20 August, 2026

New micro-credential helps business advisors put the strongest evidence into practice.

Enrolment is now open for Effective Business Advice, a new Level 8 micro-credential for business advisors developed out of research at the Hincks Centre for Entrepreneurship Excellence. The course runs online over ten weekly workshops from October 2026.

Most professional development for business advisors teaches sector knowledge. Effective Business Advice does something different. It builds the advisor's own process expertise: the judgement to ask the right question, test the right assumption, and recognise the moment a client needs something the advisor cannot provide.

The methods taught are drawn from the newest and strongest available evidence on how advisors increase SME profitability and revenue growth. Critically, they are transferable. The same approaches have been applied successfully in contexts as different as film production, agricultural innovation, technology start-ups and social enterprise, which means they hold up whatever an advisor's sectoral focus happens to be.

Over the ten workshops, participants work through four core methods: visualising client goals, strategy and key milestones; identifying and testing the key assumptions inside a client's strategy; supporting and coaching clients to implement strategy proactively at daily and weekly level; and diagnosing when and what further specialist support a client needs. Alongside these, participants develop the underlying advisory skills of questioning, listening, constructively challenging assumptions, building accountability, and enabling clients to retain ownership of their own decisions.

The design is deliberately light. Ninety minutes a week, online, with no coursework burden beyond the sessions themselves. Participants leave with a full set of resources, slides, videos and notes ready to use directly with their own clients, so the material is usable from the first week rather than after the course ends.

The other benefit is the room itself. Places are capped at twenty, and participants join a weekly working group of advisors operating in very different contexts. That peer exchange is a large part of what participants take away.

The micro-credential suits people working in business advisory, enterprise support, training and facilitation, accountancy, mentoring and coaching, consultancy, incubation and start-up support, and regional development. Applicants should have some experience of advising or training SMEs, or be planning to start shortly. Wherever possible, participants should be in a position to try selected methods with real clients as the module runs, although this is not a requirement.

Course details

Course: Effective Business Advice (MGMT7107), NFQ Level 8, 2 credits
Delivery: Online, ten weekly workshops of 90 minutes
Dates: Thursdays, 14:00 to 15:30 Irish time, from 15 October 2026 to 17 December 2026
Attendance: At least 8 of the 10 sessions, including the final session on 17 December
Places: 20
Fee: €350
Applications close: 7 October 2026