Business First

01/12/2025

Belfast International Airport, part of the VINCI Airports network, has unveiled plans for a range of new food and beverage experiences as part of its wider five year £100m investment programme.

Coffee bar ‘Soul and Grain’ is the first of the new concepts, which opened on site this week, in partnership with leading food travel experts SSP Group.

A brand-new 300-cover premium bar and kitchen concept is being developed, to offer an elevated experience for passengers. Familiar favourites Starbucks and Burger King will remain alongside a new casual dining restaurant concept for families and larger groups. Northern Ireland’s iconic Lagan Bar will also be given a makeover with increased seating capacity.
Belfast International Airport
This next phase of work further enhances the commercial facilities at Belfast International and will complement the recently completed state-of-the-art security hall, world class duty-free shopping experience, new arrivals area, and enhanced forecourt.

Belfast International Airport has unveiled plans for a range of new food and beverage experiences as part of its wider five year £100m investment programme.

01/12/2025

StormHarvester, a Belfast-based software provider in the wastewater space, is proud to be named the overall winner in the Deloitte Fast 50 Awards – celebrating the top 50 fastest growing technology companies across the island of Ireland.

Marking 26 years of the programme in 2025, the award is based on revenue growth over a four-year period and recognises StormHarvester’s commitment to transforming how wastewater networks are monitored and managed. By combining advanced machine learning with sector expertise, StormHarvester helps utilities reduce flooding, prevent pollution events, and optimise performance.

“This award is a testament to the impact our technology is having on the industry,” said Brian Moloney, CEO and co-founder of StormHarvester. “Our team has worked tirelessly to support utilities as they navigate increasingly complex environmental challenges.

01/12/2025

Belfast-based strategy and design company Big Motive’s work in redesigning children’s services for Ireland’s Health and Service Executive (HSE) has won the Service & Strategic Design category at the IDI Awards, Ireland’s national design awards.

The award recognises Big Motive’s role in reshaping how children and families access support across the Midlands, Louth and Meath, where unclear referral pathways, long waits and siloed services were making it difficult for families and clinicians to get the right help at the right time.
Big Motive
The Belfast company’s work has seen referral waiting times in the region reduce from 23 weeks to 3 weeks. Big Motive’s campaign has also eliminated duplicate referrals to clinicians and helped the HSE in the region to achieve 60% less clinical time being spent on administration, freeing up more time for direct care.

Working with local care teams and HSE Spark Innovation, Big Motive co-designed a new Single Point of Access for children’s services.

Belfast-based strategy and design company Big Motive’s work in redesigning children’s services for Ireland’s Health and Service Executive

01/12/2025

Most people think PPC begins with spreadsheets and ends with spreadsheets; well, they wouldn't be completely wrong. Keywords, bids, match types, and conversions all play a fundamental role in shaping strategy.

But the truth is much messier, because every click comes from a human being who is tired, curious, stressed, bored, hopeful or frustrated.

This is why empathy should sit at the heart of any PPC strategy. It's the difference between ads that get ignored and ads that feel relevant. And let's be honest... relevance is what wins.
Targeting Works Better When It Understands Emotion
Platforms offer endless switches and filters, but they don't reveal the emotion driving the click. Someone might appear to be a perfect match on paper but be in the wrong mindset entirely. Another person might fall outside the ideal demographic but still convert because the messaging resonates with them. Real life doesn't follow set-in-stone audience definitions.

Most people think PPC begins with spreadsheets and ends with spreadsheets; well, they wouldn't be completely wrong.

01/12/2025

Northern Ireland businesses are losing £10.7 billion a year due to constant workplace interruptions, according to new analysis by Nasstar, a leading UK technology company.

The research reveals that a typical office worker in Northern Ireland faces some kind of disruption or interruption every four minutes during normal work hours, which equates to 120 interruptions each day from ad hoc meetings, emails and chats that are fragmenting focus and decimating business productivity.

Nasstar's analysis, which combined data from Microsoft's Work Trend Index with regional and sector-specific GDP and GVA data, indicates that these constant workplace interruptions result in a 25 per cent drop in business productivity across Northern Ireland's office-based roles.

Northern Ireland businesses are losing £10.7 billion a year due to constant workplace interruptions, according to new analysis by Nasstar,

01/12/2025

Fire safety is no longer limited to traditional alarms, extinguishers, and compliance checklists. As workplaces evolve into more digitally connected, technology-powered environments, fire safety must evolve with them. From smart sensors and real-time monitoring to portable, multi-risk extinguishing tools, today’s innovations are reshaping how businesses protect people, assets, and operations. Fire safety innovation is not just a safeguard; it is a strategic advantage.

Whether you manage a retail space, office, warehouse, healthcare facility, or manufacturing site, understanding emerging fire safety technologies can help you future-proof your business and reduce operational risk.
Fire Risks Are Changing, and So Must Protection
Modern business environments contain very different fire risks compared to even a decade ago. Electrical systems, lithium-ion batteries, digital equipment, commercial kitchens, and smart energy solutions all introduce new types of fire hazards.

Fire safety is no longer limited to traditional alarms, extinguishers, and compliance checklists.