Why Dublin is the perfect base for an insurance technology business

Our many customers in the London Market are used to seeing us out and about in EC3’s offices, conference venues, bars and restaurants. So much so, they could be forgiven for overlooking the fact that the vast majority of our operations are based in Dublin. DOCOsoft is an Irish company, and proud of it. Putting pride aside, however, there are many good practical reasons for basing a technology business in Dublin. In this blog, we’ll take a quick look at just a few of them.

For one thing, Dublin benefits from a robust and dynamic higher education ecosystem, providing a fertile environment for a thriving tech business. As Ireland’s academic epicentre, Dublin is home to several major universities, including Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin (UCD), Dublin City University (DCU), and – of particular significance for DOCOsoft, many of whose star recruits have come from here – Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin). Each of these institutions contributes to a steady flow of skilled graduates in computer science, engineering, business and related disciplines. Dublin’s well-respected universities maintain strong ties with industry, so students graduate with real-world experience and job-ready skills. All of this provides the perfect innovation-focused environment tosupport DOCOsoft’s long-term growth.

Dublin also attracts a talented and diverse population of international students. For tech businesses, this concentration of well-educated, technically literate students feeds a dependable pipeline of high-calibre employees with strong digital skills and business acumen. Dublin’s higher education institutions also benefit from significant government investment in digital innovation, enhanced by the city’s status as a hub for global tech giants like Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Dell, Trane, Cisco and Oracle. This, in turn, helps attract top academic talent and creates a virtuous cycle of research, innovation and enterprise. All of which is good for DOCOsoft and good for the (re)insurance carriers who work with a DOCOsoft claims management system (CMS).

Dublin’s youthful population is another key aspect of its appeal. Almost half the city’s residents are under 35, making it one of the youngest capitals in Western Europe. In fact, Dublin’s age profile is markedly younger than those of cities like Berlin, Paris and Copenhagen, where ageing populations are a growing concern. This youthful demographic is driven by a combination of factors: a high birth rate compared with other EU countries, a strong inward flow of students, and the magnetic effect of a booming tech and digital sector. Early-career professionals from across Europe, and beyond, are flowing in to augment those already present as students. Many of Dublin’s young residents are multilingual, digitally fluent, and actively engaged in Dublin’s innovation and startup culture. For businesses, this translates into a vibrant, future-focused talent pool of young people who are adaptable, eager to learn and well-suited to the fast-paced world of software development. All of which reinforces Dublin’s credentials as a great place to build and grow a multinational technology team. And that helps keep us and our clients at the cutting edge.

Along with all those big-name – and not so big-name – tech businesses, Dublin is also home to many major insurance firms. This works well for DOCOsoft and our (re)insurer clients. It’s helpful having a local pool of insurance knowledge and talent on our doorstep. Global and specialty insurers with a Dublin presence include AIG, Allianz, AXA, Berkshire Hathaway, Chubb, Generali, HDI, Helvetia, Hiscox, QBE and Zurich, to name just a few. Like DOCOsoft, Dublin is very much at the heart of things from an insurance as well as a technology perspective. So, we feel right at home here.

As a business whose employees travel back and forth regularly between London and Dublin, we obviously find it helpful that the two cities are linked by frequent, short-haul flights to and from all major airports in the UK’s South East, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and London City. Typical flight times of an hour or less make short trips and even day-trips and in-person inter-office collaboration between Dublin and London entirely practical. It also means our Dublin-based people, as well as our team in London, can easily reach our London-based clients.

With employees in other locations like Poland, Portugal and Japan, and clients in the US and Bermuda, it’s also helpful that Dublin Airport offers a wide choice of direct flights to Europe, North America and Asia. Obviously, we’re all never more than a Teams call away now, but it’s important to maintain regular face to face contact to keep collaboration and team spirit strong.

Ireland also now boasts the unique distinction of being the only EU country with English as its first language. English remains one of the EU’s official working languages and is widely spoken across the continent. But Ireland’s native English-speaking status gives us a particular advantage in international business, tech and higher education. And, of course, we still have Ireland’s other official language Gaeilge up our sleeves, for when we’re just talking among ourselves!

It may have fallen out of fashion in the UK, but EU membership still works well for DOCOsoft. A particular benefit is visa-free travel between Ireland and all 27 EU member states, as well as the four European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. This allows citizens from 31 European countries to enter Ireland without a visa. And, thanks to the longstanding Common Travel Area (CTA), which fortunately survived Brexit, UK citizens can live and work in Ireland without restriction, and vice versa. As our European client based grows, these links again make life easier.

On top of all this, Dublin’s just a great place to live. In one recent study, Ireland was ranked second only to New Zealand as the country offering the world’s best work-life balance. For comparison, the UK, which isn’t exactly a bad place to live either, managed a comparatively lowly 15th place.

And then there’s the culture, arguably Dublin’s greatest asset of all. It’s a city that breathes music, poetry, literature and dance. And then there’s the Guinness, which really does taste better in Dublin than anywhere else!

Ultimately, it’s Dublin’s people who make it all work. Friendly, witty and unpretentious, they’re the main reason so many people come to Dublin for work and end up staying for good. For us at DOCOsoft, all of this adds up to a great place to work and a great place in which to develop market-leading claims technology for our clients.