Louise Molloy explores the pivotal role employee resource groups can play in fostering a diverse, inclusive and transformative work culture As a leadership development expert, I have worked with many employee resource groups (ERGs). An ERG is a voluntary, employee-led diversity and inclusion initiative formally supported by the company. ERGs are generally organised on the basis of common identities or interests and support employees by providing frameworks for learning, discussion and networking with the aim of creating a more inclusive workplace. When done right, ERGs can transform people’s work experience and contribution, driving company performance. When done wrong, however, ERGs can damage trust and inclusion. It pays to invest the time and resources into getting it right. An ERG’s impact will be determined by the shared commitment of both the company and its individual employees. Steps for ERG success Having often partnered with ERGs on initiatives to drive allyship, self-empowerment and career advancement, successful ERGs have a clear agenda aligned with the company mission and an activity plan agreed with senior leadership. ERG leaders who are committed and empowered to devote the necessary time and resources to deliver on the ERG priorities are also crucial. Stakeholder engagement is a key component of ERGs, both internally and externally. Participation in an ERG cannot be considered an extracurricular if companies are to avoid damaging trust or goodwill. Some practical steps for ERG success include: Documenting the ERG goal and how it aligns to your Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) strategy; Surveying staff to establish baseline priorities for the ERG; Developing an annual plan to deliver on the priorities identified; Clarifying ERG leaders, allies and member roles; Considering the skills required to deliver and budgeting accordingly; Agreeing on how to measure ERG impact and getting feedback on initiatives; Supporting alignment between ERG groups; Being ambitious – aim for allyship, career advancement and leadership connection; Communicating ERG scope, capacity and resourcing for shared understanding of what can be delivered; Offering professional development for ERG leaders – e.g. access to company leaders; and Formal support and recognition for ERG contributions. Think bigger If your organisation doesn’t have an ERG, start one. If it does, ask yourself: is it ambitious enough? Don’t stop there, though: continue asking yourself this question every time there is a new initiative to create a more inclusive workplace culture.   Remember that there’s always more that can be done to create an inclusive workplace. Louise Molloy is Managing Director at Luminosity Consulting Limited, a leadership advisory business

Men can proactively contribute to dismantling gender barriers at work and challenging stereotypes. Dawn Leane explains how While much of the conversation concerning gender balance focuses on supporting women, men have a pivotal role to play in dismantling barriers, challenging stereotypes and reshaping organisational culture. Gender balance is not a zero-sum game. Men are also negatively impacted by outdated workplace environments – family-friendly policies aimed solely at women, for example. The active involvement of male allies can be an agent for positive change and can have a profound impact by raising awareness about gender bias, sexism and other forms of discrimination facing women in the workplace and wider society. Yet it can prove very challenging for men to confront the issues encountered by their female colleagues. The subject is complex and organisational culture and norms of behaviour often don’t support their intervention. Take, for example, the issue of everyday sexism at work. A report by Catalyst, an organisation committed to advancing the representation of women in the workplace, suggests that not only is it difficult to recognise sexism in the first place or deem it inappropriate, but men are often unsure of how to address the behaviour when they do recognise it. The report suggests that men’s willingness to intervene depends on two factors: personal agency and organisational climate. Men who are committed to dismantling sexism are more likely to take action. They are confident in their ability to interrupt and aware of the positive benefits of doing so for the common good. An unwillingness to interrupt a sexist event in their workplace is also influenced by organisational climate. Environments perceived by men to be more silencing, combative and futile are associated with a lack of response to sexism at work. As Peter Drucker famously said, ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast’. How, then, can men help to create a workplace culture where everyone, regardless of gender, can thrive and succeed? Understand the issues: Men can start by informing themselves about the challenges women face in their workplace, bearing in mind that cultural issues can differ from team to team and from one organisation to the next. Challenge sexism and stereotypes: Actively challenging and questioning gender stereotypes involves avoiding assumptions about roles and capabilities based on gender. Use language that is neutral and avoids reinforcing gender stereotypes. Amplify the voices of women in the workplace: Create an environment that is psychologically safe for women to contribute. For example, give credit where it's due, acknowledge achievements and ensure that success is rewarded. Mentorship and sponsorship: Men can play a vital role in mentoring and sponsoring women within organisations. This involves offering guidance, providing opportunities for skill development and advocating for women in leadership positions. Advocate for equal opportunities: Men can use their positions of influence to advocate for equal opportunities. This includes pushing for fair selection practices, equal pay and creating policies that support work-life balance for all employees. Set an example: Demonstrating a commitment to gender balance through their own actions might involve actively participating in gender balance initiatives, acknowledging and rectifying biased behaviour and setting an example for others to follow. Speak up against discrimination: When men witness gender discrimination or inappropriate behaviour, it is crucial to speak up. Being an ally means actively confronting and addressing instances of discrimination, both direct and indirect. By embracing these actions, men can help create a more level playing field for their female counterparts – this can only be good for all involved. Dawn Leane is Chief Learning and Development Officer at Advancia

Rachel Kileen explores how women can harness the power of networking, mentoring and camaraderie to transform organisations for the better In the 1930s, revolutionary women such as Hanna Sheehy Skeffington, Esther Roper and Mary Kettle campaigned vigorously against the constraints imposed on married women in Ireland with reference to the barring of women from working in the civil service after marriage and the Irish Constitution’s ‘women in the home’ clause, which is currently subject to referendum.  It is less well-documented that professional women’s organisations continued to campaign, both in Ireland and internationally, for women’s equality from the 1930s to the 1960s. International networking by the Irish Housewives Association and the Association of Business and Professional Women led to the establishment of the first Commission on the Status of Women in Ireland in 1970, which strongly advocated for equal pay and better conditions of employment for women. Women’s advocacy was at its peak during the second-wave feminist era and campaigning for female political representation by organisations such as the Women’s Political Association yielded results. Without the support of women’s groups, Gemma Hussey may not have become the first female Minister for Education in 1982.  Mary Robinson credits the support of Mná na hEireann as critical to her election as the first female President of Ireland. Yvonne Scannell campaigned against the punitive tax regime for married women who paid up to 80 percent of their salary in tax during the 1970s.  Throughout Irish history, there are many other examples of the power and influence of female advocates working together to improve the lives of women. International Women’s Day provides the opportunity for us to consider the broader picture and how, as women, we can become change-makers through networking, mentoring and camaraderie. Networking Academic research shows that the greatest inhibitor to professional women’s networking opportunities is time. This lack of time is often due to the ‘second shift’, a term coined by Arlie Hochschild in 1989 to describe the fact that the bulk of household management and childcare is undertaken by women and not men, even when women work full-time. This long-hours culture is a patriarchal ritual that professionals are expected to subscribe to, even though it is proven to be counter-productive. Divesting elements of the second shift and reducing work hours to make time for networking requires planning and negotiation. However, the value of networking in a supportive and encouraging environment can pay significant dividends in terms of shared experience, creativity, and a pooling of skills and resources.  Historically, this is how women co-operated in the private sphere. Mentoring Contemporary accountancy training underscores the value of business relationships as key to success and there is a tendency to focus on client development as a priority.  But what about mentoring within our organisations with the objective of helping others to advance?  Women should look upwards to find suitable mentors to guide us through our careers, look behind us at the challenges younger women face and support them in achieving their goals. In a world that can sometimes seem increasingly misogynistic, the counteractive defence system must be led by women and their male allies. Camaraderie Camaraderie is a collaborative approach that is closely associated with solidarity and comradeship. It is particularly valuable at a time when many professional women work from home and spend less time engaging with colleagues and business associates in person.  My research into the lives of successful professional women reveals that when women are actively involved in progressive organisations, they become part of that network and drivers of change. Aristotle’s adage that ‘the whole is greater than the sum of its parts’ makes sense when women (and men) support and encourage each other’s efforts to realise their ambitions and collaborate on improving work culture. Transforming organisations Throughout Ireland, professional organisations can be transformed from their reliance on the much-maligned but highly lucrative ‘old boys’ style networks to include a compelling cache of competent and capable female change-makers who advocate for new ways to handle traditional gender roles.  Networking, mentoring and camaraderie amongst women (and men) can help to forge a third way out of highly gendered rituals such as the second shift, long-hours culture and all of their complexities, for everyone’s benefit. Rachel Killeen is a PhD student at Trinity College Dublin working on a project entitled: Professional Married Women and their Work in Ireland (1970–1985).

