By Business & Finance 
Business & Finance has released the annual CEO 100 Index, recognising the leading chief executives operating in Ireland in 2024.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
Paul Kelly, Chief Executive Officer,
Fáílte Ireland
Paul Kelly has been the Chief Executive of Fáilte Ireland since 2017. Paul has led Fáilte Ireland, the National Tourism Development Authority, through the deepest crisis ever for our country’s tourism industry. His work now is focused on driving the sustained and sustainable recovery of the industry to ensure tourism contributes even more to the economic, social, cultural and environmental future of Ireland. This future will build on Fáilte Ireland’s previous successes including the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland’s Ancient East, Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands, the Dublin brand refresh and The Gathering.
Paul’s leadership has led Fáilte Ireland to be listed in the top 20 best large organisations to work in for three consecutive years and listed in the top 5 most trusted organisations in the country. In 2020 Paul was named as Ireland’s Most Trusted Leader by Great Places to Work. Paul was also awarded the 2024 Global Tourism Ambassador Award from Destinations International which celebrates those who transformed their destinations and have made a profound impact the broader travel and tourism industry.
Before his appointment as CEO of Fáilte Ireland, Paul held several management and marketing leadership roles. Raised in a small retail family business, he began his career with Procter & Gamble UK. Paul then went on to senior executive positions with Diageo Ireland, Aviva and the UCD Smurfit Business School. Paul Kelly is a native of Co. Wexford and a Commerce graduate from University College Dublin. He is married and has four children.
Dave Kirwan, Managing Director,
Bord Gáis
Dave Kirwan is Managing Director of Bord Gáis Energy. Dave returned to the role of MD in Summer 2020 having completed a successful term in the UK as Managing Director of the UK Customer Operations and latterly MD of the UK Home business. Dave was responsible for leading the Bord Gáis Energy business through the successful sale to Centrica in 2014 and prior to that had worked in Bord Gáis Éireann for 15 years. He was responsible for the launch of its Northern Ireland business, Firmus Energy, the development of the Whitegate power station and the acquisition and subsequent merger of the SWS wind business. Prior to joining Bord Gáis Energy, Dave worked in power generation sector for ESB/ESBI in Ireland, US and Vietnam. Dave holds a BE electronics from UCD and is a Fellow of the Institute of Engineers of Ireland, he also holds an MBA from UCC and a doctorate in business economics (DBA) from UCC. Dave also serves on the Centrica Group Executive Committee.
Fergal Leamy, Chief Executive Officer,
Glen Dimplex
Fergal joined the Glen Dimplex Group in 2019. Glen Dimplex, head quartered in Dublin, is one the world’s largest electrical heating and sustainable solutions company with a global workforce of over 8,000 employees in 64 locations. Fergal’s career over the last 25 years, includes Chief Executive roles at Coillte DAC and the Consolidated Pastoral Company in Australia. His professional journey began at McKinsey & Company in London, where he worked on significant transactions for consumer-focused clients. He has also held C-suite roles Greencore PLC and private equity firm Terra Firma, where he played pivotal roles in successful investments and business turnarounds. He currently serves as Non-Executive Chair of NRG and sits on the Advisory Board of Melior, a prominent private equity group. In addition to his corporate endeavours, Fergal actively supports small businesses, having chaired companies like Orreco and Little Dish. Fergal graduated from University College Dublin with a BBLS degree in 1999.
Mark Lee, Chief Executive Officer,
Sysco Ireland
Mark is the Chief Executive Officer at Sysco Ireland. He has overall responsibility for all Sysco activities on the Island of Ireland. Mark joined Sysco Ireland as the Commercial Director in 2018 and previously held several executive level positions with Compass Ireland including Commercial Director, Customer Retention Director and Marketing Director. He started his career in the marketing department of the Guinness Ireland Group in 1996 before moving to O2 and subsequently Eircom in 2003. He then joined sports management agency Platinum-One where Ryder Cup 2006 Ltd and the European Tour were his primary clients. Mark holds a B.Sc Mgmt from Trinity College Dublin and an Advanced Diploma in Marketing Techniques from the Dublin Institute Of Technology.
Carolan Lennon, Country Leader Salesforce Ireland,
Salesforce
Carolan Lennon is the CEO of Salesforce Ireland. She joined the company in July 2022, replacing Dr. David Dempsey, who led Salesforce Ireland for 22 years. Prior to joining Salesforce, Carolan served as the CEO of eir, a telco company, from 2018. She was the first female CEO of eir and played a significant role in the company’s growth. Before becoming the CEO of eir, Carolan held various senior roles within the company. She has also worked at Vodafone Ireland.
