By Business & Finance 
Carol Sharkey, Ryanair
Business & Finance highlights notable new appointments at Institute of Directors in Ireland, Women’s Executive Network, Contracting PLUS, Ryanair and Aircoach.
Imelda Reynolds, Chartered Director
John Reynolds, Chartered Director
Institute of Directors (IoD) in Ireland
Imelda Reynolds
Imelda Reynolds and John Reynolds have been appointed as board members of the Institute of Directors.
Imelda Reynolds is Chairperson of Beauchamps and was a past president of Dublin Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Governing Body of Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT). She is also an elected council member of the Law Society of Ireland, Vice-Chair of a division of the Law Society’s Regulation of Practice Committee and Chair of the Aquaculture Licences Appeals Board.
John Reynolds
John Reynolds is Chairman of Cairn Homes plc and a non-executive director of Computershare Investor Services (Ireland) Ltd, Business in the Community Ireland and the National Concert Hall. He was previously Chief Executive of KBC Bank Ireland, President of the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland and a member of the board of the European Banking Federation.
Michael Somers, President of the Institute of Directors in Ireland, said:
In an environment of increasing and evolving regulation, the IoD has a critical role to play in providing professional training and support to our members in all aspects of governance. In this respect, I am delighted with the appointment of Chartered Directors, Imelda Reynolds and John Reynolds, both of whom bring an extensive level of experience and expertise to the IoD board.
Laura O’Donovan, Director of Business Development
Women’s Executive Network (WXN)
Laura O’Donovan
Laura O’Donovan has been appointed Director of Business at the Women’s Executive Network (WXN).
She has previously worked in the hotel and lesiure industry in sales and marketing and has been involved in community-based projects, including Dublin Docklands Business Forum and LGBT education programmes for young people.
O’Donovan is organising the upcoming Top 25 / Ireland’s Most Powerful Women Awards at the Intercontinental Hotel on the 14 June.
Commenting on her appointment, O’Donovan said:
I’m delighted to be joining WXN, an organisation as passionate as I am about mentoring, collaboration, and fostering work environments where teamwork is at the heart of the culture.
Jimmy Sheehan, Commercial Director
Contracting PLUS
Jimmy Sheehan
Jimmy Sheehan has joined Contracting PLUS as Commercial Director.
Sheehan is a Certified Public Accountant and successfully grew his own audit and accountancy practice. This was acquired by a top-ten accountancy firm.
Prior to joining Contracting PLUS, Sheehan was Head of Commercial Development with a national accountancy firm. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland and sits on the board as part of the non-executive team.
Michael Dineen, Chairman, Contracting PLUS:
We look forward to adding Jimmy’s expertise to enhance and streamline our service offering and further capitalise on our innovative technology.
Carol Sharkey, Chief Risk Officer
Ryanair
Carol Sharkey
Carol Sharkey has bee appointed Chief Risk Officer at Ryanair.
Sharkey is currently Director of Safety and Security and has worked at Ryanair since 1995.
Michael O’Leary, CEO of Ryanair:
I am pleased to announce the promotion of Carol Sharkey to the role of Chief Risk Officer and welcome her to the senior management team. Carol has an encyclopedic knowledge of our business and how we deliver controlled growth safely, and her expertise particularly in the area of operations and safety will ensure she plays a key role in our future growth to some 600 aircraft and over 200 million customers per annum.
Ryanair’s Chief Risk Officer, Carol Sharkey said:
I am very happy to join the senior management team. It’s an exciting time for Ryanair as we continue to grow and expand our operations across Europe and I look forward to working with all of the team and the board to maintain and develop Ryanair’s industry-leading safety record.
Dervla McKay, Managing Director
Aircoach
Dervla McKay
Dervla McKay has been appointed as Aircoach’s new Managing Director.
McKay joined First Group in 2005 as a graduate trainee and has worked in operation and management roles in England, her most recent role being Head of Operations for First Hampshire, Dorset & Berkshire.
McKay said:
I’m delighted to join the Aircoach team. Aircoach is committed to delivering high-quality public transport services and has been instrumental in increasing the level of public transport usage in Ireland over the last number of years and I look forward to providing for Aircoach’s growing customer base in the future.