Effective leadership requires more than competence. Compassion can help to foster a culture of both success and well-being, writes Paul O’Donnell Challenged by the after-effects of a global pandemic, organisations continue to change rapidly and are conscious of the need for effective leadership and talent engagement. Research suggests that compassionate leadership can bring the best results, but does compassion have a place in the world of work? The evidence suggests yes, it does. Compassion in the workplace improves collaboration, humility, trust and loyalty. Leaders who display compassion are more likely to have and hold on to engaged, committed and motivated employees. While good to have, empathy is an emotion. Compassion is an emotion with intention. Employees often avoid taking risks at work or rocking the boat during challenging times. They might be hesitant to report errors, for example, to voice concerns, suggest new ideas or share feedback. Demonstrating compassion as a leader can create a workplace environment conducive to emotional well-being, making employees feel safe enough to take risks that might help them to succeed. Compassionate leadership can benefit the leader as much as those they lead. Data shows a strong link between the demonstration of compassion and career advancement. Compassionate leaders enjoy greater life satisfaction and self-esteem and are viewed as stronger and more capable by their employees. By taking care of your staff, you are also acting in your own interests. Compassion alone is not enough, however. For leadership to be effective, it must co-exist with good judgment. Kindness cannot come at the expense of competence. The leaders who achieve the best outcomes are those who understand what motivates their employees and how to manage them towards desired outcomes. Leadership is hard: it necessitates pushing agendas, sharing critical feedback and knowing when to say no. Practising compassion as a leader does not imply the absence of these responsibilities. Instead, it means carrying them out while being conscious of people’s feelings. As Hougaard and Carter put it: “Wise, compassionate leadership is the ability to do hard things in a human way.” Developing compassionate leadership A study showed that 91 percent of over 1,000 surveyed leaders see compassion as vital to leadership. Eighty percent indicated that they wanted to improve their own compassion but did not know how. Compassion is not an inherent characteristic, but it can be developed. There are several steps leaders can take to develop a more compassionate leadership style. Have more compassion for yourself Taking care of others means minding yourself as well. If you are overburdened and burnt out, you won’t be able to help anyone else. Self-compassion requires getting enough sleep, taking short breaks throughout the day and setting aside time for yourself away from work. It also means not being too hard on yourself, recognising your mistakes, reframing setbacks as learning experiences and moving forward confidently. Be aware of your intentions Learn to manage your intentions before you speak to others by aligning your core values with your actions. Get to know each member of your team to understand what drives them and makes them feel valued. Advocate for change Compassion can become integral in an organisation. As a leader, think about policies that may be put in place to support employee well-being. This is beneficial to your employees and can lessen the onus on you over time. Can compassion become a hindrance? If you have a well-developed sense of compassion, but feel it hinders your ability to lead, there are a few things you should consider. Honesty and transparency As a leader, it is your job to offer guidance, even when it may be difficult for an employee to hear. If you step around the issue to be kind, you risk failing to convey your expectations and the employee will neither understand nor benefit from your help. Empathy vs compassion If you find yourself taking on the emotional burdens of your employees, take a step back and remember that you will be most helpful to them through action. Use your feelings of empathy as a catalyst for compassion and take practical steps to exercise it. Compassionate leadership propels success A compassionate outlook enhances a leader’s skills, resulting in more productive and motivated employees. Empowerment through compassion enables leaders and their teams to achieve their utmost potential, ensuring the organisation’s future success. Paul O’Donnell is CEO of HRM Search Partners

Expectations on businesses to combat climate change have intensified. Dave O’Shaughnessy outlines how organisations can use artificial intelligence to reach sustainability goals Last month, the World Economic Forum reiterated the need for urgent action on climate change, which was also the core message from COP28. With the world poised at this make-or-break moment, societal and stakeholder expectations of the role of business in reducing the effects of climate change are at an all-time high. In a US Pew Research Centre Survey published last October, 52 percent of respondents said they believe large businesses and corporations can do "a lot" to reduce the effects of climate change. This suggests that the expectation has moved beyond businesses simply fulfilling their environmental, social and governance (ESG) responsibilities to the view that they should be focused on even greater change. This change – termed “regeneration” – calls for a reinvention of systems across an organisation, from business models to supply chains, to help drive a positive impact rather than simply avoiding a negative one. While this is certainly an important objective, many organisations are currently facing external and internal pressures, long-term planning challenges and reporting requirements that have grown in scope and complexity to even reach a stage of compliance and organisation, let alone regeneration. It’s here that artificial intelligence (AI) is a game-changer. By harnessing data and driving efficiency, it can help your organisation meet your most immediate sustainability goals: achieving carbon neutrality, reduction of water use, and meet Science Based Targets initiative (STBi) targets as well as the UN Sustainable Development goals (UNSDGs). At the same time, AI also frees up your people to consider the bigger, long-term regeneration opportunities that can change your organisation’s environmental impact. There are three ways AI can assist with and organisations sustainability goals, which are outlined below. One: Guidance on sustainability reporting standards New directives such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence (CSDD) mean companies face increasing reporting requirements. The high volume of reporting points and the interrelationships between regulatory reports and voluntary frameworks (Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board) adds to the complexity of the task and requires organisations to be able to interpret complex policy documents in a short space of time. Unsurprisingly, many organisations are struggling with where to begin, unsure of how they fare compared to expectations and are confused by the multitude of requirements. As a result, they are unable to forge an action plan or identify potential problems. Generative AI can alleviate this concern. Its ability to analyse large volumes of documents (in this case, the reporting requirements and frameworks) in real-time and then to provide easy-to-understand explanations gives companies a clear starting point. It also cuts down on complicated, manual research time and ensures consistency in understanding and actions among staff. A chatbot is one means of achieving this. It can ingest all the legislation, directives, frameworks, and facts relevant to your company’s sustainability needs and then act as a “personal assistant” for any user questions. By combining knowledge from a vast number of resources, your organisation-specific chatbot can provide enhanced understanding on complex topics at speed, support decision-making, and even provide references so users can review the sources or answers for fact checking and traceability. Two: Actionable insights With the objective to halve emissions by 2030, companies must have a comprehensive and integrated net zero approach involving all aspects of their operations and value chain. But while this integrated approach is key to meeting targets, extracting information from multiple sources and the analysis of that information (crucial if opportunities and hot spots are to be identified quickly and adjustments made) means considerable work for teams. AI has the ability to monitor and analyse multiple data points, often combined with outputs from machine learning or other algorithms, quickly and efficiently (e.g. forecasting total emissions or identification of raw materials that have the highest impact on CO2 reduction). It can also enhance the quality of insights generated by this analysis by providing explainable and clear “next best actions”. Three: Sentiment analysis Public sentiment can significantly impact a business's reputation and performance. Social media, in particular – a key source of sentiment information with many people sharing their views and experiences – can often prove difficult for companies to monitor and manage quickly. Sentiment analysis can assist with this. A form of natural language processing (NLP) that uses AI to evaluate and classify sentiments expressed in textual data can provide consolidated insights to businesses. Until recently, sentiment analysis required extensive training data, making the process time-consuming and expensive. The process has been revolutionised with the emergence of Large Language Models (LLM). LLMs perform very well when it comes to classifying text and analysing sentiment without the need for prior training, thus streamlining the sentiment analysis process. This innovation makes the collection and interpretation of public sentiment more seamless, helping businesses get a quicker and more accurate understanding of how they are perceived by the public. New opportunities Organisations that leverage AI will find it easier to meet their immediate sustainability goals and be better prepared to address future challenges. Quicker collation of information and analysis enables workforces to take greater initiative. By being able to make faster, more insightful decisions, people will have the time to identify new opportunities for greater environmental impact. Dave O’Shaughnessy is Partner and Sustainability Reporting – Technology Lead at EY

Workplace romances can pose challenges for employers. From policies to breakups, Moira Grassick offers 10 tips on how to avoid and manage potential difficulties Valentine’s Day was just a few weeks ago, but workplace romances can happen at any time of the year. If romance blooms in your workplace, it can sometimes cause complications ranging from gossip to complaints or grievances. Here are 10 tips to maintain control of your workplace and continue fostering a healthy and safe environment for your staff when dealing with an office romance. 1. Check your existing policies and procedures Are your existing policies and procedures appropriate for dealing with any problems that might arise as a result of workplace romances? It’s sensible to have either a confidentiality policy or conflict of interest policy in place, requiring employees to notify you of any change in their personal circumstances that might give rise to a conflict of interest. 2. Encourage staff to notify management of a workplace romance Requesting that employees notify management about their love life might seem awkward or over the top, but it is important that management be aware of any romantic relationship in the workplace. Then, they can decide if appropriate steps need to be taken. 3. Don’t ignore a workplace romance Not every employee will be comfortable reporting their new relationship. It could become known to management by other means that a personal, romantic relationship between staff members has developed. It’s best not to ignore this information and proceed as you would if you had learned about the relationship from the people involved. 4. Think about changing the work environment It is sensible to consider whether the reporting structures within teams need to be revised. Changes like these must be discussed with the people affected. Reassessing reporting structures in the case of a workplace romance, especially if management is one of the parties involved, can help allay any suspicion of favouritism that might arise at a future date. 5. Beware of favouritism Ensure that staff engaged in relationships with a colleague are not involved in any management decisions involving their partners. It is important that management decisions are taken impartially and that the impartiality of the decision is clear to everyone involved. 6. Don’t be afraid to take action Treat any complaints from staff members – involved in the relationship or not – seriously. If people are witness to, or experience, inappropriate behaviour in the workplace, it is an employer's responsibility to manage it. 7. Training management Most managers lack training and knowledge on how to tackle romantic relationships at work. Managers need to be aware of how to manage such situations, what the potential risks are and how to manage these risks. Managers should also have regular training on how to respond to harassment complaints that may arise as a result of a romantic relationships at work, or its aftermath. 8. Social events Christmas parties or work social events are often the source of workplace romances. It’s a good idea to remind staff that they are still expected to abide by company policies, even if the party is outside of the workplace. If something goes wrong, you, as an employer, could be liable. 9. Breakups Of course, not all love is made to last. Problems might arise if a workplace romantic relationship ends, especially if it doesn’t end smoothly. These situations could impact an employee's work performance or professional relationships. This might require thinking about moving the staff members involved. 10. Obligation to maintain a safe workplace Sexual harassment and bullying can often arise in the context of workplace romances. Employers should have policies and procedures in place to deal with any such incidents and related complaints. Love may be in the air, but it doesn’t have to poison the workplace. Be proactive, set expectations around conduct and enforce your workplace policies. Moira Grassick is Chief Operating Officer at Peninsula Ireland