Michael Lohan, Chief Executive Officer,
IDA Ireland
A key priority for Michael in his role as Chief Executive Officer is leading on the execution and delivery of IDA Ireland’s organisational strategy: Driving Recovery and Sustainable Growth 2021-2024, which will be delivered through a focus on five pillars: Growth, Transformation, Regions, Sustainability, and Impact. Prior to this role, Michael was a member of IDA’s Executive Leadership team with global responsibility for Life Sciences (Biopharmaceutical and Medical Technologies) and as organisational lead on Talent, Transformation, and Innovation agenda at IDA Ireland. Michael led on the development and execution of organizational and divisional strategies across the Lifesciences sector in addition to evolving Irelands value proposition on Talent, Transformation, and Innovation to enable and support foreign direct investment.
Andrea Lucci, Chief Executive Officer,
Norbrook Laboratories ltd
Andrea Iucci is the CEO of Norbrook Laboratories Ltd. Andrea has a commercial background and years of experience. Leveraging this experience to build on Norbrook’s strong foundation and drive significant growth globally.
Alice Mansergh, Chief Executive Officer,
Tourism Ireland
Alice has almost 20 years strategic leadership experience, specialising in leading international marketing teams, consumer brand engagement strategies and corporate responsibility. A skilled communicator and partner to public and private enterprises, Alice has wide experience working with travel industry partners and has served on the board of Fáilte Ireland for the past five years. Prior to that Alice worked for Google in 2004 and has served in senior roles, including as Head of Operations for UK & Ireland; Head of B2B Customer Marketing, EMEA; Head of Chrome Marketing, Europe, Middle East and Africa; and Director of Consumer Marketing, UK. Alice has led Google’s international marketing teams, promoting consumer brands and developing multi-award-winning creative campaigns for TV, outdoor and digital media in key markets, including the UK, France, Germany and the Middle East.
Paul Marchant, Chief Executive Officer,
Primark
Paul joined Primark as Chief Operations Officer in 2009 and within the same year became CEO, taking over the reins from Primark founder, Mr Arthur Ryan. Paul has a career long background in fashion retail, having previously worked for Debenhams, Topman, River Island and was COO at New Look before joining Primark. Under Paul’s leadership, Primark has become a truly international business, now trading in over 400 stores across 17 markets, with 80,000 colleagues employed globally. He has spearheaded its European and US expansion, more than doubling its store footprint since joining and has ambitions to grow to 530 stores by the end of 2026. Paul is based in Dublin, where Primark was founded in 1969. Known as Penneys in Ireland, the company’s global headquarters Arthur Ryan House is located above the first ever Penneys store on Mary Street. Headshot: Please send your headshot of choice.
Geoff Martha, Chief Executive Officer,
Medtronic
Geoff Martha is Chairman and CEO of Medtronic, the global leader in healthcare technology. In his role, Geoff leads the $31 billion company and its 95,000 employees to deliver ground-breaking technology solutions for more people in more places around the world
Conor McCarthy, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder,
Flipdish
Conor McCarthy is CEO and Co-Founder of Flipdish, an online ordering system for restaurants founded in 2015. Headquartered in Dublin, Flipdish helps thousands of hospitality brands in over 12 countries. Flipdish puts restaurants, cafés and takeaways of all sizes in control of their business growth with a digital ordering and marketing system that builds brands, grows profits and new customers into regulars. Conor previously co-founded Switch Poker in 2010, the first poker site compatible with iPhone and iPad. He was CEO of SawadeeSoft Limited, the company that managed the software for Switch Poker for 5 years. Conor is a graduate of Maynooth University, achieving a Master of Science in Software Development in 2008. Prior to these studies, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Technological University Dublin in 2004. During his time in college, Conor founded HandHQ.com, an online poker data-mining service which was later sold in 2014.
After graduating from St. Michael’s College, James McCarthy attended Technological University Dublin where he earned his degree in architecture in 2010. His career started in 2006, when James was an architect intern for Scott Tallon Walker Architects. Upon graduating University, he worked in business development at Sawadeesoft Ltd before working as a graduate architect at Gary Cahill Architects. From 2012 to 2013, James worked in Sales Support for Kvadrat Soft Cells. In 2012, James founded The Christmas Shirt Company. Then, in 2015, James co-founded Flipdish with his brother, Conor. In 2011, James founded Cuebald For Cancer, an organisation that works to raise money and Awareness for the Irish Cancer Society.
Peter McCarthy, Chief Executive Officer,
Speed Fibre Group
Peter McCarthy is the CEO of Speed Fibre Group. He has over 30 years’ experience with companies like Actavo, Thornsett, Digicel and Accenture, amongst others and has considerable knowledge in the areas of telecoms (fixed and mobile), utility services, real estate, renewable energy and consumer-facing digital technology. Peter has a demonstrable track record in managing, transforming and growing a diverse number of businesses, and now as Group CEO, has overall responsibility for all Enet business activity including business strategy and operations.
