Partner Gathering & Networking Event 2024

Bobby is formally co-owner and Chairman/CEO of Insomnia Coffee Company (which he exited from in 2018), Ireland largest independent coffee chain, which at that time had over 140 shops, employed over 500 people and sold over 14 million cups of coffee a year. Bobby is a presenter on “Down to Business” the popular Newstalk radio business show on Saturday. His business show has a listenership of 130000 listeners having grown it from just 27000 when he started 10 years ago. From 2017 to 2019 he presented “Bobby’s Late Breakfast” a life style magazine type show on Sunday mornings which had 93000 listeners. He was one of the original Dragons on Dragon’s Den for the first 4 years of the series. Although he has left the series to look at other broadcasting opportunities, he continues to be actively involved with the 9 investments he made during the series. Bobby is also a popular business, entrepreneurial and motivational speaker.

His Maritime TV documentary 8-part series “Along Home Shores” was filmed and aired in 2016. This saw Bobby circumnavigate Ireland looking at life, history, sport and business with water being the common theme. Bobby’s of business interests are in a variety of sectors including food and hospitality, technology, hardware and exhibition. Best known in Ireland as a ‘Dragon’ on the Irish TV version of Dragons’ Den, Bobby is also a popular public speaker and business mentor.

Bobby is passionate about small business. He sat on the board of Microfinance Ireland (MFI) for 3 years. MFI is a not for profit lender that provides loans to small businesses of less than 10 employees with a turnover of less than €2m. This organisation has €90 million in funds to lend to small business over the next 10 years. As well as his involvement on the board Bobby also sat on the Credit Control Committee, responsible for reviewing the terms of credit agreements. Bobby was also a member of the Small Business Advice Programme – a targeted programme set up to provide free advice and support to SME’s. He is also chaired the business development group for An Post, a group set up by the Minister of Communications in 2015 to decide the future of the Post Office in both urban and rural Ireland. He is the author of “The Kerr report” which maps out a blue print for the future of the Irish Post Office network. He is also Chairman of The Great Lighthouses of Ireland an of the Board of the Cliffs Of Moher Limited as part of his maritime interests. He is a director of healthy food delivery business DropChef which is a rapidly growing meal distribution business across Ireland.

He recently joined the team at Bakery Bread 41 and will contribute to the growth and expansion of its bread and confectionary business.

He is a keen sailor and runner. He lives with his wife Mary and their four daughters by the sea in Sandycove, County Dublin.

Yvonne Shields O’Connor is Chief Executive of the Commissioners of Irish Lights, providing navigation and maritime services around the coast of Ireland. Prior to this, she worked for the Marine Institute as Director of Strategic Planning and Development, as Director of Marine Science and Technology, and as Programme Manager for Marine Tourism and Leisure. She has over 30 years’ experience of policy, strategy, research, programme development and operational delivery in the marine sector in Ireland and has served on EU and international committees working on ocean health and infrastructure.

Yvonne holds an MSc. in Environmental Science from TCD, an MBA from DCU, and she is a Chartered Director. In 2020, she was appointed by the Minister of State at the Department of Transport as Chairperson of the National Search and Rescue Committee. She was appointed by previous Ministers to the Ocean Wealth Task Force, the National Energy Research Board, and the National Research Council for Science, Technology and Engineering. She is currently a non-Executive Director of the Alfred Beit Foundation and was previously a Director of the Western Development Commission and Irish National Opera.

Originally from Romania, Lucian came to Ireland in 2007 where he worked in hospitality in Killarney until 2016. Wishing to use his degree in Geography & Tourism, he took up a volunteer job with the Lighthouse project in 2017. Since then, he has been key to the development of Valentia Lighthouse as a tourist attraction. He became manager of the Lighthouse in 2019 and progressed to Project Manager of the Valentia Island Development project in 2020. In 2023, he became CEO of the development project.

Brendan, a native of Valentia, and Elizabeth, with roots in Armagh who found her new home in
Kerry, combine their passions to showcase the wonders of this unique island. Together, they’ve
turned their dreams into reality, creating adventure tours that resonate with history, excitement,
and a genuine love for the Irish sea. With their love for the sea and Irish history, Brendan and
Elizabeth provide explorers with a truly unique and exciting experience by interacting directly with
their visitors to showcase Valentia Island and the Skellig Coasts

Jenny Jensma is the Content & Brand Manager at Tourism Ireland based in the Dublin office. Jenny has been working in the hospitality and tourism industry for over 25 years, having started her career in London working in the conference and events space, returning to Ireland in 2001 and shortly afterwards joining Tourism Ireland. Her career in Tourism Ireland has largely been in the Brand & Marketing Communications area, focusing on delivering world-class global brand campaigns. She has also held roles within Tourism Ireland in Corporate Communications and Trade Marketing in the Canadian market. Jenny holds an MSc in Tourism Management from University of Ulster and a BSc in Management from Trinity College Dublin.

Caroline is Chief Executive of BIM, Ireland’s Seafood Development Agency. She oversees the development of the Irish seafood sector, valued at €1.4 billion in 2023, by building on its natural advantages, commitment to sustainable fishing, and the development of a high-quality aquaculture and seafood processing sector.

She previously held the roles of Chief Financial Officer in the international humanitarian response agency, GOAL, and Director of Corporate Service in the Marine Institute, Ireland’s national marine research agency.

Dave is the Commercial Services Manager with Irish Lights, which delivers an essential navigation safety service around the coast of Ireland, protecting lives, property, and the marine environment. With a wide-ranging portfolio, Dave is responsible for commercially exploiting Irish Lights assets and reserve capacity to deliver strategic value add and revenue. He is also responsible for the Great Lighthouses of Ireland, which was developed by Irish Lights in partnership with local communities and other public bodies to open lighthouses to visitors.

