By Business & Finance 
The Business & Finance CFO 100 Index 2023, in association with Sia Partners, recognises the top 100 Chief Financial Officers working across some of the most innovative companies in Ireland and the UK today.
To launch this Index, Business & Finance hosted a virtual thought leadership panel discussion on the key issues facing the CFO today.
The theme is: CFOs leading the strategic cost challenge. Financial leaders will discuss navigating an unpredictable business landscape while overcoming challenges and finding opportunities for growth.
Watch the CFO 100 Index Webinar on-demand video
Download the CFO 100 Index 2023 PDF
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
Ger Penny, Chief Financial Officer,
The Sisk Group
Ger Penny is the Chief Financial Officer of the Sisk Group, where he leads the finance, treasury, IT and legal functions. He also serves as Chairman to the Group’s property and distribution businesses.
Prior to joining Sisk, he spent twelve years with Diageo plc, where he held a number of senior finance, strategy and operational roles.
Penny has extensive non-executive experience and is currently on the boards of the Irish Cancer Society, The Iveagh Trust and Archus (a healthcare advisory business based in the UK). He was a non-executive director of Uniphar plc until May 2022.
Carol Phelan, Chief Financial Officer,
Dalata Hotel Group
Carol Phelan joined Dalata in November 2014 and was promoted to CFO in July 2021.
She has extensive experience in corporate finance, strategy development, financial reporting and controls from previous senior roles in Ion Equity and KPMG, and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and holds a First Class Honours Master of Accounting.
She was appointed to Dalata’s main board as an Executive Director in January 2022.
Ryan Preston, Chief Financial Officer,
FD Technologies
Ryan Preston joined the FD Technologies board in January 2021 having been appointed deputy CFO at the firm in 2020. Preston has responsibility for the Group’s financial, legal and risk operations. As well as a key role in setting the strategic direction for the Group.
He was previously the Chief Financial Officer of Independent News & Media plc and at OVO Energy Retail. Preston also previously held the role of Group Finance Director, Europe at Tesco. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
Darren Purkis, Chief Financial Officer,
Three
Darren Purkis has been Three’s Chief Financial Officer since June 2018 having worked at the firm for just over a decade, previously as deputy CFO.
In addition to his traditional CFO duties, Purkis is also on the board at MBNL responsible for Three’s network share with EE, ensuring that Three can deliver an amazing customer experience while controlling costs
Prior to joining Three, Purkis was previously finance director at Warehouse Fashions and, prior to this, held various Finance roles across the retail sector at Borders Books, Kingfisher plc and Marks & Spencer Group plc.
Peter Quinn, Chief Financial Officer,
An Post
Peter Quinn joined An Post in August 2004. He is a Chartered Accountant and trained in practice with KPMG. He previously held senior financial and strategic positions in PJ Carroll and Company and Monaghan Mushrooms. Quinn is a director of Premier Lotteries Ireland.
Dominic Reilly, Chief Financial Officer,
Coillte
Dominic Reilly was appointed Chief Financial Officer of Coillte in June 2021. He has over ten years’ experience across a number of senior finance roles within the Coillte Group. Reilly is a Chartered Accountant by profession and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Ireland. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting & Finance from Dublin City University. Prior to joining Coillte, he worked with PwC for eight years.
Nick Roberts, Chief Financial Officer,
Diaceutics
As Chief Financial Officer, Nick Roberts is accountable for the financial health of the organisation, working alongside the EXCO team to determine overall direction for the company.
He is responsible for developing, implementing and driving strategic plans collaborating across multiple functions, supporting the Diaceutics board and leading investor reporting.
He is an experienced senior finance professional with over twelve years’ experience within the financial arena.
Roberts brings many years’ experience working with high growth AIM listed companies most recently in the pharmaceutical and green energy sector and has a proven record in managing growth companies with a strong platform focus.
Jonathan Rockett, Chief Financial Officer,
Ding
Jonathan Rockett joined Ding in 2013 as Head of Finance, before taking up the mantle of CFO in December 2017. Most recently, in 2021 he was appointed to the Board of Ding. His role spans Finance, Tax, Legal and also commercial teams supporting Ding’s global Partnership division.
Prior to joining Ding, he held senior positions at Paddy Power and PwC. Rockett was Finance lead in the technology division at Paddy Power. He spent more than five years at PwC, where he worked in both the Assurance and Transaction Services teams in Dublin.
