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CFO Summit 2025: Hosted by EY, in partnership with the Financial Times
Resilience and growth in a time of global instability
The CFO Summit 2025 which took place on Thursday, 6 March explored how CFOs and their teams can strengthen their organisations in response to global pressures and ensure they are well prepared to deal with emerging challenges and opportunities.
The election of a new government in Ireland and among some of its biggest trading partners is leading to a shift in policies that global businesses must contend with. Geopolitical pressures and emerging technologies are impacting costs, trading relations, supply chains, competitiveness, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) plans.
Will more protectionist policies affect inward and outward investment? What impact will new governments in Dublin, Washington and other capitals have on business decision making? How will global trading relations change? What steps can CFOs - and their boards - take to benefit from the opportunities of tech and transformation? How will sustainability goals fit into business and investment planning?
The CFO Summit 2025, hosted by EY, in partnership with the Financial Times, brought together finance leaders to explore the strategic role that CFOs are taking on their company boards and how CFOs and their teams can strengthen their organisations in response to global pressures and ensure they are well prepared to deal with emerging challenges and opportunities.
Agenda
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Welcome |
Welcome address from George Deegan, Partner, Assurance and CFO Programme Sponsor, EY |
Andrew Hill, Senior Business Writer, Financial Times, our CFO Summit host will get us underway after welcome remarks from George Deegan, Partner, Assurance and EY's CFO Programme Sponsor |
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Fireside chat |
Geopolitical and global economic outlook |
Fireside chat with Dr Karin von Hippel, former Director-General, Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and former Senior Adviser in the Bureau of Counterterrorism in the US Department of State and Andrew Hill, Senior Business Writer, Financial Times
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Fireside Chat |
Supporting local and international business growth |
In conversation with:
Moderated by: Jude Webber, Ireland Correspondent, Financial Times |
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Panel discussion |
How are businesses responding to changing global pressures? |
In conversation with:
Moderated by: Jude Webber, Ireland Correspondent, Financial Times
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Panel discussion |
The evolution of sustainability in capital markets |
In conversation with:
Moderated by: Andrew Hill, Senior Business Writer, Financial Times
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Panel Discussion |
Innovation in the age of AI: How is the role of the CFO changing? |
In conversation with:
Moderated by: Andrew Hill, Senior Business Writer, Financial Times
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Closing Remarks |
Andrew Hill, Senior Business Writer, Financial Times |
Speakers
- Dr Karin Von Hippel
- Paschal Donohoe TD
- Anna Dunn
- Dr Lollie Mancey
- Glenn Boehnlein
- Grit Young
- Gordon Holmes
- Ian Howells
- Jude Webber
- George Deegan
- Martina Keane
- Andrew Hill
- Frank O’Keeffe
- Domhnaill Hernon
- Marie Joyce
- Brendan Brennan
Dr Karin Von Hippel
Former Director-General, Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and former Senior Adviser in the Bureau of Counterterrorism in the US Department of State
Dr Karin von Hippel was Director-General of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) for nine years (2015 – 2024). She joined RUSI after serving for nearly six years in the US Department of State as a Senior Adviser in the Bureau of Counterterrorism, as a Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, and finally, as Chief of Staff to General John Allen, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter-ISIL.
Prior to that, she co-directed the Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC and was a senior research fellow at the Centre for Defence Studies, King’s College London. She has also worked for the United Nations and the European Union in Somalia and Kosovo, and has direct experience in over two dozen conflict zones.
Dr von Hippel has numerous publications to her name, including Democracy by Force: US Military Intervention in the Post-Cold War World (2000), which was short-listed for the RUSI Westminster Medal in Military History. She holds a PhD from the London School of Economics, an MSt from Oxford University, and a BA from Yale University.
Paschal Donohoe TD
Minister for Finance
Paschal Donohoe is the Minister for Finance. He was appointed to this role on 23 January 2025. Before this, he served as Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform.
As Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, Paschal was responsible for delivering well-managed and well-targeted public spending, through modernised, effective and accountable public services. The department oversees the implementation of the National Development Plan, drives the programme of public service reform, and has a key role in decisions made across Government.
Minister Donohoe was elected President of the Eurogroup of finance ministers in July 2020 for a two-and-a-half-year term. He was re-elected in December 2022, beginning his second mandate in January 2023.
Anna Dunn
CEO, UK JP Morgan and EMEA CFO, JP Morgan Chase
Anna Dunn has been the EMEA CFO of JP Morgan Chase since 2019 and was appointed UK JP Morgan CEO for the Commercial and Investment Bank in 2024. She has over 25 years’ experience at the firm. External to JP Morgan, Anna is the Chair of the UK Finance Capital Markets & Wholesale Board, a member of the City of London Competitiveness Advisory Board, and is on the PRA Practitioner Panel. Anna holds a B.A. from Cornell University, is a CFA charter holder and holds a FT Non-Executive Director Diploma. Anna resides in London and Herefordshire with her husband and three children.
