Down To Business

Bobby is sampling what the craft brewing industry in Ireland has to offer. He is joined by three people who are in various stages of their companies: Francis O’Flagherty - Owner and Founder of Connemara Brewing Company, Barbara-Anne McCabe – Co-Founder of Bridewell Brewery, and Cuilane Lochnane – Brewer and Owner of Whitefield Brewery.

120,000 visitors, 1,600 horses competing in over 168 classes and competitions – I'm out and about at the RDS ahead of the Dublin Horse Show.

Joining Bobby is Tom Parlon, the Construction Industry Federation’s Director General, who has seen his fair share of scraps, recessions, pandemics, and more besides. But after 16 years of helping the sector to navigate the good times and the bad, he has finally decided to hang up his boots.

Joining Bobby to take a look at the business stories hitting the headlines is Ken Murphy, former director of the Law Society of Ireland and Valerie Cox, Journalist and Author.

X has arrived, Spotify has hiked its prices and TikTok has moved into texting. Our resident Tech guru, Andy O’Donoughue joins Bobby to make sense of it all.

Do you know the difference between the left and the right sides of your brain? Yda Bouvier wants us to engage our right side of the brain more in our work lives, particularly if we manage a diverse team. Bouvier is a coach with 25 years experience and her new book, Leading with your Right Brain is just published.

Joining Bobby in the Executive Chair is Anthony Gallagher, founder & MD of Petstop.

Bobby was out and about at An Post’s Parcel Hub to take a look at what goes on there, to hear about some of the trends of what’s being sent through An Post, and just how much online shopping we’re doing. Joining Bobby is Garrett Bridgeman, Managing Director, An Post Commerce.

Trees provide us with many benefits in terms of improving air quality, and their visual impact, as well as simply being an integral part of the delicate ecosystems we have here in Ireland. But managing them can be tricky and making sure they are safe for our communities, essential. Joining Bobby to discuss the area of tree surgery is: - Wesley Monaghan of W. Monaghan’s Tree Services - Paddy Lyne, Abatis Tree Services

Joining Bobby to take a look at the business stories hitting the headlines is Caroline Reidy of the HR Suite, and also Jon Ihle who is Deputy Business Editor at the Sunday Times Ireland.

To wrap up what has been a fantastic experience broadcasting live from Reginald's Tower in Waterford City, Bobby is joined by singer-songwriter, Ryland Teifi.

Joining Bobby in the Executive Chair is Peter Mulryan of Blackwater Distillery.

Bobby is joined by two of the biggest foodies from the Waterford area - Tom Doorley, food writer and former judge on 'The Restaurant' and Michael Kelly of 'Grow It Yourself'.

Bobby is joined by some Waterford Businesses that could certainly be considered institutions at this stage - Johnny Flahavan of Flahavan’s; Kevin Jepsen of Ardkeen Quality Food Store; Elaine Power of East Pier; and Liam McDonnell of Legacy Craft Cider.

Bobby is joined by three people who know Waterford inside out - Clare Barrett, the Commercial Manager of House of Waterford; Jim Power, Economist and Waterford Native; and Paul Nolan, President of the Waterford Chamber.

While down in Waterford City as part of The Newstalk Summer Tour, Bobby paid a visit to The Irish Museum of Time.

A visit to Waterford wouldn’t be complete without a chat with Paul Flynn of The Tannery. This Dungarvan institution is a must-visit for anybody who knows their food and for more than 26 years, Paul has been at the helm. He joins Bobby to chat about how things are going and how things have changed.

Joining Bobby in Reginald’s Tower in Waterford City as part of The Newstalk Summer Tour to take a look at the stories that are making an impact on the front pages and the business pages of today’s papers is Dermot Keyes, PR & Communications Manager with Green Acre Marketing and Brian Nolan, Head of Communications with Sanofi.

