Our next staff spotlight welcomes Head of Faculty, Ciara Halloran. Ciara joined Roffey Park Institute as an associate in 2019 working on Leadership Development programmes with our Irish clients. In 2021 she became a Senior Consultant in Organisational Development and since then has been promoted to Head of Faculty and recently interim Head of Operations Ireland for Roffey Park Europe.
Ciara was born and raised in Templeogue, a leafy suburb on the south side of Dublin, Ireland. The eldest of two children, her father is a retired civil engineer and her mother is a retired primary school teacher. Ciara told us, “I have been influenced by both of my parents as reading, studying and figuring things out became a part of life from an early age”.
Ciara studied Civil Structural and Environmental Engineering at the well-known Trinity College Dublin. Ciara reminisced on her time at university – “I loved Trinity and immersed myself in it, joining the ‘Phil’ (Philosophical Society and one of the oldest student societies), and the ‘Hist’ (Historical society). There was a billiard room where friends and I often could be found between lectures and then there was the Trinity ball where in my time I’ve seen David Gray, The Divine Comedy, Chumbawamba and many more play!” Ciara also has a degree in Mathematics.
After graduating, Ciara worked as a Civil and Structural Engineer for 10 years designing residential, commercial and mixed-use buildings, including her work on Hamilton House (header image), the location of Roffey Park Institute’s Dublin offices. She became a Chartered Engineer and later a Professional Engineer. She has also been elected to serve on the Council of Engineers Ireland and was a founding member of its Young Engineers Society in 2006.
Upon completing an MSc in Business Administration in 2010, Ciara moved to Vancouver, Canada, where she worked with Coanda Research and Development, now part of Tetra Tech, in various roles. It was here that Ciara was first mentored in OD by an OD consultant.
Ciara said, “I spent a decade working successfully as a female engineer in the Irish construction industry. But it was the completion of my MSc that opened new doors for me, even sparking my entrepreneurial spirit that can be seen when I later set up my consulting businesses.” After leaving Canada, Ciara moved to Paris, France, where she worked with INSEAD Business School managing their customised executive education programmes for global clients.
Following this, Ciara returned to Ireland, where she still lives today, to work with the Irish Management Institute and then as an internal consultant for Glenveagh and the Rehab Group before joining Roffey Park Institute.
Ciara recently chaired a global diversity, equity and inclusion community of practice for coaches. She explained, “Much of my previous work in OD involves leadership, change and cultural transformation. I am still a Chartered Engineer and later achieved my certificate as a Trainer… so you could say I followed in both of my parent’s footsteps!”.
Outside of work, Ciara still enjoys music and went to the Wexford Opera Festival this year for the first time. “This year’s theme, Women and War, really intrigued me with events highlighting a different aspect of the struggles that women face; in wars, fighting prejudice and making women’s voices heard. The artists and productions were amazing, you saw people at the top of their game.”
Ciara is now the focal point of Roffey Park Institute’s operations, seeing her wealth of experience and expertise to tremendous effect. We are extremely excited to see what opportunities advancing into the Irish and European markets present and with Ciara as the Head of Operations in Ireland, we are confident we can significantly develop the organisation and make a real impact.
