Here’s something worth phoning your sons and daughters in Australia about.

Did you know that if you make an introduction between a company you know abroad that is thinking about expanding into Ireland and the organisation Connect Ireland (the entity charged by the Government with attracting international SMEs to our shores), you could be rewarded to the sum of between €1,500 and €3,000 per sustainable job created?

Really, the potential to create revenue from this arrangement is huge, yet no one really seems to be talking about it – or at least they weren’t until three weeks ago when the Play Your Part – Help Bring Your People Home meeting was held in Longford.

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This meeting was one of a series of initiatives being driven by business and community groups in Leitrim, Roscommon, Longford and Cavan, who are taking the task of creating employment into their own hands by driving a strategy that will help attract investment into the country.

They plan to arrange such investment by utilising the extensive network of GAA clubs abroad, and their contacts.

The meeting was supported by the four GAA county committees and county councils and Bord na Móna.

However, what no one anticipated when organising this strategy was that it would bring to light a significant number (110) of jobs that are currently available in this four-county region alone.

These jobs were promoted at the Longford meeting and one point the employers were keen to stress in conversation with Irish Country Living was the importance of the GAA in keeping local people based locally. They all agreed that the draw of GAA clubs and the commitment that comes with it, plays a significant role in staving off the attraction of the bright city lights for young people.

“The GAA is crucial in keeping people in the area,” says Martin Dowd of Finesse Medical.

“There aren’t a huge amount of people around in the early to mid-20s.”

Donal McNamee of Archway Products notes: “The GAA is the nucleus of social interaction when other social outlets, for example pubs, are being decimated. No one is closer to the ground than the GAA in seeing what’s happening for young people.”

Sásta Fitness

Based: Carrick-on-Shannon/Nationwide

No of jobs available: Three+

Sásta Fitness is a fitness franchise with a number of studios around the country that guarantee clients will lose a dress size in a month. CEO Fiona Egan says three new employees are required in Drogheda where a new Sásta studio is being opened. There will be more positions available when Sasta’s new studio opens in Cork. In fact, Fiona says the company will need a bank of people in the next six months and is currently taking CVs to fill positions as needs arise. Sásta is also looking into international expansion, with a studio opening in Brighton this summer and another one opening in Spain in late 2014. The company expects to enter the US by 2015.

Finesse Medical

Based: Longford town

No of jobs available: 17

Finesse Medical is a business based in Longford town since 2006 that manufactures woundcare products for the export market. It is hoping to increase its workforce by 30 to 35 people over the next three years. Finesse Medical is recruiting to fill a quality engineer position, a process engineer position and a number of production operative positions (10 to 15 between now and the end of the year). For the quality engineer and process engineer positions, the company is looking for people with degrees in engineering or a quality discipline with three to five years experience, preferably in medical device manufacturing.

Cora Systems

Based: Carrick-on-Shannon

No of jobs available: 25

Established in 1999, Cora Systems currently has 25 people employed across their Irish and UK offices and is looking to expand to 50 people in the next 18 months. Cora Systems requires ambitious net developers, business analysts, project coordinators and business developers (online and face-to-face). In fact, the company is always on the lookout for good staff that want to relocate to the Carrick-on-Shannon area where its headquarters are based. Cora Systems delivers portfolio, programme and project software. Its primary product, ProjectVision, is used by clients to help manage and deliver large numbers of projects on time and control project costs and overrun, so money is not wasted. In 2010, the business was 80% domestic and 20% export, but Cora has since reversed that trend and 80% of its revenue now comes from exports to Britain.

Merenda

Based: Manorhamilton, Co Leitrim

No of jobs available: Three

Merenda is a furniture component manufacturer, based in Manorhamilton, Co Leitrim, where the company employs 16 people. Having filled one position on the factory floor, the company has a further three positions to fill. The first is a sales development executive for Ireland, the second is a marketing executive with skills in digital marketing and the third is product development and project manager. Merenda exports to the UK, Middle East, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

Prior PLM Medical

Based: Carrick-on-Shannon

No. of jobs available: 60 positions to be filled between now and 2020

If you’re seeking a career in the medical devices support industries then Prior PLM Medical may be the company for you. It is currently seeking mechanical engineers, metrology engineers, product design technicians and electronic and automation technicians to join its workforce. Prior PLM Medical was established in 1985 in Carrick-on-Shannon. The company was formerly known as Prior Tool and Die Ltd when it worked as a traditional mechanical engineering company, but in 2000 it made the move to the medical devices industry.

Since then, Priors has evolved to provide a Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) service to multinationals, helping to bring innovative new products to the market. The company offers several services which range from medical device research and development to product design, prototype tooling, SMART Metrology Systems and MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) services. The company has expanded its workforce from 18 to over 40 in the past four years.

Vistamed

Based: Carrick-on-Shannon/Rooskey, Co Roscommon

No of jobs available: 30

Vistamed is a medical devices company in Carrick-on-Shannon, which also has a base in Rooskey, Co Roscommon. The company is taking on 30 process assurance operators between now and the end of the year. These positions are on the production floor, manufacturing catheters. A third-level qualification is not required.

The company is looking for people with experience in medical devices or in manufacturing and assembly (particularly if they’ve experience working with small parts), but concedes it’s not always possible to get such candidates. Potential employees should be interested in working in a team environment that manufactures under deadlines and strict guidelines (as a result of EU regulation that controls the medical devices industry). Vistamed employs 250 people between its two bases.

Archway Products

Based: Jamestown, Co Leitrim

No of jobs available: Three

Archway Products has been operating since 1990 when it started manufacturing farm machinery, specifically bale wrappers. Archway Products now manufactures and sells machinery for road repair and also hires out its services on a contract basis for the repair of roads. It is based in Jamestown, near Carrick-on-Shannon, and has 26 on the payroll, but as a lot of the work is based in Britain, 12 of the 26 are primarily based in Britain. The company is currently recruiting to fill three different roles: office administrator (it is looking for someone with great organisation skills), welder/fabricator (it needs someone with the ability to weld – principally tank fabrication), while the third position is for a machine operator/driver. Someone who’s capable of operating a machine is required for this position. The candidate will be based in Britain, but can come home every three weeks. They must have a truck licence and while an artic licence is preferable, it’s not required.

Lakeland Dairies

Based: Killeshandra, Co Cavan

No. of positions available: 10+

Lakeland Dairies is currently recruiting to fill three positions based in Killeshandra: a PLC/SACAD automation engineer, an IT systems and help desk support, and an IT software engineer. It is also looking for seasonal process operators, laboratory technicians and assistants (Lakeland says the recruitment of additional laboratory personnel is currently its most urgent requirement). Furthermore, Lakeland Dairies will announce details for its 2015 graduate programme in September for which it plans to take on four to six graduates.

Midas Technologies

Based: Mullingar

No of jobs available: Sourcing on an ongoing basis

Midas Technologies is an IT company based in Mullingar and was founded in July 2013 with just three employees. It now employs 22 people. Midas has four full-time employees that started with the company originally on JobBridge internships. The company is currently sourcing web developers/Java consultants and IT specialists to place with clients, as well as technical support positions for Midas Technologies itself. Midas’ core business is IT outsourcing and services, resource provision and a business support centre. The company provides highly skilled technical engineers, software developers and project managers to other companies. For a fixed monthly charge, Midas also supplies a range of specific products including infinITe and Desktops365, which are an end-to-end solution for IT support and needs within companies.