Dr Lollie Mancey
Anthropologist, Futurist, and Innovation Advocate
Dr Lollie Mancey is an internationally acclaimed anthropologist, futurist, and cultural strategist, whose work spans the intersection of technology, human culture, and innovation. With a PhD in Organisational Learning and a career dedicated to decoding societal and technological shifts, she helps global organisations, policymakers, and entrepreneurs navigate the profound changes driven by artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.
As Programme Director and entrepreneurial specialist at University College Dublin’s Innovation Academy, Dr. Mancey empowers the next generation of innovators and business leaders with the tools to thrive in a rapidly evolving landscape. Her approach blends academic excellence—evident in her multiple teaching awards, including the UCD Excellence in Teaching Award 2022 & 2024—with real-world entrepreneurial success, as she holds directorships in three thriving businesses and champions underrepresented founders in the global entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Known for her ability to demystify complex technological trends, Dr. Mancey inspires audiences to reimagine the future of leadership, trust, and human flourishing. Her insights into how AI is reshaping cultural rituals—from work and relationships to ethics and death—are both thought-provoking and actionable. Whether helping organisations embed ethical principles into their digital transformations or guiding leaders to create inclusive spaces for innovation, her work bridges the gap between human-centred strategy and technological progress.
Glenn Boehnlein
Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Stryker
Glenn Boehnlein became Vice President, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Stryker in April 2016.
Glenn is responsible for Stryker’s global finance activities which include corporate accounting, reporting, tax, treasury and internal audit. His role expanded in January 2020, and he now also oversees global information technology.
In 2003, Glenn began his career with Stryker as Vice President of Finance and Information Technology for their Endoscopy Division. He then took on roles of increasing responsibility including group CFO of MedSurg and Neurotechnology.
Prior to joining Stryker, Glenn spent three years with Success TV as CFO. Before that, he was a partner and certified public accountant at Arthur Andersen. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from Mississippi State University.
Grit Young
Partner, EY-Parthenon and Technology, Media & Entertainment and Telecommunications Industry Leader
Grit Young is a partner at EY-Parthenon and Technology, Media & Entertainment and Telecommunications Industry Leader for EY Ireland.
Steering EY Ireland's Technology, Media & Entertainment, and Telecommunications (TMT) sector, Grit’s role is pivotal in advancing our market position by fostering a robust TMT community and enhancing client relations. Grit leads through innovation, leveraging cross-functional team leadership to drive EY's growth.
As a qualified chartered accountant, Grit helps clients with assessing the value of their business, assets and financial instruments and those of potential acquisition targets in a commercial, legal, tax and financial reporting context.
Prior to joining EY Ireland, Grit spent 15 years in the UK market. Other international experience includes the US, Germany and Spain.
Gordon Holmes
Chief Investment Officer, TowerBrook Capital Partners
Gordon Holmes is Chief Investment Officer of TowerBrook Capital Partners.
Gordon is currently a board member of CarTrawler (based in Dublin), The AA (UK) and AustroCel Hallein (Austria). Prior to joining TowerBrook in 2010, Gordon was a Managing Principal at Quadrangle Group, where he headed the firm’s London office. He was previously a General Partner at Forstmann Little & Co., and he began his career at Goldman Sachs, where he worked in the firm’s London, New York and Singapore offices. Gordon earned his B.C.L. from University College Dublin in 1990 and received his M.B.A. from Stanford Business School in 1995. Gordon is a member of the Board of Habitat for Humanity GB.
Ian Howells
Executive Vice President, Honda Motor Europe
Ian Howells is the Executive Vice President for Honda Motor Europe, the regional operation responsible for Honda’s bikes, cars and power product businesses in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Ian is a Chartered Accountant (Grant Thornton, Price Waterhouse Coopers) and spent many years working in sub–Saharan Africa, including projects for the World Bank and IMF. His career spans a number of industries and sectors as well as SMEs and multi-nationals including Johnson Controls and Ingersoll Rand. He sits on the CBI Southeast Council, formerly Chair and Vice Chair, and the CBI International Council. He is a Visiting Professorial Fellow (Engineering Management) at Aston University, Birmingham, UK; and also a member of the UK Automotive Council, an Enterprise Advisor in the Thames Valley and a mentor to a number of MBA students.
Jude Webber
Ireland Correspondent, Financial Times
Jude Webber is the Financial Times’ Ireland correspondent, covering all developments in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Jude moved to her current role after 21 years in Latin America, covering most of the continent including Peru, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay and most recently Mexico and Central America. Prior to joining the FT in 2007, she worked for 15 years as a foreign correspondent for Reuters.