As European lawmakers reach provisional agreement on the final text of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act, Jackie Hennessy and Dani Michaux delve into the potential risks businesses may face In December 2023, European lawmakers announced a provisional agreement on the final text of a new Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act), giving developers and users of AI systems the first chance to consider in detail what the proposed new framework could mean for them. Businesses are now in a position to consider the role AI plays in their organisation and how to mitigate potential risks that may arise as a result of this new legislative advancement. What is an AI system? According to the Act, an AI system is a “machine-based system designed to operate with varying levels of autonomy and that may exhibit adaptiveness after deployment and that, for explicit or implicit objectives, infers, from the input it receives, how to generate outputs such as content, predictions, recommendations, or decisions that can influence physical or virtual environments”. Why do we need this Act? The AI Act classifies AI systems into three risk categories: Unacceptable risk AI systems are considered to pose an unacceptable risk and are prohibited by the Act. These practices include systems that target vulnerable people or groups of persons, systems that materially distort a person’s behaviour, the use of biometric categorisation and identification systems and systems that classify natural persons that lead to unjustifiable detrimental treatment. High-risk AI systems are those that, based on their intended purpose, pose a high risk of harm to the health and safety or the fundamental rights of persons, taking into account both the severity of the possible harm and its probability of occurrence.    A General Purpose AI (GPAI) system displays significant generality and competently performs a wide range of distinct tasks regardless of the way the model is placed on the market. It can be integrated into a variety of downstream systems or applications. The Act is intended to ensure better conditions for the development and use of AI and is a pillar of the EU’s digital strategy. Furthermore, the Act takes aim at the emerging issue of ‘deepfake’ technology. Deepfakes are defined as “AI-generated or manipulated image, audio or video content that resembles existing persons, objects, places or other entities or events and would falsely appear to a person to be authentic or truthful”.  The Act places a requirement on deployers of this technology to disclose that the content has been artificially generated or manipulated. Who will the Act affect? The Act will impact both developers and deployers of AI systems and will legislate the following: Human oversight measures for high-risk AI systems; Effective employer obligations for organisations planning to deploy AI in the workplace; Testing of AI systems in real-world conditions; and Implementation of codes of practice for proper compliance with the obligations of the regulation for providers of General Purpose AI systems. The Act represents a major overhaul for businesses developing or deploying AI systems. Businesses doing either in the course of their work should consider how AI can be made compliant with the EU AI Act and what impact this might have on the business and its operational performance. Jackie Hennessy is the Risk Consulting Partner at KPMG Dani Michaux is EMA Cyber Leader at KPMG International

Paul Guess explains what work-related burnout means and outlines the pivotal role managers can play in prevention and recovery Many people think of ‘burnout’ as solely related to how much they work. They believe just taking some time off will relieve feelings of overwhelm and pressure and that they can quickly return to work feeling refreshed and renewed. Several factors can cause burnout, however, and it is unlikely to be resolved by taking a break. One of the most important contributors to a person’s well-being at work is their relationship with their manager. As burnout has been classified as an “occupational phenomenon” by the World Health Organization, support at work is essential to curb the rising tide of overwhelm at work.  The manager's role is critical in assessing and addressing employee burnout. Here are some tips to support leaders in preventing and managing burnout in their teams. 1. Be knowledgeable about the factors that contribute to burnout  Research has indicated the six areas that, when left unchecked, can lead to burnout. Recognising how these areas impact a team can give leaders a better idea of how to improve.  Workload Do staff have a clearly defined job description, and are their responsibilities reasonable? Additionally, do they have the resources they need to fulfil the duties assigned to them? Perceived lack of control When people feel they have a say in the decisions being made that are related to their job, it can positively affect well-being and reduce feelings of disengagement and cynicism.  Appreciation and reward When people feel the extrinsic and intrinsic rewards of their job don’t match their effort and time, they can become disengaged and unmotivated – a key indicator of burnout. Fairness Ensure that people receive fair and equitable treatment. Transparency and trust are the foundations of psychological safety within the workplace, and innovation and creativity flow from this. It is essential to effectively communicate the thinking behind decisions that impact them. Community It is vital that people feel a sense of belonging within the organisation. Develop opportunities to bring teams together and keep connections strong to build positive relationships, as loneliness and isolation are often drivers of poor mental health and well-being. Values Do the leadership’s behaviours create an environment in which people feel that it’s okay to look after their well-being? Role modelling and recognising their own management style and how it contributes to an employee’s experience is an important piece of reflective work that will lead to improved relationships. 2. Pay attention to the warning signs of poor mental health There are common indicators of burnout that managers should be aware of: poor decision making; reduced concentration levels;  feelings of overwhelm;  withdrawal; procrastination;  inability to prioritise tasks effectively;  poor timekeeping;  relationship difficulties;  expressions of anger and frustration; and  increasing cynicism and disengagement. If a manager notices these behaviours in a team member,  they must be aware of how to manage burnout in an employee. There are several steps they should take:  Start supportive conversations  Managers should use one-on-one opportunities to start exploring what might be driving any difficulty. Some people will need a little encouragement to open up, so actively listening to what they say, creating space and responding sensitively will help to reassure them that their manager is there to support them. If they feel stressed or overwhelmed by their workload, guide them on how to handle pressure. Set clear goals and spotlight progress When people don’t have clear goals, they either become stuck because they are unsure where to invest their energy or frantically churn out work in the hope it will be valuable. Good leadership involves setting clear goals that contribute to the team’s success. It’s also important to recognise progress and highlight any accomplishments or achievements by individuals or the team. Protect the team’s time A manager must protect their team’s time, especially regarding their well-being. Ensure that people take time off in light of illness, bereavement or other notable situations. Encourage people to take their annual holiday allowance and have some protected time to rest and decompress during periods away from work. Managers should always be practising the behaviours they encourage, so they must be sure to take their own time off as well. Paul Guess is a mental wellbeing expert at caba, the occupational charity supporting ICAEW

PwC’s Irish CEO Survey 2024 reveals rising concerns about company survival in a shifting business landscape. CEOs must drive innovation, agility and digital transformation for lasting prosperity, writes Amy Ball The PwC Irish CEO Survey 2024 shows that 28 percent of Irish CEOs are still not confident that their company would survive more than a decade on its current path – up from 21 percent last year. In an age where CEOs increasingly foresee the possible demise of their company within 10 years if they continue in their current direction, the imperative for business transformation has never been more critical. Innovation is at the forefront of this transformation. CEOs must champion a culture that not only welcomes but seeks out innovation. This means moving beyond traditional models to embrace disruptive technologies and processes in areas such as finance, front office, HR and operations transformation, in particular. Agility The digital era demands a shift towards more agile, technology-driven business strategies that resonate with contemporary market dynamics. Equally crucial is understanding and adapting to rapidly changing consumer behaviours. Today’s consumer landscape is a mosaic of evolving preferences and expectations heavily influenced by digital technologies. Businesses closely monitoring these shifts and aligning their strategies will likely create a valuable competitive advantage. Survival strategy Digital transformation isn’t just a buzzword; it’s a survival strategy. Integrating digital technologies into every business area, from operations to customer engagement, is essential. This digital pivot involves a fundamental change in how businesses operate and deliver value as part of the transformation journey. Clear and flexible leadership Leadership in such times of change requires a nuanced approach, too. CEOs need to navigate uncertainty with a clear vision and a flexible strategy. This involves making tough decisions, fostering a culture of resilience and preparing the organisation for continuous change. Data Data is the compass in this journey. Leveraging data-driven insights for strategic decision-making can uncover new opportunities, optimise operations and enhance customer experiences. CEOs who harness the power of data can steer their company towards more informed and effective pathways. Adaptability Lastly, business model adaptability is crucial. The ability to pivot quickly in response to market changes can be the difference between thriving and merely surviving. This adaptability should be ingrained in the company’s DNA, encouraging continuous evolution and responsiveness to emerging trends and challenges. A prosperous future The CEO’s role in steering their company towards a prosperous future is more dynamic than ever. It requires a blend of innovative thinking, digital savvy, strategic adaptability and data-driven decision-making. By embracing these principles, CEOs can ensure their company is resilient enough to create sustained outcomes. Amy Ball is Business Transformation Leader at PwC

A staggered board can support continuity, strategic stability and help to defend against takeovers. Dan Byrne outlines the pros and cons of this distinctive governance structure A staggered board is a type of board structure designed to provide stability and continuity at corporate governance level. It divides its directors into “classes” – each serving a different time length across staggered terms. Usually, more senior directors will serve longer terms. In modern governance, the structure of a company’s board of directors can help to steer an organisation’s strategic direction.  Different companies will structure their boards differently to achieve the results they want. Adopting a staggered board structure is one option. Staggered boards are designed to ensure that only some directors are up for re-election at any given time. This has the advantage of ensuring there is always continuity across different election cycles as only some faces will be new. It also reduces the likelihood of hostile takeovers, which usually need a rapid and large-scale leadership change to succeed.  The processes of a staggered board The operation of a staggered board involves dividing directors into classes; it could be as low as two or as much as five. Each class will be up for election/re-election at different times. Take the example of  a board with three classes: each class serves a three-year term, but only one class is up for election each year. In other words, at least two-thirds of the board will stay the same after any election.  In cases where the more senior directors serve longer terms, class one may be up for election every year, class two every three years, and class three (the most senior) every five years.  These rules will depend on the company. The advantages of a staggered board A staggered board can help to ensure continuity after each election and delay or outright eliminate the risk of hostile takeovers.  It can also reduces the logistics challenge of training and onboarding several new directors simultaneously. There will always be a healthy cohort of veterans to oversee any work needed in this area, feeding a culture of long-term planning. Disadvantages Much of the criticism directed at the staggered board approach comes from shareholders who effectively only have a say on the future of a third (or less) of directors at any given time.  This means shareholder criticism is less likely to be listened to and the board may be more concerned with itself or its relationship with management. Creating a staggered board If an organisation is thinking about instituting a staggered board, it must analyse the company’s governance thoroughly before doing so.  How much does your board depend on fresh, new experience? If it’s a lot, a staggered board might not be for you.  How concerned are you about a hostile takeover or activism? If the answer is ‘a lot,’ then a staggered board may be for you. You should also consider how much your company spends on onboarding: how easy it is to find relevant talent at the board level, and how confident you are in your current board? By asking the right questions, you may find that introducing a staggered board structure is beneficial for your organisation. Dan Byrne is a writer with the Corporate Governance Institute

