The Leaders' Room

For the final episode of the season, Ann spoke with Sean Gayer, VP of Operations, EMEA Manufacturing at Boston Scientific about his journey from finance into med tech leadership, and about leading teams who already have a very clear mission bringing them together.  Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . About the series: What makes a good leader? ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Silicon Republic⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, in partners...

Our growing digital infrastructure requires energy, so how can data centre operators lead the way in making that infrastructure more sustainable? In this episode, Ann speaks with Peter Lantry, Managing Director of Equinix Ireland, about leadership, and working towards a more sustainable model for the data industry.  Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . About the series: What makes a good leade...

As we work on the final episodes of season 4, we thought we’d share a recap of some of the themes that popped out for us so far this season. Featuring: Martin Cotter (Analog Devices), Graham Abell (Workday), David Silke (Centripetal), Thomas Parsons (Tenable), Rathnait Long (MACOM Technology Solutions), Cathy Kearney (Apple), and Kristina Raspe (Apple).  Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . Ab...

Can the built environment empower teams to be creative and collaborative. Can design build a sense of belonging? We ventured out of the studio for this episode to find out.  For this episode of The Leaders’ Room, Ann travelled to Apple's European headquarters in Cork, and ​​sat down with Cathy Kearney, Apple’s VP of European Operations, and Kristina Raspe, the company’s VP of Places, to chat a...

How does an engineer approach leadership, in a sector both leading and responding to rapid technological advancement? In this episode, Ann is joined by Rathnait Long, Distinguished Fellow of Technology at MACOM Technology Solutions, about her career and identity as an engineer, and about her approach to leadership that promotes innovation.  Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . About the series...

Cybersecurity has really never been more critical, and we may need some unconventional talent if we are to protect ourselves from some of the biggest cyber threats out there.   In this episode, Ann is joined by Thomas Parsons, Head of Tenable in Ireland, to chat about his work in today’s cybersecurity sector, and about what might be coming down the line.  Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . A...

We often talk about global companies coming to Ireland for the business friendly environment and strong talent base, but what about our creativity and culture?  Ann is joined by David Silke, Managing Director for Europe and APAC at Centripetal, a major intelligence-driven cybersecurity company with a base in Galway.  Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . About the series: What makes a good lead...

Season four of The Leaders’ Room continues with a conversation about leadership and growth. Ann is joined by Graham Abell from Workday, a company that has had a base in Ireland since 2008 and provides cloud-based software that helps organisations manage their people, finances, and operations.  Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . About the series: What makes a good leader? ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Silicon Rep...

We’re back for a fourth season, as we continue to explore leadership across the innovation industries during times of rapid change. To get us started, Ann is joined by Martin Cotter from Analog Devices to chat about leadership at a time of ‘connected everything’, and why Ireland is home to so much incredible innovation.   Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . About the series: What makes a good...

Think like a founder, remove obstacles, amplify the impact of others, and lead with humility – just some of the advice from Aaron J. Webster for our final episode of the season. Aaron is Global Chief Risk Officer at PayPal, a company that transformed the way we do business online. He joined Ann in the studio to chat about how the world’s first digital payment platform is approaching this new era o...

Listen to your customer, listen to your people, and learn about new technology—three pieces of leadership advice shared by Deirdre Giblin in our latest episode. Deirdre is Vice President of Operations and Site Lead for Datavant Ireland, which connects and integrates healthcare data from different sources, like hospitals, research institutes, and life science companies. She spoke with Ann about her...

In the tech world, it’s important to build technologies that solve a problem, rather than looking for problems that can be solved by the technology we build. In this episode, Ann chats with Lorna Martyn, Ireland Site Lead and Senior VP, Technology Management at financial services company, Fidelity Investments . Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . About the series: What makes a good leader? ⁠⁠...

Even when you’re in the business of making some of the most advanced computer chips in the world, people are still at the centre of everything you do. That’s according to Ruth Cotter, Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at US semiconductor giant AMD . Ruth joins Ann in this episode of The Leaders’ Room to discuss people-centred leadership through periods of growth in a competiti...

