SPEakers
Michael Magner
Michael is the 40th President of the Irish Hotels Federation. A native of Kileedy, Co. Limerick, Mr Magner is owner of the historic Cork's Vienna Woods Hotel. He has studied Hotel Management and holds a masters degree in Business in HRM from the University of Limerick. He began his career in hospitality aged 16 in Newcastle West, Limerick, going on to work at the Fitzgeralds Woodlands House Hotel in Adare.
Michael has been an active branch member of the IHF since 2006 and has served as Chair of the Cork branch, a two-year term as National Vice President, and as a member of the National Council and Management Committee. He currently sits as Chair of Cobh Heritage Trust and a Director of the Board of Visit Cork.
Jonathan Healy
After graduating with a degree in law from University College Cork, Jonathan Healy worked in radio, television and online media for two decades. He has been a presenter with Newstalk 106-108fm and a senior correspondent with Sky News, with his work featuring prominently on both stations.
Jonathan also has experience working with TV3, RTE, FM104, The Cork Independent and Cork’s 96fm. Having conducted thousands of interviews with people from all walks of Irish life, he is a skilled interviewer, event facilitator and engaging MC.
Mark Kelly
Mark Kelly is a renowned AI keynote speaker, highly regarded in both Europe and North America as a leading AI transformation advisor for business leaders. He is also the accomplished author of “AI Unleashed: Navigating the AI revolution as a business executive”.
As the President of AI Ireland, Mark Kelly is at the forefront of AI innovation, offering strategic guidance to organisations looking to harness the potential of AI. With extensive experience in the field, he has been a trusted consultant for executives seeking to navigate the AI landscape.
Dr. Áine O'Dea
Dr Áine O'Dea is one of Ireland's most renowned Occupational Therapists and an expert on neurodiversity, including authoring several papers on DCD/Dyspraxia. She was the first OT in Ireland to be awarded a PhD scholarship on the prestigious SPHeRE program (funded by the Health Research Board) where she was awarded her doctorate in Population Health and Health Services Research. She regularly speaks at workshops and events to support neurodiversity and provides neuroleadership coaching services for professionals.
Peter Cosgrove
Peter Cosgrove is an expert on future of work trends. Peter has served on a number of Boards and is currently Chair of Generation Ireland, whose mission is to help vulnerable people get employment and is on the steering committee of the 30% Club which promotes gender diversity. He has published two books “Fun Unplugged” and “Family Fun Unplugged” aimed at taking families off their digital devices.
Stefan Wissenbach
Stefan Wissenbach is a best-selling author, keynote speaker, culture coach, and entrepreneur. He is the founder of Empowered, The Empowered Program™ and Engagement Multiplier. He is passionate about the hospitality profession and helping leaders understand, measure, and improve organisational culture to attract and retain the best talent. His unique approach is to simplify the complex and provide simple, proven structures and frameworks that are easy to implement - enabling organisations and the people within them to fulfil their potential.
His company, Empowered, works with some of the world’s leading hoteliers and brands. Their mission is 'making culture easy to understand, measure and improve'. Stefan regularly speaks at hospitality conferences in Europe and the USA, sharing his passion for cultures that create ‘Everyone’s Dream Company’. His latest book, 'Hospitality: It’s a profession, not an industry!' will be published shortly.
Stefan is the Founder of The Magic Future Foundation, which is building 100 schools in honour of his late son Oliver Wissenbach.
Lucy Adams
Lucy Adams is the CEO of Disruptive HR, an agency that’s on a mission to challenge the status quo, reimagine traditional practices, and inspire leaders and HR professionals to approach their roles with renewed vision and energy.
After working in high-level HR roles across different sectors including Director of HR at the BBC, Lucy has spent the last 10 years working with HR teams and leaders from some of the world’s top brands.
Combining her strategic HR expertise with practical implementation, she advocates for an innovative yet grounded approach which aims to put the “human” back into Human Resources.
Lucy is not just a business leader and hugely popular keynote speaker, but also a well-known author of the bestseller “HR Disrupted” a book packed with practical ways to innovate your approach to leading people in a disrupted world. Her latest book bestseller “The HR Change Toolkit” provides the complete guide to making it happen.