# Top Innovation Consulting Firms in Ireland (Updated August 2026) > Explore the Top 10 Innovation Consulting Firms known for their innovation consulting expertise. Compare their specialisms and focus to find the right fit. - Category: Research & Consulting - Author: Brandfire Team - Companies listed: 10 ## Key takeaways - Innovation consulting means four different things on this list: funding, compliance, product build and reputation. - One firm here specialises in R&D tax credits and grant funding, which is the most directly measurable service in the category. - Three firms carry verified reviews, which is better than most categories in this set. - Decide whether you need advice or delivery, because several of these firms will not build anything. Nothing on this page is one service. Under a single label sit four unrelated ones: securing R&D tax credits and grant funding, advising on data protection and AI compliance, building software, and managing corporate reputation. The funding work is the only one with a return you can calculate in advance, and it is worth doing first, because the relief can cover a share of what the others cost. Brandfire is on this list. We wrote our own entry with the same directness we applied to everyone else. ## Four different services under one label - **Advice or delivery.** Several firms here produce recommendations and nothing else. That is a legitimate service, but it is not a product. - **A defined output.** Funding secured, risk removed, product shipped. Engagements without one drift. - **Funding expertise, separately.** R&D tax credits and Enterprise Ireland grants are a specialism with a measurable return. - **Sector and regulatory fit.** Innovation in a regulated industry is a compliance project with a technology component, not the reverse. - **What the recommendation rests on.** Ask for the evidence base. If the answer is workshops alone, the [market research companies](https://brandfire.ie/agencies-in-ireland/market-research-companies) supply the rest. > If you are spending on innovation consulting, check first whether the work qualifies for R&D tax credits or Enterprise Ireland funding. The relief can cover a meaningful share of the cost, and one firm on this list does nothing else. ## Name the trigger, then find the firm built around it The label covers four unrelated jobs, so start by naming which one you need before you look at a single firm. - **Match the specialism to the outcome, not the title.** A funding specialist will not write your compliance policy, and a reputation firm will not touch your R&D claim. Cross-shopping wastes time on pitches that were never a fit. - **Check whether advice becomes a deliverable.** Strategy decks are easy to produce and hard to act on. Ask what the firm hands over at the end: a filed claim, a signed-off policy, shipped code, or a recommendation someone still has to execute. - **Weigh success fees against fixed fees for funding work.** Grant and tax credit specialists sometimes charge against what they secure rather than time spent. That can align incentives well, but get the percentage and the trigger event in writing first. - **Ask who has done this in a regulated sector before.** Compliance and product work both change shape once health, finance or public sector rules apply. A generalist without that experience will learn on your engagement. Firms that mix several of these disciplines are not automatically weaker. They are just harder to compare on a single measure like price. ## Funding, compliance, software, reputation Under one label, this list covers four distinct services: securing R&D tax credits and grant funding, advising on data protection and AI compliance, building software products, and managing corporate reputation. What sits outside all of them is ongoing marketing execution and day-to-day operations, which stay with the client or a separate supplier. Advisory engagements also end at a roadmap, and building it is what the [software development companies](https://brandfire.ie/agencies-in-ireland/software-development-companies) do. Where the question is specifically about AI, the [AI companies](https://brandfire.ie/agencies-in-ireland/ai-companies) work on it directly rather than advising on it. Businesses typically bring this work in at specific trigger points: before a funding application deadline, when a new product or AI feature raises a compliance question, when a build needs to move from idea to working software, or when a reputational issue needs managing before it grows. Because the category is this broad, the safest approach is to name the trigger first and then look for the firm built around it, rather than starting from the category label. ## Almost nobody here publishes a price Rate data across this list is thin. Only RaftLabs publishes an hourly band, at €25 to €45 for delivery work, and no firm here publishes a project minimum. That gap is normal for advisory-heavy categories, where pricing is scoped per engagement rather than published. It also makes the buying decision harder than it looks, and the same problem shows up in adjacent disciplines: [hiring a loyalty consultant](https://brandfire.ie/insights/hiring-a-loyalty-consultant) covers what to ask when nobody publishes a rate. Expect three broad models: hourly or day rates for software and technical delivery, fixed project fees for strategy and compliance work scoped to a defined deliverable, and success-based fees for funding specialists, who may charge a percentage of the grant or tax credit secured rather than time spent. What moves the price most is scope definition. A tightly scoped compliance audit or grant application