By Business & Finance 
Pictured (l-r): Pearse Dolan – Operations Director, Giedre Visockaite – QEHS & Sustainability Director, Mark Gannon – Associate Director, Performance, Mark Flanagan – CEO, Stephen Kavanagh – Associate Director, Power and Renewables, Taidgh Dooley – Operations Director and Martin Kelly – Commercial Director – Operations
This week sees new and notable appointments at Kirby, Premier Lotteries Ireland, Mangopay, and Fota Wildlife Park.
Various Senior Appointments,
Kirby
Kirby Group Engineering has announced its latest appointees to senior positions within the company. Six people are being appointed to Director and Associate Director roles amid a period of continuing growth at the firm, which is marking its 60th anniversary this year.
Kirby has its headquarters in Limerick and has established bases across Ireland, the UK, mainland Europe and South Africa. The family-founded firm reported a turnover of €636 million for 2023 and directly employs over 1500 people.
As part of this announcement, four people are being appointed to the role of Director, they are:
- Pearse Dolan, Operations Director
- Taidgh Dooley, Operations Director
- Giedre Visockaite, QEHS & Sustainability Director
- Martin Kelly, Commercial Director – Operations
Two others have been appointed Associate Director, they are:
- Mark Gannon, Associate Director – Performance
- Stephen Kavanagh, Associate Director – Power and Renewables
CEO Mark Flanagan congratulated the appointees: “These announcements come at an important juncture for our company. Not only are we marking 60 years in operation this year, the business has been experiencing significant growth. The combination of our core values – people, safety, quality, delivery and value – and the trust placed in us by our valued clients are the building blocks of our success to date. As a result, it’s vital we have the right people in place to continue to guide us forward. I have every confidence this group will play a key role in this journey and look forward to working with them into the future”.
Cian Murphy, CEO Designate,
Premier Lotteries Ireland
Cian Murphy, CEO Designate, Premier Lotteries Ireland
Premier Lotteries Ireland, the operator of the Irish National Lottery since 2015, has announced that Andrew Algeo has advised of his intention to step down as Chief Executive Officer and board member on the June 30, 2024. PLI is pleased to announce that Cian Murphy, currently Chief Product and Digital Officer at PLI, is appointed as CEO Designate with immediate effect.
Murphy joined PLI in 2020, prior to which he held a number of senior roles outside PLI, including at Paddy Power PLC, McKinsey & Company and most recently as Chief Marketing Officer at the Automobile Association.
Murphy has demonstrated great skills in running material parts of PLI’s business over four years and we are confident in his ability to develop PLI in the future years. He will continue to work alongside Algeo to ensure an orderly transition and will take up his new role as CEO and board member on July 1.
Andrew Algeo joined PLI in 2019 as CEO and has played a key part in the Company’s success over the intervening five years including most recently in the Company’s purchase by Groupe FDJ, a leading international lottery and gaming operator.
Vivienne Jupp, Chairperson of PLI, said: “Andrew has been CEO for the last five years and has successfully led the team at PLI through a rejuvenation in our brand, digital proposition and products as well as internal transformation across our culture, organisation, financing and shareholders. I would like to thank Andrew for the enormous contribution he has made to the Company.
“We are fortunate in having such a strong successor. Cian brings a wealth of experience and a vision that aligns seamlessly with our mission. I look forward to working closely with him into the future”.
Stéphane Pallez, Chairwoman and CEO of FDJ Group, said: “I thank Andrew warmly for his contribution to the acquisition of PLI by FDJ, and for the great job done since November 3rd 2023 to bring PLI and FDJ together as sister companies. I am very happy with Cian Murphy’s appointment as the new CEO of PLI. I am convinced that he will lead PLI’s development in the future for the benefit of the National Lottery and the good causes.”
Andrew Algeo, Chief Executive Officer of PLI, said: “2024 is the beginning of a new era for PLI and is the ideal time for new leadership to drive the organisation forward, and for me to explore where my career can take me next.
“We have achieved many milestones in the last five years at PLI, because of the ambition, support and dedication of my colleagues, fellow board members and shareholders, to whom I am grateful.
“I pass the helm to Cian with great confidence in his abilities and in FDJ’s considerable backing. Here’s to the future growth and prosperity of our National Lottery.”
Cian Murphy, Chief Executive Officer Designate of PLI, said: “The National Lottery plays a huge role in Irish society and my colleagues and I are totally focused on its success. Sincere thanks to Andrew for all he has done to date and I look forward to the challenges and opportunities ahead.”
