Laura Magahy (born April 1961) is an Irish businessperson, former

managing director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of Temple Bar Properties, and former director of the

Sláintecare Sláintecare is a proposed reform of the Healthcare in the Republic of Ireland, healthcare system of Ireland. Pronounced , the name is derived from ''sláinte'' , the Irish language, Irish word for "health." The intent of the Sláintecare refor ...

programme. She was the first woman in Ireland to lead a semi-state company.

Background

Magahy was born in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

in 1961. She is the eldest of three children. Her father worked for

Bank of Ireland Bank of Ireland Group plc () is a commercial bank operation in Ireland and one of the traditional Big Four Irish banks. Historically the premier banking organisation in Ireland, the bank occupies a unique position in Irish banking history. At ...

. She attended

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) () is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork (city), Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one of three Queen's Universit ...

from 1978 to 1981, graduating with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in music and German. In 1988, she earned a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

(MBA) degree from

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

(TCD). She is a chartered director at the

Institute of Directors The Institute of Directors (IoD) is a British professional organisation for company directors, senior business leaders and entrepreneurs. It is the UK's longest running organisation for professional leaders, having been founded in 1903 and inco ...

(UK) and the Institute of Directors in Ireland.

Career

After college, Magahy taught in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

. She returned to Ireland, working at the Graffiti Theatre Company in

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

for 4 years, before undertaking her MBA at TCD. From 1988 to 1991, Magahy was

project manager A project manager is a professional in the field of project management. Project managers have the responsibility of the Project planning, planning, procurement and execution of a project, in any undertaking that has a defined scope, defined star ...

at the

Irish Film Institute The Irish Film Institute (IFI; ), formerly the Irish Film Centre, is both an arthouse cinema and a national body that supports Irish film heritage. The IFI presents film festivals, retrospectives and curated seasons, along with independent, I ...

. In 1991, she became managing director of Temple Bar Properties, overseeing the €1 billion regeneration of

Temple Bar, Dublin Temple Bar () is an area on the south bank of the River Liffey in central Dublin, Ireland. The area is bounded by the Liffey to the north, Dame Street to the south, Westmoreland Street to the east and Fishamble Street to the west. It is promote ...

. After leaving her Temple Bar role in 2000, Magahy co-founded MCO Projects, a project management company. MCO won a contract to provide services for the controversial Stadium Ireland project. Magahy's friendship with civil servant Paddy Teahon came under scrutiny by

Pat Rabbitte Pat Rabbitte (born 18 May 1949) is an Irish former Labour Party politician who served as Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources from 2011 to 2014, Leader of the Labour Party from 2002 to 2007 and a Minister of State from 19 ...

at the

Public Accounts Committee A public accounts committee (PAC) is a committee within a legislature whose role is to study public audits, invite ministers, permanent secretaries or other ministry officials to the committee for questioning, and report on their findings subseque ...

Desmond O'Malley Desmond Joseph O'Malley (2 February 1939 – 21 July 2021) was an Irish politician who served as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Minister for Industry and Commerce from 1977 to 1981 and 1989 to 1992, Progressive Democrats, Leader ...

called for the contract to be cancelled. The entire project eventually collapsed. Magahy and MCO went on to work on development of

The Digital Hub The Digital Hub is a cluster of technology, digital media and internet companies in The Liberties area of Dublin, Ireland. As of 2017, the hub consisted of over 70 companies located in eight buildings, collectively employing 700 people. As of ...

, a project also run by Teahon. Magahy has worked on several healthcare projects, including development of the

Mater Misericordiae University Hospital The Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, commonly known as the Mater, is a teaching hospital, on Eccles Street in Phibsborough, Dublin, Ireland. It is managed by Ireland East Hospital Group. The Mater serves as one of two major trauma cente ...

and St. Vincent's University Hospital. In 2011, Magahy became the first woman in Ireland and one of only 200 people worldwide to achieve International Project Management Association Level A certification. In 2014, Magahy founded ceramics company Arran Street East. Magahy has served on several public and private boards in Ireland and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, including

CIÉ , or CIÉ, is a statutory corporation of Ireland, answerable to the Irish Government and responsible for most public transport within the Republic of Ireland and jointly with its Northern Ireland counterpart, the Northern Ireland Transport Hold ...

Dublin Bus Dublin Bus () is an Irish State-owned enterprise, state-owned bus operator providing services in Dublin. By far the largest bus operator in the city, it carried 145 million passengers in 2023. It is a subsidiary of CIÉ, Córas Iompair Éireann ...

, Ryan Hotels,

Dublin Chamber of Commerce Dublin is the capital and largest city of Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, part of the Wicklow Mountains range. Dublin i ...

, the

Arts Council of Ireland The Arts Council (sometimes called the Arts Council of Ireland; legally ) is the independent "Irish government agency for developing the arts". About It was established in 1951 by the government of Ireland, to encourage interest in Irish art ( ...

, the Ilex Urban Regeneration Board, Design Ireland, Junior Dublin Film Festival, and the Graffiti Theatre-in-Education Company. From 2007 to 2009, she was president of the Institute of Directors in Ireland. Magahy was president of the

International Women's Forum The International Women's Forum (IWF), founded in 1974 as the Women's Forum of New York, is an invitation-only women's organization with some 7,800 members. Its mission is "to support the women leaders of today and tomorrow". The IWF hosts two co ...

from 2010 to 2012. She is an honorary member of the

Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland The Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI) () founded in 1839, is the "competent authority for architects and professional body for Architecture in Ireland." The RIAI's purpose is "to uphold the highest standards in architecture a ...

since 1998.

Sláintecare

In 2018, Magahy left MCO in order to take up the positions of Executive Director and Deputy Secretary of the

Programme Implementation Office. She resigned from her Sláintecare roles in September 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magahy, Laura Living people 1961 births Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Alumni of University College Cork 21st-century Irish businesswomen 21st-century Irish businesspeople Businesspeople from Dublin (city)