Donal McManus is CEO at the Irish Council for Social Housing (ICSH), the national federation of housing associations. He previously worked in the public/local authority and housing association sectors in Scotland and Northern Ireland from 1991. This comprised working in areas of housing development, self-build and regeneration, housing management and homelessness, as well as being employed in policy and finance. Donal has also worked as an urban designer within the private sector on land assembly and development appraisals.
Previously he had been elected president of the non-profit housing section of Housing Europe, President of the European Housing Forum and FEANTSA. From 2003-2005 he was appointed a member of the UN-ECE Task Force on Social Housing based in Geneva.
He is a graduate in Housing and Industrial Studies from Ulster University and in Urban Design from Strathclyde University School of Architecture Glasgow. He received a doctorate in Governance from Queens University School of Law, Belfast focusing on financialisation and the impact of private finance on housing association delivery. He is currently a board member of the Housing Agency and appointed chair of Housing Europe Internal Market
“Global investment is becoming more urbanised and Ireland is no different. Rural areas will need to re-invent themselves over the coming decades. This can only be achieved by helping to build a strong indigenous enterprise base rooted in local communities.”
Ger Brady has been the Chief Economist with Ibec since 2019. He has held several roles with Ibec since 2013 including Senior Economist and Head of Tax & Fiscal Policy. He is a policy focused economist with strong experience in advising and representing firms across multiple sectors, in-depth analysis of Irish and international economies, and working at national and international level to improve economic and taxation policy outcomes. Ger is a board member with Central Statistics Office (CSO). He holds BA (NUIG), MA (UCC), Diploma in Leadership (DIT). He is a former winner of the Miriam Hederman O’Brien prize, awarded by the Foundation for Fiscal Studies.
Ivan has considerable expertise within the property industry in Ireland and manages a great team of experienced property professionals across Ireland. The team works to build long-term partnerships with developer & non-developer clients to develop tailored solutions to achieve clients' risk/return objectives by providing strategy advice, portfolio management and transaction services across New Homes & Residential Investment (PRS) sectors.
Our dedicated New Homes team have a wealth of experience having successfully sold over 60,000 units across multiple developments. As the market is evolving and re-emerging we are identifying new opportunities for new entrants and existing development companies across the Greater Dublin Area, Cork, Galway & Limerick. Our drive is to provide strategic, policy and sales consultancy advice to a wide range of institutional, capital and developer clients.
Ivan started his career with Sherry FitzGerald in 1999, initially working in the Business Space Department within DTZ Sherry FitzGerald (now Cushman & Wakefield). After qualifying as a chartered surveyor, Ivan made the move to Sherry FitzGerald New Homes where he specialises in residential development land, mixed use developments and portfolio work. Ivan is a member of ULI (Urban Land Institute) and Chairman of Property Industry Ireland (PII).
Niall is the Chief Executive and Planning Regulator at the Office of the Planning Regulator (OPR) established by Government in April 2019.
The OPR’s functions are to oversee the effective delivery of planning services of Ireland’s 31 local authorities and An Bord Pleanála, including implementation of national and regional policies and to conduct research and public awareness programmes in relation to planning.
Prior to his appointment Niall was Chief Planner at the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government from July 2014 and he worked in the Department from January 2000 prior to that.
Niall was responsible for leading the Department’s Forward Planning Section and its professional and multi-disciplinary planning team in the development of legislation and all Government policy relating to planning and related matters, including the National Planning Framework as part of Project Ireland 2040 alongside the National Development Plan.
Prior to joining the Department in 2000, Niall had an extensive planning career working for local authorities in Clare, Meath and Dublin City Council and An Bord Pleanála.
Niall holds qualifications in economics and geography, regional and urban planning and environmental engineering from Maynooth University, University College Dublin and Trinity College Dublin respectively and is both a member and a past President of the Irish Planning Institute.
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Ronan Columb is the Group Managing Director of Castlethorn, one of Ireland’s leading residential property developers. Appointed to the role in 2023, Ronan brings over two decades of leadership experience in construction and development, with a career spanning more than 30 years in the industry.
Since joining Castlethorn in 2004, Ronan has been a driving force behind the company’s growth, first as Construction Manager and later as Construction Director, where he led all construction and quantity surveying operations. Under his leadership, Castlethorn has delivered landmark residential communities known for their design quality, sustainability, and community integration.
Prior to Castlethorn, Ronan spent 14 years with Walls Construction, rising to Divisional Director and gaining extensive experience in large-scale project delivery. As Group MD, he now leads Castlethorn’s strategic direction, championing innovation, operational excellence, and long-term value creation across the organisation.
Sarah Carey is a well known columnist and broadcaster. She’s written for major broadsheets from The Irish Times to The Daily Telegraph on everything from economics to politics, technology and media and is a highly experienced radio and television presenter. Sarah is popular in academia, politics and business and of course, with general audiences who love her personal insights, and open manner.
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Stephen was appointed Chief Executive Officer in August 2019. As CEO of Glenveagh, Stephen is responsible for delivering on the Group’s vision to create Ireland’s leading and most sustainable homebuilder. Stephen has over 20 years’ experience in the construction and property industry in Ireland. Prior to founding his own successful residential development business, Bridgedale Homes, Stephen worked with a number of Ireland’s largest property developers. From 2014 to 2017, Stephen advised and managed the acquisition of Irish residential development opportunities on behalf of TIO RLF. A co-founder of Glenveagh who assumed the CEO role in 2019, Stephen has led the growth and development of the Group since IPO. Glenveagh is one of Ireland’s leading homebuilders and delivered over 2,400 homes in 2024. The company has pioneered the use of Modern Methods of Construction in the industry. It has two key divisions focusing on opening access to sustainable, high-quality homes. Its Homebuilding division is the leading provider of own-door single-family homes, primarily in Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area. Its Partnerships division focuses on creating vibrant communities nationwide through a mix of suburban single-family and urban multi-family developments. Often funded or acquired by the state or state entities, these projects enable it to deliver affordable and high-quality housing options for everyone.
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