Business Movers

People in new roles with MSD Ireland, Boots Ireland, Dairygold, Agritech, Music Network and Xcentuate Management Solutions.

New roles: (top row) Mairead McCaul, Stephen Watkins, Sean O'Brien; (bottom row) Maeve Regan, Pat Moylan, Farvinder Lal.

Here is a selection of people starting new roles with MSD Ireland, Boots Ireland, Dairygold, Agritech, Music Network and Xcentuate Management Solutions.

Mairead McCaul has been named as MD of the human health business in Ireland with healthcare group MSD, and heads MSD teams in six sites in Ireland. She succeeds Ger Brennan, who has moved to a new role. Mairead brings a wealth of experience, notably as MSD's business unit director for oncology and market access, as well as senior sales management and marketing roles since joining MSD Ireland in 2007. She has worked for eight years in laboratory diagnostics. She qualified in nursing and midwifery and holds a BA in Business Management from Dublin Business School. She is a member of working groups in the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association and was recently appointed to the board of Guaranteed Irish.

Stephen Watkins has been appointed as managing director with pharmacy chain Boots Ireland, leading the team of 2,000+ staff in 89 stores and head office in Ireland. He replaces Bernadette Lavery who takes up a new role as director of pharmacy with Boots UK. A qualified pharmacist, he has held a number of roles in stores and in head office over 24 years with Boots UK, most recently as director of pharmacy and digital healthcare. He has relocated to Ireland for his new role based in the City West head office. He has led a diverse range of projects within Boots including the development of the first digital health platform for Boots. He has also played a leadership role negotiating with the Scottish Government to develop the pharmacy contract in Scotland.

Sean O’Brien has been appointed as a new director of the board of Dairygold after a recent election. The Board vacancy arose in the East Cork Region due to the resignation of Edmund Lynch, who has since been appointed to the board of Ornua. Sean O’Brien is from Girlough Farm, Ballinascartha, Midleton, Co Cork, and has been a member of Dairygold's East Cork regional committee since 2005 and the general committee since 2010. He is a Nuffield scholar and holds a Diploma in Corporate Direction (Food Business) and a Business Degree from University College Cork. His Nuffield scholarship study was titled 'How to Educate, Identify and recruit new Board Members for Dairy Co-operatives in a post quota era'. Mr O’Brien is married to Bernadette and they have six children.

Maeve Regan has been appointed as head of ruminant nutrition with Agritech, based in its new advanced manufacturing facility in Co Tipperary. She will provide technical support to Agritech’s national and international customers. She brings experience from her previous roles on dairy enterprises in Ireland and the US, and from her role as a technical support advisor with Glanbia. She brings extensive experience with modern beef and dairy production systems, having grown up on a pedigree beef farm in Co Roscommon. She holds an Agri Science degree from UCD, specialisin in Animal Science, and a Walsh Fellowship Research Masters, focusing on grass-based beef production, completed with Teagasc Grange and UCD. Agritech distributes products across Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

Pat Moylan has been named as chair of the board of touring and development organisation Music Network. She succeeds Peter Finnegan. A former chair of the Arts Council, Pat brings over 20 years' experience as a theatre producer, notably in London's West End and on Broadway, earning Olivier and Tony nominations. Her most recent production was Angela’s Ashes – the Musical. As Arts Council chair, she led initiatives in audience development, regional touring, and fundraising and capacity-building. She is also on the board of Dublin Theatre Festival, and is a member of International Women’s Forum. She holds a diploma in History of Fine Art from IPAV.

Farvinder Lal has been appointed as a global implementation consultant with Xcentuate Management Solutions, an operations management and planning firm. He has previously worked at NatWest specialising in performance business management and customer experience. He will lead the implementation of performance improvement tool ActiveOps Software, working with leaders in Xcentuate client firms in a range of financial services sectors. He holds a professional certificate in Banking and Financial Support Services from The Chartered Banker Institute. Ray Bowe, CEO of Xcentuate, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Farvinder to the team at a critical time for business in Ireland and the UK.”