Adverse weather can bring disruption to businesses and their staff. Gemma O’Connor explains how an adverse weather policy can help employers to minimise its impact Adverse weather can bring power outages, high winds, and flooding and can cause major destruction of towns and villages across the country. Furthermore, employers dealing with storm and weather warnings may also face staff absenteeism. So, what can they do if employees are unable to be at work for the day because of the effects of poor weather conditions? Experts recommend putting an adverse weather policy in place. Pay obligations Payment obligation is a common topic employers ask about when bad weather strikes. A strict interpretation of the law allows employers to determine whether payment is owed to employees for workdays they miss due to extreme weather. If a company’s premises are open but employees are absent, there is no legal obligation to pay them for what is technically an unauthorised absence. Choosing to withhold pay should be considered with care, however. Doing so may affect staff morale and your reputation as an employer. Employees may also rely on prior experiences to argue that payment is due. If an has organisation paid absent employees during a previous weather warning, they will expect the same going forward. During an extreme weather event, it is possible that companies may need to close their premises. When employees are sent home or told not to come to work due to adverse weather, it is recommended that they be paid as normal. Employee options If employees can’t attend work due to the extreme weather, there are a few options available: Ask them to work from home and continue to pay them as normal. Allow them to make up any missed time later. With the agreement of the employees, the organisation could deduct any absences from their paid annual leave entitlement. Many people are already currently working from home. Employers with remote working arrangements should include a clause on working from home in their adverse weather policy. This clause could specify, for example, that staff are permitted to work from home during periods of bad weather and will be paid as normal even if the employer’s premises are closed. Change of roster An employer is entitled to change a roster at short notice in exceptional events, including extreme weather. Keep in mind that outside of these exceptional circumstances, however, employees are entitled to a notice of at least 24 hours for any roster change. Employee safety As an employer, the safety of employees should always be paramount. An employer’s statutory duty is to provide a safe place of work. This also includes ensuring that employees are not required to undertake a hazardous journey to get to work. Employers should know that, if public transport isn’t operating, they face a heightened risk of claims and reports to the Health & Safety Authority (HSA) by employees who suffer accidents on their way to work. Time for a policy Adverse weather can be a reminder and an opportunity to develop your own internal policy regarding how weather warnings will be handled. If this policy is reasonable and clearly communicated to employees, organisations can minimise their exposure to the winters of employee discontent. Gemma O'Connor is Head of Service at Peninsula Ireland

As 2024 unfolds amidst continued global challenges, Loretta O’Sullivan outlines why the island of Ireland will still likely see some economic growth We are just a few weeks into 2024 and it has already acquired many labels. It's the year of rate cuts, war and global elections. Despite this, the all-island economy is expected to be a year of growth. EY Ireland's Winter Economic Eye report forecasts reasonably solid growth in the Republic of Ireland (ROI) and a modest expansion in Northern Ireland (NI). Outlined below are the four forces we see shaping both economies in 2024. 1. A subdued external environment The world economy is recovering from a multitude of shocks – the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and decades-high inflation. The likelihood of a soft landing has increased, but geopolitical tensions, including the conflict in the Middle East and the Red Sea attacks, are among many headwinds. Prospects for key trading partners in 2024 are mixed, with growth set to slow in the US, but due to pick up in the Eurozone and the UK. 2. A turn in monetary policy After introducing a series of interest rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England are both on hold. Higher borrowing costs are expected to weigh on business spending decisions in 2024. Proactive digitalisation and decarbonisation agendas should provide support, however, and we can look forward to rate cuts later this year. The Irish government is also undertaking a large-scale capital spending programme to enhance public infrastructure and underpin digital and green transitions. In NI, the restoration of power-sharing and a Stormont Executive should encourage future investment. 3. Inflation is on the retreat Inflation has eased significantly and the passing on of lower wholesale energy prices to household bills and business costs, coupled with the transmission of monetary policy to economic activity, points to further easing ahead. In ROI, an inflation rate of 3.0 percent is forecast for 2024, falling to 2.0 percent in 2025. This downward trend will alleviate pressure on household purchasing power and improve consumer confidence, which bodes well for consumer expenditure. 4. Warm labour markets While the ROI and NI labour markets put in a strong performance in 2023, signs of softening are beginning to emerge and some cooling is likely this year. Nonetheless, unemployment rates are projected to remain low by historical standards and many businesses will continue to experience staff recruitment and retention challenges. Given the tight labour market and some compensation for past inflation, wage increases are also anticipated. This year is shaping up to be one of rate cuts, elevated geopolitical tensions and monumental elections. Yet, amidst these events, households and businesses can likely expect to see some growth across the two economies on the island of Ireland. Loretta O’Sullivan is Chief Economist and Partner at EY Ireland

Julia Rowan answers your management, leadership and team development questions Q. My organisation is going through a lot of change; there is a new leadership structure at the top, but some changes are still undecided. I am hoping that some roles in my area (which were regionalised about eight years ago) will be recentralised under my management. While this has not yet been decided, the regions have got ahead of this with quite a public challenge to the leadership to retain roles at regional level. They have much more clout than my small team and me. A. I am going to assume that your query is about the quality of the work your function provides rather than simply headcount. In any case, a couple of things are immediately clear: Whatever happens, your relationship with the regional directors, as well as with other colleagues currently fulfilling regional roles, is very important. This ‘inter-regnum’ period could be very useful to all of you (in the regions and centrally) by giving you time to get together to work on issues relating to this restructure with a view to making improvements – no matter the eventual outcome. Perhaps someone on the senior leadership team could initiate and sponsor this. You need to play a long game; organisations make changes all the time and how you are seen to deal with this issue will impact your profile. Avoid ‘either/or’ thinking (i.e. ‘they either report to the regions or to me’). There could be many ways to create win-win outcomes. Until a decision is made, there is room for negotiation (see the book suggestion below). I suggest you carefully work out a couple of positions, including: Your ideal outcome (and how to transition to it); Acceptable outcomes if you don’t get your ideal outcome (e.g. dotted line responsibility, developing the more interesting aspects of your role, new structures to support your team, developmental support, etc); and Unwelcome outcomes (and how to avoid them). It could be useful to work on this with your team. I have no doubt that they would have a lot to add to the conversation. Q. My team is under huge pressure – as am I. I try hard to help them, but they keep coming back with the same issues and they are very negative. A. It is the leader’s role to help, but how do we help? Sometimes, it’s by fixing, helping and advising.  And sometimes it’s by listening and empowering the team member to fix it themselves.  As leaders, we are often scared by negativity and we jump in quickly with advice and fixes. I suggest you listen deeply to your direct reports. When they bring up something negative, stay with it and help them to explore it.   The pull to fix is great, so this is much more difficult than it sounds. Arranging to meet to discuss the issue will give you the time to pull together some great questions that will help your team member think through the issue and come up with solutions. Of course, you can suggest solutions too – but people are much more likely to listen to your suggestions when you have helped them to think things through first. Julia Rowan is Principal Consultant at Performance Matters Ltd, a leadership and team development consultancy. To send a question to Julia, email julia@performancematters.ie If you read one thing... Getting to yes – negotiating an agreement without giving in by Roger Fisher and William Ury. We often go into negotiations with an  ‘either/or’ attitude. Either they win or I do. Getting to Yes offers a framework for ‘principled negotiation’ helping us to come up with creative options where both parties (or more) can achieve what they want. 

The new 15 percent global corporate tax rate will have a big impact in countries across the world, but arguably nowhere more so than in Ireland’s small FDI-reliant economy. Three Chartered Accountants dissect the implications of the tax change and how it could reshape our economic landscape. Paul Dillon, Tax Partner, Duignan Carthy O’Neill Ireland has signed Pillar Two of the OECD agreement on taxation into Irish law, introducing a minimum corporation tax rate of 15 percent for large domestic groups or multinationals with revenue of €750 million or more in at least two of the four preceding fiscal years. The current 12.5 percent corporation tax rate will remain in place for most companies in Ireland, with certain groups having to pay a top-up tax of 2.5 percent – the qualified domestic top-up tax (QDTT) – directly to the Irish exchequer.   The QDTT is initially due for periods commencing 1 January 2024, but the first payments will not be made until 2026.  The rules are complex and will require significant investment from the companies it applies to so that they can understand the scope and application of these new provisions.  In the short-term, Pillar Two provisions could lead to the Irish exchequer collecting additional tax as it is estimated that close to 1,600 entities in Ireland will be liable to pay QDTT. If a group entity is liable to pay QDTT in a jurisdiction such as Ireland, the top-up taxes due outside Ireland are expected to reduce to zero. These safe harbour rules should protect the Irish tax base and result in more taxes being collected in Ireland in the short term. It is also worth noting that any QDTT paid in Ireland should be allowed as a credit against what is termed an Income Inclusion Rule (IIR) or Undertaxed Profit Rule (UPR) tax liability a group is due to pay in other jurisdictions. This will provide additional protection to the multinational tax base in Ireland. In brief, the IIR requires the ultimate parent entity of the group to determine if its constituent entities have paid the minimum 15 percent tax in each jurisdiction and pay the additional taxes in its jurisdiction to meet the minimum tax rate.  The UPR taxes groups that are not resident in a jurisdiction that has adopted the Pillar Two rules and applies to groups not paying the minimum 15 percent tax. The UPR rule will require an increase in tax at the subsidiary level.  In the short term, most economic commentators believe that the new Pillar Two provisions will lead to Ireland collecting additional tax. In the longer term, the taxes collected will depend on the economic presence of groups in Ireland and how they organise their structures going forward.  The impact of the proposed Pillar One changes, which will reallocate some taxing rights based on market jurisdictions, may ultimately have an adverse effect on the tax base in Ireland and could, in the longer term, reduce the taxes collected from multinationals in Ireland. Alma de Bruijn, Tax Director, PwC Ireland The introduction of a global minimum effective tax rate of 15 percent has come after a lengthy period of negotiations as part of implementation of Pillar Two. Ireland was actively involved in these negotiations, securing the removal of “at least” with respect to the rate and thereby ensuring that the rate could not be increased in the future. The newly introduced provisions, which will lead to an effective 15 percent tax rate, could lead to incremental Irish corporate tax for many companies, i.e. above Ireland’s long-standing corporate tax rate of 12.5 percent.  Ireland’s corporate tax policy has generally focused on ensuring substance-based investment, coupled with a rounded tax regime of incentives.  A significant number of multinationals are well established in Ireland, and while Pillar Two may increase the effective tax rate of multinational groups, the new rules should not act as an incentive to move investment out of Ireland in favour of other OECD jurisdictions.  This is supported by the OECD’s recent taxation working paper, The Global Minimum Tax and the Taxation of MNE Profit, in which a key finding was that the global minimum tax substantially reduces the incentives to shift profits.  It is also worth noting that the domestic effective tax rate applicable in many other jurisdictions will significantly exceed the 15 percent effective rate that will apply under Pillar Two. While the introduction of the new global minimum tax rate marks the biggest change in the corporate tax landscape in a generation, it is a change that has been embraced by Ireland.  Ireland has been clear in its commitment to the implementation of the Pillar Two rules from the outset and has consulted with stakeholders throughout the implementation process. This commitment and consultation have offered certainty to businesses.  I think that, despite the change in rate for large multinationals, Ireland will continue to remain competitive with a highly educated, skilled workforce, direct access to the EU market and international supply chains, and a stable business environment that promotes investment. James Smyth, Partner, Deloitte  Following the adoption of the EU directive on the adoption of a global minimum tax by EU Member States, Ireland has taken steps to enact the required legislation to comply with the provisions of the directive.  The Irish legislation on the global minimum tax came into effect from the start of this year. The reality for any impacted group is that the rules are very complicated and require careful analysis to assess the impact fully. It’s fair to say that the level of complexity in the new rules is not like anything we have seen before in the tax world and requires an increased level of interaction between global tax and finance teams. The likely impact on Ireland is difficult to assess and there are certainly different views on it. The 15 percent minimum tax rate could impact Ireland’s competitiveness, but the wider offering for businesses looking to invest in Ireland extends far beyond tax alone, including an English-speaking population, an educated workforce, membership of the EU and favourable business conditions.  The mechanics of how the rules work are such that the imposition of the global minimum tax rate of 15 percent in Ireland should not automatically result in an additional tax liability of 2.5 percent (being the differential between Ireland’s headline rate of corporation tax of 12.5 percent and the new global minimum tax rate of 15 percent).  The devil is in the detail and the new rules could result in a neutral or positive impact on Ireland.

