Directors

Board of Directors

Mr. Barry O'Leary (Chief Executive Officer)

An accountant by profession, Barry was appointed as Chief Executive Office in September 2012. He has worked with the Housing Finance Agency since 1988, holding the roles of Financial Controller/Company Secretary and Head of Treasury. Barry also has experience of insolvencies and previously worked with the Comptroller and Auditor General.
Mr Frank Allen (Chairperson)

Frank was appointed to the Board in May 2022. He has worked in infrastructure finance and operations over many years and now advises the World Bank and governments in developing countries on public transport investment. He chairs the boards of Iarnród Éireann and Corre Energy BV. He was chief executive of the Railway Procurement Agency from 2002 to 2012, during the implementation of Luas, and previously head of infrastructure finance at KBC Bank. He began his career with the International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank Group. He has a long-standing commitment to social housing, and chaired the boards of Depaul Ireland and Depaul Housing Association.
Ms Deirdre Collier

Deirdre was appointed to the Board in May 2022. She is a Chartered Accountant with more than 20 years’ experience in the Financial Services sector. She also is a Qualified Financial Advisor and has worked at KBC Bank, her most recent role there being Head of Commercial Real Estate and Large Exposures. She previously acted as a member of the Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears (CCMA) Appeals Board for more than 5 years, as well as representing KBC on the Finance sub-committee of Property Industry Ireland. Deirdre also holds an MBA from UCD and a Diploma in Corporate Governance from the Institute of Directors.
Mr Tom Enright

Tom was appointed to the Board in May 2022. Tom is the County and City Management Association (CCMA) nominee to the Board. He graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering from University College Cork and has obtained a M.Sc. in Engineering from Cranfield University in the UK and a Masters in Business Administration from DCU. His roles include Chief Executive of Wexford County Council, Director of the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA), Chair of the LGMA Change Management Committee, Director of Waterford Airport Company since 2015, Director of the Wexford Arts Centre Company since 2014.
Dr. Aideen Hayden

Aideen was first appointed to the Board in March 2017 and reappointed in 2022. Aideen is author of a number of studies and reports on Irish housing. She served as Chair of Threshold: National Housing Charity for over 20 years and continues to chair their housing and policy group. A member of Seanad Eireann from 2011 to 2016, nominated by An Taoiseach, she served as vice chair of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance Public Expenditure and Reform. Aideen is also a member of the Property Services Regulatory Authority and was a founding member of the Residential Tenancies Board. A qualified solicitor with a degree in economics, she also holds a PhD from UCD.
Mr. William Johnston

William was appointed to the Board in March 2017. He is a solicitor, an economics graduate of Trinity College Dublin, and a Consultant with Byrne Wallace LLP. He is the external Examiner for the Law Society in banking law, former chair of the banking law division of the International Bar Association and author of 'Banking and Security Law in Ireland (2nd ed, Bloomsbury Professional, 2020)'. He is a member of the Board and Audit & Risk Committee of the Port of Waterford Company and the Honorary Secretary and Board member of The National Maternity Hospital, Holles Street.
Mr Michael Lee

Michael was appointed to the Board in May 2022. He is a qualified Chartered Accountant with experience in financial management and investments. Michael currently works as the Head of Investment Strategy and Origination at Reverence Capital Partners, a US private equity and credit investment firm. Previously Michael worked at FPG Amentum, a Dublin based aircraft lessor, as Senior Vice President Investor Markets. Michael also worked as the Deputy Director at the Irish Strategic Investment Fund with the National Treasury Management Agency. Michael worked at Goldman Sachs for 17 years in a variety of roles in the Investment Banking Division in New York where he was most recently responsible for the Investment Idea Generation Function and Sydney, where he was Head of the Financial Sponsors Group. Michael has also worked on a number of large government asset privatisation transactions in Japan and Australia.
Mr Thomas McDermott

Thomas was appointed to the Board in May 2022. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Pricewaterhouse Coopers and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. He later worked in London for Citigroup Corporate and Investment Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland in the areas of Corporate Reporting, Risk Management and Talent Development. He has served as a Non-Executive Director and Treasurer of Network/Stadium Homes a large housing association in London and as a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of Qualifications and Quality Assurance Authority of Ireland. He is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin and holds a MSc in Economics from University College Dublin and a MSc in Sustainable Development from Technological University Dublin.
Mr. Rory O’Leary

Rory was appointed to the Board on 4 March 2021. He is a Principal Officer in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage currently serving in the Planning Division with responsibility for establishing the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority. Rory recently had responsibility for AHB Policy & Regulation and has held a variety of other roles within the Department including in the Local Government (Finance), Environment and Corporate Divisions. He also had previous experience in the EU Commission (DG Environment) and the Office of Public Works. Rory holds an MSc in Environmental Economics, Policy and Risk from Heriot-Watt University, Scotland and a BSc in Zoology from University College Cork.
Mr. David Owens

David currently works on sustainable and climate finance in the Department of Finance and was appointed to the Board in May 2022. He has extensive public service experience gained in Ireland and overseas including in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and in the European Commission. He has worked in financial services in the private sector and also in the Central Bank of Ireland and was previously appointed to serve on the Pensions Board.
Ms. Lianne Patterson

Lianne was appointed to the Board in March 2017. Lianne joined the Northern Ireland Civil Service in 2005 and was appointed to her current role of Deputy Secretary for Resources, Reform and Infrastructure at the Department of Education in March 2019. Prior to her current role she previously held roles as Director of Justice Delivery in the Department of Justice and as Deputy Secretary in the Department of Infrastructure. Lianne is a chartered accountant by profession and spent much of her early career in management roles within both Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Ms. Jennifer Ward

Jennifer was appointed to the Board in March 2017. Jennifer is an independent consultant working with an active and diverse client base on advisory consulting. Jennifer was a non-Executive Board member of Clúid Housing from 2015 to 2017, and a member of Clúid’s ‘Growing Our Business’ Committee. She previously worked with AIB's Financial Solutions Group in roles as, Head of Investment Planning & Prioritisation and Head of Group Change Management for AIB Group. Jennifer holds an MSc in Management Practice and a BA (Mod) in Economics & Business, both from Trinity College Dublin’s Business School.