looking to scale.

10 things you need to know direct to your inbox every weekday. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of essential sci-tech news.

Vish Gain was a journalist with Silicon Republic

editorial@siliconrepublic.com