Getting a new job is always exciting – but getting a new life is even better. If you are thinking of a career move, you could go one better and move to Galway.
Galway offers all the benefits of a big city, but with the friendliness of a small town. There are about 76,000 people living in the urban area. Many more choose to live in one of the charming villages that are a short drive away. But the city packs a lot of punch despite its compact size.
There’s the bustling nightlife, a thriving arts scene, a growing foodie culture, watersports, history, gorgeous natural scenery and more festivals than you shake a stick at. Let’s see… there’s the Galway Film Fleadh, the Galway Arts Festival, Cúirt International Festival of Literature, and the Galway Races, not to mention the Oyster Festival, the Fringe Festival, and the Comedy Festival. And that’s just a handful!
Of course there’s no point dreaming of heading out West unless you can find a job. (Hint: Jobs Expo Galway takes place on 11 February!). Read on!
Dublin may be the centre of Ireland’s technology sector, but Galway is nipping at the capital’s heels.
Jobs growth in the West of Ireland is a priority for the government and there’s a lot happening already. The West is a globally recognised medical technology hub and the ICT sector is booming too. Better still, many of these companies are in recruitment mode.
Galway is home to Avaya, EA Games, Cisco and HP. The city has a busy start-up scene too and its the birthplace of successful companies such as Altocloud, SpamTitan and OnePageCRM.
However, medtech is where the city really shines.
Galway employs one third of the country’s 25,000 medical device employees. Boston Scientific, Surmodics, Zeltiq, Advant Medical and are just some of the medical device and medtech employers based in the City of Tribes.
In addition, Galway has a strong local economy. Tourism and hospitality, as well as commerce and manufacturing sectors are all performing well. It's no wonder tourism is booming – around 2 million people visit the City of Tribes every year.
Galway is within an hour’s drive of Shannon airport – handy for trips to the US! Plus with the M4 motorway connecting Dublin and Galway, the two cities are only two hours drive apart. In addition, Galway has a well-connected rail and bus network. Wherever you might want to go, you can get their easily from Galway.
We are happy to announce that BCS Sales Recruitment team will return to Jobs Expo. BCS are the main sponsors of our Galway event, which takes place on Saturday 11 February 2017.
BCS Sales Recruitment is a specialist consultancy, providing human resources services to a number of sectors. These include sales, IT and pharmaceutical. They are experts in the selection of specialised professionals from graduate trainee to senior management and director level.
BCS are the main sponsors of Jobs Expo. They are the organisers of the Jobs Expo events in Dublin, Cork and Galway as well as the dynamic team behind Virtual Expos Ireland.
“We’ve always had great success at the event,” says Bronagh Cotter of BCS. “Jobs Expo connects employees and employers, but it also offers recruitment firms an opportunity to build new relationships with candidates.”
During Jobs Expo, the BCS Sales Recruitment team of recruitment specialists will be on hand. The team will advise jobseekers on a number of subjects. These include CV preparation, interview skills, and career development. Their jobseeker services are available to anyone looking for employment. If you are a recent graduate, changing career, returning to work or unemployed after a dismissal, BCS can help.
“Our jobseeker services have been developed over our many years in recruitment. Candidates may have a wealth of energy and talent to offer, but many are unsure how to sell themselves to employers. Others underestimate the importance of abilities that are not easy to categorise on a CV, such as soft skills, and fail to highlight these. That is where BCS can help. We work closely candidates and employers to find the best fit for both of them.”
Bronagh believes that successful recruitment is about creating mutually beneficial relationships between employers and employees.
“Companies don’t just consider professional skills and experience when they want to fill a role – they want to meet candidates who will slot into their company’s culture. By the same token, jobseekers, particularly those with in-demand skills, want more than just a good salary. For some, working on innovative projects or with cutting-edge companies is as important, if not more so, than remuneration; for others, travel, the potential for promotion, or work-life balance are crucial,” says Bronagh.
“BCS works to match a candidate’s career ambitions and expectations with the right company. We don’t consider it a job well done unless both the employer and employee benefit. We spent so much of our day at work that accepting anything less is simply unacceptable.”
How would you like to work at Ashford Castle? The opulent hotel is exhibiting as well as recruiting at Jobs Expo Galway on Saturday 11 February 2017.
Ashford Castle is set on 350 acres of parkland and overlooks Lough Corrib. The hotel has a reputation for unrivalled service and warm Irish hospitality, in addition to five star luxury and fine dining. As a result, Ashford Castle is one of the most prestigious hotels in Europe and was recently voted the "Best Hotel in the World."
First built in 1228 by the Anglo-Norman de Burgo family, Ashford Castle has a long history. In 1852, the Guinness family bought the castle. The new owners extended the building and the estate as well as planted thousands of trees. Noel Huggard bought Ashford Castle in 1939 and established it as a hotel. In 1965, a group of Irish-American investors bought the hotel. Finally, in 2013 Red Carnation Hotels bought Ashford Castle and began serious renovations on the property. The iconic hotel reopened in April 2015 after a two-year renovation and restoration programme.