Tourism Development Consultant to the Commissioners of Irish Lights since 2015, Ethna has supported the strategic development of the Great Lighthouses of Ireland brand and partnership. With over 30 years of experience in tourism, she specializes in creating strategic destination plans and distinctive visitor experiences. Through her consultancy, she has contributed to numerous international and national initiatives, including projects for Tsodilo World Heritage Site in Botswana, the UNWTO’s Phoenicians’ Route, Northern Ireland’s “Embrace a Giant Spirit” brand, and various product development frameworks.

Meadbh (Maeve) Seoighe (Joyce) works as an Enterprise Executive with Údarás na Gaeltachta, assisting enterprises across the Gaeltacht to develop their business plans and create employment. Support is provided through a range of soft supports, grant aid, and investments. In 2016, Tourism was added to her portfolio, and she is now implementing the 2021-2025 Tourism strategy for the Gaeltacht. Enabling the development of saleable experiences based on the unique language and culture of the region, as well as working with communities and the private sector to develop engaging visitor attractions, is central to this work. She is a former board member of the Galway Chamber of Commerce and the Letterkenny Institute of Technology (renamed recently as the Atlantic Technological University) and is a director of Ardán, which promotes film and television development in the west of Ireland.

Prior to joining Údarás na Gaeltachta, Meadbh worked in the television and film sector and as an independent marketing consultant.

She holds a master’s degree in art history and a postgraduate diploma in Archival and Library Heritage from Rome. She has been involved in both the private and public sectors since 2013, including work with the Red Cross, architectural and engineering collections, and significant archival records from the Houses of the Oireachtas and the Central Bank of Ireland.

Currently, at Irish Lights, she is responsible for managing the Archive and Heritage activities, including preservation, cataloguing, appraisal, digital and physical access for full research value, and promotion through outreach and promotional programmes.

Alan is a director of Archaeological Projects Ltd., which was founded in 1989 and was the first commercial archaeological company set up in the state. Over the last 40 years, he has excavated and published hundreds of sites in Ireland. He has been the consulting and contracting archaeologist for the OPW on Sceilg Mhichíl since 2005. Megan Willingham is an experienced field archaeologist and anthropologist and has been Alan’s assistant archaeologist on Skellig since 2020.

Lar Joye is Port Heritage Director at Dublin Port since 2017, responsible for the 300-year-old Port Archive and Port City Integration, which entails the development of 16km of Greenways on the port estate and creating a distributed museum network from the Diving Bell museum on Sir Rogerson’s Quay.

Previously, he curated the award-winning Soldiers & Chiefs: The Irish Soldier at Home and Abroad from 1550 exhibition at Collins Barracks, described as a museum within a museum. He played a key role in the Decade of Commemorations (2012-2017), being involved in a variety of projects, including the 1913 Lockout: Impact & Aftermath and Banners Unfurled exhibitions, as well as the WWI exhibitions Recovered Voices and War in the Mud: The Irish Soldier on the Western Front. He worked closely with An Post in the creation of the GPO Witness History museum and was the historical adviser for An Post’s 2016 commemorative stamps.

He is a graduate of University College Dublin, Leicester University, and the Getty Leadership Institute and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Military Heritage of Ireland Trust. He previously served as chairman of the Irish National Committee of the Blue Shield.

Lar has served on the IMA Board of Directors since 2015 and was elected IMA Chair in October 2023.

Andrew established Tandem in 2002 and remains the main driving force behind the success and ongoing development of Tandem’s unique approach to interpretation, with particular focus on the end user experience and connections to communities to ensure relevance for all.

With a vast array of projects, from outdoor (Wild Atlantic Way, Dublin Coastal Trail, Causeway Coastal Route) to nationally significant projects (National Famine Museum, National Museum of Ireland 1916, National Cemetery Glasnevin), Tandem keeps itself positioned at the cutting edge of best practice in interpretive and visitor experience design.

Within Tandem, Andrew manages projects from concept to completion. As the lead consultant, he is responsible for articulating the creative vision for each project, combining his passion for museums and heritage with his experience in the industry to conceptualise the interpretive vision and experiment with alternative architectural approaches towards spatial design. Keenly aware of spatial and operational challenges in terms of capacity and visitor flow, behaviour, and orientation, Andrew creates innovative solutions and interpretive experiences in which the storytelling and visitor experience take precedence.

Andrew brings enormous enthusiasm and vision to every Tandem project but has the critical management experience and skill to ensure that the vision for each project is realised to its fullest potential.

Lisa Shortall is Head of Research, Learning, and Cultural Heritage at the Heritage Council. For over 20 years, she worked as a professionally qualified archivist in the university, local authority, and community archive sectors. Her academic background is in Folklore, Irish, and Archivistics, and prior to joining the Heritage Council, she lectured on the MA in Archives and Records Management programme at University College Dublin.

Lisa’s work in the Heritage Council is wide-ranging, encompassing research into all aspects of the heritage sector, from economic activity to surveying public attitudes to heritage. She oversees a growing heritage-in-education offering, with a long-running primary school programme called Heritage in Schools, reaching over 90,000 schoolchildren per year. She is now working with education stakeholders to investigate post-primary programming.

Lisa is also responsible for cultural heritage programming such as the Conservation Internship Programme, the Museum Standards Programme for Ireland (MSPI), and, in partnership with the National Museum of Ireland, the Irish Community Archive Network (iCAN). She works closely with the third-level sector to progress initiatives to increase access to and care of privately owned heritage, access to cultural heritage via digital humanities projects, and core heritage research.