Timely delivery of the infrastructure promised in the National Development Plan will be the key to Cork achieving its potential in the coming decades.
Even as Cork Chamber President, Bill O’Connell, oversees the activities planned for the Chamber’s 200th anniversary, his focus is on future priorities every bit as much as celebrating past achievements.
“Two hundred years ago, the population of Cork city was around 80,000, while current projections for the region estimate that with the right investment and infrastructure, Cork’s metropolitan area could grow to 500,000 by 2050,” said Bill O’Connell, whose two-year Chamber term ends in April.
“Facilitating that future growth and supporting our members will continue to be a key feature of the Chamber’s work in the coming years. Our surveys have shown that over 70% of commuters go to work using their own vehicles. With the projected population growth, that commuting pattern won’t be sustainable.
“We need people to live in the city. We want planning so that the city ‘grows up’ rather than ‘grows out’. We’ll need houses, apartments, bus connections, light rail. We’ll need the M20 (Cork-Limerick) and the M28 (Cork-Ringaskiddy) roads prioritised.”
Mr O’Connell spent 28 years in a variety of roles with EMC Dell, laterally as vice-president of global logistics. He is currently principal of BOC Consulting. He is well-placed to understand the multi-national corporations who located in the southern capital with the promise of extensive infrastructural developments.
Despite the challenges, there is a rich vein of optimism in Cork business at present.
“When I came into the Chamber role two years ago, I thought Cork was in a good place at the time,” said Mr O’Connell.
“Now it’s even stronger. There are really great opportunities for further growth in Cork in IT and the agri-food industries.
We have hosted very successful trade events in the UK and in San Francisco. The further afield we go and the more cities we visit, we’re creating more and more valuable business connections. A lot of overseas companies want to work with Cork.
Mr O’Connell describes Brexit as “the ultimate nightmare” in terms of the obstacles that now seem likely to emerge with our largest natural trading partner. Nonetheless, the Chamber has been working with client companies, helping people understand export documents etc, training which is delivered by Enterprise Europe Network (EEN), one of Cork Chamber’s many service groups.
When you look at the Chamber’s website, you get a sense of the breadth of the services it offers to its members and the breadth of areas in which it represents the interests of Cork businesses. The Chamber is also deeply committed to the local communities in which these businesses operate.
As part of the 200th anniversary celebrations, the Chamber has launched Cork Chamber 1819 Fund, a six-month community funding drive to raise €200,000 by July, in partnership with Social Innovation Fund Ireland (SIFI). This fund will benefit Cork community initiatives with a social, environmental or economic impact.
The 1819 Fund has a fundraising target of €100,000, with the goal of a combined funding total of €200,000. The Department of Rural and Community Development matches all philanthropic donations to SIFI, euro for euro, from the Dormant Accounts Fund.
Bill O’Connell said: “We are encouraging businesses of all sizes and sectors, as well as individuals, to take ownership of this partnership and contribute to the fund, thereby making a very personal investment in the initiatives that will build community resilience as well as ensure longevity for the future, making Cork a better place to live and work as we start our next 200-year journey.”
Deirdre Mortell, CEO of SIFI, added: “The successful projects will benefit hugely from this fund, which will allow them to raise their profile locally and nationally, gain key knowledge through the SIFI Accelerator programme and expand their reach and capabilities to the benefit of their communities. To date, SIFI has backed over 80 social innovations around Ireland with over €14m in philanthropic funding.”
Cork Chamber was founded in 1819 by 11 Cork businessmen at a time of high unemployment; it was housed in what is now the Victoria Hotel on St Patrick Street. Today, based in Fitzgerald House, Summerhill North, the Chamber represents the interests of 1,200 businesses employing over 100,000 people in the region.
There are certainly plenty of interesting activities planned for 2019. Top of the list is President Michael D Higgins addressing attendees at the sell-out Annual Dinner in Cork City Hall, where 1,000 of the city’s business leaders will gather on Friday, February 1.