The hotel serves upmarket, creative Irish cuisine using seasonal ingredients from the West of Ireland. The hotel has four dining rooms including the palatial George V Dining Room for fine dining and a casual bistro. Afternoon tea served in the elegant Connaught Room. Ashford Castle also has an extensive wine cellar.
The hotel has several amenities and activities. There is an indoor pool, a spa, a cinema, 9-hole golf course, and a falconry school.
In addition, outdoor activities on the estate include:
Ashford Castle values employees who have a passion for hospitality as well as a positive can-do attitude. All staff members receive training to help them achieve their career goals. Red Carnation Hotels was voted number 3 in the Sunday Times “Top 100 Companies to Work For (2016).”
Don't miss your chance to learn about jobs at Surmodics at Jobs Expo Galway in February 2017.
Surmodics offers advanced technologies which enable as well as enhance medical devices and in vitro diagnostics. The company acts as a collaborative strategic partner offering solutions to their clients. As a result, they help their clients go from concept to commercialisation faster by leveraging their proven experience. Therefore, they improve patient lives and support customer objectives through technology innovation.
The company’s history of collaborative innovation began with three scientists. They came together to use their organic, photochemical, and immunodiagnostic expertise to develop and commercialise diagnostic and medical products.
Established as Bio-Metric Systems in 1979, Surmodics has since shifted its strategic objective from contract research to the commercialisation of its unique PhotoLink® surface modification and immobilization technologies. Furthermore, in 1990, they added the marketing of biomolecule stabilisation products.
In July 1997, the company changed its name to Surmodics, Inc. They became a public company on March 4, 1998.
In August 2007, Surmodics further broadened its product portfolio within the in vitro diagnostic market after they acquired BioFX Laboratories.
Today, Surmodics focuses its expertise in two ways:
In June 2016, Surmodics announced that they were to create 100 new jobs in Ireland over the next five years. The expansion is part of a major €7m investment by the company into its Irish facility. Furthermore, the company is to invest another €9.5m into two research and development projects at the Galway base.
Don't miss your opportunity to work with SL Controls. We are delighted to announce that SL Controls are exhibiting as well as recruiting at Jobs Expo Galway in February 2017.
Established in 2002, SL Controls has since grown to become an internationally recognised industry leader in equipment system integration and system support. They work with companies in the pharma, medical device, healthcare and food and beverage sectors. SL Controls offers companies innovative and cost-efficient solutions. These are in relation to automation, process analysis, validation and serialisation. Therefore, each of their solutions are tailored programmes of work to meet a client’s needs.
SL Controls has also developed a unique process for equipment system integration (DiVOM). The DiVOM process saves up to 30% on a company’s equipment operating costs. It also ensures that companies integrate the most appropriate technology to meet their production requirements.
SL Controls has specialist teams of engineers working with companies in the pharma, medical device, healthcare and food and beverage sectors, throughout Ireland and the UK.
The company has offices in Sligo, Galway, Dublin and Limerick. They have an ongoing need for experienced engineering personnel to work on a diverse range of projects across all areas of equipment system integration and system support.
SL Controls offer employees extensive opportunities for professional as well as personal development including:
In addition, SL Controls has a Graduate Programme. This provides the knowledge and skills to achieve excellence in equipment systems engineering. It also prepares graduates for advanced engineering roles within complex manufacturing environments.
If you are interested in jobs at SiteMinder, don't miss Jobs Expo Galway on Saturday 11 February 2017. SiteMinder is a leading cloud platform for hotels. As a result, they empower hotels to attract, reach and convert guests across the globe. The company serves hotels of all sizes. SiteMinder offers award-winning solutions for small independent hotels as well as hotel groups, wherever they are in the world.
SiteMinder began as an Australian start up. Since then, the company has grown exponentially and are now a major global force in travel technology.
SiteMinder’s products include The Channel Manager, the hotel industry’s leading online distribution platform. They also offer The Booking Button, a booking engine for direct bookings via the web, mobile or social media. Further products include Canvas, an intelligent website creator for independent hoteliers and Prophet, a real-time market intelligence solution that takes the guesswork out of pricing rooms. Finally, they offer GDS by SiteMinder, a single-point of entry to a six-figure network of travel agents and the world’s major global distribution systems.
SiteMinder is a young and innovative company offering a diverse range of job opportunities. They are also a global company with a presence in more than 160 countries on six continents.
SiteMinder currently employs over 500 staff around the world. They have offices in Sydney, Dallas, London, Bangkok and now Galway. In addition, the company has representatives in many different cities around the world. These include Cape Town, Honolulu and Ho Chi Min City as well as New York.
Galway is the company’s newest office location. Here they are building great multilingual sales and support teams.