The 12 leading business people nominated for the 2024 Business Person of the Year by The Irish Times, in association with Bank of Ireland.
Each month The Irish Times selects its Business Person of the Month, an award run in association with Bank of Ireland
This Thursday (20 February) the full year of 2024 monthly winners will vie for the coveted title of Business Person of the Year.
In addition, four businesses have been shortlisted for the Local Business Award, which is also sponsored by Bank of Ireland.
Barry Napier, the CEO of Irish tech business Cubic Telecom, was last year crowned Business Person of the Year 2023.
Wexford-based Killowen Farm, also known as Greenvalley Farms Ltd, won the Local Business category, which is also sponsored by Bank of Ireland.
Business Person of the Year 2024 nominees
January – Elena Pecos, Decathlon Ireland
The Business Person of the Month for January last year was Elena Pecos, chief executive of Decathlon Ireland.
Decathlon hit the headlines when it emerged it would become an anchor tenant at the new Clerys Quartar in Dublin city centre.
Pecos started in Decathlon as a sales assistant and has held several senior finance positions in the group in Spain, France and Chile. She spent five years launching and expanding the brand in Chile before returning to work with the company in her native Spain. Pecos took over the Irish operation in January 2023.
February – Michael Burke, Chanelle Pharmaceuticals
In February Michael Burke, founder and managing director of Chanelle Pharmaceuticals was selected Business Person of the Month.
The long-time MD of Chanelle Pharma had decided to sell the business after 40 years to UK private equity group Exponent for a reported €300m.
Originally a veterinarian, he built the business to become the largest manufacturer of generic medications for humans and animals in the State. Chanelle is a major employer in the west of Ireland with around 730 staff and exports to 96 countries, supplying 10 of the 12 top multinationals in the world in both human generics and animal health.
March – Michael Stanley, Cairn Homes
The CEO of Cairn Homes Michael Stanley was named Business Person of the Month by The Irish Times for March after the housebuilder achieved record revenues of €677m.
Prioritising the construction of homes for first time buyers, the business invested €439.9m in construction work during the year, with home commencements rising 20% to 2,100 at that point.
Stanley has been vocal about his concerns about the shortage of accommodation and housing supply for young people, warning that this could have a detrimental impact on the Irish economy in the long term.
April – Declan O’Rourke, Aviva
Aviva’s decision to re-enter the Irish private health insurance market in late 2024 sparked the selection of Declan O’Rourke, CEO of Aviva Insurance Ireland, as Business Person of the Month for April.
The insurer revealed it was getting back into the Irish private health insurance market some eight years after exiting and said it was launching a joint venture with a number of executives, including the group’s former CEO Jim Dowdall, and the former head of VHI Oliver Tattan.
In May Laura Dillon, partner with Dutch private equity giant Waterland, was selected as Business Person of the Month after its Irish division agreed to acquire a stake in cross-border electrical wholesaler Bellew Electrical.
This marked Waterland’s fifth biggest investment in a company on the island of Ireland since it began operating here in 2019.
As part of the deal Waterland became an active shareholder in Bellew Electrical alongside its founders to drive an ambitious growth plan.
June – Evelyn Moynihan, Kilkenny Group
Irish fashion and design retailer Kilkenny Group’s CEO Evelyn Moynihan was chosen as Business Person of the Month for June.
To mark its 60th anniversary in business, Irish craft and design retailer Kilkenny Design Group recently revealed a “significant investment” understood to be in the region of €400,000 in a new e-commerce platform.
In 1999, Kilkenny Design was taken over by Marian O’Gorman and her family. In 2021, Evelyn Moynihan was appointed CEO of Kilkenny Design with Marian remaining in the business as chair and advisory.
July – Tony Smurfit, Smurfit Westrock
The colossal merger between Smurfit Kappa and its North American rival WestRock to form the world’s largest packaging group earned Smurfit Westrock CEO Tony Smurfit the Business Person of the Month accolade for July.
Under the terms of the $24bn deal, Smurfit was chosen to lead the merged entity.
Following the deal, Smurfit Westrock’s global footprint comprises 500 operations, including 62 mills, in 40 countries.
August – Sean O’Driscoll, iNua Collection
Hotelier Sean O’Driscoll, CEO of the iNua Collection, was selected as Business Person of the Month for August after the group demonstrated a strong rebound from the impact of the pandemic on the hospitality sector.
The business reported operating profits almost doubled to €4m and revenues rose 7% to €72.8m.
September – Peter Jackson, Flutter
Peter Jackson, the CEO of Dublin-based and New York-listed betting giant Flutter, was named Business Person of the Month for September after the owner of Paddy Power and Betfair acquired Italian business Snaitech in a deal worth around €2.3bn.
This followed the acquisition of a Brazilian betting business Betnacional operator NSX Group for €316m.
In addition to the acquisitions, Flutter revealed plans to return €4.5bn to investors in coming years through share buybacks.
October – Dalton Philips, Greencore
October’s Business Person of the Month was Dalton Philips, CEO of food group Greencore after shares soared to their highest level post-pandemic after it emerged 2024 earnings would beat analysts’ estimates.
At that point in 2024 shares in Greencore had more than doubled in value as the business recovered from a series of hits since 2020, including the pandemic and supply chain and labour issues.
November – Cathal Fay, Yuno Group
Cathal Fay, founder of the energy supply firm Yuno Group, was chosen Business Person of the Month for November after the business entered the pay-as-you-go market with a new brand Yuno Energy.
In October Yuno Group had acquired the Firmus gas supply business in Northern Ireland in a deal understood to be worth around €40m.
December – Marc Murphy, Fenergo
The Irish Times’ Business Person of the Month for December was Marc Murphy, founder and CEO of fintech Fenergo.
He was credited with bringing an indigenous Irish business to the global stage, counting 300 of the largest banks and insurers in the world as customers.
Fenergo was spun out of Ergo Group in 2009 to develop software for financial institutions to help them manage regulatory compliance and client data.
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