Seeking a new adventure, Ailish Byrne's ACA qualification brought her to Bermuda.
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Where did you grow up and where do you live now?
I grew up in Kilcoole in Co. Wicklow (of Glenroe fame!) and moved to Bermuda in April 2022 to work as Chief Compliance Officer with the Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX). I spent all my career in Dublin except for a year in Australia post qualification.
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What made you choose to become a Chartered Accountant?
I was always interested in business subjects in school, particularly accountancy. I liked languages too and thought I’d like to combine the two and initially chose to do Languages and Marketing (German and Spanish) in Dublin City University (DCU). However, I realised fairly quickly that the course was too language focused for me. After completing first year, I switched into DCU’s Accounting and Finance where I was much happier. After that, becoming a Chartered Accountant was highly likely as a career path once you secured a training contract.
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Can you tell us a little about how you got to where you are today – both the geographical relocation and career path?
I was looking for a new role post Covid and I wasn’t attracted to the job opportunities in Ireland. I decided an adventure abroad might be fun. Turns out the BSX was looking to replace their Chief Compliance Officer who was retiring. I had worked in the Irish Stock Exchange (ISE) for 18 years in two different roles – as Head of Regulation and Head of Communications and my exchange experience was a perfect fit for what they needed. It was great timing!
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What do you value most about your membership of the profession and how do you think those benefits can be used to support the economy and society?
Being an Irish Chartered Accountant has given me career opportunities and experiences that I would not have had without my qualification. Accountancy training gives you a mindset and a way of thinking that can be applied to lots of different roles and challenges. I’ve taken a non-financial accounting path and worked in internal audit, communications, compliance and regulatory roles - who knows what’s next!
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How has your membership been of value to you globally and what do you value about it now that you’re living overseas (and what would you like to see more of)?
The Irish Chartered Accountancy profession is a ready-made network of people. When I contacted Gillian Duffy, the Global Member Manager, about a potential Bermuda Chapter she said there was about 90 members living in Bermuda. We had our first event in May and for our July event, Chartered Accountants Ireland President, Sinead Donovan, was visiting so the timing was brilliant. I think the Chapters are a great way to keep ties with home and meet other members of all ages when you are working overseas.
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What were the most significant differences you encountered doing business and networking in a completely new location a long way from home?
Bermuda has a culture all its own – it has a blend of British, Caribbean, Portuguese and American influences. It’s true that Bermuda shorts are considered business attire during the summer months! Business is more relaxed though it can be more formal and bureaucratic too. With a population of less than 60,000, I find everyone really does know everyone and people are friendly so it makes networking fairly easy as long as you are happy to get involved and join in.
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