The Board of EIL/AFS is pleased to announce the appointment of Aideen O’Leary as CEO from January 8th next. Her appointment follows the retirement of long standing CEO Kevin Hickey.
Aideen brings EIL/AFS a wealth of professional experience across sectors and geographies, including 6 years working in the development sector in Africa and a background in international banking. In addition to speaking French and Spanish, Aideen has a post graduate in Finance and an MBA in Leadership and Sustainability and has always embodied the ethos and values of EIL/AFS, having lived in 7 countries and travelled to 50.
Prior to joining EIL/AFS, Aideen oversaw Irish charity Bóthar through a significant crisis, and was instrumental in implementing robust governance and financial controls, clean accounts, and leading the organisation back to a position of being able to actively fundraise.
According to EIL/AFS Board Chair, Niamh Hill, Aideen joins EIL at a pivotal time as the organisation is back on a growth trajectory following the challenges of the Covid pandemic. Ms. Hill went on to say that “We are excited about the skillset, experience and passion that Aideen brings to the organisation and we’re very much looking forward to working with her in the coming years”.
The outgoing CEO retires after 30 plus years leading the organisation. Kevin took over a small kitchen table project in the early 1990s and under his leadership the organisation grew to become a respected not-for-profit with a staff of 18 – 20 people, annual revenues of €5 million and over 2,000 programme participants each year.