costs less than an open-ended advisory retainer, because the firm can quote against a known amount of work instead of an ongoing relationship. Ask for a fixed fee wherever the deliverable can be defined in advance. ## The list ### 1. Brandfire - Website: https://brandfire.ie/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Rating: 4.9 (70 verified reviews) - Team size: 1-10 - Founded: 2012 - Best for: customer retention innovation - Services: Loyalty Programme Design, Rewards & Promotions - Industries: Industrial Goods & Services, Retail, Supermarkets and Grocery, Telecoms, Insurance and Finance, FMCG (Fast-Moving Consumer Goods) Brandfire is a Dublin loyalty and rewards agency, founded in 2012, with a team of under ten. On this page it represents retention rather than product or funding innovation. The output is defined: points-based reward systems, promotional campaigns and customer tiers, designed and then run. That puts it on the delivery side of this list rather than the advisory side, with a result measurable in repeat purchase. It carries 70 verified reviews at 4.9, the highest count here, and also publishes this directory, which is why the entry sticks to the same checkable detail as the rest. Sectors are retail, grocery, telecoms, insurance and finance, FMCG, and industrial goods. It is the wrong hire for R&D funding, compliance or software delivery, all of which are on this page. ### 2. International Development Ireland Ltd - Website: https://idi.ie/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Team size: 11-50 - Best for: institutional development projects - Services: Institutional Development Advisory, Project Management Implementation - Industries: Government, Economic Development International Development Ireland was established in 1989 by Irish state economic agencies and works with governments abroad on economic growth and public institution reform, with a team of 11 to 50 in Dublin. Its stated method is exporting what Ireland learned during its own development period to emerging and transitioning markets. Services are institutional development advisory and project management implementation. Sectors are government and economic development. No project minimum, rate or verified reviews appear on the listing. This is public sector and multilateral work rather than commercial consulting. If you are a business looking for innovation support, no part of this offer applies to you, and the directory placement is misleading. ### 3. jump! innovation - Website: https://jumpinnovates.com/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Team size: 1-10 - Best for: innovation facilitation - Services: Brand Strategy, Innovation Workshops - Industries: Food & Beverage, Tourism & Entertainment jump! innovation is a Dublin firm of under ten running innovation workshops and brand strategy. The named clients are the substance: Heineken, Fáilte Ireland and PepsiCo. Workshop facilitation for organisations that size is a specific skill — getting a large group to a decision — and it is different from either strategy consulting or delivery. Sectors are food and beverage, and tourism and entertainment. No project minimum, rate or verified reviews appear on the listing. It suits a company with an internal team that needs structured facilitation to unblock a decision. The output is a direction rather than a product, so agree what leaves the room before you book. ### 4. MKC Communications - Website: https://mkc.ie/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Team size: 11-50 - Best for: communications advisory - Services: PR & Media Relations, Government Affairs, Crisis Planning - Industries: Transportation, Financial Services, Pharmaceutical MKC Communications is an independent PR and communications consultancy founded in Dublin in 1999, with a team of 11 to 50. Named clients include Salesforce and Virgin Media Ireland. Services cover media relations, government affairs and crisis planning — the last two being the reason a firm like this appears under innovation, since a new initiative in a regulated sector needs political and media handling as much as engineering. Sectors are transportation, financial services and pharmaceutical. No project minimum, rate or verified reviews appear on the listing. It suits an organisation launching something that will attract political or press attention. For product or funding work, other firms here are the brief. ### 5. Myriad Associates - Website: https://myriadassociates.ie/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Team size: 1-10 - Best for: R&D tax credits and grant funding - Services: R&D Tax Credit Claims, Grant Bid Writing - Industries: Technology, Manufacturing Myriad Associates is a Dublin innovation funding consultancy of under ten working only on R&D tax credit claims and grant bid writing. This is the most measurable service on the page. The team handles the claim end to end — paperwork, financial calculations and technical reports — against the guidelines set by Revenue and Enterprise Ireland, and the return is a number you can check. Sectors are technology and manufacturing. No project minimum, rate or verified reviews appear on the listing. It suits any Irish business already spending on new products or process improvement. Worth approaching before you commission other innovation work, because the relief can cover a meaningful share of that cost. ### 6. Onside - Website: https://onside.ie/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Rating: 5.0 (1 verified reviews) - Team size: 11-50 - Best for: research and strategic advisory - Services: Sponsorship Strategy, Research & Analysis, Activation Management - Industries: