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Matt Cooper
Radio and TV Broadcaster, Newspaper Columnist and a Best-Selling Author.
Matt Cooper is a Radio and TV Broadcaster, Newspaper Columnist and a Best-Selling Author. Matt presents and edits the daily news, current affairs and sports programme, ‘The Last Word’ on Today FM. He previously presented ‘The Tonight Show’ on Virgin Media One. He writes a weekly newspaper column for The Irish Daily Mail that is published each Wednesday and The Last Post column on the back page of the Business Post each Sunday. He is a regular host, chairman and speaker at business conferences and events and ensures every occasion is enriched with a professional, well prepared, no-nonsense approach that gets the best result for clients.
Matt has a long-standing interest in business, going back to his time as Business Editor of the Irish Independent. He has written two major business biographies, both of which were short-listed for Irish Non-Fiction Book of the Year: ‘The Maximalist, the story of Tony O’Reilly’ (2015) and ‘Michael O’Leary, turbulent times for the man who made Ryanair’ (2018). The latter was Financial Times book of the month in September 2018. He was also author of the number one bestseller – who really controls the valuable land where we live, work and play and how did they acquire it? Who are the new foreign investors and why are they buying property and land in Ireland? ‘Who Really Runs Ireland’ (2009) and ‘How Ireland Really Went Bust’ (2011), both of which were also short-listed for Irish Non-Fiction Book of the Year. His new book Who Really Owns Ireland? examines the key players behind the scenes of Irish property ownership– who really controls the valuable land where we live, work and play and how did they acquire it? – who are the new foreign investors and why are they buying property and land in Ireland?…………. which will be released for sale on 26 October 2023.
Matt is a former editor of The Sunday Tribune, having been appointed at the age of 30 in 1996. He left for a career in radio in 2003. He was twice national journalist of the year and twice business journalist of the year. He co-produced and presented acclaimed Olympics documentary ‘No Earthly King’ in 2012, and ‘Ireland’s Brexit Dilemma’ and ‘Trump versus Ireland’ for TV3 in 2016 and 2017.
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Darragh O’Brien
Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Darragh O’Brien was appointed Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage in June 2020. He is an elected TD for the constituency of Dublin-Fingal. Prior to his election to the 30th Dáil in 2007, Minister O’Brien worked mainly in Financial Services and was elected to Fingal County Council in 2004. He was elected to Seanad Éireann in 2011. Darragh has held various positions within the Oireachtas including Vice-Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee, Member of the Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Law Reform, Leader of Fianna Fáil in the Seanad and Opposition Frontbench Spokesperson on Dublin, Foreign Affairs and Housing.
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Conall Mac Coille
Chief Economist, Davy
Conall Mac Coille began his career as an economist in the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), before moving to the Bank of England. He has published several articles on the trade performance of the UK economy and has written extensively on the Irish Economy. His current role is Chief Economist in Ireland’s leading brokerage Davy. Conall contributes widely to national and international broadcast media and is regularly quoted in Irish print media, and is author of the MyHome.ie Property Report
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Kevin Lee
Chief Executive Officer Canadian Home Builders’ Association
Kevin Lee is a Professional Engineer with a Master’s in Architecture, and has over 35 years of experience in the housing industry. Since taking the helm at CHBA in 2013, Kevin has worked continually with the Board and CHBA’s over 50 provincial and local constituent associations to strengthen CHBA as the “voice of the residential construction industry”. CHBA’s national staff, committees and councils are constantly working to address the opportunities and challenges facing Canada’s residential construction industry, which represents over 1.5M jobs and $211B of economic activity. Under Kevin’s leadership, CHBA is squarely on supporting its 8,500 member companies from coast to coast, and their ability to meet the aspirations of Canadians for housing affordability, quality and choice. Kevin is also Past Chair of the International Housing Association.
Kevin began his career in housing in the trades. He then ran his own housing consulting business for 11 years and spent another 2 years as VP Operations of a NASDAQ e-learning systems company. Following this he spent 9 years as an executive in the Federal Government, managing housing/buildings/communities research and development programs, and then directing housing initiatives like ENERGY STAR, EnerGuide and the $1 billion ecoENERGY Retrofit Homes Program. Kevin designed and built his own R-2000 Advanced Home on the banks of the Rideau River south of Ottawa in 1997, which was featured on the Discovery Channel, where he still lives today with his wife and three children.
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Brian McKeon
Director, MKN Property Group; Chairman of HomeBond, Former Chairman, IHBA.