When and how the war between Israel and Hamas ends, Israelis and Palestinians will have to find a way to live side by side, writes Judy Dempsey The long-running conflict between Israel and the Palestinians has been one of missed opportunities. The 1995 Oslo Peace Accords were supposed to usher in a kind of co-existence. That didn’t happen. Israel did not stop withdrawing the illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank. It designated areas for Jewish settlers.  The Palestinian Authority (PA), bankrolled by the European Union, didn’t use the opportunity to introduce democratic reforms. The former head of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) Yasser Arafat could not make the transition from freedom fighter to democrat.   His successor Abu Mazen has presided over a corrupt PA, refusing to hold elections due back in 2006. He has lost credibility among Palestinians. Mazen did Israel’s bidding: keeping the lid on opposition to the occupation and preventing the establishment of a vibrant civil society that could challenge his authority.   In Gaza, the Islamic Hamas movement took over the strip in 2007 after ousting the discredited PA. Hamas is the precursor to the Muslim Brotherhood encouraged by Israel in the 1980s as a means to divide and weaken the PLO. Since 2007, Hamas has run Gaza with an iron fist. It has its own agenda: to not recognise the state of Israel, even to destroy it.  Fast forward to 7 October and Israel’s devastating response to the gruesome Hamas massacre of Israeli civilians. This will make it more difficult than ever to change a mindset on both sides concerning the need to end the cycle of violence and resume peace talks.   Gaza is in ruins. Suffering people have nowhere to go. At least 20,000 have been killed. There is no systematic flow of humanitarian aid. Hamas shows no signs of negotiating over Israeli hostages.  As for Israel, its right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – who never believed in a two-state solution and who is (conveniently) beholden to his far-right-wing coalition partners – believes he can destroy Hamas.   This ignores the day after for the hapless, suffering citizens of Gaza and for Israelis who have been shocked by the failures of their military and intelligence services.    The day after is difficult to think about. The United States and the European Union still support a two-state solution but how might it be achieved? A few ideas:  Benjamin Netanyahu needs to be replaced with a moderate leader.    Abu Mazen and the PA need to be replaced by younger people who want democratic change.  A two-state solution is impossible unless Jewish settlements in the West Bank are dismantled. They prevent a viable Palestinian state.  Middle Eastern countries must play a central role. They see the wider impact of the Israeli-Hamas conflagration. The Arab countries, and even possibly Iran – a pivotal player in supporting Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthi rebels in Yemen – cannot afford a war in the Middle East.   Egypt and Jordan (which have peace agreements with Israel) and Saudi Arabia (which had considered establishing relations with Israel before 7 October), need to take the diplomatic and political lead in ending the war between Israel and Hamas.    Former US President Donald Trump missed an opportunity when he didn’t link the Abraham Accords – signed in 2020 by the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan to normalise relations with Israel – to negotiating a peace deal between Israel and Palestine.  A two-state solution is unthinkable today. Anger and radicalisation on both sides will demand time and a special mediation to make any sustainable peace possible, but what is the alternative?  Judy Dempsey is a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at Carnegie Europe and Editor-in-Chief of Strategic Europe.  *Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column published in the February/March 2024 issue of Accountancy Ireland are the author’s own. The views of contributors to Accountancy Ireland may differ from official Institute policies and do not reflect the views of Chartered Accountants Ireland, its Council, its committees, or the editor.

Ronan Murray, the incoming Managing Partner of EY Ireland’s Cork office tells us how his Big Four career progressed from audit to mergers and acquisitions, and gives his take on M&A trends in 2024  Ronan Murray is the incoming Managing Partner of EY Ireland’s Cork office. Kerry-born Murray has lived in Cork for over 25 years, forging a successful career in corporate finance, starting in audit and progressing to mergers and acquisitions (M&A) advisory and services. As Partner, Corporate Finance, Strategy and Transactions, with EY Ireland in Cork for the past two years, Murray has provided strategic advice to Irish companies on acquisitions and disposals. Q. Tell us a bit about your background and education?  I grew up in Tralee and I’m still firmly connected to family, friends and clients in Co. Kerry, but I have lived and worked in Cork for a long time. It’s a fantastic place and my two daughters will be proud Corkonians! I started out studying commerce at University College Cork (UCC), graduating in 2001 with a commerce degree and returned to UCC in 2010 to complete an Executive MBA with a focus on developmental leadership education in a knowledge economy.  I met my wife Aideen Creedon, Head of Internal Audit at UCC, while we were both on our Chartered Accountants Ireland training contracts in Cork and studying for our exams.  Q. What inspired you to pursue a career in accountancy?  I remember during the graduate intake period at university reading the various job brochures from companies and organisations. I was struck by the Chartered Accountant (CA) qualification being a portable tool you could use as a foundation to build a wide and varied career in professional services. It certainly hasn’t disappointed. I have been able to gain wide-ranging experience from external audit to transaction services over the course of 22 years working for Big Four firms.  Through secondments, I’ve had the opportunity to live and work in both New York and London.  I started in audit, qualifying as a Chartered Accountant in 2005 and becoming an External Audit Manager in 2006.  I joined the Transactions Team at EY in 2007 and worked until 2016 in various roles before returning to the firm in 2022 as a Partner in our M&A/Corporate Finance Team. I may be biased, but in the world of corporate finance and M&A, the CA qualification is regarded as a differentiator and a distinct advantage.  It is a badge of honour you can take with you into any boardroom environment. The skills I have acquired through the qualification have served me exceptionally well throughout my career.  Q. As your career progressed, what prompted you to move from audit into M&A?   There is one moment that stands out as an important pivot point for me. Back in 2007, I got to spend some time working with a partner preparing the content for an information memorandum relating to a potential transaction.  I was intrigued and excited by the prospect of supporting on the deal. It was this experience that made me consider moving into M&A. I really enjoy the variety the role offers day-to-day. I get to work with so many different people and businesses. It is fast-paced and I find helping business owners to achieve their goals hugely rewarding. My audit experience has been essential in helping me to understand the core value drivers in business and, over time, it enabled me to move towards the M&A side of the market. Q. What does your day-to-day role involve?  I spend most of my time working with business owners to devise strategies that will allow them to de-risk and obtain growth capital while executing a transaction that delivers value.  Achieving the best outcome is a fine balancing act. It’s important to take time to meet with owners, funders, legal intermediaries and wider market players to ensure your “finger is on the pulse” when it comes to potential opportunities for your clients. I have a lot of meetings with local and international investors so I can fully understand their investment criteria and match them with suitable Irish companies.  The rest of my time is focused on deal execution – preparing information memorandums, agreeing heads of terms and reviewing sale and purchase agreements in tandem with legal colleagues.  From a private equity perspective, business owners often have an opportunity to obtain growth capital and commence a ‘buy and build’ process with a defined M&A strategy.  Dealmakers are looking at synergies across the various functions of a larger organisation. Investors are focused on the objectives behind a transaction. Often, the deal is about unlocking the potential and value that exists in an organisation.  Over the course of my career, I’ve been involved in hundreds of exciting transactions on both the buy and sell side. Some of the recent stand-out deals include the sale of PFH Technology Group to Japanese firm Ricoh and Phoenix Equity’s investment in Nostra Technologies. I have also enjoyed working with Zeus Packaging on several acquisitions in recent years.  Q. What are the biggest trends in the M&A market currently?  There was a global slowdown in transaction activity in 2022 and the first half of 2023, primarily due to uncertain debt markets and macroeconomic factors.  The M&A landscape has since improved and the Irish market is well-placed to see an uplift in deal volumes this year, as Irish assets continue to attract interest from investors, both local and international.  Ireland is a very competitive country internationally with an innovative, technology-driven, service-focused and open trading economy.  Our regions have grown and developed into destinations of choice for global companies, as well as providing a platform for indigenous private companies to develop and scale.  Acquirers are seeking strategic assets and the fundamentals of the Irish economy remain strong, making Ireland an attractive location for investment.  Private equity investment in the mid-market, driven by the availability of ‘dry powder’, is also playing a much deeper role in the Irish market. As we move forward, private business optimism coupled with the existence of a more developed and balanced risk appetite, will define the level of activity for the year ahead.  Q. You are currently President of Cork Chamber. How did this role come about and what does it mean to you?  The passing of both my parents in a short period of time gave me more perspective and a sense that maybe I should work to make more of a difference in society and business in a way that would complement my professional role with EY.  I was appointed Chair of Cork Chamber’s Economic and Enterprise Committee for two years in 2013. Then, in 2018, I joined the Board as Honorary Treasurer and became Vice-President in 2020. I was elected President and Chair of the Board of Cork Chamber in May 2022 for a term of two years.  It was a proud moment and I have fully embraced it and enjoy the role.   Being President of Cork Chamber allows me to play a more active business and political leadership role in the region. The chamber has over 1,200 members employing some 120,000 people. Being President gives me a significant platform to represent the business community in the city and county.  Top tips for M&A transactions Ireland remains a highly attractive location for investment and, looking to the year ahead, there is significant appetite to deploy capital as business owners continue to seek growth capital.  The technology sector continues to dominate the M&A landscape in Ireland in terms of transactions, partnerships and strategic alliances.  Other sectors of interest include engineering, financial services, business support services, healthcare, life sciences (both pharma and medtech) and ESG.  The green transition to a lower carbon economy is also driving investment decisions, and companies with sustainability credentials will continue to be attractive. For Irish companies undertaking a merger or exit, being well-prepared is essential for maximising the value of the transaction. Here are my top five tips: Understand key value drivers; this is essential to both preparation and execution; Have a clear growth story with understandable drivers that underpin financial projections to match specific investor criteria and strategic objectives; Align key management in preparation for a transaction process, while also ensuring the team has the bandwidth to focus on the day-to-day running of the business; Ensure the business/economic cycle supports your plan exit (e.g. historic company performance versus forecast performance and macroeconomic environment); Ensure compliance across all areas of the business (e.g. regulatory, environmental and sustainability). Addressing these areas well ahead of undertaking a potential M&A process will help reduce the risk of value erosion during a transaction.  Appointing advisors can also ease the transaction process and enhance value by allowing owners and managers to continue to focus on successful day-to-day operations. And to advisors, I would also say: take the time to listen carefully. It’s important to be humble and confident. There is no place for arrogance. 