He is also an acclaimed scholar, having studied in Trinity College Dublin, UCD Smurfit Business School, and Stanford University. He gained his Bachelors in Business and Economics (BESS) from Trinity College before going on to complete a Masters of Accountancy at UCD. In 2014, he attended Stanford University where he studied Strategic Leaderships for CFOs, Strategy, Finance, and Management.
Joseph Ryan, Chief Financial Officer,
Davy
Joseph Ryan is an experienced financial services senior executive with over twenty years’ experience in executive management, CFO, External Audit and advisory functions.
He is currently CFO and a member of the Executive Committee of Davy, the leading provider of Wealth Management and Capital Markets services in Ireland.
He joined the firm from KPMG, where he was a director in their Financial services group in 2016, as Group Financial Controller and took up his current position during 2020.
He is a chartered accountant with a BA in Accounting and Human Resource Management from the National College of Ireland. He completed the Advanced Management Programme (AMP) at IESE Business School.
Antoine Sage, Chief Financial Officer,
Schneider Electric UK and Ireland
Antoine Sage joined Schneider Electric in 2005 and has held several leadership positions within different areas of the business and group. Most recently, he was the Vice President of Strategy for Europe Operations.
During his experience, Sage has led several Finance organisations for Global Functions, French Manufacturing entities and European Industrial Cluster before becoming the Finance Vice President of Secure Power Division for both Europe and International regions.
He holds a Master’s degree from Grenoble Business School, GEM, France.
Brid Saruwatari, Global Chief Financial Officer,
Transfermate
Brid Saruwatari is Global Chief Financial Officer for Trasnfermate having been appointed to the role in August 2022. Previous roles include Group Chief Financial Controller of Keppel DC Ireland Ltd, Group Chief Financial Officer at Whitelite Automation and Assistant Vice President of State Street.
She holds a Master’s degree in accounting from University College Dublin and was previously a fellow of Institute of Chartered Accountants.
Anna Savage, Chief Financial Officer,
Fexco
Anna Savage was appointed to the role of CFO of Fexco in October 2021.
She has more than nineteen years’ experience in Banking and Finance, most recently as the CFO for AIB Group (UK) plc. Prior to that she held senior positions in AIB as Head of Finance for AIB Retail Banking Ireland and Head of Group Management Reporting.
Throughout her career, Savage held key roles in strategic and financial planning, mergers and acquisitions and the AIB IPO process. She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accounts (CGMA) and the Irish Tax Institute (CTA).
David Savage, Regional Finance Director,
Abbott
David Savage is Regional Finance Director of Abbott, a global healthcare device company. Prior to this, he was Senior Finance Manager at Eli Lilly and Company. He holds a Business degree in Accounting and Finance from Waterford Institute of Technology, an Executive MBA from University College Cork, and is a qualified Chartered Management Accountant.
John Sheehan, Group Chief Financial Officer and Director,
Ardagh Group
John Sheehan was appointed Chief Financial Officer and Director of Ardagh Group in 2021, having previously been Director of Corporate Development and Investor Relations. Prior to joining Ardagh in 2012, Sheehan spent twelve years in the equity capital markets with Investec, RBS and NCB, covering a range of industry sectors, including packaging.
He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with PriceWaterhouseCoopers and is a citizen of the Republic of Ireland.
Peter Sheridan, Group Chief Financial Officer,
Lakeland Dairies
Peter Sheridan has worked at Lakeland Dairies since 1983 and became the firm’s Group Chief Financial Officer in 2013.
Sheridan is a certified public accountant and an MBA graduate of Smurfit School of Business, UCD.
Neil Sorahan, Group Chief Financial Officer,
Ryanair
Neil Sorahan was appointed CFO of Ryanair in 2014 and Group CFO in 2019.
Prior to this he served as Ryanair’s Finance Director from June 2006 and Treasurer from January 2003. Before joining Ryanair, Sorahan held various finance and treasury roles at CRH plc. (1992-2002 incl.). He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and ICSA – The Chartered Governance Institute.
Mark Spain, Group Chief Financial Officer,
Bank of Ireland
Mark Spain was appointed as Group Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director on March 31st 2022. He was appointed to the Group Executive Committee in July 2019 following his appointment as Chief Strategy Officer in April 2019. He previously held a number of senior management positions in Bank of Ireland including Director of Group Investor Relations, Director of Group Finance and most recently UK Commercial Director.
Before joining Bank of Ireland, Spain served as a Director of IBI Corporate Finance, where he gained extensive M&A and capital markets experience, advising a number of leading Irish companies including Bank of Ireland.
