Here is a selection of people starting new roles with Heineken Ireland, Bank of Ireland, Urban Land Institute Ireland, Salmon Software, ICC Belfast and the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.
Sharon Walsh has been appointed as managing director of Heineken Ireland, succeeding Maarten Schuurman, now the firm’s MD for East & West Africa. Promoted from commercial director, Sharon has held senior roles with Heineken Ireland for the past 11 years. She led sales in Ireland over the past three Covid-dominated years, playing key roles in delivering €19m worth of pandemic-related support for the hospitality sector, and in delivery of the new Smart Pub e-B2B platform. She joined the firm as marketing director in 2011. She previously held marketing roles with UDV, Diageo and Coca-Cola. She holds a degree and HDip in Hotel and Catering Management, and a Masters in Strategic International Marketing from DCU.
Gavin Kelly has been appointed as CEO of Bank of Ireland’s corporate and markets division. Aligned with this move, the bank is expanding corporate and markets to include business banking, previously part of the Retail Ireland division. The bank is amalgamating its business and corporate banking into one centralised structure, with a team of more than 1,100 dedicated to serving a wide range of SMEs and larger national and international corporations. Gavin has most recently served as chief executive of the Retail Ireland division of Bank of Ireland. He also served as interim group CEO from September to November 2022. A recruitment process is underway for the position of Retail Ireland CEO.
Marie Hunt, head of research with IPUT Real Estate, has been elected as the new chair for 2023-24 of Urban Land Institute (ULI) Ireland, part of ULI Europe. She is ULI Ireland’s first female chair and succeeds Kevin Nowlan following his two-year term. As IPUT’s head of research, Marie brings extensive leadership experience in supporting the business’s investment process, placemaking strategy and sustainability programme. Prior to IPUT, she led CBRE’s research and consulting function in Ireland for 27 years. A former winner of the ‘Management Professional of the Year’ at the Image Magazine Businesswoman of the Year awards, she is a Fellow of the Society of Chartered Surveyors in Ireland.
Michael Kearney has been appointed as CEO of Salmon Software, the treasury management software system provider, succeeding John Byrne, the founder of Salmon Software, who will continue as a non-executive director with a significant minority shareholding. Michael brings with him a wealth of expertise from more than 25 years leading national and global teams for companies including SAP, Oracle, SAS Institute and Dell. Michael joins Salmon Software from Munich Re Automation Solutions where he was global VP of sales and marketing responsible for managing the global sales and marketing team supplying SaaS FinTech applications. Michael will work with Salmon Software’s senior management team to support the company’s growth targets.
Jenny Walsh has been appointed as head of international sales with the ICC Belfast, a new role for Northern Ireland’s only purpose-built convention centre. She brings 15 years of sales management experience and a proven track record in contributing to multi-million revenue wins. She has held various roles in the events and hospitality space, including head of corporate sales for The Convention Centre Dublin. In 2022, ICC Belfast delivered almost 100 events, welcoming delegates from across the globe. This number is set to rise as Northern Ireland targets an extra £209m in direct economic impact by 2030. The ICC’s 2023 planned events will include the One Young World Summit.
Paul Hanna, deputy director for consumer enforcement with the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), has been appointed as a member of the Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland (ASAI) complaints committee. He brings 30 years of investigative experience across the London Metropolitan Police Service, the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission and the CCPC, Paul brings a wealth of expertise to the ASAI. His main UK and Irish police roles were in intelligence-led operations. In 2016, he started working with the CCPC, and now leads strategy on criminal investigations into breaches of consumer practice legislation. He qualified as a nurse at the Eastern Area College of Nursing in Belfast before he entered policing.