Declan Kelly

Never too late to learn new lessons

Declan Kelly recently completed the UCD Diploma in High Performance Sales and Business Development programme, his third and final diploma on his journey to completing the MSc in Business (Leadership & Management Practice). He had previously completed the Diploma in Advanced Management Performance (AMP) and the Diploma in Strategy, Development & Innovation.

Declan is Managing Director of the Moyne Roberts Ireland Ltd & Apex Fire Ltd in Ireland, better known to most people in the industry as the leading fire protection, detection, training, and consultancy firm. He combines that role with volunteering as a serving officer with the Reserve Defence Forces with his local unit C Company 27th Infantry Battalion based in Cavan.

“I have always had the belief that life is one long learning journey,” says Declan when asked why he chose to do the MSc in Business at Smurfit Executive Development. “John F Kennedy once said, ‘leadership and learning are indispensable to each other’. As the leader here at work and sometimes fulfilling that role in the Reserve Defence Forces you are learning every day from your decisions, be they good bad or indifferent, so I believe one is better equipped by learning from the best.”

That belief was backed up by his own research. “I researched doing a master’s and found the best in the business is the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate School with the elite status of holding the triple accreditation from EQUIS, AACSB and AMBA and consistently ranked in the global top 100 schools by the Financial Times,” he explains. “I was not let down when I entered the school in January 2019. I felt I had great diversity offered to me in the selection of diplomas to choose from.”

Declan’s aim was to hone his own skills and use that for the benefit of the Moyne Roberts Group. “I suppose I wanted to upskill on my knowledge, techniques, and experience, to build and motivate the team around me on improving their performance. The calibre of people you engage with be it the administrative team or faculty team throughout the diplomas surpassed all my expectations. The diversity and interaction on each module had been well planned, you’re well informed in every detail, even down to the key area of looking after your nourishment requirements.”

The programme is already having an impact on his career. “I have always believed that you are never too old to learn new lessons,” he points out. “My management team and other colleagues were aware that I was doing a Masters and I felt it was a signal to them that no one person has all the answers in our team including myself. Finding better ways to seek out those answers by further educating oneself is not a sign of weakness but more a sign to my team if you have not got all the answers say so and seek that help from those who do know. Make the effort to learn to the best of your ability and then share this learning with those you lead.”

Making time to listen more has been a key learning for me. “People should not be afraid to respectfully challenge decision makers and in my leadership role I now make sure I make time and listen more to a colleague’s problem or issue within the business to help me direct them and help them to find the answer or solution by untapping their full potential.

Declan also says he now has more confidence in his abilities to tackle situations where he had previously thought he was not sufficiently informed or equipped to decide on. “In the military world practice makes perfect,” he adds. “I have also learnt to be a good coach, You need to listen more to really understand a situation and know the right time to help a person to overcome and resolve the issues facing them. It’s not being a shoulder to cry on but more of a mentor to develop that person who is seeking your trusted advice. That is very rewarding when you both reach a successful conclusion, and it all starts with better listening skills.”

His advice to potential Diploma in High Performance Sales and Business Development participants is to “try it, you don’t have to have a sales title to learn from this diploma. You will not regret doing this diploma. As the great Napoleon Hill once said, ‘Our only limitations are those we set up in our own minds, Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”

And he advises people interested in the Masters programme not to be put off by the level of commitment involved. “Like most people I thought it would be a lot of work time and commitment, and that is very true. But it is also very rewarding and somewhere that you can share ideas and learn new ways that can help you in your daily work and personal life. I learnt from young and older participants, lecturers and I hope I also contributed to this learning and hopefully I would like to think that I helped others in some small way too. I miss it, but I don’t think it’s over for me. I could still go back and do the Smurfit MBA programme. That would be another big commitment, but I have the bug for it now.”