Insights from Ibec CEO, Danny McCoy

What are the biggest challenges Ireland faces today?

Ireland’s rapid growth in both economy and population has created several challenges. In essence, we are a frontier resource-based economy, and the new resource is intangible assets. Ireland has grown very fast, and we are showing symptoms of something quite positive. The population of Ireland has grown by approximately 25% in just over a decade, leading to infrastructure, education, healthcare, housing, and more being unable to keep pace.

Thanks to the explosion of Ireland’s economy, we have seen a reversal of the age-old problem of outward migration, which had been a tremendous issue in the past. Ireland now retains and easily attracts highly qualified skilled workers from abroad. Individuals and families have experienced financial mobility and fundamentally grown wealthy, which is a testament to the country’s progress in such a short time. 

Which Irish industries are growing their global footprint?

An industry that has traditionally seen success in the USA – the food and beverage business – will likely see an expansion of influence. Major brands have dominated this sector for decades, and I see an opportunity for smaller artisan brands to also excel in the USA.

As Ireland continues to develop as a hub for global companies and industries to operate from, we increasingly see solutions being developed within Ireland that are conquering global markets and expect to see more Irish influence in the USA. For example, we see exciting innovations taking place in the fields of medical technology, biopharma, financial technology, and many others that have the potential to see success in the States and across the world.

What makes Ibec unique?

Ibec embodies the concept of ‘stronger together.’ We represent approximately 70% of all employment in Ireland and are one of the largest business representative organizations of our type in Europe. In addition, via our 38 individual trade associations, we also specialize and cover a wide range of niche industry sectors. This permits Ibec to consider economies of scale and scope, effectively strategizing based on the situation at hand. It can narrow the scope to a particular industry or issue or take a broader perspective to consider the global economy as a whole when lobbying.