MKN Property Group is a privately owned, award winning property development, investment and construction company with over 20 years’ experience in the acquisition, design, construction and management of numerous residential and commercial projects.
With a wide ranging commercial and residential portfolio in the group’s ownership and management, MKN Property Group have the capacity, in house expertise and proven track record to deliver award winning residential and commercial developments in the greater Dublin area.
MKN are proud to have won the following awards for their residential developments.
- Residential Project of the Year – Irish Construction Industry Awards 2016 (Finalist)
- Residential Project of the Year – Irish Construction Industry Awards 2015
- House Building Project of the Year – Irish Building and Design Awards 2015
- Best Presented Apartment Complex 2010 – Fingal County Council Cleaner Community Awards 2010
- Outstanding Residential Development 2007 – Fingal Chamber of Commerce
- Development of The Year 2002 (UK and Ireland) – Britannia National Housebuilder Design Awards UK and Ireland
- Best Housing Project 2001 – Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland (RIAI)
- Best Housing Award 2001 – Plan Expo Opus Building Awards
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Neil Durkan
Director, Durkan New Homes; Former Chairman, IHBA.
Founded in 1963 by William Durkan, the company Durkan New Homes quietly & quickly earned a strong reputation for building homes of distinction and value. Management of the company was taken over in 1994 by William’s sons, Neil & Liam Durkan. Since then, Durkan have not only maintained that early reputation, but have gone on to be recognised as a name synonymous with quality, excellence, meticulous standards and integrity. The team at Durkan have the expertise to acquire, design and secure planning permissions for large scale residential developments predominantly in the greater Dublin area over the years and have learnt to use this expertise and skills to adapt their design and build systems to deliver high quality efficient homes.
The team at Durkan are forward thinking and innovative and devote a great deal of time to the planning and design of the houses they build, realising that they are not only building homes but also creating communities for people to live in. Durkan continues to be a family run company that still stays true to its original ethos & character which holds honesty, authenticity and excellence at its core.
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Conor Taaffe
Managing Director, HomeBond
B.E., M.Eng.Sc., M.A.I., BL, Dip. Public Admin, Dip. Legal Studies, CIP, C.Eng
Conor is a Chartered Civil Engineer and Barrister at Law and is the Managing Director of HomeBond, the principle provider in Ireland of structural and defects insurance in the residential construction sector. He is a member of the National Standards Authority of Ireland’s (NSAI) working groups on aggregates, masonry, timber construction and building services, and is a former member of Building Regulations Advisory Body (BRAB).
He is the Module Director for HomeBond’s ‘Building Regulations Explained’ FETAC Level 6 training course accredited by Engineers Ireland and Dublin Institute of Technology, and the ‘Mechanical & Electrical Services Explained’ training course. He has delivered technical presentations at national and international events and seminars over a number of years.
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Frank Kelly
Walls Construction
Frank has an impressive career in the Irish construction industry having worked for Walls Construction for over 30 years where he is a Main Board member and holds the executive position of Chief Operating Officer since April 2022. Previously, he was appointed Construction Director in 2007. Frank was President of the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) for a two-year term (2021 and 2022), a leadership role held with distinction during the Covid pandemic and other challenges, both home and abroad. Frank is the Chair of the CIF’s Safety, Health and Welfare Committee and he is a Board member of the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) since January 2020 and Co Chairs the CSPAC. A Graduate of the South East Technological University, Frank’s construction experience encompasses the full range sectors Walls is engaged in, including large scale residential, commercial, industrial, education and life sciences.
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Hugh Brennan
CEO, O'Cualann Cohousing Alliance
O’Cualann Cohousing Alliance was created because they believed Ireland was in need of an initiative to deliver affordable and fully-integrated housing.
Today Ireland not only has a housing supply problem, but an affordability crisis. Ó’Cualann builds affordable homes by getting support from local authorities for discounted land and development levies waived. They also promote an ethos of inclusive co-operative communities where members come together to make key decisions about their neighbourhood. The Ó Cualann model makes buying a home a reality for people who could not otherwise afford one.
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Lars Jacob Hiim
CEO, Norwegian Home Builders' Association
Lars Jacob Hiim, CEO, Norwegian Home Builders’ Association took over as CEO of the Norwegian Home Builder´s Association in May 2022, and he has a background from politics, law firm and business organisations. Lars has been State Secretary (Deputy Minister) in four different ministries – The Ministry of Trade and Industry, The Ministry of the environment, The Ministry of local governments and modernisation and The Minstry of Justice and Public security; and has also worked in the conservative parliamentary group as political adviser and head of the secretariat. Lars has also a background from the Confederation of Norwegian Confederation of Business and Industry, as Director of social affairs and Labour.
