Business Advisor

Welcome to our new staff spotlight section which highlights the many services delivered by Cork City Council on a daily basis. 

In this edition of our staff spotlight, you'll get to know our Business Advisor, Katie Dunne.

Tell us about your job?

Being a Business Advisor with the Local Enterprise Office Cork City, I’m part of a dynamic team delivering enterprise development and business support on behalf of Cork City Council and Enterprise Ireland. Our mission is to enable entrepreneurship, provide expert guidance and foster local economic growth.

My role involves implementing the corporate objectives of Cork City Council by helping entrepreneurs turn ambition into action and connecting them with the right supports whether that’s training, mentoring, or funding.

A key part of my role is guiding clients through the LEO funding process and ensuring finances are allocated where they will have the greatest impact. My vision is to assist clients in developing strong business plans, which in turn helps shape a solid funding strategy. It often feels a bit like Dragons’ Den: Business Advisors pitch client funding proposals to an independent evaluation committee of Cork business leaders for fund approval.

LEOs serve as a trusted access point to the wider enterprise ecosystem and our hands on approach allows us to build meaningful relationships with the business community. I’m active on the ground meeting founders, delivering talks to stakeholders and participating in incubator and development programmes in MTU and UCC to support Cork’s growing entrepreneurial landscape.

How did you end up working as a Business Advisor for the Local Enterprise Office Cork City?

A cocktail of hard work and a little luck has shaped my career to date. I’ve had a varied journey across both the public and private sectors, including a decade with the ETB where I worked in administration and as an adult education tutor delivering courses such as the QQI Level 5 Digital Marketing. The ETB was a formative part of my career and I still return to speak with 3^rd level students from time to time.

When opportunities began to re‑emerge after the post‑Celtic Tiger years, I was eager to progress. I transitioned into local government with Cork County Council, starting quite literally with a baptism of fire that is Housing. Coming from education it was a powerful introduction to the local authority sector. I’m a people person at heart and seeing the direct impact of my work on families and communities has been incredibly rewarding. It gave me a deep understanding of how national policy becomes real at local level.

I later moved to Cork City Council working as a Housing Officer in the northwest area office. Being part of the community during the post‑Covid recovery period was meaningful and grounding. It allowed me to see first hand the challenges our communities experience and the collaborative solutions being implemented by Cork City Council.

Then, serendipitously, the Business Advisor role became available. With my experience and an Honours Degree in Business Management, it felt like the right next step. I went for it and the rest, as they say, is history.

What does a typical day involve?

My role is community based, service oriented and very front‑facing. Each day, I am liaising with existing and prospective clients, supporting them with their business needs and connecting them with the right programmes, services and opportunities through the Local Enterprise Office.

Because the LEO calendar is always active, there is consistently something on the horizon that either I or the wider team are preparing for. We also have many opportunities for PR and profile building at both local and national level for Cork City businesses. This means we are regularly selecting and preparing clients for events that align with their sector or stage of growth such as Showcase (Ireland’s largest creative expo), the National Enterprise Awards, the Local Enterprise Village at the National Ploughing Championships and the Cork Summer Show, to name just a few.

When I’m not working directly with clients, much of my time is invested in planning and coordination for events that myself and the team are organising.

My favourite part of my job is that I get to witness joy. I get to see people succeed, grow, and achieve things they once thought were out of reach. Being even a small part of their story is incredibly special.

Just this week, one of those magic moments occurred. A client I supported with a LEO funding application over three years ago called to share that they had secured a major contract for their SaaS solution.

Moments like that make my role as a Business Advisor genuinely incredible. They capture the very essence of what local government is all about: providing guidance, encouragement, and both financial and human support to help entrepreneurs realise their ambition. Seeing that impact firsthand is something I never take for granted.

What can make your job challenging at times?

It’s a challenging time for businesses. Inflation, rising costs and increased pressures on employers all create a difficult environment. Naturally, this places a lot of strain on our clients and on a human level it can be hard to see people carry such a heavy load. I have huge respect for our clients, as well as the business associations and stakeholders who continuously step up for the Cork City business community.

Another challenge is my own impatience at times. I like to see progress, and I want things to move quickly for the people I’m supporting. However, accessing funding comes with terms and conditions and that criteria exists for good reasons including avoiding displacement. This means not every business will qualify for LEO funding even if they are working incredibly hard. Communicating that to a small local business can be very difficult, especially when you know how much the support would mean to them.

These challenges are part of the role, but they also reinforce the importance of doing the work with empathy, clarity, and a strong commitment to fairness.

What advice would you give your younger self?

I genuinely believe it’s the journey that shapes you and every experience, positive or negative, makes you a stronger person.

If I were speaking to my younger self, I’d keep it simple: back yourself. Don’t doubt your instincts, don’t quiet your own voice, and trust your intuition. It rarely sends you the wrong way.

“Beir Bua”, the Gaeilge for seize victory, has become a personal mantra of mine. It reminds me to go after opportunities wholeheartedly and to have no regrets.