Chris Horn has published a couple of interesting blog entries and articles on the topic.
For me the key is skills and innovation. Skill comes in two flavors: expertise and experience. The Celtic Tiger 1.0 was based on expertise. At the time Ireland was building a very well educated workforce (Trinity College, UCD, University of Limerick, ... ) and was also enjoying (or creating) other (monetary) benefits (like low corporate taxes, low wages, lots of EU aids, ...).
These times are clearly over and Ireland has to find a new (the next) niche to compete in the global economy. My hope and my belief is that Ireland can reinvent itself around a different set of skills, namely the experience the workforce has gained in the last 10 years. Right now is the (a good) time to reinvent Ireland as a place, where small startups can flourish and succeed: A European (Software) Business Incubator.
Lets make it happen.