Bertrand Dezard, Head of Sales for Fraud,
Mangopay
Mangopay, a modular and flexible payment infrastructure provider, has announced the appointment of Bertrand Dezard to its team as Head of Sales for Fraud. Dezard joins to drive the growth of Mangopay’s international fraud business worldwide with a focus on Europe and Latin America as the company expands the client base of its award-winning cybersecurity solution.
Dezard brings more than 15 years of payment and fraud prevention industry knowledge and recently managed the commercial organisation at Ravelin, a business specialising in fraud detection. Dezard previously held senior positions at Payplug, Braintree and Visa Europe and has notable experience in the European payments landscape and in implementing commercial optimisation tooling for clients through the detection of patterns associated with the latest fraudulent techniques and behaviours.
Mangopay has been providing its modular payment infrastructure to leading European and global marketplaces since 2013. It acquired fraud detection and prevention specialists Nethone in 2023 to strengthen its offering to clients, adding proprietary cybersecurity technology, expertise and intelligence.
Mangopay’s AI-driven cybersecurity solution from Nethone guards against an evolving range of threats, including account takeover by both bots and humans, reseller fraud, payment fraud, chargebacks, and return abuse. It offers enhanced protection including real-time fraud detection, darknet insights and device fingerprinting and benefits from years of first-hand darknet insights to protect businesses against techniques and patterns used by the most advanced fraudsters.
Dezard will drive the growth of Mangopay’s fraud prevention offer worldwide. He joins at a period of growth for the company as it scales, expanding its fraud prevention product offering to address the needs of eCommerce businesses, platforms and the financial services industry.
Commenting on Dezard’s appointment, Romain Mazeries, CEO of Mangopay, said: “Bertrand brings impressive experience to accelerate the international growth of our fraud prevention offer, which represents a new and exciting proposition for the industry, with cutting-edge innovations and insights. He joins Mangopay at an exciting stage in our journey, and I look forward to working closely with him to keep platforms safe and enable their growth with our award-winning solution.”
Dezard added: “Mangopay’s modular solution and its deep understanding of the specific needs of marketplaces and platforms sets the company apart. That is why I have followed the business closely since its inception, and I am excited to join during this period of expansion. At Mangopay, we’re constantly working to innovate and evolve our product offering and that includes our anti-fraud solutions. I look forward to working alongside Mangopay’s CEO Romain Mazeries and our talented team of fraud prevention experts to drive the international growth of the group.”
Aileen Tennant, Director,
Fota Wildlife Park
Pictured: Aileen Tennant, Director, Fota Wildlife Park
Fota Wildlife Park has announced the appointment of Aileen Tennant as its new Director. She will assume her role on 1 July, spearheading the operations of the Cork wildlife park, which welcomes circa 450,000 visitors annually.
A Carlow native and DCU Science Education graduate, Tennant ran the Discovery & Learning Department at Dublin Zoo for nine years. She will now lead the senior management team at Fota Wildlife Park, driving the implementation of the organisation’s strategic goals. Entrusted with the leadership, growth, and strategic development of Fota Wildlife Park, Aileen will oversee all aspects of park management while upholding its core values of conservation, education, research, animal welfare and visitor experience. Her appointment comes at an exciting time of growth for Fota Wildlife Park, which is currently commissioning a state-of-the-art Education, Conservation and Research Conference Centre.
Commenting on today’s announcement, Jim Woulfe, Chair of Fota Wildlife Park, said: “We are delighted to welcome Tennant as our new Park Director. Her extensive experience and dedication to conservation and education make her the perfect fit to lead Fota Wildlife Park into its next chapter of innovation, growth, and development.
“I’d also like to extend our heartfelt thanks to our outgoing Director, Sean McKeown, for his steadfast leadership in the development of the Wildlife Park and his commitment to conservation over the past 40 years. We wish him the very best on his retirement.”
Speaking on her new role, Tennant added: “I am incredibly honoured to join Fota Wildlife Park and contribute to its mission to enable a more sustainable and biodiverse future, which will be driven forward by activity in the new education complex. I look forward to working with the team to deliver positive change in the conservation of wildlife and to inspire visitors to join us in this mission at Fota Wildlife Park.”
Tennant’s tenure at Dublin Zoo was marked by notable achievements, including the expansion of the Discovery & Learning department which delivers award-winning learning programmes and the implementation of innovative visitor experiences such as Zoorassic World, Himalayan Hills and the Discovery & Learning Centre. Tennant was a key player in the strategic development of Dublin Zoo in recent years and delivered the zoo’s first-ever Conservation Education Master Plan.
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