Nóirín O'Sullivan is an experienced executive leader, she most recently served as United Nations Assistant Secretary General for the United Nations Department of Safety and Security based in New York. Prior to joining the United Nations, Nóirín enjoyed a diverse and successful 36 year career in An Garda Síochana, making history when she became the first woman to lead An Garda Síochana (Ireland’s National Policing and Security Service).
 

Nóirín now operates as non-executive director, independent advisor and consultant across a number of sectors, including on the Board of Directors of the Irish Aviation Authority and as a Board Member of the National Maternity Hospital. She is a member of the North American Advisory Board of the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School. Nóirín is a graduate of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) National Executive Institute (NEI). She holds a Master in Business Studies (MBS) from the Smurfit School of Business, University College Dublin. She is the recipient of numerous recognition and awards, including an Honorary Doctorate of Laws (LLD) from the University of Ulster for Distinguished Public Service.

Carin spent 32 years at J.P. Morgan in a variety of roles, culminating in becoming CEO for the bank in Ireland and Country Head,  leading significant growth across all business lines and shared functions. Carin also led and participated in a number of industry and government sponsored groups such as the IFSC Funds Group (Chair), Irish Funds (Council Member and Chair) and the American Chamber of Commerce (Board Member and President).

Carin now acts as a Non Exec Director on the Board of Mediolanum International Funds,  Chairs Meta’s EU E-Money License firm and is a director of Le Cheile mentoring, a not for profit providing volunteer mentors to young people interacting with the criminal justice system.

Prior to becoming an INED Michael was CEO of Investec Ireland and held senior roles in Gandon Capital Markets, Citibank and Woodchester Credit Lyonnais. In 1987 Michael was a founding director of Gandon Securities which was the first institution to get a licence to operate from the IFSC raising $50mn from institutional investors.

A graduate of UCD and of the Smurfit Business School, Michael is a chartered accountant having completed his training in Price Waterhouse. In 2018 Michael was awarded ‘UCD Business Alumni of the Year’.

Patrick is the Jefferson Smurfit Professor of Strategic Management at University College Dublin (UCD). He has held senior positions at the University-including Vice-President, member of the Governing Authority, Associate Dean-UCD Business School and most recently, Academic Director of Executive Developmant at the School. He also holds visiting positions at Nanyang Business School in Singapore, the European School of Management and Technology (ESMT) in Berlin; the Antwerp School of Management and at the University of Albany. He graduated with a Ph.D. in Strategy from the University of Pittsburgh and earned his undergaraduate and master’s qualifications at UCD. Previous academic and visiting appointments have included Nanyang Business School; Peking University; Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; Penn State University and the University of Pittsburgh.

His research and consulting interests include: top management team processes; strategy development processes; leadership development and strategy implementation issues. Prior to entering academia he held a number of financial and strategy positions at KPMG; The Investment Bank of Ireland; Jefferson Smurfit Group and An Post.

Board Advisor, Albany Beck and former Chairman Citibank Ireland - Banking/Capital Markets and Advisory. Tony was Corporate Banking Head and Business Senior Credit Officer for Ireland. He is a former Chairperson of the Federation of International Banks in Ireland and was a member of the Government’s Clearing House Group for Financial Services. Currently serving as non-Executive Director of the Central Remedial Clinic.

Tony is a strategic business consultant with extensive independent non-executive board experience on the Irish subsidiary boards of International Banks, Fund Management and Aviation Leasing companies.

He graduated with a Batchelor of Commerce Degree from UCD and holds a Certificate and Diploma in Company Direction from the Institute of Directors and a Professional Certificate in Responsible and Sustainable Finance from the Institute of Banking/UCD.

Niamh is a former business journalist, having worked with the Irish Examiner on the finance desk and the Sunday Business Post. She now writes the weekly Consumer Corner column for the Irish Examiner. She has worked in Dublin, Cork, London and New York and was previously Media Relations Manager for AIB Bank. She also worked as Chief Reporter at the Irish Post Newspaper in London and for RTE in Cork.

She joined Healy Communications in the very early days and her areas of speciality include corporate, public sector and financial PR, public affairs and crisis communications. Niamh has a Degree in Government and Public Policy from University College Cork and Diplomas in Journalism and Public Relations. She was also nominated twice for the Smurfit Business School Young Business Journalist of the Year.

Patrick has over 20 years’ experience in healthcare, leading multidisciplinary teams in fast-paced and dynamic retail environments, providing high quality care and customer service. Patrick earned a BSc in Pharmacology from UCD and a Masters in Pharmacy from Liverpool John Moore’s University in the UK. Patrick pursued an Executive MBA in the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School to further advance his career and pivot into consulting.

