GS1 Ireland Strategy

Our pathway to building a dynamic, sustainable and customer-centric services organisation

A better world for everyone through the full adoption of GS1 standards

We are delighted to share our vision with you to create “a better world for everyone through the full adoption of GS1 standards”. The ambitions that we have set out in this 3 year strategic plan are for the benefit, not only of our 3,500+ members located in Ireland and across the world, but for all of us collectively, as consumers, shoppers, and patients, whereby our daily lives can be improved and eased by the adoption of GS1 standards in the services we use and products we buy.

Over the course of this plan we aim to develop and enhance our ability to create value through standards for our broad membership. Our Vision has been refined to create “value through standards” and this will be achieved through continued growth in our engagement with our membership base, allied to increased development of supporting data services such as Verified by GS1 and Barcode Manager, to name but two.

This strategy focuses, in particular, on four stakeholder communities - Retail, Healthcare, Construction and End-Users: Consumers and Patients.

We have defined four Critical Success Factors (CSFs) which are central to our success in achieving this goal. They are:

1. Member Engagement:
Deepen Member Engagement and Communication to deliver a clear, company-wide understanding of member needs & sentiment, with the goal of driving the broader adoption of GS1 Standards & Services, to deliver Value and Growth.

Our focus for the next three years is to deliver Value for Members. We will achieve this by prioritising the services and tools that members need to do business more efficiently and at less cost, to better serve their customers. We commit to actively listen to, and engage with, our members and to put their needs at the centre of our focus each day.

2. Community Collaboration:
To be a Hub for Community Collaboration, to drive broader & deeper standards implementation across key sectors by facilitating cooperation and participation between members, solution providers and third parties in the process of standards creation and adoption.

In creating communities of users we will create an environment that helps members to achieve more from their implementation of GS1 standards, supporting their growth in both local and international markets. We will support and represent the needs and views of everyone in the Irish community; industry, consumers & state; to ensure GS1 standards are maintained and continue to evolve in a timely manner.

3. Services and Solutions:
To achieve Growth and to Accelerate Standards Adoption through the Expansion of the Services and Solutions we offer, in line with identified current and future industry & consumer needs.

Organisations in Ireland and around the world are evolving their business processes and supply chains to meet many new global challenges. In recognising this, GS1 Ireland is committed to investing in and developing a number of new service offerings that will help Members to meet those challenges cost effectively and efficiently. The focus will be on better data management and data sharing solutions to address the new demands presented by consumers, trading partners and regulators.

4. Organisational Capability:
Through a commitment to people, culture, technology & process to deliver a right-sized and appropriately resourced team in GS1 Ireland, that is actively engaged and fully committed to the organisation’s vision of delivering “value through standards” to all.

We recognise that the quality and depth of service provided to our Members correlates directly with having an engaged and highly skilled team that has the necessary tools and resources to provide that support. We are committed to growing our team both in terms of capacity and capability to ensure that our members receive the help and expertise they need, during every engagement with GS1 Ireland. We will regularly seek, and proactively respond to, all employee feedback to ensure that GS1 Ireland continues to be the engaged, enthusiastic, and enterprising team that it is today.

As a not-for-profit membership organisation, we take our corporate and fiduciary governance responsibilities extremely seriously. At all times GS1 Ireland will adhere to and uphold the very best practices and policies in terms of systems, procedures, auditing and reporting to maintain the organisation’s reputation for trust and professionalism remain in the highest standing.

Increasing the adoption of GS1 standards & solutions

Over the next three years, the company will invest in developing for members a range of services to support their supply chain needs. For the retail sector this work will include both new standards and solutions, such as Verified by GS1 and the global GS1 Registry Platforms for GTINs and GLNs as well as enhancements to existing solutions, such as eLOCATE, fTRACE, Barcode Manager and EDI.

The company will also continue to undertake research and development in mobile applications for assessing GTIN (barcode) adoption within the Healthcare supply
chain, in addition to developing standards-based registries for healthcare services and traceability/tracking solutions for precious samples and specialist baby feeds.

We also recognise and will pursue the opportunity for our standards & solutions to be used in Building Information Management (BIM), to enable the identification, capturing, sharing and use of data pertaining to locations, assets and products in Construction. 

As consumers become more and more technology reliant it will equally become imperative for consumers to be able to trust product data and the brands that provide it. In addition to the rollout of the Verified by GS1 service, we will also deploy the new GS1 Digital Link standard and productDNA service which enable brand owners and retailers to connect consumers, patients and business partners to all types of information about their products.

The Board and Executive have invested significantly in research and consultation to set out the organisation’s development targets for the term of this plan. We believe the investments we will make in the coming years in the organisation’s service offering are in the best interests of our members and their needs. We recognise that the continued globalisation of commerce, and emerging headwinds such as climate change and sustainability, will have a significant impact on the supply chains of our members. GS1 Ireland is committed to developing its service offering to support our members in the decade ahead to meet the challenges and opportunities presented to all. We look forward to reporting our progress to you in the months ahead.

Our Mission

We empower organisations and consumers to benefit from improved efficiency, safety, transparency, security and sustainability through the exchange of trusted data.
We create a common foundation for organisations and consumers to identify, capture, share and use vital information about products, locations, assets and more.

Our Vision

A better world for everyone through the full adoption of GS1 standards. 

• We help businesses to sell more and create efficiencies in their supply chains.
• We help consumers by increasing transparency and trust in products and services.
• We help organisations to save money, save lives, and be more efficient.

Our Beliefs

We believe in the power of global standards to transform the way we work and live. We are neutral and not-for-profit; local and global; inclusive and collaborative.

Our Cultural Values

Professional & Competent: Maintaining the highest standards throughout all of our activities.
Energetic: Deliver with enthusiasm and commitment.
Inclusive: Open to others and considerate of the views and opinions of all stakeholders.
Honest: Frank and communicative, truthful and sincere.
Enterprising: Work for the benefit of all our members; to ensure the long-term viability of the organisation, by demonstrating initiative, resourcefulness, and by being responsive to opportunity.