Digital Business Ireland has appointed chief executive and co-founder of Core Optimisation Caroline Dunlea as its chairperson, it was announced today.
Dunlea will take over from the current chairperson, Ashley McDonnell of Puig, at the end of this month.
Caroline Dunlea
Dunlea, a founding council member of Digital Business Ireland, co-founded Core Optimisation in 2015.
The Clare-based digital growth agency supports digital transformation for businesses in the Irish and UK markets.
Dunlea was a 2022 finalist in the EY Entrepreneur of the Year ‘Emerging’ category. She won the Entrepreneur Award from the Dublin Tech Summit, Women in Tech, in 2019.
Dunlea also leads Core Optimisation’s management of the digital transformation programme – ‘Digital that Delivers’ – for Fáilte Ireland.
‘A Major Asset’
The secretary general of Digital Business Ireland, Lorraine Higgins, said that she was delighted to announce the appointment of the new chairperson.
Higgins said, “Caroline has been involved with Digital Business Ireland from the very beginning, as a founding council member and trusted voice on the advisory council.
“There is no doubt that her experience and talent will be a major asset to Digital Business Ireland as we look to deliver on our ambitions for 2024 and beyond.”
She concluded, “On behalf of Digital Business Ireland, I want to extend our thanks to Ashley, who has done a spectacular job in her role and wish her the very best with her many endeavours in Paris.”
On her appointment, Dunlea said, “I am so pleased to be appointed chairperson of Digital Business Ireland, and I look forward to leading the country’s dedicated representative body for digital and e-commerce [activities].
“It is an exciting time for Digital Business Ireland, with outstanding work being done by the team on the recent National Digital Awards, the summit in the autumn, and the growth of the female-mentoring initiative.
“I am thrilled to be taking on the role during such a transformative time for the Irish digital sector and look forward to building on the success of Digital Business Ireland for our members and partners.”
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