Peter McCarthy, CEO of Enet
Peter McCarthy, CEO of Enet takes the Business & Finance 60-second interview.
Q. What was your first job? My first “real” job was as a salesman for Joe Duffy Motors, Glasnevin. I learned the art of sales from the master of selling, Owen Crinigan, developed a love of business and a real desire to succeed in my career. Q. What would you regard as your greatest achievement to date? Achievements are normally based on successful endeavors. For me, my greatest achievement was bouncing back from the banking and property crash and continuing a successful career. Q. In three words or fewer, how do you define success? Satisfied customers. Q. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given? My late father, Dr Paddy McCarthy, was a great supporter and advisor to me in my early career. He was an engineer and businessman way ahead of his time. He had three pieces of advice: always go above and beyond; where possible always part with people on the right note; and that integrity is the bedrock of success. Q. How do you motivate yourself and your team? I always look to set clear goals and expectations. It’s hard to measure people on their performance if you don’t equip them with this at the outset. It’s also important to listen to people. “Brown bag lunches” with the teams, especially in the field, if you have off-site operations, are way more insightful as to what is happening in the business than all the reports combined. Q. If you could step into the shoes of one business person for the day, who would it be and why? Andy Taylor, Executive Chairman of Enterprise Holdings, whose father Jack founded the Enterprise rent-a-car business. Andy was truly ahead of his time in building an extremely successful business based on inclusion, retention and integrity – he’s a great role model for all business leaders. Q. How do you relax? There is no substitute for a good book. Q. What’s your motto? Always consider the worst in evaluating risks. Q. What are your aspirations for the future of your business? I’m looking forward to building an ethos of excellence that will underpin our new three-year strategy and exciting plans for growth!
There is no substitute for a good book.