Irish economic growth is still looking relatively strong but with multinational activity slowing, it can be hard to see the wood through the trees when it comes to making an accurate assessment of where the Irish economy stands in real terms. Joining Bobby to help demystify all of this is John Fitzgerald, Adjunct Professor in the Department of Economics at Trinity College Dublin.

Darren Ashby believes a sense of mission is crucial for any company to succeed. He is the co-author of 'Every Team Actually Doing Business Better' and he’s also Chief Impact officer of Businessfourzero. He joins Bobby to discuss the importance of having a mission in business.

Joining Bobby to take a look at the stories that are making an impact on the front pages and the business pages of today’s papers is Norah Casey and Conor Faughnan.

Joining Bobby in the Executive Chair is Ray Ryan, CEO of the Noledge Group.

This weekend a festival with a difference is taking place at Palmerstown House Estate, Kildare. 'Forever Young Festival' delights in taking us back to the 80’s with a lineup including legends such as Squeeze, Bananarama, Erasure, Andy Bell, Tony Hadley, and lots more. But despite the nasty weather, festival founder Sharon Alston is still all smiles. She joins Bobby to chat about what’s going on and how she came to start this retro music festival.

Solving the housing crisis and achieving targets with regard to the Climate Action Plan and the National Development Plan will require a huge effort on behalf of the construction industry. But do we have sufficient numbers of qualified graduates coming into the construction & surveying professions and if not, what does the future hold as we seek to address the mistakes of the past? Joining Bobby to discuss the construction and surveying industry is: - Noel Larkin of Noel Larkin & Associates Chartered Building Surveyors - Hubert Fitzpatrick, Director General of the Construction Industry Federation - Kevin Brady, Director at APNA and Immediate Past Chair of Quantity Surveying Professional Group in the SCSI

Joining Bobby in the Executive Chair this week is the Bank of Ireland's CEO Myles O'Grady.

Bobby goes to Rathcoole to visit Well Cann'd Water where he meets the founders. They tell us of the benefits of storing water in cans.

As part of this week’s industry review, we’re getting some fresh air with a panel of garden designers and landscapers. Here to tell us about the nature of their work is Nicola Haines, Landscape Designer, Mark McDowall, Principal Landscape Architect & Garden Designer at Hoctor Smyth, and Diarmuid Gavin, Celebrity Gardener.

Like it or not, there is sure to be one point in your life when you find yourself standing in front of a crowd, being asked to say a few words. It could be a wedding speech, a work presentation or a retirement toast. A big fear for many! Here to give us some tips to help you speak in public like a pro, is Anthony Garvey- the reigning UK Public Speaking Champion from Toastmasters International.

There is a growing call to grant Drogheda city status. Conor Skehan who is a Sunday Independent columnist and former lecturer in planning at TUI Dublin has long been a proponent of this campaign and maintains that it points to the future of urban planning in Ireland. He joins Bobby to share his thoughts.

Joining Bobby to take a look at the stories that are making an impact on the front pages & the business pages of today’s papers is Bob Hoffman of Vista Executive Search, and Susan Hayes Culleton of Hayes Culleton.

Joining Bobby in the Executive Chair is the CEO of Bord Iascaigh Mhara, Caroline Bocquel.

FoodCloud is a social enterprise with a vision for a world where no good food goes to waste. Bobby took a trip out to Tallaght to the 'FoodCloud Kitchen' to find out more about the business.

Earlier in the week The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) downgraded substantially its outlook for growth in Gross Domestic Product terms for the Irish economy, but it said the underlying position of the economy is still very strong. This seems to continue an economic narrative we’ve been observing here for a while where we seem to be told that things are both good and bad at the same time. To make sense of this all, Bobby is joined by Cliff Taylor of the Irish Times.