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Deborah S. Malone
NAHB, Chief Operating Officer
Deb Malone, NAHB’s Chief Operating Officer, has 25 years of association experience.
Deb began her career at NAHB supporting the grassroots lobbying efforts of the Association as a member of NAHB’s Federal Government Affairs Team. Prior to joining NAHB, Deb directed the membership, lobbying and operations needs of a number of other Washington, DC based Associations.
Deb’s 20 year career at NAHB has provided her experience in any number of critical Association efforts from the implementation of programs designed to advance the Association’s legislative priorities, grow the organization’s global presence and membership, to the day-to-day operations of the Association’s technology needs.
Deb has been fulfilling the role of Chief Operating Officer for the Association for now more than 10 years. This role provides her the unique opportunity to work with the leadership at both the member and staff level on a broad array of Association priorities – including, the operation of the Association’s governance process, strategic planning efforts, and all capital and facilities operations. Deb earned her Bachelor of Arts from Colorado in Political Economics.
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Sarah Neary
DHLGH
Sarah is Principal Adviser, Building Standards, in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. She has responsibility for leading the Building Standards Advisory Unit in its role to develop policy and legislation in respect of building control, building regulations, construction products, legacy defects issues, and in respect of the pyrite remediation, governance and oversight of the Pyrite Resolution Board. She is a Chartered Engineer, holds a Civil Engineering Degree from the University of Galway and a MBA from UCD. Prior to joining the Department, Sarah worked as a Structural Design Engineer with Ryan Hanley consulting engineers in Galway.
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Daniel Hicks
Technical Research Manager Standards, Innovation and Research, NHBC
Daniel Hicks has worked in the construction industry for over 20 years, originally completing an apprenticeship as a Brick layer before completing a degree in Building surveying and moving over to the world of latent defects insurance. Daniel leads a multi-disciplinary team within NHBC’s Standards, Innovation and Research department with the primary aim of mitigating future technical risks to the NHBC. Daniel and his team also manage the NHBC foundation, taking projects from conception to the finished publication.
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Daniel McCrum
Assistant Professor, UCD
Daniel McCrum is Assistant Professor at University College Dublin, a Structural Engineer, Fulbright Scholar and is member of the team at Construct Innovate, Ireland’s construction technology centre with a vision is to make Ireland a global leader for sustainable construction and built environment technology. The centre is a partnership between Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin, University College Cork, the Irish Green Building Council and the host institution, University of Galway; and brings together 23 multidisciplinary research groups across their partner institutions and researchers. The team at Construct Innovate has a strong track record in research and innovation with expertise in digital adoption, modern method of construction, and sustainability; working under the five pillars of (1) Productivity, Affordability and Cost, (2) Quality and Safety, (3) Sustainability, (4) Skills and Training, (5) Collaboration.
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Lars Myhre
Technical Director, Norwegian Home Builders' Association
Lars Myhre, Technical Director, Norwegian Home Builders’ Association entered the home building industry almost 20 years ago, and he has a Ph.D. within the field of sustainability of buildings, and he worked for 10 years as a researcher before he entered the home building industry. Lars has for many years been actively involved in national and international standardization work, and he recently ended a 9-years term as chair of ISO/TC 163/SC 2. This committee develops international standards on the calculation of energy use in buildings, off which, many are being referenced in EU’s directive on the energy performance of buildings (EPBD). Lars also has broad experience related to digitalization, universal design and generally, how to design technical requirements in regulations.
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Tom O'Malley
Clancy Construction
Tom O’Malley B-Eng, C-Eng MIEI
Tom O’Malley is retained as an Associate Director of Construction at Clancy Construction. Tom is responsible for the Sustainability portfolio, where he has developed a sustainability strategy for Clancy’s route to being a Sustainable Company by 2030, this is not limited to Net Zero Carbon, but also having a focus on Their People, The Planet and Company Performance on the route to 2030. He currently serves on the ESG Committee for the Construction Industry Federation in Ireland. Tom is a Chartered Engineer, qualified Civil Engineer, and has worked in both onshore and offshore construction over the past 20 years. Tom started with Clancy in 2020 taking responsibility for the delivery of the fast track COVID Construction projects, and is currently based in the Dublin Region.
