Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland
I lead research, innovation, and AI strategy at IES — a physics-based digital twin and building performance simulation software company backed by private equity — where I've built and scaled the R&D function, driven enterprise AI transformation, and connected funded research to product value and commercial outcomes. My remit spans three interconnected areas: running a 20-person multidisciplinary R&D team and a multi-million Euro funded research portfolio across 70+ EU and national projects; owning IES's end-to-end AI strategy, governance, and agentic workflow programme; and acting as the cross-functional integrator between Product, Engineering, UX, Sales, HR, and Commercial leadership. In the last two years I've led IES's AI transformation — authoring our AI Governance Framework and Policy (EU AI Act and ISO/IEC 42001 aligned), deploying agentic workflows across five business functions, building our AI operating model, and presenting the AI investment case directly to the board. I'm identified by investors as the senior executive responsible for AI. Beyond the day-to-day, I design the operating structures that make innovation scale: decision rights frameworks, stage-gate governance, portfolio prioritisation models, and the Research → Product → Market pipeline that turns EU-funded R&D into commercial features. Key areas of expertise: - AI strategy, enterprise AI governance, and agentic workflow deployment - Innovation portfolio management and EU research funding (€20m+ lifetime, Horizon Europe, MSCA, LIFE, SEAI) - Digital twin technology, building performance simulation, and physics-based modelling - Product innovation strategy and R&D-to-product pipeline design - Organisational capability building, innovation culture, and change leadership - Cross-functional leadership and C-suite / board engagement in PE-backed B2B SaaS I'm also an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Trinity College Dublin, where I co-designed a new Masters programme in Climate Adaptation and Resiliency. I sit on the STARGATE Management Board, contribute to EURESFO, and present regularly at industry and academic events across Europe.
Senior innovation and R&D leadership role with full strategic and operational ownership of IES's research function, AI transformation programme, and innovation portfolio in a PE-backed B2B simulation software company. - Lead a 20-person multidisciplinary R&D function — project managers, academic liaison, innovation managers, R&D consultants, and a product innovation team — with full accountability for OKRs, resource planning, performance management, & capability development across two geographies - Manage a funded research portfolio across 70+ EU & national projects (Horizon Europe, LIFE, MSCA, SEAI), representing €20m+ in lifetime funding; oversee full lifecycle from proposal development to EC reporting; sustain a strong win rate across contested bids - Direct major EU consortium portfolios including Blueprint, Minority Report, Multicare, & TwinAIR — coordinating up to 30 partner institutions per project; recognised as governance authority on Grant Agreement interpretation and IP - Authored IES's AI Governance Framework & AI Policy — aligned to EU AI Act risk classification and ISO/IEC 42001 — deployed across ~200 staff & presented to the board - Built the enterprise AI operating model: formalised roles, executive stand-up cadence, and persona-to-tool strategy deploying Copilot, Claude, and GitHub Copilot across ~300 staff; delivered AI literacy training to staff - Deployed agentic workflow pilots across Sales, Support, UX, QA, and HR — 29 automation opportunities identified, with pilots delivering efficiency gains in sales qualification, support retrieval, and engineering QA - Redesigned the R&D-to-product handover process — introducing PDLC stage-gates, evidence-based progression criteria, and ownership boundaries; three AI features entered active development as a result - Present to the board and PE operating partners on AI strategy, R&D portfolio performance, governance maturity, and innovation ROI in PE value creation language
Assumed full ownership of the R&D team; implemented operational processes and governance structures; integrated the R&D consultancy and product innovation functions into a unified, coherent team operating model.
Concurrent academic appointment at one of Europe's leading engineering research universities — contributing to postgraduate research strategy and supervision.
Centrally involved in shaping and defining the curriculum for a new Masters-level programme in Climate Adaptation and Resiliency — from learning outcomes through module design to assessment frameworks. Delivered postgraduate teaching and research supervision.
Senior leadership role with full P&L responsibility for the Performance Engineering Team in a global building systems design and energy consultancy. - Held full P&L accountability for a 10-person team as a member of Senior Office Leadership, reporting directly to the Managing Principal; grew the team from 6 to 10 while maintaining profitability and expanding the client base - Won new business through competitive RFP responses across institutional, federal, P3 healthcare, sports, and residential sectors; pioneered Smart Building Consulting as a new service offering — identifying the market opportunity, building the proposition, and developing internal capability - Provided technical oversight and mentorship firm-wide across all Building Enclosure Commissioning projects; developed and delivered staff training on building science principles
• Responsible for promoting and advertising the IES brand and software to new, existing and potential clients • Liaising with existing customers to ensure that the IES software is performing to their expectations • Providing support and trouble-shooting to existing customers in North America.