Our People - Plan International Ireland

Margaret Gilsenan

Kevin Carroll

Harry Goddard

Adrienne Symes

Ray Bowe

Jane Clare

Madeleine Keane

Shane Nolan

Muireann O’Briain

Geraldine Kelly

Paul O’Brien

Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Paul O'Brien is CEO of Plan International Ireland. With a career spanning 30 years in development and humanitarian work he has lived and worked in a number of developing countries, including Kenya, Sudan, Liberia, Bangladesh and Tanzania. A senior leader in Ireland’s NGO sector for the last 14 years, Paul still travels extensively in his work with Plan International Ireland.

Charles Keane

Member of the Board

Charles brings extensive experience from the Banking and Finance sphere specialising in the small business sector both in Ireland and overseas.

Tara Bedi

Member of the Board

Tara Bedi is an Assistant Professor in Development Practice in the Department of Geography at Trinity College Dublin.

Jessica Feary

Member of the Board

Jessica Feary is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Ireland and has worked in finance roles for the past 14 years.

Jemma Lawlor

Finance Officer

Jemma joined Plan International Ireland in April 2017 as Finance & Operations Administrator and is currently Finance Officer.

Emily Lyon

Desk Officer

Emily joined Plan International Ireland in February 2021 and currently manages the humanitarian and protracted crisis programme grants from Irish Aid.

David O'Leary

Member of the Board

Marketing professional and director of the VHI Women's Mini Marathon, David O'Leary, has been involved with Plan International Ireland since early 2020.

Patrick Scott

Member of the Board

Patrick Scott has over 25 years leadership experience in executing strategy and managing business operations.

Mairéad Butler

Member of the Board

Mairéad is a feminist student and activist.

Deirdre Murray

Programme Team Lead Irish Aid

Deirdre joined Plan International Ireland in July 2017 and has many years’ experience working in the international development sector.

Brighid Smyth

Vice-chair

One of Ireland's leading marketing communications professionals, Brighid joined the Plan International Ireland Board in April 2016.

Aoife Kelly-Desmond

Chair

Aoife Kelly-Desmond is Managing Solicitor at Mercy Law Resource Centre.

Lorenza Quadrini

Programme Team Lead EU

Lorenza joined Plan International Ireland in 2018 with 15 years’ experience in the Development and Humanitarian sectors.

Brian Lehane

Juliane Schmucker

Head of Programmes

Juliane joined Plan Ireland in 2023 as Head of Programmes, through prior to that she worked for over eight years in humanitarian development assistance in Plan International Germany.

Deirdre Corcoran

Chair of the Finance Committee

Deirdre Corcoran is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Ireland and has extensive financial, management, company secretarial and governance experience.

John Perry

Secretary

John is a partner at Deloitte Ireland LLP and is the Tax & Legal Operate Leader.

Cristian DeLuca

Education Advisor - Programmes

Cristian is a dedicated humanitarian professional with over 20 years of experience in education, mental health & psychosocial support, and child protection.

Deqa Saleh

Senior Desk Officer INTPA Nigeria

Deqa joined Plan Ireland in 2024. She has over 14 years of experience of working on humanitarian and development programmes, particularly fragile contexts.

Ben Davison

Programme Support Officer - EU Unit

Ben has a Master's in Development Practice and began his current role as Programme Support Officer in October 2023.

Ian Brady

Oonagh Kelly

Member of the Board

Oonagh Kelly is a Chief People Officer with over 25 years experience in Financial Services, Professional services and Education Technology.

Jarlath Doyle

Member of the Board

Jarlath Doyle is the Finance Director at Hilton Hotels Ireland.

David Kerley

Individual Giving Officer

David joined Plan International Ireland in 2024 as the Indvidual Giving Officer. Before joining Plan Ireland, he worked as an Analyst for 2into3 for over two years providing grant and business support to the non-profit sector.

Linda Fuhrmann

Senior Compliance Officer

A dedicated humanitarian worker, Linda joined Plan International Ireland in September 2015 after working in West Africa in response to the Ebola crisis.

Caleb M Kyle