Ronan Byrne appointed CEO of HEAnet

Former CTO succeeds Kerrie Power in top job

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Ronan Byrne, HEAnet

In association with HEAnet

The Board of Directors of HEAnet has appointed Ronan Byrne as CEO. He succeeds Kerrie Power who held the role for four years.

Byrne’s career at HEAnet extends back to 2004 and he has overseen many large-scale programmes over this time, including the development of the Schools Broadband Network, migration of the Institute of Technologies from ITNet, the establishment of the Edugate National Federated Identity Service, delivery of a 100Gb/s network backbone, and building a high performing Brokerage Services unit that delivers more than €7 million savings for the sector annually.

Byrne is a member of the board of directors of the EOSC (European Open Science Cloud) Association, and a member of the Ireland’s National Open Research Forum steering group. He also represents HEAnet at the GÉANT General Assembly and is Chair of a GÉANT Network Infrastructure Advisory Committee advising on the upgrade of the pan-European GÉANT network.

Prior to joining HEAnet, Byrne established a successful track record of large-scale ICT programme delivery, having led engagements with some of the most respected organisations in Ireland, across both private and public sectors. Previous employers include Fujitsu, Via Networks, ICL Computers, and Aer Lingus.

Byrne holds an MSc in Business Leadership & Management Practice from the Smurfit Business School at University College Dublin and an MSc in Internet Systems from Dublin City University. He is also an associate member of The Governance Institute.

In making the announcement, Prof Anne Scott, chair of the HEAnet board of directors, said: “HEAnet is a real asset to Ireland’s education system, delivering common, repeatable and shareable solutions for the sector. Given Ronan’s extensive experience and strong record of accomplishments, I am confident in his ability to lead HEAnet. On behalf of the HEAnet’s Board of Directors, I would like to congratulate Ronan, as we look forward to working with him over the coming years.”

“It is truly an honour to be appointed as HEAnet CEO,” said Byrne. “In my role as the chief technology officer, I have had the pleasure to work with great people and I am proud of how far we have come. While recognising our achievements, I also see many opportunities for the future, and I look forward to this next chapter. We will continue to work on behalf of our clients and together with our clients, leveraging our collective strengths in a trusted way.”

TechCentral Reporters

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