New and notable appointments at eir, Heneghan and Hastings Hotels

Pictured (L-R): Oliver Loomes, Chief Executive Officer-designate at eir and Carolan Lennon, Chief Executive Officer at eir since 2018

This week sees new and notable appointments at eir, Heneghan and Hastings Hotels.

Oliver Loomes, Chief Executive Officer-designate
eir

eir, Ireland’s leading telecoms provider, has announced the appointment of Oliver Loomes as its Chief Executive Officer-designate. Loomes will join the company on 1 February. Following four successful years at the company’s helm Carolan Lennon, CEO since 2018, informed the Board last summer of her intention to leave in 2022 to pursue further career opportunities. Carolan will work with Oliver to ensure a smooth transition in the months ahead.

Oliver, an experienced corporate leader, has spent 30 years working in consumer-focused industries, his most recent position was Chairman and Managing Director at Diageo Ireland. He began his career with Mars and held a number of roles in the UK and Ireland. Oliver worked with Diageo across a range of positions, including as Marketing and Innovation Director (Ireland), where he led the Arthur’s Day campaign as part of the Guinness 250^th anniversary celebration, and Global Brand Director for Guinness. A Dubliner, Oliver holds B.Comm and MBS degrees from UCD.

Carolan departs eir having led four consecutive financial years of growth in profits, as well as the significant expansion of the company’s customer base, during her tenure. From 2018 to 2021, eir’s fibre broadband customer base grew by 30% to 823,000 customers, while the number of mobile bill pay customers grew by 60% to 869,000. Additionally, more than 500,000 premises have been added to eir’s fibre-to-the-home broadband network during her time overseeing an unprecedented investment of over €1bn by the company in its infrastructure.

David McRedmond, Chairman of eir, said: “Carolan has successfully steered eir through a momentous rebuilding phase that has seen significant expansion of both its customer base and network reach. She and her team have built the platform for future success. The large-scale investment that eir’s shareholders have made in the company positions it as, not only Ireland’s leading telecoms provider, but one that is future-proofed to navigate pace of technological change. This investment serves one clear purpose: to provide our customers with the world-class products and services they need.

“eir is part of the fabric of Irish life, its purpose is to connect for a better Ireland and with that in mind, our objective was to appoint an Irish CEO who truly understands eir’s significance. With decades of experience in leading iconic brands, Oliver Loomes is the ideal person to lead eir’s next phase, focused on developing a world-class customer experience and a brand that Ireland can be proud of.”

Xavier Niel, Director at eir and Chairman of NJJ Holdings, majority owner of eir, said: “When we acquired eir in 2018 we saw an urgent need to transform the company into a true market leader, not only offering our customers superb choice and value, but to invest in building the foundations for long-term future success.

“Carolan’s four years as CEO have been marked by extraordinary progress on this journey, not just in terms of financial results and customer growth, but in innovation. She has been responsible for, among many other developments, the launch of eir’s market-leading 5G network, the creation of the GoMo mobile brand, last year’s merger of eir Business and Evros to create business ICT solutions provider eir evo, a first for the Irish market, and insourcing around 1,200 customer service jobs. Her dedication has driven eir to its strongest position yet, and the company owes her a great gratitude for her tireless commitment and superb leadership.”

Niel added: “The journey of eir’s growth continues now under Oliver’s stewardship. eir is part of Ireland’s fabric, connecting families and communities for generations, and Oliver’s success in fostering storied brands and products so part of the national consciousness positions him to take eir to the next level.”

Outgoing CEO Carolan Lennon said, “It has been a true privilege to lead eir over these last four years. Years which have seen us invest, grow, innovate and face unprecedented challenges without ever slowing our progress. I am proud to have been part of eir’s story and I have enjoyed each day working alongside an inspiring team. As we emerge from the pandemic our country has endless opportunities for growth. Ireland is one of the most innovative countries in the world. We are educated, ambitious and adaptable, but we can only realise our full potential if we have world class connectivity infrastructure in place. That is what eir makes possible and that is what eir is building every day. I look forward to seeing what the next stage of eir’s transformation will bring.”

Incoming CEO Oliver Loomes, said “eir is both a company with a long and rich history and a fantastic culture of creativity and investment that is unrivalled in the market. I am excited to continue and expand that vision for growth. The last two years have only accelerated our reliance on the digital world, be that learning or working from home, or playing or shopping online. eir has been innovating in telecoms for decades and its continued ambition to give its customers the tools they need to connect in an ever-changing digital world underlines its commitment to remaining at the forefront of the market. I look forward to helping bring the latest technology to our networks and advance eir’s position as Ireland’s leading telecoms provider.”

Emma Flannery, Senior Account Director
Heneghan

Pictured: Emma Flannery, Senior Account Director at Heneghan

Heneghan, one of Ireland’s leading strategic communications consultancies is pleased to announce the promotion of Emma Flannery to Senior Account Director with immediate effect.

Prior to her new role, Emma served as an Account Director with Heneghan since 2019. On a day-to-day basis, she directs communications and media relations campaigns and strategies for the agency’s leading clients, including ABP Food Group; National Broadband Ireland; SSE Airtricity; SSE Renewables; Actavo; The Ireland Funds and the South / South West Hospital Group. Emma joined Heneghan in 2012 as an Account Executive.

In her new role, Emma will provide strategic communications consultancy services to clients and work closely with senior management teams to develop and deliver strategic, high impact national and local communications campaigns. She has experience in media management, as well as devising and activating communications campaigns at a national and regional level. Emma is also part of the agency’s crisis communications team.

Emma is a graduate of NUI Maynooth with a BA in Media Studies and History and holds a MSc. in Communication, Advertising and Public Relations from University of Ulster, Jordanstown.

Howard Hastings, Chairman & James McGinn, Managing Director
Hastings Hotels

Pictured (L-R): James McGinn (left), Managing Director at Hastings Hotels; Howard Hastings (centre), Chairman; Edward Carson (right), retiring Chairman, has retained his Board membership as a Non-Executive Director

Hastings Hotels has announced that its longest-serving Director, Edward Carson, has retired as Chairman and is succeeded by Howard Hastings.

James McGinn, who has worked for the Northern Ireland hotel group for 25 years as Operations Director and General Manager of the Europa Hotel, has been appointed as the new Managing Director.

Edward Carson has retained his Board membership as a Non-Executive Director.

Following these changes, Andy McNeill is returning to the Europa Hotel as the new General Manager following a period as General Manager of the Culloden Estate & Spa.

Niall Burns, who previously worked for Hastings Hotels as the Deputy General Manager of the Slieve Donard Resort & Spa, and most recently as the General Manager of Lyrath Estate in County Kilkenny, will replace Andy at the helm of the Culloden.

“As we emerge from the pandemic, Hastings Hotels is confident that it does so with a very strong team. I would like to thank Edward Carson in particular for his lifetime of dedication and commitment to the company and am delighted that he will remain on the Board,” said Howard Hastings, Chairman of Hastings Hotels.

“I am also thrilled that we are able to acknowledge and harness the talents of individuals who have come through the ranks to attain a senior status in the company. And while it is ‘welcome back’ to Niall Burns at the Culloden Estate, my fellow directors and I wish him, Andy McNeill at the Europa and James McGinn as Managing Director our very best wishes as they take on their new roles.”