This week, Brenda Barrett, Managing Director of Infineon Ireland, explains that good leadership calls for treating everyone on your team equally, but not the same. In this episode, Ann and Brenda reflect on the importance of truly getting to know your team, and doing so within one of the hottest sectors in the world right now: semiconductors. Watch the video of the interview here⁠ . About the seri...

As leaders, how can we truly empower our teams and help them do their best work? In this episode, we’re looking at the telecommunications sector, and we’re speaking with one leader about how he models empowering leadership by finding the right balance between autonomy and accountability. Ann spoke with Denis Dullea, head of Ericsson Athlone , a major research centre for Ericsson. Watch the video o...

How can leaders leave the ladder down for those who follow? In this episode, we explore leadership in the science and healthcare sector, following one leader’s path to the top and how she’s guided her team through change, growth, and uncertainty. Ann spoke with Edel Collins, General Manager of Thermo Fisher Scientific , a life science and clinical research company, with a mission to make the world...

These are uncertain times for global markets. Geopolitical tensions are shaking up global trade, impacting our economies, our jobs, and possibly more than anything our sense of stability. To kick off season three, and in the current unique environment, we thought it would be very timely to talk to Michael Lohan, CEO of our foreign direct investment agency, and our partners on this series, IDA Irel...

In the final episode of the season, Ann O'Dea chats to Robert O’Brien, who just recently took on the role of Country Leader for Medtronic Ireland , and is also its Vice President of HR for Global Manufacturing. Ann spoke with Robert about leadership within a med tech company that has an impressive legacy, as well as a bold vision for the future of medical devices.  Watch the video of the inter...

In the latest episode of The Leaders’ Room, Ann O'Dea spoke with Jack Newton, the CEO and Founder of Clio, a company that makes cloud-based technology for legal firms. Ann spoke with Jack about the legal tech space, and the potential for emerging technologies to disrupt the legal sector. Jack also shared his advice on leadership, including why he looks for team members who can ‘draw the owl’.  Wat...

In the latest episode of The Leaders’ Room, Ann O'Dea spoke with Mag O Keeffe about her work at medical technology company, Stryker , and the importance of leadership in creating environments where innovation can thrive. The med tech sector requires innovation, and lots of it. Ann spoke to Mag, who is an engineer by training, about the different ways she supports her team to come up with new ideas...

In this episode of The Leaders' Room, Ann O'Dea spoke to John O’Beirne about his approach to leadership at Square , a 50 billion dollar fintech company that began with a simple but game-changing idea. In a rapidly evolving world, rife with ambiguity and uncertainty, John describes the importance of bringing people with diverse backgrounds and views together to form the organisation's strategy and...

In this episode of The Leaders' Room, Ann O'Dea was joined in the studio by Liam Ryan, Managing Director of SAP Ireland, just ahead of his retirement. Liam shared his invaluable insights on a long and illustrious career in tech, including his work with Specialisterne to improve employment opportunities for autistic people by making teams and workplaces more autism-inclusive. ⁠Watch the video of th...

Ultimately, leadership is about achieving significant positive impact, in an organisation of people working towards a common goal. In this episode of The Leaders' Room, Ann O'Dea was joined in the studio by Shane O’Brien from Grifols - a global healthcare company with a focus on plasma-derived medicines. Shane shared his personal connection to work that centres around plasma donation to help patie...

The skills you learn as a scientist can come in useful as team leader. In this episode of The Leaders' Room, Ann O'Dea was joined in the studio by Muriel O'Byrne from Regeneron - a leading biotechnology company that invents, develops and commercialises medicines for people with serious diseases. Muriel is Senior VP and Head of International Regulatory Affairs at Regeneron, and shared her perspecti...

Welcome to season two of The Leaders' Room. To kick off this new season, Ann O'Dea was joined in the studio by Mark Cockerill from ServiceNow to chat about rapid growth, managing teams and, of course, generative AI. Mark is Senior Vice President for Legal at ServiceNow, a fast-growing company that provides AI-powered cloud platforms that help businesses all around the world organise and automate t...