From art to accountancy and audit to recruitment, Mark Baker has forged a multi-faceted career that speaks to the diversity and mobility of the profession today In his career as a financial recruiter, Mark Baker estimates he has met “thousands” of accountants. “Not one is the same as the next,” Baker says. “This clichéd idea that we are boring is just not true, but thankfully I think we’re seeing that cliché less and less these days.” Baker puts this shifting perception of accountants down to the rise of professional platforms such as LinkedIn – which has given people greater insight into the reality of the profession and how diverse it is. “Qualifying as a Chartered Accountant gives you such a strong career foundation. It opens up avenues and gives you a lot of different options,” he says. “You can go anywhere you want with it really because, if you are a Chartered Accountant, people know straight off the bat that you have a high level of competence in multiple areas – you need that to get the qualification in the first place.” As joint Managing Partner of Darwin Hawkins, the recruitment firm he established in 2018 with co-founder and fellow FCA Niall O’Kelly (ex-PwC), Baker has a bird’s eye view of emerging trends in the profession and what might lie ahead for the accountant of the future.   Range of career options Darwin Hawkins provides recruitment services to employers and candidates in the finance sector and has as its Chair investor James Caan, CBE, the British-Pakistani recruitment entrepreneur and former judge on the BBC series Dragons’ Den. “Every day, we’re talking to Chartered Accountants about their career options and the sheer range of choices open to them. You can go into a multitude of diverse areas such as data analytics, corporate finance or sustainability,” Baker says. “I’ve always viewed training contracts as apprenticeships. A lot of people train in audit for three-plus years and move directly into roles as financial accountants or financial analysts. “They can often even move into corporate finance on very good salaries straight after training in audit, but those two roles are actually very different. I think that really highlights the quality of the qualification and the mobility it gives you in terms of your career options right from the get-go.” Baker himself qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Deloitte in Dublin, training in audit, and went on to work in the banking sector with Certus, the specialist loan servicing group, before cutting his teeth in recruitment with FK International and partnering with Niall O’Kelly to launch Darwin Hawkins. His path to qualifying as a Chartered Accountant and finding his entrepreneurial niche in recruitment has not been a straightforward one, however, and, as Baker sees it, his story serves as a strong example of the diversity in the profession and varied career paths qualifying as a Chartered Accountant can support. “I really think young people need to hear our stories as Chartered Accountants; about what we do every day, the opportunities we have and how we got to where we are. That’s the best way we can show them what this profession has to offer,” he says.   Path to accounting Baker grew up in the south Dublin suburbs of Shankill and Sandyford, attending Cabinteely Community School, and went on to study Arts at University College Dublin (UCD). “When I was at primary school, all I can remember is that I wanted to play for Celtic FC and, as I got a bit older and wiser, I decided maybe I could be an artist. I was good at art, good at sports. My parents were always very supportive, so I grew up genuinely believing I could be anything I wanted to be,” he says. “I did quite well at school, but unfortunately like many people I know, I can’t say I had great career guidance at secondary school and I wasn’t sure what direction I wanted to go in.” While studying at UCD, Baker discovered his entrepreneurial flair, selling portrait paintings for impressive price tags in local art galleries and then online. “As a 20-year-old at college, in my spare time I was selling my paintings through galleries for €2,000 and €3,000. It was a simple business model – I put the work in and got paid for it in direct proportion. I was able to create something from nothing, go to market, and be financially rewarded. That entrepreneurial mindset was always there, and it was now being validated,” he says. “After college, I made the decision to go full-time doing that for a year to see how it would go – selling art through my website and the Green Gallery in Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre – famous faces, portraits, realism.” “I did reasonably well, but then the recession hit in 2008 and everything just fell off a cliff. Nobody wanted to spend money on paintings. My little bubble burst. I had to step back and ask myself, not just ‘What do I want to do?’ but also, ‘What’s a solid career?’ I didn’t want to be a starving artist.” To this day, Baker continues to paint in his own time and has been commissioned over the years to produce portraits of high-profile subjects, including Barack Obama, Stephen Spielberg and Dave Grohl, lead singer of the Foo Fighters. “I promised myself I would never give up on it and I haven’t. I still sell my paintings and hold exhibitions, but I knew when the recession hit that I also needed security. I liked the open-ended nature of accountancy. When you become an accountant, you can essentially go into any kind of business, and even start your own. That appealed to me,” he says.   Professional diploma in accounting Baker went on to complete the Professional Diploma in Accounting at DCU Business School, a conversion course designed for non-business graduates who want to work in accounting. After graduating, he joined Deloitte as a trainee and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2011. “I found Deloitte very supportive. They give you everything you need. The people are the best thing about it, particularly at your own level. You have a support group when you are doing your exams and training contract,” he says. “Without the support of those around me, and the opportunity to ask questions when I needed to, I think I would have struggled. I learned a lot. I learned what professionalism is. I learned what a high standard of performance is – the best in the business. For me, the Chartered Accountants Ireland professional training programme is the peak, the pinnacle. I learned a million little things through my training contract that still stand to me today.” Now, as a recruiter and co-founder of his own firm, Baker is intent on using his experience in life and work to provide candidates and employers with a personal, tailored recruitment experience. “With Darwin Hawkins, Niall and I backed ourselves and each other. We took a risk starting a recruitment business, but it’s also delivered the biggest reward. I believe that people need to take more risks,” he says. “We’re different from many of the other recruiters I’ve come across in our field. We’re a team of qualified accountants. Having met thousands of accountants, I know more now about every facet of accounting and every possible career path, than I ever would doing the one role. “Accountants are very nuanced due to the wide-ranging career paths open to them. Every accountant we meet has a different story, different skillsets, and will have different opportunities. We try to help people realise and seize these opportunities”.   Future of the profession As for the future of the profession? The basics will always matter, Baker says. “Employers will always want to know that candidates have the basics of accounting mastered. Interpersonal skills will always be a major selling point, but I think now with the emergence of different technologies, adaptability is also very important,” he says. “Employers want to know that you will be willing and able to get stuck into tasks and projects that are outside the day-to-day – a systems implementation project, for example, or something that’s heavy on data analytics”. “Knowledge and experience in big data and Power BI data visualisation tools are increasingly important along with a good understanding of systems implementation and process improvement”. “Because technology is evolving so much, these systems have to be implemented and finance teams are heavily involved because they are the ones who are going to be using them. When you get involved, you become an integral part of the business”. “Artificial intelligence is another obvious one. There are multiple AI tools already being used in finance, but you still need the people with the ideas and knowledge to train these systems with the correct prompts, and to ensure that ethical standards are being maintained. “I believe that there will always be a need for accounting talent, no matter what technology brings and how it might change the way we work.”

