Louise Phelan, the head of PayPal's Irish operation, was unveiled yesterday as the new president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ireland, which represents Google, Apple and other US
multinationals.
The chamber is one of the most powerful business lobbying groups on the block – pound-for-pound it packs far more punch than Ibec – so it is a plum post and the culmination of a meteoric rise for the Laois native.
Phelan, who is responsible for about 2,200 staff in Dublin, Dundalk and Germany, is clearly a skilled operator and a world-class networker.
In a little over two years, she has come from nowhere to become probably the most high-profile female executive in the country.
Prior to joining PayPal in 2009, she spent a decade at GE Money, with no public profile whatsoever.
After joining the internet payments giant 3½ years ago as its director of risk, she catapulted up the ranks and took over its European operations in 2011.
It was in 2012 that Phelan really grabbed the media's attention,
announcing 1,000 new jobs for Dundalk at a time when recovery still felt a million miles away.
It proved to be a turning point for the Government’s narrative on jobs.
These days, Phelan sits on the National Competitiveness Council as well as the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs implementation body. She is also a director of Ryanair and a go-to commentator for the media on business issues.
Her predecessor at the American chamber, the investment banker Peter Keegan, adopted a rather low-key approach to the role. It will be interesting to see if Phelan moderates her rather rambunctious style as she lobbies on behalf of US multinationals.
When asked yesterday about some of her previous outspoken public
statements, such as when she harshly criticised Irish workers for their attitudes, Phelan adopted an uncharacteristically cautious tone. She said their attitudes had actually improved since she made that statement . . . nine months ago.
When it comes to the chamber’s number one issue – corporation tax – its policy has been to not rock the boat. Phelan, no doubt, will shake its approach up a bit.
