In 2001, Peter McKenna was on the corporate fast track at Smurfit in the publishing business. But a conversation with mentor Paddy Wright planted the seed for a dramatic career pivot as stadium director of Croke Park. When he took over, the stadium was under construction and loss-making. Last year, it had annual revenues of €132 million and paid a €16 million dividend to the GAA.
McKenna still serves as stadium director but he is also in charge of the GAA’s commercial arrangements and corporate partnerships.
In this episode of Sports Matters, he talks about making the stadium as a financial contributor to the GAA, the decision to take control of the association’s streaming service, and the lessons from his career.
Sports Matters is sponsored by the law firm Whitney Moore.
Even after stepping down as governor of the Central Bank in 2015, Patrick Honohan has remained an articulate voice on Irish economic policy. This has been evidenced with his interventions on the current crisis, warning the government against virus loans to domestic businesses and dismissing the notion of helicopter money. In this podcast, he argues Ireland is in a much better position to weather this crisis than the last. However, he remains worried about the potential impact of the crisis on domestic banks and the future SME debt burden, while also warning on the difficulties of relaunching an economy.
The British government has unveiled an ambitious £1.25bn rescue package for start-ups, a move designed to help innovative firms navigate the crisis. How does the Irish government response compare? And what initiatives could be rolled out here? To discuss all this, Ian Kehoe is joined by Liz McCarthy, the executive director of Scale Ireland, a non-profit that aims to provide a voice for innovation-led start-ups. McCarthy talks about the impact of the crisis on start-ups, with a Scale Ireland survey showing that 67% of start-ups expect to burn through all their cash within six months. McCarthy also talks about what the government could do to help – from R&D tax rebates to bridging finance support to tax changes.
The IMF warned recently that the global coronavirus pandemic is causing an economic crisis the likes of which has not been seen since the Great Depression in 1929. For Irish business this is fast becoming a greater challenge than the financial crash of 2008. All over the world policymakers and businesses are trying to navigate the crisis – from hedging currencies to sharp movements in oil prices on top of the wide array of other challenges. To discuss this, and much more besides, Ian Kehoe is joined by Gearóid Keegan an expert in corporate and institutional treasury with Investec, and by Ronan Dunphy, chief economist with Investec Europe.
Conor Brady raised eyebrows when he was appointed Editor of The Irish Times, as he was the first Catholic ever to be in the position. During his time there, the paper broke stories that shook the nation, including the story of Bishop Eamonn Casey’s relationship with Annie Murphy. During his time in journalism, he became acutely aware of the process of defamation cases and the damage they can inflict on publications. This inspired his new project. A tech solution he developed with his son called Caliber AI which catches defamation statements.
Pressure is mounting on the state to bail out vast tranches of the domestic economy and households. Meanwhile unemployment is surging and economic activity collapsing. So, are we facing another period of prolonged austerity? Or can we chart a new fiscal future? In this podcast, economist Stephen Kinsella tells Ian Kehoe how we can rebuild the economy and avoid austerity.
Companies aren't in the habit of keeping three months' worth of cash at hand. As the lockdown begins, many corporates are scrambling to get their hands on it. In this podcast, Ian Kehoe and Sean Keyes discuss the importance of cash flow and working capital and assess the balance sheets of some of Ireland’s biggest companies – including Ryanair, Glanbia, Kingspan, Flutter and Greencore.
For the past three months, The Currency's Mapping multinationals series has analysed the Irish accounts and corporate structures of the world's largest technology firms. Ian Kehoe discusses its findings with series author Thomas Hubert, and they explore the lessons to be learned from the picture emerging from hundreds of corporate filings when it comes to Ireland's tax policy.
Brody Sweeney made his name and his reputation building O’Brien’s Irish Sandwich Bar into an international brand. Having lost the business during the crash, he has made a stellar comeback with Camile Thai, one of the fastest growing food delivery businesses in Ireland and Britain. In a candid interview with Ian Kehoe, the entrepreneur talks about the impact that Covid-19 could have on his business and its expansion plans. He also talks about its new high-profile tech investors Brian Caulfield and Paddy Cosgrave and explains how the company has responded to shifts in eating habits.
Zoë Newman is a Managing Director in Kroll’s Business Intelligence & Investigations practice, and co-head of the Global Financial Investigations practice. Since joining Kroll, Zoë has worked on numerous complex multi-jurisdictional fraud and corruption probes in Central and Eastern Europe, and the UAE. In this sponsored podcast with Francesca Comyn, she describes the forensic accounting, data analytics and asset recovery techniques Kroll uses to fight organised criminal networks.
From a standing start 20 years ago, Ade Stack has built a nationwide chain of 18 pharmacies with more than 200 staff. Stacks Pharmacy has achieved this by by-passing the high street and shopping centres in favour of establishing strong links within local communities. In this podcast with Alison Cowzer, she explains her contrarian approach to building a business and reveals why she is against the idea of sales targets in a healthcare business. She also talks about the future of healthcare in Ireland, taking on global chains and how technology is aiding customer care.