By championing diversity, equity and inclusion, businesses have  the power to become agents of positive change in an uncertain time, write John McNamara and Conor Hudson Threats to the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) agenda are only growing stronger. It is important to understand the context, but more importantly to remind ourselves of the gaps DEI seeks to close and – as members – strive to engage and communicate on these issues more effectively. This year will be the biggest election year in history. More than 60 countries representing half the world’s population – four billion people – will go to the polls voting in presidential, government and local elections. This is also perhaps the biggest test yet for democracy as we continue to see certain extreme views previously confined to the fringes of society migrate to the mainstream. Most recently, this shift has included an anti-DEI movement that is now, perhaps unsurprisingly, featuring in the discourse surrounding the US presidential election due to take place later this year. At its core, anti-diversity activism views affirmative action as being racist and DEI initiatives and targets as being discriminatory. In the US, for example, there is currently a push from certain quarters to reduce funding for inclusion programmes in schools and universities. DEI resourcing levels are under scrutiny and there is also the ongoing weaponisation of transgender issues directly impacting the LGBTQ+ community. So how should we react to this assault, particularly given the likelihood that it will continue to grow and spread? Perhaps the answer lies in returning to the ‘first principles’ of the DEI business case whilst recognising the need to work harder communicating, explaining and persuading on the arguments that support DEI.  In particular, we need to ask ourselves: What role can we play as members in business and practice? Force for good Business can be a force for good and many business people are regarded with trust and respect. Businesses can therefore play a pivotal role in promoting DEI and serving as catalysts for wider societal change.  Embracing diversity within their workforce can foster innovation and creativity in companies, bringing together individuals with unique perspectives and experiences.  Inclusive hiring practices and equal opportunities not only give businesses access to a wider talent pool but also empower marginalised groups, helping to reduce social inequalities.  Moreover, businesses with inclusive policies tend to better understand and serve diverse consumer markets, increasing the likelihood of better financial performance.  Companies can enhance their reputation by prioritising DEI initiatives, creating a positive culture and potentially attracting top talent.  Doing so effectively is, however, about much more than simply adopting the signifiers of inclusivity (celebrating International Women’s Day or Pride, for example). It needs to be backed up by inclusive policies that are truly respected, accepted and enforced from the top down and right across the organisation. By championing DEI, businesses can become agents of positive change, influencing broader societal attitudes and norms. These businesses can, in turn, expect to benefit from an enhanced public image and perception of their brand, which can improve their reputation and lead to greater trust. So how can Chartered Accountants in leading business roles put us back on the right track? To navigate the path to DEI and move beyond the anti-DEI movement, members and business leaders must be aware that individuals in their organisations will be at different points in their personal journey. They should also consider the following steps when implementing their strategy: • Offering a safe space for those with diverse perspectives so that they can ask questions and their concerns can be understood and addressed with empathy. Don’t allow DEI to become a “Them” and “Us” scenario. • Communicate transparently about DEI initiatives, identifying the gaps in the organisation and how DEI policies can close them. Ensure that the initiatives have a strategy focusing on inclusion. Otherwise, they can be counterproductive. • Implement fair and objective metrics for evaluating progress in reaching DEI goals; this helps build credibility and legitimacy, but avoid these KPIs becoming a box-ticking exercise.  • Understand the experience of colleagues from diverse backgrounds in your organisation. Setting and reaching DEI goals related solely to the recruitment process cannot embed and maintain the culture needed to retain these new hires. • Collaborate with external experts or organisations in the DEI space who can provide the necessary insight, guidance and credibility to support a successful DEI journey.  Inclusion as a skill In the face of the anti-DEI movement, the skill of inclusion becomes a crucial asset. Treating inclusion as a skill involves actively fostering environments where diverse perspectives are not only welcomed but also valued.  This skill requires empathy, open-mindedness and effective communication to bridge divides and dispel misconceptions that fuel opposition to DEI efforts.  Organisations can help develop these skills through unconscious bias training, promoting employee resource groups (e.g. LGBTQ+) and actively seeking diverse perspectives in the decision making process. Inclusion as a skill empowers individuals to navigate conversations with those resistant to DEI, fostering understanding and promoting unity.  By emphasising the benefits of diversity and creating spaces where everyone feels heard and respected, individuals equipped with inclusion as a skill can play a pivotal role in countering anti-DEI sentiment. John McNamara is Chair of BALANCE,  the Institute’s LGBTQ+ allies network group and Executive Director and CFO at AIB life. Conor Hudson is a Finance Director and member of BALANCE.  

The implementation of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive will introduce new challenges in business reporting, not least the tricky concept of double materiality, writes Mike O’Halloran In 2024, a new era of corporate reporting has kicked off. The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) began to apply to some of the largest entities in Ireland for financial periods commencing on or after 1 January 2024.   The cohort of entities applying the CSRD will increase significantly in the years ahead as the numbers in scope rise in 2025, 2026 and 2028.  Under the European Green Deal, the European Commission aims to transform the EU into a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy with no net emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050, economic growth decoupled from resource use and no person or place left behind.  In seeking to achieve this goal as part of the deal, the CSRD will not be without its implementation challenges. One of the challenges that preparers will have to navigate is double materiality. The CSRD requires the assessment of the materiality of impacts, risks and opportunities relating to sustainability matters via a double materiality assessment. This will be new to most preparers of sustainability statements and those providing assurance on the information.  Double materiality is a unique concept of reporting under the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS).  It is the most notable difference between these standards and the International Sustainability Standards Board’s standards (IFRS S1 and IFRS S2), which will be adopted in other jurisdictions outside Europe. This will most likely include the UK where the Department for Business and Trade has indicated that it may be endorsed in 2024 as part of its Sustainability Disclosure Standards. Materiality – two perspectives As the name might suggest, a double materiality assessment is performed from two perspectives – financial and impact. The result forms the basis for what should be disclosed in a sustainability statement.  The use of two perspectives differs significantly from the “traditional” materiality assessments accountants will be familiar with. This is because a double materiality assessment focuses not just on matters that are financially relevant, but also on those that impact stakeholders, both internal and external, and the environment.  Without a double materiality assessment, an entity could simply focus on sustainability matters that are financially relevant to itself and ignore what is important to the wider society it affects. A double materiality assessment involves consideration of the entity’s direct and indirect impact. This means that it covers the entity’s own operations as well as its upstream (e.g. suppliers and pre-production activities) and downstream (e.g. post-production activities and end customers) value chain, when considering its material impacts, risks and opportunities.  The output from a double materiality assessment identifies impacts, risks and opportunities related to sustainability matters that are considered to be material for the entity, its stakeholders and the environment, and therefore must be reported on in its sustainability statement. Financial materiality For a sustainability matter to be material from a financial perspective, it must trigger (or must reasonably be expected to trigger) material financial effects on the undertaking. In assessing this, an entity must consider whether sustainability matters generate risks or opportunities that materially influence its development, financial position, financial performance, cash flows, access to finance or cost of capital over the short-, medium- or long-term. The materiality of risks and opportunities should be assessed based on a combination of the likelihood of occurrence and the magnitude of financial effects. Impact materiality Impact materiality looks at how an entity may have an impact on its stakeholders from an environmental, social and governance (ESG) point of view. For a matter to be material from an impact perspective, it must generate (or have the potential to generate) positive or negative impacts on people or the environment. The relevant person affected is the stakeholder and impact materiality is viewed through the eyes of the stakeholder to identify sustainability impacts. When an entity is considering impact materiality, then, it must consider actual or potential impacts, positive and negative impacts and impacts covering the short-, medium- or long-term. The assessment of the severity of its impacts, and therefore whether they are material, is based on three factors: • Scale – how grave or beneficial the impact is; • Scope – how widespread the impact is; and • Irremediability – whether or not the impact can be mitigated or resolved. Furthermore, if an entity is addressing potential impacts, it is required to consider the likelihood that the issue will occur. Engagement with stakeholders is a key consideration when reviewing impact materiality and it will help to inform the entity about its material sustainability impacts, risks and opportunities.  The ESRS do not set out how an entity should engage with its stakeholders and the engagement process should be determined by the reporting entity.  Some of the stakeholder categories an entity may consider as part of its materiality assessment include employees, suppliers, customers, consumers, end users, regulators, local communities and nature. Double materiality sets the reporting boundary When an entity determines that impacts, risks and opportunities related to a sustainability matter are material because of a double materiality assessment, then it is required to disclose information required by the disclosure requirements related to that sustainability matter in the corresponding topical and sector-specific ESRS.  In addition, it is required to disclose any additional entity-specific information when an ESRS does not sufficiently cover this matter. As a result, a double materiality assessment sets the entity’s sustainability reporting boundary. If a matter is material from a financial perspective, an impact perspective or both, then it must be disclosed in a sustainability statement.  The challenges There are several challenges that entities performing a double materiality assessment may struggle with, particularly in the initial years of implementation. These include: Understanding and applying the concept While preparers will already be familiar with materiality, double materiality introduces some new parameters they will need time to become comfortable with. The ESRS do not specify a process to follow when carrying out a double materiality assessment. The reason for this is that no one process would meet the requirements of all the entities reporting under the standards. Therefore, an entity that performs a materiality assessment must design and apply a process tailored to its circumstances, while remaining within the requirements set out in ESRS 1. While such an approach allows entities to tailor their processes accordingly, the lack of a rules-based system may prove difficult for some entities to adapt to, particularly in the earlier years as practices and precedent are being established. In the absence of a strict rules-based approach, entities will need supplementary material to guide their methodologies. Currently the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group is drafting implementation guidelines to assist with this. The assurance requirement A key requirement of the CSRD is external assurance on an entity’s sustainability statement. This will initially require limited assurance before being upgraded to reasonable assurance at some point in the future. While assurance will help to ensure that the integrity and reliability of sustainability information reported on will be enhanced, it will also bring with it a level of complexity whereby the judgements made by preparers will be assessed by assurance providers. This may introduce differing opinions on what should be deemed as material from an impact or financial perspective. All eyes on the first reporters The number of reporters in the first wave of CSRD adopters in Ireland will be low in number but high in terms of market capitalisation.  All eyes will be on the sustainability statements prepared by these entities in early 2025 as users, preparers and other interested parties will be keen to see how they have approached double materiality.  Despite the low number of reporters for 2024 year-ends, many entities will be indirectly impacted as they will be part of the supply chain of reporters. They will therefore be providing information to entities preparing their sustainability statement.  Furthermore, many entities that will be subject to the requirements of the CSRD in future years will be keen to learn from the challenges encountered by the first adopters. Despite the onerous requirements of the new suite of standards and in particular double materiality, it is important for entities and their stakeholders to remember the reasons for their introduction and the underlying cause they seek to remedy.  The EU’s goals under the European Green Deal are ambitious, but they need the full support and backing of businesses to be successful. Mike O’Halloran is Technical Manager in the Advocacy and Voice Department of Chartered Accountants Ireland Double materiality: brewery example Consider an entity operating a brewery in Ireland. In carrying out a double materiality assessment it may, among other things, consider the following matters to be material, from one or both perspectives: Energy (financial perspective) – due to the energy intensiveness of the production process and the financial risk of increased energy prices; Pollution of water (impact perspective) – due to the large amount of water discharged during the production process and the impact that this may have on water quality locally; Water consumption (financial perspective) – due to the cost involved and the availability of sufficiently clean water; Land-use change as a direct impact driver of biodiversity loss (impact perspective) – due to the large amount of malt, barley and other crops used in the production process; Sustainability matters under the heading of “own workforce” including health and safety of employees (impact perspective) – due to the large workforce an entity has employed in its factory; Resource inflows and outflows (impact and financial perspectives) – given the amount and cost of packaging and storage materials used, particularly in an entity’s downstream activities; Personal safety of consumers and end users (impact and financial perspectives) – given the health implications of a breach of food safety regulations on consumers as well as the financial implications that it would bring; and Responsible marketing practices (impact perspective) – given the addictive and age-restricted nature of the product being produced by the brewery. This example is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to be a complete list, nor a list of the matters that are mandatorily material for a similar entity. Individual judgment must be applied in each instance.