Danny McCoy, Chief Executive Officer,
Ibec
Danny McCoy is Chief Executive Officer of Ibec since 2009. Ibec is Ireland’s largest business representative organisation and the country’s largest lobbying group. It has over 300 staff in ten locations and has 39 trade association brands and substantial presence within the European Union through Ibec’s Brussels office.Prior to joining Ibec, Danny was a senior economist at both the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) and the Central Bank of Ireland in Dublin. He has held lecturing posts at Dublin City University, University College London, University of Oxford and Trinity College Dublin. He has been a consultant for the European Commission and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). He has been a member of the Irish National Competitiveness Council, the National Economic and Social Council, the Commission on Taxation and the National Training Agency. He led a European Macroeconomic Forecasting Network for the European Commission of eleven national research institutes.He is a former President of the Statistical and Social Inquiry society of Ireland, an Honorary Fellow of the Academy of Engineers, member of the Trade and Investment Council, the Executive Bureau of BusinessEurope, a member of MaREI, a founder of ChapterZero Ireland and a member of Government’s Balance for Better Business Group, a Independent Non-Executive of Iput Real Estate.His academic work in the early 1990s covered carbon taxation and Sustainable Development for which he received an Economic scholarship and the Barrington Medal for researchers under 30.He was Knighted by the Italian Government in 2022 for services to European business and economy. He is a Member of the Royal Irish Academy, Ireland’s highest academic honour.
Rosheen McGuckain, Chief Executive Officer,
NTR Plc
Rosheen was appointed Chief Executive Officer of NTR plc in April 2013. Since joining NTR in 2008, Rosheen has held a number of leadership positions in NTR including most recently as Group Business Development Director and CEO positions in solar development, energy storage, water treatment and waste management platforms within the group. Prior to joining NTR, Rosheen was CEO of GE Money Ireland, the consumer finance division of General Electric. Prior to that, Rosheen led the business transformation initiative for Irish utility ESB Power Generation. Rosheen is a Director of Grafton Group plc and construction group Sisk. Rosheen was recently voted as one of the Top 25 in the Global Women’s Power List and Top 50 in the Global Green Fund Power List. She holds a PhD and MA from Dublin City University, and BSc from Trinity College Dublin.
Hugh McGuire, Group Managing Director & Executive Director ,
Glanbia PLC
Hugh McGuire is CEO of Glanbia plc. He has held a range of senior leadership roles across the group during his career with the company, initially working in the ingredients division, culminating in his role as CEO of Glanbia Customised Solutions where he led the development of the global vitamin and mineral premix business. More recently he served as CEO of Glanbia Performance Nutrition, overseeing the growth of Glanbia’s branded business to become the world’s number one sports nutrition business, with the flagship Optimum Nutrition brand becoming a billion dollar brand in 2023. Hugh has been a member of Glanbia’s Operating Executive since 2013. Prior to joining Glanbia in 2003, Hugh worked for McKinsey & Company as a consultant across a range of industry sectors. He has also held marketing and commercial roles with Nestle and Leaf. He holds an M.Sc. in Food Science from University College Dublin and has a Diploma in Accounting and Finance from the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants Ireland. He lives in Dublin with his wife and four children.
Tina McKenzie, Country Managing Director,
Staffline Ireland
After graduating from Ulster University, Tina went on to pursue a successful international recruitment career, giving her over 25 years’ experience in the Recruitment and Employment Services sector, working with some of the world’s largest blue chip companies. After returning to Northern Ireland 2013, she established Staffline Recruitment as a start-up throughout Ireland; taking the company from a standing start to a turnover of £150 million within 5 years. This unprecedented success led to a stream of awards including the UTV Fast Business Growth Award in 2015, IOD’s Director of the Year Award in 2017 and UTV Business Eye’s Business Personality of the Year Award in 2018 and the Belfast Telegraph Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020. Tina has previously served as the European Ambassador for Women’s Entrepreneurship Day and is currently the Honorary Consul to Finland in Northern Ireland. Tina McKenzie also sits on the board of the Federation of Small Businesses, following over three years as Chair of the Policy Unit for Northern Ireland.
David McRedmond, Chief Executive Officer,
An Post
David McRedmond was appointed Chief Executive Officer of An Post in October 2016. He has led the Company’s Transformation programme and return to financial stability, sustainable revenue growth and profit by taking big steps to fix the Company’s economics and by restructuring the Mails & Parcels and Retail business in line with a rapidly changing, digital marketplace. David is personally driving An Post’s Sustainability Charter, putting it at the centre of An Post’s business transformation and Green Light 2028 strategy. He was previously CEO of TV3 which he transformed into a major Irish broadcaster, concluding with its sale to Liberty Global, and he has held senior commercial roles in Ireland, the UK and the US. He is chairman of Eir, chairman of the Taoiseach’s High Level Taskforce for Dublin City Centre, a lifetime Fellow of the Irish Management Institute and of the Royal Society of Arts.