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Mark Russell
Standards and Policy Manager, NHBC
Mark Russell graduated with a 1st Class Honours in Construction Management and has worked in the Commercial and Residential Construction Sectors for the last 18 years. He has had experience as a Building Control Surveyor, Construction and Project Manager, Project Co-ordinator, Building Inspector and Inspection Manager. Currently Mark operates as the NHBC’s Standards and Technical Manager responsible for the Strategic Delivery of NHBC Standards and NHBC Technical Guidance.
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Kent Ma
Chairman of Genesis Engineering and President of StrateVision.
Kent Ma is currently the Chairman of Genesis Engineering and President of StrateVision. Genesis Engineering is one of the leading service provider of architectural glass; and mechanical and electrical engineering services in Taiwan. StrateVision is a digital TV/IPTV and Smart AIOT/Home/Hotel technology solutions provider; around 60% of Cable STBs in Taiwan contains software provided by StrateVision.
Previously, Kent was Independent Outside Director on the Board of Nien Hsing Textile (TWSE:1451); Director of Federal Tires Group (TWSE:2101); Director of Business Development for Qualcomm in the Greater China Region; CTO and Vice President of Business Development and Strategy at China Network System, largest cable TV operator in Taiwan. He received his bachelor in Computer Science and Master in Information Management degree from Carnegie Mellon University.
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Allen Wang
President of Shanyuan Development Co. Former President of Advanced Developers Association of Taipei. Senior Director of The Real Estate Development Association of Taipei.
Shanyuan Development Co. is a real estate development company founded in 1976 and headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan. It is now a Taiwanese stock market listed corporation with subsidiaries and affiliates across industries in construction, public transportation, satellite communications, commercial retail leasing, and operation. As one of the leading real estate developers in Taiwan, Shanyuan Development Co. specializes in high-rise residential properties. The company’s recent projects include Neo Skydome, an iconic property with a direct subway connection, housing 1600 units, 46 floors, and a shopping strip attached at ground level to provide residents with ultimate convenience. Its current Green-certified “Diamond Towers of Taipei” project marks the pinnacle achievement of Taiwanese luxury housing in the sales price and technological implementations.
Mr. Wang’s 20-year career in the real estate development and housing construction industry provided him with experience in housing market demand and construction planning. He continues to focus on bringing the latest technologies to his company’s new housing projects to offer his customers the improvement of their housing experience. Mr. Wang’s mission is to achieve building sustainability through various ways such as Energy efficiency design, Construction Quality Assurance, Construction Material Testing, Weather-proof design, Universal design, Smart Home, and Advance Plumbing and Electric design. Through his idea of innovation in housing, his company’s new residential projects are able to differentiate themselves from other competitors and the used housing market.
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Martin Searson
Head of MMC Certification, NSAI (National Standards Authority of Ireland)
Martin Searson is the Head of Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) with NSAI (National Standards of Ireland) within the Certification Division. The MMC Certification team, specialises in providing inspection and certification services, including technical assessments for Modular Construction solutions, to current Building Regulations under the NSAI Agrément certification scheme. Services include dealing with new MMC enquiries, processing new MMC Applications, reviewing Technical Documentation submitted for assessment and engaging further with MMC Stakeholders for Agrément certification, coupled with both offsite and onsite MMC Inspections and Surveillance audits.
Martin has +25 years Mechanical and Electrical (M&E) and Construction industry experience. Previously, he was the Group M&E Quality & Lean Manager for a large engineering & construction firm, with operations in Ireland, UK and Mainland Europe. He has extensive quality management and regulatory compliance experience following work on key projects across a range of sectors including Semiconductor, Data Centres, Biopharmaceuticals, Windfarms, Substations up to 400kV, Industrial Manufacturing, Commercial fit-outs and Residential projects, across Ireland, UK and Mainland Europe.
Martin was a past winner of six National Quality Awards (with 7 consecutive nominations) and a Lean Business Ireland Award in 2019 with his previous Team, for their approach and implementation of quality management and lean construction principles, across Ireland, UK & Europe. Martin currently holds a Masters in Quantity Surveying, an Honours Degree in Applied Science from Trinity College Dublin and a Diploma in Quality Management.
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Marc Separovic
NHBC
Marc is a Chartered Civil Engineer with over 20 years of experience across a variety of disciplines within the Construction industry. With UK and overseas experience. He joined NHBC in 2006 specialising in defects in residential buildings, and has held various roles within the company.
Marc currently leads the Construction Quality Operations at NHBC, a bespoke team of 40 Construction Quality Specialists.
The Construction Quality Operations include a host of quality related products and initiatives. Each covering a range disciplines within the house building industry, but with the sole purpose to help maintain and raise quality.
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