Dublin, 27 November 2020 – Paul McCullagh, Company Secretary at Dublin-based Barclays Europe
has been named Company Secretary of the Year by ICSA: The Chartered Governance Institute at the Institute’s 2020 Awards. Paul was recognised for his drive and commitment to ensure Barclays Europe is at the forefront of best practice corporate governance, something which has earned him the respect and confidence of the Board.
Peter Swabey, Policy & Research Director at the Institute said of Paul’s win:
“Paul is a company secretary whose skills and experience read as textbook examples of what one would hope to see from a company secretary working in a large and complex corporate environment.
“From what was a very solid and substantial nomination, the judges were particularly struck by his work in helping to steer the board through its response to the coronavirus, including keeping the lines of communication open and overseeing the transition to, and developing protocols for, virtual meetings. Paul was nominated by the Chair, and with the full support of the board – several members of which also supplied testimonials. That is a significant achievement and demonstrative of the high regard in which he is held.”
Paul, who was crowned the winner at a virtual awards ceremony organised by the Institute last night, fought off steep competition from Fahrin Ribeiro, Company Secretary at Willis Limited and Head of Governance GB and WE, Willis Towers Watson and Ritika Verma, Manager – Legal at Pearson India.
Salvador Nash, President of the Institute’s Irish Region said of Paul’s win:
“It is great that a local member of the Institute has won this award. It shows that company secretaries in Ireland are making a valuable and positive contribution to the Irish economy by ensuring that the organisations for which they work have strong corporate governance practices in place. This year in particular has made significant demands on company secretaries who have ensured that their organisations have maintained high standards of governance in the midst of a pandemic, often finding innovative solutions to the many challenges that have presented themselves. It is wonderful that Paul’s efforts have been commended in this way.”
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About:
ICSA: The Chartered Governance Institute is the professional body for those working in corporate governance and the only governance body able to offer a chartered qualification to board and company secretaries and governance professionals in Ireland.
The Irish region of ICSA: The Chartered Governance Institute is governed by its own Council and sub-committees representing all areas of business in which the members in the Republic of Ireland work. It has approximately 600 members and 200 students with many of its members working in the corporate and professional services sectors.
Through its Council and sub-committees it provides a range of services to members and students, including the organisation of educational and social events. Council also makes representations and submissions to Government Departments and Governance Forums on behalf of the Institute’s members.
Website: www.icsa.org.uk/ireland
About the Awards: Each year, the Awards bring together the crème de la crème of the governance profession to celebrate excellence in the delivery, oversight and reporting of governance. Nominees reflect the very best achievement from across the governance community. The 2020 Awards ceremony took a socially distanced approach and was hosted virtually. The Awards this year also focussed on people and projects rather than reporting achievements, with Awards given out in nine main categories, three of which were new this year: Governance Champion of the Year (new), Governance Professional of the Year, Company Secretary of the Year, The One to Watch, Team of the Year, Service Provider of the Year, Governance Project of the Year, Diversity & Inclusion Initiative of the Year (new) and ESG Initiative of the Year (new).
For further information, please contact
Salvador Nash, President of the Irish Region
salvador.nash@kpmg.ie
+353 (0)87 744 1226
John Burns, Regional Development Manager, Ireland
jburns@icsa.org.uk
+353 (0)86 8888 949
or
Maria Brookes, Media Relations Manager
mbrookes@icsa.org.uk
+44 (0)20 7612 7072
+44 (0)7890 649 143
Notes to Editors:
- The Chartered Governance Institute is the qualifying and membership body for governance with over 125 years’ experience of educating and supporting governance professionals. With a Royal Charter purpose of leading ‘effective and efficient governance and administration of commerce, industry and public affairs’, we provide professional development, guidance and thought leadership, and work with regulators and policy makers to champion high standards.
The Institute has divisions in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong/China, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Southern Africa, the United Kingdom and Zimbabwe. The division headquartered in London (known as ICSA: The Chartered Governance Institute) represents and supports members in the UK, Republic of Ireland, Crown Dependencies and associated territories, which include the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, Mauritius and Sri Lanka. Website: www.icsa.org.uk - The Irish region of The Chartered Governance Institute is governed by its own Council and sub-committees representing all areas of business in which the members in the Republic of Ireland work. It has approximately 600 members and 200 students with many of its members working in the corporate and professional services sectors.
Through its Council and sub-committees it provides a range of services to members and students, including the organisation of educational and social events. Council also makes representations and submissions to Government Departments and Governance Forums on behalf of the Institute’s members.
Website: www.icsa.org.uk/ireland