If you run a small business or a sales team in Ireland, you may have heard that training can be subsidised. It can, in some cases, and the main route for businesses is Skillnet Ireland. This page explains what Skillnet is, how to find a network that fits, what the funding is likely to cover and what it is not, and how to make a funded course change how people actually speak on the phone.
This is general information and not funding advice. Eligibility, amounts and programmes change. Read the Skillnet pages linked below and contact Skillnet or a network manager before you plan around any funding.
What Skillnet Ireland is
Skillnet Ireland describes itself on skillnetireland.ie as the national workforce development agency of Ireland. It works with industry to offer subsidised upskilling and reskilling programmes and business supports, delivered through Skillnet Business Networks and national initiatives. The same page says it is funded from the National Training Fund.
In practice, a Skillnet Business Network is a group of companies, usually in the same sector or region, that run training together. The network arranges the courses, and the programmes are subsidised.
How to find a network
The Skillnet site has a "Find a Network" tool and an All Networks page. You can filter by sector or by region.
- Start with your sector. A network that knows your industry will run content that fits your products and customers.
- Then try your region. Regional networks run courses for businesses of many types.
- Contact the network manager and ask which sales or customer-facing programmes are planned, whether you are eligible to join and what the course would cost your company.
- Ask about format. In-person, online and blended courses suit different teams.
Courses on selling, negotiating, customer service and telephone skills may appear in network programmes from time to time. Whether one is on offer when you need it is something only the network can tell you.
A grant to know about, and what it covers
Skillnet also runs an Upskill SME Training Grant. According to the grant's page on skillnetireland.ie, it helps small and medium-sized enterprises recover the salary costs of employees for the days they spend on artificial intelligence (AI) training. On 9 November 2026 the page listed €204.30 per training day per employee, subject to eligibility criteria. Registration and applications go through Skillnet's online portal, and the page says that submitting an application does not guarantee funding or approval. Check the current amount and criteria on that page before you plan around it.
That description matters. The grant as published is about AI skills training and about salary costs for training days. It is not a general sales training grant and it does not, on that page, describe paying for software subscriptions. Whether a course on using AI tools in a sales role would qualify is a question for Skillnet, not for this page.
Funding usually covers courses, not software
The default assumption should be that subsidised programmes pay for training courses or part of the staff time spent on them, and that tools your team uses afterwards are your own cost. If you want to know whether a programme can cover software, ask the network manager or Skillnet. That is not a reason to skip funded training. It is a reason to plan for what happens after the course.
Make funded training stick
A one-day sales course can be good and still fade. People return to work, the phone rings and old habits come back within a week. Spaced practice between sessions is the cheapest way to keep what was taught.
A simple plan around a funded course:
- Before the course. Each person runs one call on the scenario they find hardest and reads the report. They arrive with a concrete question.
- During the course. Note the three phrases or techniques you want to use.
- In the week after. Fifteen minutes of practice on each technique, said aloud.
- Each week for a month. One short call, one moment to fix. See run weekly call practice sessions for a rhythm.
- At the next session. Bring the moment you are still stuck on.
For ideas on what to practise, sales roleplay exercises for teams and price objection phone drills are good starting points, and AI sales practice vs classroom sales training discusses how the two fit together.
Practising between sessions with DIRI AI
DIRI AI is voice practice for phone calls. You talk to an AI customer, which is labelled as AI and is fictional, and then read a report on what to say better. The practice customer speaks 11 languages, which is useful for Irish teams who sell into several markets.
There is a Free plan, so each person can try a call before the team commits to anything. Paid individual plans start from €19.90 a month. See pricing for the current limits. Teams that want a shared dashboard, shared scenarios and a coaching queue can request a team pilot; individuals can start free.
Because funding rules are separate from software, treat the subscription as your own cost, budgeted like any other tool. Ask your accountant how it is treated for your business.
What to prepare when you contact a network
- A short description of your business: sector, size, region.
- The skills you want: phone selling, handling objections, customer service calls.
- The number of people who would attend.
- Your preferred format and timing.
- A question about what happens after: whether the network runs follow-up sessions.
FAQ
What is Skillnet Ireland?
The national workforce development agency of Ireland. It funds subsidised upskilling programmes and business supports through sector and regional networks.
Can Skillnet funding pay for practice software?
Do not assume so. The Upskill SME Training Grant page describes recovering salary costs for AI skills training days. Ask Skillnet or your network manager about any specific programme.
How do I find a Skillnet network?
Use the Find a Network tool or the All Networks page on skillnetireland.ie and filter by sector or region.
Is this funding advice?
No. Programmes and eligibility change. Check with Skillnet before you plan around any funding.