The foundations for a common polity are eroding as increasingly polarised views and influences continue to flourish, writes Cormac Lucey It looks like voters in the United States will have to decide between Joe Biden and Donald Trump in November’s presidential election. It is symptomatic of how polarised American politics have become that the strongest argument for voting for Joe Biden is that he isn’t Donald Trump and vice versa.  Why have politics in the developed world become so opposite? And what is the likely future direction of travel? In my opinion, several secular factors are eroding the political centre and promoting the rise in political extremes.  Narrowcasting has replaced broadcasting. In the past, TV and radio channels were limited in number and had to cater for a large audience. The result was broadcasting that was jointly watched or listened to by large sections of the community. Today, it is viable to create media and social media offerings that cater for very narrow and specialised audiences. Broadcasting has been replaced by narrowcasting. Sectional views are being promoted. A common, integrated view is being relegated. Social media algorithms seek to maximise their audiences even if it means promoting a one-sided view of what’s happening. Just look at the US where the difference in political perspectives offered by Fox News and MSNBC is such that, even when covering the same story, they often appear to be reporting on different events. The commercial imperative to maximise audiences means that people are increasingly being told what they want to hear resulting in an echo chamber effect where contrary views are downplayed or ignored. Division is promoted – unity is structurally disadvantaged. The growth of technology has turbo-charged the division of labour. The essence of the Industrial Revolution is that people ceased to be farmers and moved off the land to earn their living by doing increasingly specialised tasks. While specialisation has promoted greater efficiencies and higher economic growth, it has come with the cost that we now have a reduced understanding of what others do and of how the entire system hangs together.  Society has become more politically polarised around socio-economic differences. In his book The Road to Somewhere, David Goodhart explained the shock of the Brexit and Trump 2016 votes. He described a UK society that was divided between “Somewheres” and “Anywheres”.  “Somewheres” are firmly rooted in a specific community and Goodhart reckons that this group constitute about half of the UK population. “Anywheres” are typically socially liberal, well-educated and generally living in cities – they could live and work anywhere (as the pandemic illustrated).  Goodhart reckons that they comprise just 20 to 25 percent of the population but dominate politics and the media. “Inbetweeners” oscillate between these two groups. Brexit and Trump represented a shock victory for the “Somewheres” over the “Anywheres”. Recent protests in Ireland against immigration by asylum seekers are probably being carried out by “Somewheres,” angry at the immigration policies of Dublin’s “Anywhere” political establishment.   In the future, the challenge will be that each of the drivers of political fragmentation listed above seem likely to continue to grow. If the foundations for a common polity are eroding, reaching political agreement is likely to be increasingly difficult in the future.   *Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column published in the February/March 2024 issue of Accountancy Ireland are the author’s own. The views of contributors to Accountancy Ireland may differ from official Institute policies and do not reflect the views of Chartered Accountants Ireland, its Council, its committees, or the editor. Cormac Lucey is an economic commentator and lecturer at Chartered Accountants Ireland

Charlotte Rose Keating reflects on her path from a law graduate to achieving FCA status, highlighting the transformative power of stepping out of your comfort zone so you can achieve more in work and life I was awarded FCA status in January. Reflecting on my career journey so far, with its twists and turns, I am grateful for the chain of events that led me to become a Chartered Accountant and excited to see what being a Fellow will bring.  At school, I never imagined it would be possible for me to be a member of the accountancy profession. Maths was my Achilles heel. I believed I wasn’t numerical. Being a fan of debating and problem-solving through words, I got my law degree from Trinity College Dublin.  I graduated in 2008, but with the uncertainty of the financial crisis, it was not the ideal time to apply for graduate jobs. This, combined with uncertainty in my personal life, drove my need to secure a good role.  One evening, while applying for law firm training contracts, an advertisement for Deloitte popped up on my screen. Intrigued, I clicked to learn more and was pleased to see that the firm encouraged applications from individuals of varied backgrounds, not just those with accounting and finance-related degrees.  “I’ll take the risk” As I selected the Enterprise Risk Services Department, I thought, “I’ll take the risk,” and applied. Like magic, things started to fall into place.  While on holiday, I got called for an interview and as it turned out, one of my travel companions had trained with Deloitte and specialised in risk. She and her partner sat me down around a campfire to give me advice and conduct a mock interview.  Sure enough, it ended up being a fantastic interview experience.   When I was offered the role, I couldn’t wait to get started, seeing it as an opportunity to diversify, understand the business world and overcome a long-held fear of numbers.  Working mainly in internal audit and regulatory compliance for various public and private sector clients, I leveraged my law degree while developing new skills and confidence.  Training and qualifying as a Chartered Accountant involved stepping out of my comfort zone, but it is one of the best decisions I’ve made. Yes, it gave me security, but it provided me with so much more, including the opportunity to travel and fulfil a lifelong dream of living and working in New York City.  The qualification was an invaluable asset when I pursued professional acting, not a fallback. Being a member of the profession provided me with the tools and the self-belief I needed to set up my own coaching and training business – Act On It Coaching – where I work with individuals and companies to support personal and professional development.  Despite taking my qualification in a different direction, I still use it daily to support and add value to my clients. My membership is something I treasure and I value the support of the Institute. The bias challenge Since my training days and throughout my career, I have been fortunate to have had wonderful role models and mentors who reflected my strengths and encouraged me, guiding me on where to improve and imparting advice drawn from their own career journeys.  I’ve had the privilege of working with many inspiring, strong women. Having female camaraderie and confidantes is extremely beneficial at any stage in one’s career.  Bias, both conscious and unconscious, is still a challenge in the workplace, and there remains a lack of female representation in key decision-making roles. As the saying goes, “If I can see it, I can be it”, and female role models at the partner and senior executive levels are essential in enabling junior-level women to envision their own career pathways. Mutual respect and people accepting one another’s unique qualities and differences naturally fosters inclusion and encourages individuals to play to their strengths to make a positive impact and contribution in what they do. Take responsibility for your career  When it comes to navigating career advancement, the most effective strategy, in my opinion, is to start with you. Take responsibility for your career.  I have asked myself what I want to achieve as I have learned that self-reflection is so important to set short- and long-term goals. I have reflected on my strengths, achievements and the aspects of work I enjoy to build confidence in the present that can propel me towards future achievements.  To keep focused, on track and in charge of my career, I check in regularly and ask myself questions like: • What do I need to do more of? • What do I need to do less of? • What do I need to start doing? • What do I need to do differently? • What do I need to stop doing altogether? This practice helps me to identify professional opportunities and be prepared to put myself forward confidently.  It’s also highly beneficial to get clarity from others. Asking a senior colleague the simple question, “how am I getting on?” can help you to understand whether or not you are meeting expectations.  Seeking feedback from clients and junior staff is also fundamental to growth and career progression.  Good and timely communication prevents conflicts and misunderstandings and dramatically reduces anxiety. It’s important to be technically strong, of course, but we need to hone our soft skills, especially in this era of artificial intelligence. As I was in a small but growing department when I started with Deloitte, I was fortunate to have ample opportunities to develop leadership skills early on.  An aspect of my work that I particularly enjoyed was coaching and mentoring junior staff members and designing and delivering training for them.  This led to me developing the Trainee Toolkit, a programme I have been rolling out across different firms to support the next generation of Chartered Accountants in succeeding in their exams and training contracts, assisting the efforts to plug the talent gap and future-proof the profession.  Tap into your professional community  Being part of the family of Chartered Accountants provides us with community, whatever stage of our career we are in. It’s vital to tap into this community and make the most of the support available to advance our careers.  Collectively, we give ourselves a sense of purpose, an appreciation of our individuality and health and wellbeing benefits.   Nurturing relationships and building connections within this community can be particularly beneficial for women, who face various unique challenges in the profession.  Mentoring and networking allows women to brainstorm collectively, share solutions to challenges, professional and personal experiences, to thrive, build confidence, take control of their careers and ultimately experience greater fulfilment in all that they do. Managing work-life balance As a self-confessed adrenaline junkie, I love saying yes to new challenges. This is my biggest issue when it comes to work-life balance. I take on a lot because I don’t want to say no to opportunities to grow. Being mindful and focusing on each task to the best of my ability helps me to avoid feeling overwhelmed.  Good time management is also key; anticipating unforeseen events and factoring buffer time into my projects reduces pressure. A non-negotiable is my daily walk. It’s my chance to reflect, exercise and clear the cobwebs. I often go out with a problem and come home with a solution. Living a more holistic life where we can be at our best involves recognising that nothing is wasted, all experiences in and out of the workplace, all the successes and setbacks shape us into who we are, and it’s good to take stock of this daily. Cultivating personal and professional relationships helps us perform at our best and feel good in the process. Charlotte Rose Keating, FCA, is CEO of Act On It Coaching  My Story So Far: Women's Career Series Last year, Accountancy Ireland introduced a new series in collaboration with the Gender Working Group of the Institute’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee. Focused on the women in our membership, we are relaunching this series this year under the new banner ‘My Story So Far: Women’s Career Series’. It follows the 2022 publication of a global Chartered Accountants Worldwide survey which explored opportunities for women in the profession. The survey found no obvious gender-related barriers to entry into the profession but revealed that a growing number of women were making the decision to leave or pivot within the profession mid-career. ‘My Story So Far: Women’s Career Series’ seeks to highlight the experiences of the women in our membership and provide a forum to share their insights into how they have managed their careers in tandem with their lives and overcome the challenges and obstacles they have encountered along the way.