From “Dynamo Bicycle” soccer team to international financial services and home again, Fergus McNulty has come full circle
Fergus McNulty returns to MU for a visit
Fergus McNulty returns to MU for a visit
From “Dynamo Bicycle” soccer team to international financial services and home again, Fergus McNulty has come full circle
Fergus McNulty
BA, Economics Chairperson, Céile Care Limited
Fergus McNulty attended his 30-year college reunion back on the Maynooth Campus in September this year, sitting alongside his two buddies, Conor Martin and Joe McHugh TD. Such milestones are always reflective times, and Fergus was kind enough to share some of his memories - and where he's been since Maynooth - with The Bridge
Along with studying Economics, Fergus was mad into sport – both soccer and GAA (representing Maynooth in the Sigerson Cup). He is particularly quick to recall how his soccer team, with a name befitting a college crew in the 90s of “Dynamo Bicycle,” defeated the clerics two years in a row to win the Intra-University and imaginatively named (!) “A Cup” soccer championship.
After Maynooth, Fergus began his career in banking, where he joined a graduate leadership programme. His natural curiosity in people and organisational culture directed him toward a career in human resources at a time the field was moving from more personnel-driven to business partner driven. Fergus moved to Aviva in the IFSC, which was the beginning of over 20 years in the international financial services sector.
In 2006, Fergus moved to Brown Brothers Harriman (BBH), one of the oldest privately owned banks in the world. Initially helping to develop their operation in Ireland, Fergus progressed to become Global Head of Talent Acquisition and then European Head of Human Resources for the company and its 5,000+ employees.
These roles offered incredible opportunities to interact with and learn from colleagues in the US, Europe and Asia, as well as deliver HR strategy within change programmes as BBH developed its new Fintech business and expanded into new locations.
One particular highlight was leading out a project to set up a new European office in Krakow, Poland.
“From a green field site, our team built and put in place a huge range of interventions to allow us to attract, develop and retain talent in a highly competitive labour market, a market where we had no previous brand.
These included innovative induction, intern and graduate programmes in partnership with the nearby universities. We also had to establish very strong employee engagement structures to develop a strong culture and identity for the organisation in Poland,” Fergus said. “This was a hugely rewarding experience as it gave us the opportunity and licence to innovate new ways of developing HR solutions in a completely new market.”
Today, BBH has more than 2,500 employees in Krakow.
With an approaching “roundy birthday,” like for so many of us, Fergus felt it timely to take stock and reflect on the next phase of his career. Continued corporate progression likely meant a move abroad, which may have been attractive once upon a time, but not so much now.
“What you value shifts over time. I am lucky to live in a strong community (Dunboyne) with a great family. For example, having time to watch my children playing a GAA match is far more important to me now than it might have been 5 or 10 years ago.”
After a lot of soul searching, Fergus took a decision to change direction with a move into the family business - Marymount Care Centre in Lucan. New challenges now include developing new independent living services, with technology solutions, to provide greater choice to older persons in the community. Fergus is also heavily involved in developing services to the sector of family-owned and operated aging facilities in Ireland.
Fergus recently led the establishment of a separate company called ‘Céile Care’ to support and sustain family-owned nursing homes. Consolidation across the sector, increased regulatory complexity, rising energy costs and other strains have created a need (or opportunity) to create a model whereby member companies can realise economies of scale and shared support in areas such as group purchasing, recruitment, and regulatory compliance.
Céile Care is even looking at sustainability projects and how they might establish their own energy network in the near future.
“I have been very fortunate to have had career roles which have all had a level of challenge, learning and most importantly an opportunity to work with great people to make a positive impact for others. While professional life for me is now following a new path in a very different sector, these features are as present as ever – probably more so.”