You may have seen recently that new legislation on health labeling for alcohol products has been signed into law by Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly. This got us thinking about the overall state of the off-trade sector and the many numerous obstacles it has had to navigate over the last number of years. For this week’s Industry Review Bobby is joined by: - Padraig Sweeney, owner of Sweeney’s D3 Off Licence and Café - Paul Foley, owner of The Corkscrew in Dublin - Cathal McHugh, Vice Chairman of NOffLA & owner of McHugh's Off Licences

Dominic Ashley-Timms believes that every moment is a coaching moment and if we understand that, our businesses will thrive, and our employees will engage much better. Dominic co-created the STAR manager programme and is also the author of ‘The Answer is a Question: The Missing Superpower that Changes Everything and Will Transform Your Impact as a Manager and Leader' - he joins Bobby to discuss.

Joining Bobby to take a look at the stories that are making an impact on the front pages & the business pages of today’s papers is Louisa Meehan of Woodview HRM and also by Joe Brennan who is Markets Correspondent with the Irish Times.

Joining Bobby in the Executive Chair is Croom Medical CEO, Patrick Byrnes.

Down to Business was broadcasting live in the Hunt Museum in Limerick as part of Newstalk’s Summer tour and in preparation did a survey with listeners on who they would like to hear from on the show. Karl Spain was the clear winner and so he joined Bobby for a chat about his life and career in the comedy world.

Bobby was out & about at the newly opened International Rugby Experience in Limerick city which has not only won over the hearts of Limerick natives but the building in which it is housed has also been crowned Ireland's favourite building for 2023.

Joining Bobby from the Hunt Museum is Ireland and Munster rugby legend, Marcus Horan to talk Munster rugby, Limerick city, and more.

Continuing his exploration of some of the most well-known Limerick-based businesses Bobby is joined by: - Dr. James Ring, CEO of global management consultancy Ingenium - Gillian Horan, CEO & founder of branding agency, The Pudding - Donal Galligan, CEO Takumi Precision Engineering

Bobby is joined by some Limerick Businesses that can be rightly described as institutions for the city and the wider community. - Mick Dolan of Dolans Warehouse - David Fitzgerald, General Manager of Limerick Milk Market · - Frank & Stephen O'Mahony of O'Mahony's Booksellers

Joining Bobby in The Hunt Museum is model agent and TV presenter, Celia Holman-Lee where they discuss what Limerick means to her and her life and times in the modelling industry.

Joining Bobby to take a look at the stories that are making an impact on the front & business pages of today’s papers is Nick Rabbitts, Business Reporter with the Limerick Leader & Adam Leahy, News Editor with the Limerick Post.

Joining Bobby in the Executive Chair this week is Tom Finn, CEO of Sliver Stream Health Care Group.

Antionette Oglethorpe has a lifetime’s experience in training, career development, and coaching. This spans from her time in Accenture right up to founding her own training and coaching company which has been running since 2012. This week also saw the publication of her new book 'Confident Career Conversations: Empower Your Employees for Career Growth and Retention'. She joins Bobby to discuss.

Ice-cream makers must be booming right now with the sun splitting the stones and the people getting out and about to make the most of the warm weather. For this week’s industry review, Bobby is joined by three ice cream makers to give us a sense of how things have been going for them: - Yasmin Kahn, Director of Teddys Ice Cream - Sean Murphy, co-owner of Murphy’s Ice Cream - David Kiersey, co-owner of Freezin’ Friesian

As we heard this week, Boris Johnston was found to have misled parliament over lockdown parties, a claim that he strenuously denies. It seems all year long we constantly hear of problems with Boris and indeed the wider conservative party. But what effect, if any, does all this have on the UK economy? Bobby is joined by David Smith, economist with the Sunday Times.

Joining Bobby to take a look at the stories that are making an impact on the front pages & the business pages of today’s papers is Joan Mulvihill who is the Digitization Lead at Siemens and Lorcan Allen who is Business Editor with the Business Post.

This week Bobby was out & about at Newbridge Silverware where he got the opportunity to take a look behind the scenes at how one of Ireland's longest-established indigenous businesses operates.