By Business & Finance 
Pictured (L-R): David McCourt of National Broadband Ireland & Anthony Barbazon, UCD, presenting with the Brand of the Year Award at the 51st Annual Business & Finance Awards 2025 in association with KPMG.
At the 51st annual Business & Finance Awards, NBI received the Brand of the Year Award. The recognition points to the strategic positioning of NBI and the outcomes of the National Broadband Plan, which is extending high-speed fibre connectivity to homes, farms, businesses, and communities in rural Ireland.
By Héloïse Chaudot
David McCourt is the Chairman of National Broadband Ireland and Chairman and CEO of Granahan McCourt Capital. McCourt has held senior roles as CEO, President and board member at Level 3 Communications, MFS Communications, Corporate Communications Network, MCI WorldCom, as well as the regulated operator, Commonwealth Telephone Enterprises.
What was the biggest challenge your organisation faced this year, and how did you overcome it?
Large infrastructure projects all around the world have been hit hard by a challenging and often volatile global economy, with periods of high inflation and lots of uncertainty in supply chains. One of the things that our team at NBI has done extremely well is to be agile and adapt to these challenges. Ultimately, this hard work ensures we drive value for money for the State in our delivery of the National Broadband Plan, which is a project of significant national importance. Despite a complex and challenging environment, NBI proudly remains on time and on budget.
How does this award reflect your current strategic priorities, and how will it shape your next 12–24 months?
Winning Brand of the Year at the Business & Finance Awards is fantastic recognition for how NBI has become synonymous with rural Ireland and the communities we serve with the National Broadband Plan. As we move towards completing our rollout in the next 12 months or so, we’re excited to see large volumes of homes, farms and businesses connecting to the new NBI network and realising the benefits of our world-class high-speed fibre broadband.
What role does innovation play in your success, and can you share an example from the last year?
Innovation underpins NBI’s ability to deliver the National Broadband Plan at scale and pace. Over the past year, we have continued to refine how we design and roll out the network, and we’re connecting homes, farms and businesses faster than ever before, ensuring rural communities can access the same high-quality connectivity as urban areas so that they can fully participate in the digital economy without limits.
How do you see your organisation contributing to the broader Irish business landscape and community now that you’ve received this recognition?
NBI plays a key role in helping to rebalance the Irish business landscape by ensuring that location is no longer a barrier to ambition. Through the National Broadband Plan, we are delivering high-speed, future-proofed fibre broadband to communities and businesses that have traditionally been outside of Ireland’s main urban centres. This connectivity is enabling local enterprises to scale, compete nationally and internationally, adopt new digital tools, attract talent, and innovate with confidence. In doing so, NBI is supporting sustainable regional growth, strengthening local economies, and helping to create vibrant business communities across every county in Ireland.
What brand strategy shifts this year contributed most to public engagement and recognition?
Consumers don’t naturally care for broadband ads, hate jargon, and want straight-talking, entertaining and informative content. Our answer has been Fionnuala Fibre O’Farrell Flynn – our puppet news anchor delivering broadband updates with wit, warmth and zero jargon. Nostalgic, humorous, and memorable, she has made broadband make sense. For a wholesale broadband provider, we’ve had tremendous cut through and helped cement NBI in the national consciousness.
How do you see your brand’s role evolving as connectivity becomes even more central to daily life?
When people sign up to a broadband service, first and foremost, they want to trust in its reliability – particularly people living in rural communities who have had to make-do with outdated technologies for so long. At NBI, we put a huge focus on making sure our network is future-proofed and resilient, and that our customer support delivers peace of mind to people who rely on our network. These values are central to our brand and our operations as we continue to work hard for the rural communities we serve across the country.
Read more:
Highlights of a spectacular 2025 Business & Finance Awards, in association with KPMG Ireland