A global Eisenhower Fellow, the former Group Business Editor of Independent News and Media has won a series of awards for her contribution to public affairs journalism including the Outstanding Achievement Award from the UCD Smurfit Business School and the Mary Cummins Award for Women of Outstanding Achievement in Media.

President of the Strategy Committee of the Centre Culturel Irlandais in Paris, Ireland’s cultural flagship in Europe, Dearbhail also serves as Secretary of La Fondation Irlandaise.

The author of Bust: How the Courts Exposed the Rotten Heart of the Irish Economy (Penguin), Dearbhail has used her platforms to consistently highlight a range of diverse issues affecting women and girls, including workplace equality, gender based violence, the socio-economic impacts of declining birth rates (Fertility Shock, RTE, 2019) and the contribution of women religious in Irish Life (The Last Nuns in Ireland, RTE, 2024). 

Dearbhail holds an LL.B (Law) from Trinity College Dublin as well as a Masters Degree in Journalism from Dublin City University.

Cal is Chair in Operational Risk in the Banking & Finance area, at the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School. His research is in financial misconduct, customer vulnerability and the mitigation of unlawful discrimination. Key focal points of his work are the detection of early-stage dementia in financial transaction data and the protection of vulnerable customers against financial abuse.

Cal is a Fulbright Scholar and has also received other awards and fellowships, including a Thomas Moran Fellowship from the Mutual of America Life Insurance, a Research Impact Award from UCD and the Barrington Medal from the Statistical & Social Inquiry Society. He has held Academic Director appointments at the University for the BSc Economics and Finance and MBA. He has held Visiting Scholar appointments at New York University Stern School of Business, Yale University, at Groningen and Tilburg Universities, at ESC Rennes School of Business, at Freiburg University and at the London School of Economics.

Emmet is an editor and broadcaster as well as an academic, teaching and researching in the area of business, economics and government. He started his career at The Irish Times where he was a business correspondent, media columnist and Assistant Business Editor. He then worked at Bloomberg UK and also spent time as a business editor at the Irish Independent and Sunday Tribune. During the financial crisis Emmet worked as Director of communications at IDA Ireland, where he was a member of the management committee.

Emmet returned to journalism in 2019 as editor of the Sunday Business Post and currently broadcasts on business and economic topics at NewsTalk 106. He hosts the official podcast Business Impact of UCD College of Business.

Professor Federica Pazzaglia is the Director of UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School and Associate Dean of UCD College of Business. She is also the Head of the Management Subject Area and has research interests in social cognition, identity and image, corporate governance and institutional entrepreneurship. Her work has been published in numerous prestigious academic journals and has been featured in a number of leading professional and industry publications. She is widely recognised as an expert in her field and has been featured in international media outlets. 

She has received a number of research awards, that includes a Dissertation Fellowship from the University of Alberta, and an Early Career Research Award from UCD. She has also received a 'Best Overall Paper Award' and a 'Carlo Masini Award for Innovative Scholarship' and has been a finalist for the 'Carolyn Dexter Award for Best International Paper' at the Academy of Management Conference. She also received a 'Best Reviewer Award' at Corporate Governance: An International Review and a Teaching Award from the University of Alberta. She is member of the editorial boards of Human Relations, Journal of Management Inquiry, and Corporate Governance: An International Review.

Anton Savage has presented TV and Radio Shows including Ireland AM, The Seven O’Clock Show, The Apprentice, You’re Fired! The Sunday Business Show, Savage Sunday and The Anton Savage Show (for which he won the PPI Award for Best Magazine Show in the show’s inaugural year).

Anton has written for publications including the Irish Independent, The Examiner, The Mail and Mail on Sunday and he has been a columnist for both The Sunday Independent and Herald. His first book Spin and Win – how Irish politicians get elected was published in 2007 to positive reviews. And almost no sales. (He tries to focus on the reviews…)

Anton is a founding Director of The Communications Clinic, one of Ireland’s leading communications training and advisory companies. He served in a number of senior management roles prior to that.

Anton is a regular MC at AGM’s, award ceremonies and Conferences, including the European People’s Party European Convention (which was addressed by the heads of dozens of EU Member States including the German Chancellor, Spanish Prime Minister and President of the European Council) and has hosted ‘Audiences With’ a range of guests, from Sir John Sawyers (former head of MI6) to Jeremy Paxman, to IKEA Global Chairman Lars-Johan Jarnheimer.