Prior to this, he was a senior manager in Diageo plc’s M&A function based in London. He has more than thirty years’ experience in financial and accounting roles. Spain is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland, having qualified with KPMG.
Andrea Stafford, Head of Finance,
Malin Corporation plc
Andrea Stafford was appointed as Head of Finance in May 2022. Before joining Malin, Stafford worked with Sebela Pharmaceuticals and Doosan Bobcat in a number of senior finance positions, having previously worked with PwC’s international and domestic business assurance group in Dublin.
A graduate of National College of Ireland, she is also a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland.
Paul Stapleton, Executive Director, Group Finance & Commercial,
ESB
Paul Stapleton was appointed Executive Director, Group Finance and Commercial in October 2022.
Prior to his current role, Stapleton was Managing Director of Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) Networks, an independent subsidiary of ESB. He joined ESB in 1991 and has worked in various roles in finance and managerial positions across the Group including General Manager of Electric Ireland, ESB Group Treasurer and Financial Controller of ESB Networks.
He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and an IOD Chartered Director.
Monika Starzak, Managing Director; Financial Controller; Chief Financial Officer,
Citi; Citibank Europe plc; Citibank Ireland
Monika Starzak is currently the Financial Controller for Citibank Europe Plc (CEP) cluster and Ireland CFO with responsibilities over CEP consolidated regulatory reporting and financial controls as well as oversight over the Finance function for Ireland franchise.
She joined Citi in Warsaw, Poland in March 1997 and held various roles in Finance including Bank Handlowy Financial Controller – Citi Legal Entity with minority shareholders based in Poland and listed on Warsaw Stock Exchange, Tax Head, Strategic Cost Management and Expense processing Head for Citibank Poland.
In 2017 she relocated with her family to Dublin to take over the responsibility of Citibank Europe Financial Controller. She began working at KPMG Poland Banking Audit team in September 1993 before joining Citi.
Starzak is a graduate of Warsaw University, Department of Economics and IESE Business School.
Mary Stone, Finance Director,
Northern Trust
Mary Stone is the Finance Director of Northern Trust and head of EMEA MRPA. She has been with Northern Trust since 2005, holding positions as Head of Finance, Head of EMEA MRPA, and Finance Director before being appointed to her current role in 2014.
Prior to her experience with Northern Trust, Stone was with Baring Asset Management for over twelve years, working in Financial Accountant and Head of Finance roles. She is a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants through Dublin Business School.
Stephen Tighe, Chief Financial Officer,
eir
Stephen Tighe is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of eir. Tighe was appointed Chief Financial Officer in April 2018. He is a senior finance executive with over twenty years of business experience.
Previously, he was Finance Director for eir’s Consumer division, the largest within the Group, since October 2013 and interim Chief Commercial Officer since July 2017. Prior to this, Tighe held the positions of Finance Director in both the Open eir division and Business division.
He is a chartered accountant (CIMA) and has also completed the Corporate Finance Programme at the London Business School.
Tighe and his team support and drive the business in delivery of the company’s financial and operating plans. The team also manages all Corporate Finance activity, Financial Control and Reporting, Investor Relations, Internal Audit, Property, Pensions and Procurement.
Dan Twomey, Senior Vice President & General Manager,
Dell Financial Services
Dan Twomey has been part of the Dell Technologies team for the last twenty five years, holding a range of finance leadership roles covering manufacturing, operations, commercial, sales, and financial planning.
Since 2019, he has been the Senior Vice President and General Manager of Dell Financial Services and is the Managing Director of Dell Bank International.
He is a Chartered Accountant and a graduate of the University of Limerick.
Richard Watton, Director of Finance,
Sky Ireland
Richard Watton is a CIMA qualified accountant with extensive knowledge of the telecoms and media industries. He joined Sky in 2007 from EMI music and has held various roles in the organisation, ranging from Content Syndication to Broadband and has experience working in the UK and mainland Europe.
In January 2020, Watton took the role of CFO in Sky Ireland, the largest Pay TV provider in the country, where his remit covers the financial performance and commercial strategy of the business. Prior to his career in finance, he held roles in IT consultancy and Managed Services.
Richard Whelan, Chief Financial Officer,
AXA Ireland
Richard Whelan is the CFO of AXA Ireland and has worked at the firm since 1993.
He previously held roles at EY and Legal & General Mortgages UK.
Whelan is a chartered accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Business Studies from University College Dublin.
Download the full list as PDF
Business & Finance CFO 100 (alphabetical by surname):
View part one (A–D)
View part two (D–K)
View part three (L–O)
View part four (P–W)
