As part of this programme, daa retained our services to appoint a Head of Delivery to lead the successful delivery of its expanding capital infrastructure portfolio.
daa is the operator of Dublin and Cork Airports and is responsible for the development, management and operation of key aviation infrastructure in Ireland. Headquartered in Dublin, the organisation plays a central role in Ireland’s aviation infrastructure.
To support continued passenger growth and enhance airport capacity, the organisation is delivering a significant capital investment programme comprising a wide range of complex infrastructure and construction projects across both airports.
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As part of this programme, daa retained our services to appoint a Head of Delivery to lead the successful delivery of its expanding capital infrastructure portfolio.
Reporting to the Director of Infrastructure, this role sits within the senior leadership team and is responsible for leading a large internal project management function overseeing a diverse portfolio of projects delivered within a live operational airport environment.
This was a critical appointment requiring a senior infrastructure leader with a strong track record delivering major capital programmes, leading multidisciplinary teams and working with integrated delivery partners to ensure projects are delivered safely, efficiently and to the highest standards.
The focus for this search was to identify candidates with extensive experience delivering large-scale capital infrastructure programmes within complex operational environments. daa required a senior leader capable of overseeing a significant portfolio of projects, leading large multidisciplinary teams and driving performance across an integrated delivery structure.
To achieve this, we targeted candidates from a range of infrastructure sectors where similar programme delivery challenges exist. This included major infrastructure clients in Ireland, leading contractors and consultancies delivering large capital programmes, as well as candidates operating internationally who had experience delivering complex infrastructure projects who had strong links to Ireland.
A detailed market mapping exercise was undertaken to identify senior delivery leaders across these organisations, supported by targeted Boolean searches and research across industry networks, professional associations and infrastructure project teams.
Identified candidates were approached through a variety of methods including personalised outreach, LinkedIn messaging and introductions through established industry networks. Interested candidates were then assessed through competency-based interviews, with particular focus on their experience leading major capital programmes, managing large teams and operating within complex stakeholder environments.
The main challenge we faced in the delivery of this assignment was that the role had been in the market for several months prior to our involvement. As a result, many of the senior candidates identified through our search had already been approached about the opportunity, making initial engagement more challenging.
We addressed this by repositioning the role and engaging candidates in more detailed conversations around the scale of daa’s capital investment programme and the strategic impact of the position. By leveraging our networks and taking a more targeted approach to candidate engagement, we were able to re-ignite interest and build a strong shortlist for the client.
From a longlist of 115, every candidate was contacted to determine their interest. Newsom Consulting presented a shortlist of 3 candidates. The successful candidate joined from a civil engineering contractor and had 22 years of experience in major infrastructure delivery, in Ireland and Australia.