Sports & Entertainment, Media Onside is a Dublin management consultancy founded in 2005 with a team of 11 to 50, working on sponsorship strategy, research and activation management across Europe. The claim on the listing is scale of advice rather than of delivery: hundreds of millions of euro in sponsorship investment guided over two decades. The approach is research-led, turning what was a relationship business into an evidence-based one. Sectors are sports and entertainment, and media. The listing shows 1 verified review at 5.0, too small a sample to read. No project minimum or rate is published. It suits a large organisation deciding where to put a sponsorship budget, or rethinking one it already has. ### 7. PrivacySolved - Website: https://privacysolved.com/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Team size: 1-10 - Best for: privacy and compliance for new technology - Services: Data Protection Officer (DPO) Services, AI Governance, Data Breach Response - Industries: Banking & Financials, Healthcare PrivacySolved is a consulting firm with a Dublin base and a team of under ten, working on data protection, privacy compliance and cybersecurity. The offer includes outsourced Data Protection Officer services, AI governance and data breach response — which is what makes it an innovation firm in practice, since a new digital product or AI feature has to be compliant by design rather than remediated later. Sectors are banking and financial services, and healthcare. No project minimum, rate or verified reviews appear on the listing. It suits an organisation handling sensitive data that is about to launch something new. In a regulated sector, this kind of engagement is a prerequisite rather than an optional extra. ### 8. RaftLabs - Website: https://www.raftlabs.com/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Rating: 4.9 (50 verified reviews) - Hourly rate: €25 - €45 - Team size: 10 - 49 - Founded: 2015 - Best for: turning an innovation brief into shipped software - Services: Custom Software Development, AI & Voice Software - Industries: Hospitality, Loyalty, B2B SaaS, Healthcare RaftLabs is a software development company in Dublin, founded in 2015 with a team of 10 to 49, and sits on the delivery end of this page rather than the advisory end. The distinction matters here: several firms on this list produce recommendations, while RaftLabs produces working software, including AI and voice features. That makes it the natural second step after a consulting engagement rather than an alternative to one. Rates are 25 to 45 euro an hour, the only hourly figure published on this page, and it holds 50 verified reviews at 4.9 — the strongest review evidence here. Sectors are hospitality, loyalty, B2B SaaS and healthcare. It suits a company with a defined idea that needs building. ### 9. Realweb - Website: https://realweb.ie/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Rating: 4.7 (1 verified reviews) - Minimum project: From €900 - Team size: 11-50 - Best for: AI and IoT innovation for regulated sectors - Services: Custom Software Development, Web & App Design - Industries: Legal Services, Enterprise Business Realweb is a Dublin software consultancy operating since 2018 with a team of 11 to 50, building custom tools, websites and applications for mid-sized and large enterprises. The work is practical rather than exploratory: a secure client portal for a legal firm, or connecting a manufacturer's inventory system to a new online platform. AI and IoT features for regulated sectors are a named specialism. Projects start from 900 euro, and the listing shows 1 verified review at 4.7. Sectors are legal services and enterprise business. It suits an organisation that knows what it needs built and needs the technical architecture handled. Like RaftLabs, it is delivery rather than advice. ### 10. Reputation Inc - Website: https://reputation-inc.com/ - Location: Dublin, Ireland - Minimum project: From €900 - Team size: 11-50 - Best for: reputation strategy - Services: Reputation Management, Crisis Communications - Industries: FMCG, Financial Services, Pharma & Healthcare Reputation Inc is an international consultancy operating since 2002 with senior teams in Dublin and London and a team band of 11 to 50, working only on corporate reputation. Services are reputation management and crisis communications, aimed at organisations that treat reputation as a commercial asset with a value attached. This is board-level advisory rather than campaign work. Projects start from 900 euro, which looks low for the described positioning and is worth clarifying. Sectors are FMCG, financial services, and pharma and healthcare. No verified reviews appear on the listing. It suits a large organisation facing a reputational question. It has no overlap with the funding, compliance or software firms elsewhere on this page. Innovation consulting helps a business build something it couldn't build alone, whether that's a new product, a compliance process or a piece of software. What it doesn't do is give that business's existing customers a reason to stick around while the new thing gets built. Innovation and retention run on different timelines. Brandfire designs and builds loyalty and rewards programmes for brands across Ireland, keeping the current customer base engaged while the next big thing takes shape. --- - HTML version: https://brandfire.ie/agencies-in-ireland/innovation-consulting-agencies - Markdown version: https://brandfire.ie/agencies-in-ireland/innovation-consulting-agencies.md - Last updated: 2026-08-06 - Site index for agents: https://brandfire.ie/llms.txt - Sitemap: https://brandfire.ie/sitemap.xml