Celtic Tiger and Celtic Cat

Abstract

This paper analyzes the relationship between the business schools and the economic growth in two areas, Ireland and Galicia. In the last few years, many studies have been carried out on the Celtic Tiger miracle, i.e., on the spectacular economic growth Ireland experienced between 1995 and 2007. All the studies agree on the key factors that explain this progress, including the commitment to specialized training designed to guarantee the competitiveness of its companies at an international level, in particular in the technology, chemical/pharmaceutical and food and agricultural sectors. Given the limitations of its domestic market, all entrepreneurial initiatives linked to these areas have targeted export markets, and these efforts have received government's support and been reinforced by a close collaboration between universities and the business world. Within this context, business schools have played a crucial role given their close ties to business, not only as far as supplying skilled labor, but also by providing business advice as well as a space that serves as a meeting point for entrepreneurs. This situation has fostered the development of a modern, dynamic and, above all, enterprising entrepreneurial culture. The close links between Ireland and Galicia (a Celtic region in the north-west of Spain) are due to geographical, historical and cultural factors; however, this is not the case in terms of their evolution over the last few decades. This paper aims to contribute to a better understanding of the Celtic Tiger miracle through a study of Irish business schools that analyses their efficiency and compares this to that of their counterparts in Galicia during the 1997-2002 period in order to determine if, as in the case of their economies, there are any significant competitive differences.