George Deegan
Partner, Assurance and CFO Programme Sponsor, EY
George is an Assurance Partner in EYs Industrial Commercial and Technology Group, a member of the Assurance leadership team and is the Partner Sponsor for EY’s CFO programme.
As the Global Engagement Partner for a number of listed clients and as the EMEIA Coordinating Partner for Fortune 100 companies, George coordinates and leads multidiscipline cross-border teams and resources. George is responsible for ensuring the highest service quality, seamless and consistent cross-border service and providing the right Industry and functional expertise and insights to his clients. In over 20 years at EY, he worked with clients listed on Dublin, London, Nasdaq and New York stock exchanges, supporting significant debt and other public equity offerings.
Prior to joining EY, he functioned as a manager for a tax and business services firm.
George is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and is a Member of the Institute of Taxation in Ireland.
Martina Keane
EY UK and Ireland Financial Services Leader
As EY’s UK & Ireland Financial Services Leader, Martina leads more than 300 partners and 6,000 people dedicated to serving the UK & Ireland financial services industry, and is responsible for some of the firm’s largest clients globally.
Martina joined EY in 1998 and has been a Partner since 2009. She is passionate about driving strategic transformation in financial services and developing diverse and high-performing teams. She held the role of EY’s EMEIA Financial Services Deputy Managing Partner and Chief Operating Officer from 2021 – 2024, where she helped to shape the innovation of EY’s financial services business across the region. As an assurance professional, Martina also held the role of EY’s Ireland Financial Services Assurance Leader from 2017 – 2021.
Andrew Hill
Senior Business Writer, Financial Times
Andrew Hill is senior business writer at the Financial Times and consulting editor at FT Live. He is a former management editor, city editor, financial editor and comment and analysis editor. He is the author of ‘Leadership in the Headlines’ (2016), a collection of his columns, and ‘Ruskinland’ (2019), about the enduring influence of Victorian thinker John Ruskin. He joined the FT in 1988 and has also worked as New York bureau chief, foreign news editor and correspondent in Brussels and Milan. Andrew was named Business Commentator of the Year at the 2016 Comment Awards and Commentator of the Year at the 2009 Business Journalist of the Year Awards, where he also received a Decade of Excellence award.
Frank O’Keeffe
EY Ireland Managing Partner
Frank O'Keeffe has been EY Ireland Managing Partner since 2018 and in that role he continues to oversee a period of rapid growth for the firm across the island of Ireland.
Frank joined EY in 1997 and has held a series of leadership roles across Region, Service Line and Sector. Prior to taking up the role as Managing Partner at EY Ireland, he held a position on the Irish Leadership Team as Head of Assurance, serving a range of large national and multinational clients across the manufacturing, retail, technology and supply chain sectors.
Frank was the Partner Sponsor for the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ program in Ireland between 2009 and 2014. He has also held the position of Diversity & Inclusion Partner Sponsor and continues to preside over EY Diversity & Inclusion Steering Committee in Ireland. Frank is the current Disability Partner Sponsor for the EY EMEIA region.
Domhnaill Hernon
EY Global Metaverse Labs Lead
Domhnaill Hernon is the Global Lead for the EY Metaverse Labs and the Global Lead for the Cognitive Human Enterprise.
Previously, Domhnaill was a VP of Research and Innovation at Bell Labs, which is the research and innovation arm of Nokia.
Domhnaill has an MBA from Dublin City University, as well as a Bachelor of Engineering in Aeronautical Engineering and a PhD in Aerodynamics from the University of Limerick, Ireland.
Marie Joyce
Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer, NTR plc
Marie is a seasoned leader in global investment, strategy, capital raising, finance and operations. Since 2013, she has been instrumental in shaping NTR’s clean energy strategy, overseeing the creation and launch of three European renewable investment funds and deploying over €1.9bn of capital. Before joining NTR, Marie worked with Élan Corporation plc and Arthur Andersen. She also served as Chair of the Board of Make-A-Wish Ireland.
Marie is a director of daa plc, the Irish state-owned international airport and travel retail group with businesses in 16 countries, and Staycity Group, one of Europe’s leading aparthotel operators.
She holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Galway, a Master of Accounting from the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School and is a fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland.
Brendan Brennan
Chief Financial Officer, HBX Group
Brendan is a strategic-minded senior executive with broad experience of driving outperformance at revenue and earnings levels in global organisations. He has a proven track record of cost management, efficiency creation, and significant M&A experience, including deal sizes up to $12 billion.
Brendan has extensive background in public listed companies he was the CFO of ICON plc from 2011 to 2024, before taking up the role of Group CFO at HBX plc. He has worked with teams across the Americas, Europe, and Asia, and has extensive experience working in both the US and European capital markets.
Prior to his role at HBX Group as Chief Financial Officer, Brendan held various senior positions in financial planning, corporate finance, and investor relations. He has also worked with ICON, CRH Plc and PWC.
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