Other events will include a Schools Art initiative, in association with the Glucksman Gallery in UCC. ‘Future Forms’ will see Cork schools, third-level students and community groups working with artists to create artworks that imagine what the city and urban environment will look like in 200 years’ time.
Bill O’Connell said: “This year marks a huge milestone in Cork Chamber’s history. Cork Chamber has remained one of the greatest champions of the region’s business community for the past 200 years.
“This year is not just about reflecting on the successes of the past; more importantly, it is about looking at how the Chamber can support businesses to tackle some of the challenges of the present and about being ambitious for the future of the region, which is going through a very exciting period of growth at the moment.”
Business Movers
Brian Gallagher is the new head of aviation business development at Cork Airport. He will oversee the development of partnerships with airlines, tourism partners and business stakeholders, to deliver continued route expansion and positive growth. He has more than seven years of experience working in aviation development across daa, with his most recent role as airline business development manager for Dublin Airport.
Cork Airport is entering its fourth year of consecutive growth, and is forecasting a 7% increase in passenger numbers for 2019.
Brian said: “I am delighted to join the innovative team at Cork Airport. I look forward to utilising my experience and knowledge of business development in the aviation industry to further strengthen route development at Cork Airport.”
Niall McCarthy, managing director, Cork Airport, said: “We have seen fantastic growth at Cork Airport with passenger numbers consistently on the rise over the last three years, and Brian’s expertise will only strengthen this success.
“Over 50 routes are now on offer from Cork Airport across the UK, continental Europe and the east coast of the USA, and we are committed to continue this growth throughout 2019.”
Gerry Hastings has been appointed as CEO of fintech firm Fexco’s new aviation business, Fexco Aviation Services. He brings extensive experience in aviation in finance roles for GPA, GECAS and AerCap. He joins Fexco after 11 years as MD of Phoenix American Financial Services, a provider of services to the aviation Asset Backed Securities (ABS) sector. The new company will be based in Shannon, Ireland, with an office in Dublin. Fexco Aviation Services will perform cash management, administration and accounting services for aviation related businesses. It will also provide Managing Agent services for aircraft and aircraft engine owning vehicles in the ABS sector.
Brendan McVeigh has been appointed as regional head of sales and marketing, Ireland, with veterinary pharma firm Norbrook, leading activities in Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland. He takes over from Patrick Hughes who retires in August, after 35 years of service. Brendan brings over 20 years’ experience in the animal health industry. He joins from Merck Sharp & Dohme Animal Health where he was most recently MSD’s intensive livestock business unit director. He also spent 14 years in Norbrook Labs in various sales roles, including sales manager for Northern Ireland for both farm and companion animal sectors. Norbrook has had a significant presence in Ireland for the past 50 years.
Michael Regan has been appointed managing director of Building Solutions Ireland, part of Actavo, the engineering solutions firm headquartered in Dublin and operating in 100+ locations worldwide. He comes to Actavo with over 20 years’ experience in construction across the globe in oil, gas, commercial and residential sectors. He has worked in Ireland, Qatar and Australia in office-based engineering, bid proposals and project management roles and well as site-based construction management roles. He was on the team that delivered the Gorgon LNG 4,600-person construction village on Barrow Island, Western Australia. He spent 11 years in the Irish construction industry, notably with Collen Construction. Michael has qualifications in Construction Management, Civil Eng, Business Leadership and Management.
Niall Corbett has been named as CFO with Avantcard, the credit card and loans provider based in Carrick-On-Shannon. A chartered accountant and chartered tax consultant by profession, he joins from Bank of Ireland, where he was most recently head of finance at the consumer banking division; prior to that he was the head of business banking at the bank’s Dublin Central operations. He brings senior experience in finance and banking, retail lending, consumer loans, cards and payments; he is skilled in driving lending performance. He began his career with Mazars. He has also served as a director of the British and Irish Chamber of Commerce and has lectured on finance at the Institute of Chartered Accountants.
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