Growth at KEMP’s Limerick base
It has been an exciting, fast-paced journey since KEMP opened its doors in Limerick as part of its expansion into the European Marketplace. The base started with four employees in 2010. Globally, KEMP grew rapidly (winning the Crain NY Fast-50 and the Deloitte Fast 500 with 499% growth), and in 2012 announced that it would take on 25 new staff to build its EMEA HQ and Software R&D center. As KEMP’s stellar growth continued, a second announcement followed: the base would grow with 80 staff supporting our R&D, QA, Sales, Marketing, Support and Operations teams in Limerick.
Educational institutes help growth
The award was collected on behalf of the KEMP team by Marguerite O’Grady, general manager, and Deirdre Sarsfield, EMEA marketing manager. Deirdre said, “It’s a great achievement for the company which set up in Limerick partially because of one of the co-founder’s Irish roots, but also as recognition of the symbiotic relationship between the company creating the investment and the return on that investment through the talent and hard work from the local team.”
Marguerite added that the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) had been particularly influential in growing the company from five full-time employees in 2010 to 28 today. “We hire 90% of LIT students who come here on work placement once they graduate. The University of Limerick and LIT have helped us grow.”
Our heartfelt thanks and appreciation go to the Chamber, sponsors, judging panel and committee who put together such a fantastic evening in the Limerick Strand Hotel.
Limerick Chamber of Commerce Winners
The other winners honored on the night were:
- Best Start-Up / Emerging Business Award, sponsored by Limerick Institute of Technology: YellowSchedule
2014 Best SME Business Award, sponsored by Bank of Ireland: KEMP Technologies
2014 Best Large Business Award, sponsored by Holmes O’Malley Sexton: Grassland Agro
2014 Best Corporate Social Responsibility Award, sponsored by IDA Ireland: Dell Ireland
2014 Best Service Business Award, sponsored by Limerick City & County Council: Home Instead Senior Care
2014 Best Retail & Hospitality Business Award, sponsored by BDO: Michael Gleeson Shoes & Limerick Strand Hotel (joint winners)
2014 Best Sport, Art & Culture Business Award, sponsored by Northern Trust: The Lime Tree Theatre
2014 Overall Business of the Year Award: Grassland Agro
2014 Limerick Chamber President’s Award: Mr. Des O’Malley