Student from Dundalk Selected as Runner-up in Top Innovation Award

A 21-year-old student from Dundalk has been announced as a runner-up in the A&L Goodbody Bold Ideas Student Innovation Award. 

Dylan Markey, a Law & Business degree student at Maynooth University, was commended for his proposal to establish a crowdsourcing business called ' Soncom '. The overall winner was Conor Leavy from DCU.

The local student's idea aims to help Irish businesses ahead of the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) next year.

Soncom is billed as an intermediary for businesses in the IT and legal sectors whose primary purpose would be to provide services for companies that allow them to comply with new GDPR protection legislation.

The A&L Goodbody has held the Bold Ideas competition saw over 1,200 members of the public cast their vote on Facebook for their favourite submissions. The winner and runners-up were selected by a panel of three expert judges, in what marked the sixth year of the competition.

 John Whelan, Partner and Head of A&L Goodbody's Commercial and Technology Group said: "Bold Ideas inspires creativity and bold thinking among students and this year it gave students the opportunity to showcase great ideas to enhance Ireland as a global centre for data when the EU GDPR is introduced next year. Dylan's idea impressed the judges as an innovative and unique way to encourage businesses to establish here."

Dylan and fellow runner-up Áine McCarthy from Trinity College Dublin both received iPad minis for their innovative ideas. As a first prize winner, Conor Leavy received €4,000 in cash and an internship in A&L Goodbody’s Head Office in Dublin.The firm will also make a donation to a charity of his/her choice.