Martin McVicar, Managing Director,
Combilift
Martin McVicar is Managing Director of material handling solutions business, Combilift, based in Co Monaghan. He began his career in engineering with a summer job at Moffett Engineering, a truck-mounted forklift manufacturer. He became Moffett’s Chief Engineer before turning 20. When the company was sold in 1997, Martin set up Combilift together with Robert Moffet. Combilift is a specialist forklift & straddle carrier manufacturer producing a wide range of customised handling solutions. He was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year at 29. He continues to develop new additions to the Combilift range of products..
Seán Molloy, Chief Executive Officer,
Tirlán
As Chief Ingredients and Agribusiness Officer and CEO Designate with Tirlán, Sean is proud to play a leading role in an ambitious and innovative organisation that continues to set the highest standards for food and nutrition. His diverse portfolio of quality ingredients, award-winning consumer and animal nutrition brands are now being enjoyed in over 100 countries around the world.
Eric Mosley, Founder & Chief Executive Officer,
Workhuman
Eric is an HR visionary, author, and the force behind the Workhuman movement. As CEO and co-founder of what began as Globoforce and is now Workhuman, he is leading the charge to dismantle old HR processes and challenge organizations to build new ways to connect the modern workforce. He guides organizations worldwide on how to create more human-centric workplaces that leverage the way people work today, which is around employee development, social connections and relationships, and organizational communities and teams. As a pioneer of the Workhuman movement, Eric has long believed that recognition and positive reinforcement unleash discretionary energy in employees, inspiring them to do the best work of their lives. Employees achieve their fullest potential when they feel appreciated, connected, and empowered for who they are and what they do. Eric is the author of “The Crowdsourced Performance Review” and co-author of the award-winning book, “The Power of Thanks.” He is also a regular contributor to The Huffington Post on the topics of recognition and humanity in the workplace, and a frequent contributor to publications including Forbes, Fast Company, and the Harvard Business Review.
Dónal Murphy, Chief Executive Officer,
DCC
Donal joined DCC in 1998 and has a detailed knowledge of the operations of the Group, having held a number of senior leadership roles, including Managing Director of DCC Technology from 2004 to 2006 and Managing Director of DCC Energy from 2006 to 2017. He led the very significant growth of the Energy division and its transition from a small UK and Irish business to a substantial international business operating in 13 countries. Donal was appointed Chief Executive in July 2017.
Marc Murphy, Chief Executive Officer,
Fenergo
Marc is Chief Executive Officer at Fenergo and is responsible for its business and operational strategy and corporate direction. He has over 20 years’ experience developing, selling, and delivering enterprise financial technology to global banks. A software engineer by background, Marc has a proven track record of building successful business and leadership teams. He has been with the company since its inception and is focused on driving growth, quality and excellence across people, processes and products. Marc has overseen significant milestones for Fenergo including its rapid growth on a global scale, achieving unicorn status as a leading-edge financial technology company and its 2021 acquisition by Astorg and Bridgepoint. Marc is an MBA graduate of Dublin City University.
Gene Murtagh, Group Chief Executive Officer,
Kingspan Group
Gene Murtagh is the Group Chief Executive of Kingspan Group. He was appointed to the Board in 1999. He was previously the Chief Operating Officer from 2003 to 2005. Prior to that he was managing director of the Group’s Insulated Panel business and of the Environmental business. He joined the Group in 1993, and has a deep knowledge of all of the Group’s businesses and wider building materials and energy efficiency industries.
Barry Napier, Chief Executive Officer & Executive Chairman,
Cubic Telecom
Barry has extensive experience and a proven track record in building innovative technology companies, growing revenue and market share and a history in leveraged buyouts and VC fund raising and growth acquisition strategies. Barry possesses a rare combination of leadership and skills in strategy, business and corporate development, engineering and operational management well suited to establish high performance teams and transform and grow technology organisations. Barry has led 3 mergers and acquisitions, most recently in 2008 when he took over as CEO of Cubic Telecom. Cubic is privately held with over €110 million in funding and has grown to over 180+ staff. Prior to that Barry led the acquisition of the Nasdaq-listed Brightpoint Inc (Brightpoint Ireland) at the end of 2003 where he steered the company from 15 staff/$35 million revenue p/a to over 80 staff/$200 million revenue p/a in 2009.
Business & Finance CEO 100 (alphabetical by surname):
View part one (B–F)
View part two (F–K)
View part three (K–N)
View part four (N–V)
