Geraldine Larkin is to be the new Chief Executive of the Irish Greyhound Board.
This follows a competitive recruitment process by the Public Appointments Service undertaken after Adrian Neilan stepped down from the role earlier this year.
Larkin is currently the Chief Executive of the Private Security Authority where she has been in charge since January 2005. While there she has overseen the introduction of regulation to the private security industry. That industry currently has an annual turnover of around €500m with 800 businesses and in the region of 28,000 licensed individuals.
Larkin previously worked in the civil service where she held a number of key posts in the Department of Justice and Equality, including areas such as Courts Policy, International Policy, Security and Northern Ireland, Criminal Law Review and Human Rights.
“I am very excited to be joining the Irish Greyhound Board at this stage in the development of the greyhound industry which has been making significant progress on all fronts,” said Larkin.
“I am mindful of the current business challenges in what are still recessionary times and where greyhound racing is competing for discretionary spending in the entertainment space.”
“I also understand and appreciate the critical importance of sustainable breeding levels and the availability of world class greyhounds to the future of the industry here.’’
“Geraldine’s experience of regulatory and compliance affairs both in the Department of Justice and latterly in a leadership role with the Private Security Authority is extremely impressive and I look forward to her joining the greyhound industry at leadership level,” added Irish Greyhound Board Chairman Phil Meany after the appointment.
Larkin joins a small but growing band of women CEO’s at the head of Irish sporting organisations. As such she is a likely candidate for our list of the 40 most influential women in Irish sport.
