Our Board

Carmel is the Group Head of Human Resources for Eason. As an experienced People Leader and Executive Coach, Carmel’s career background includes Human Resource leadership roles across many of Ireland’s biggest retail brands.

Her vast experience has seen her coach and mentor senior leaders from various organisations and industries including other retail businesses, IT, banking and aircraft leasing.

Carmel holds a Bachelor of Commerce and MBS (HRM), and qualified with a Diploma in Executive Coaching in 2014.

A pragmatic leader with strong operational and stakeholder management abilities, Carmel has been Chair of Volunteer Ireland since 2016.

Date of appointment: 9^th February 2016

Deirdre has been a solicitor for over 20 years, focusing on technology, data protection, and intellectual property. She is the co-founding partner of international law firm Bird & Bird in Ireland, having held partnerships in Irish law firms Matheson and LK Shields. She regularly lectures in the Law Society of Ireland. She is currently a member of the Intellectual Property & Data Protection Committee of the Law Society, having chaired the Committee between 2020 and 2022. She has also served on various committees of Technology Ireland, a part of the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC). She is part of the European leadership of ChIPs, a not-for-profit organisation supporting women working in the area of intellectual property. Deirdre lives in Dublin with her partner Sean, and two children.

“Volunteer Ireland provides incredibly important support to the volunteer community across Ireland. I am so grateful to have been appointed as a board member. I hope that I will assist with the valuable work that Volunteer Ireland carries out through my board position. I will strive to make a meaningful contribution.”

Francis is an Associate Director in the KPMG Corporate Finance team and his current focus is on Strategic Procurement projects within the Utility sector.

Francis is a Chartered Management Accountant and brings with him a range of experience in finance related appointments in IT, Health and Defence. As a former Commandant in the Irish Defence Forces senior officer, he gained invaluable experience working with the United Nations (Liberia, Kosovo and Lebanon).

Francis has completed a Bachelor of Commerce NUIG, MBS Strategic Procurement DCU and MSc Strategic Management Accounting, Smurfit Business School.

• Date of appointment: 12^th April 2016

Barbara Kilbride is the Manager of Volunteer Services at St Francis Hospice Dublin. She manages the 300+ volunteers across both the Raheny and Blanchardstown Hospices. Since joining St Francis Hospice Dublin she has led the organisation in achieving the Investing In Volunteers (IiV) accreditation. This is the National Quality Standard for good practice in volunteer management. Barbara has extensive experience in volunteer & event management. From working with Irish charities Fighting Blindness, Special Olympics Ireland, Make-A-Wish Ireland and further afield with Oxfam Australia. Barbara has always been passionate about volunteering and is an active volunteer herself.

I’m delighted to be appointed to the Volunteer Ireland Board. Volunteer Ireland has always given me, as a volunteer manager, the guidance, training and support that is needed to manage large groups of volunteers. They are my go-to organisation for best practice in volunteer management. I’m honoured to sit on the board and I hope to give something back to this fantastic organisation.

• Date of appointment: 10^th April 2018

Sarah Harte is currently EMEA Communications Manager at Twitter, where she is responsible for Twitter’s consumer and product communications across the region. With over a decade of experience in PR, communications and marketing, Sarah has worked with a range of organisations across the private, public and not-for-profit sector. Prior to her current role, Sarah worked in DHR Communications as an Account Director and lectured on the MA in Journalism and Public Relations course at Griffith College Dublin.

Sarah has also previously worked with the international development NGO, Plan Ireland, and with Business in the Community Ireland. Sarah has lived in Germany and Belgium, where she began her career with Tourism Ireland in Brussels, as part of the IBEC Export Orientation Programme (EOP). Sarah holds a BA in International Business and Languages (French and German) from Dublin City University, a Postgraduate Certificate in Marketing Practice from the Marketing Institute of Ireland, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Public Relations from the Fitzwilliam Institute. Sarah is a full member of the PRII and a member of the PRII National Council’s Sub-Committee on Education.

In her personal time, Sarah has volunteered for the ISPCC Childline service, after school homework club projects, food banks, theatre and arts organisations, and is currently an ALONE befriending volunteer and a mentor in the DCU MSc Strategic Communications Mentoring programme. At Twitter, Sarah is actively involved in the @TwitterOpen (LGBTQ group) and @TwitterWomen group, including CWIT (Connecting Women In Technology) which aims to support the development of women working in STEM. Follow her on Twitter @hartesarah.

• Date of appointment: 12^th June 2018.

Ian Dinan is an Organisational Behaviouralist based in the Midwest, with experience of three decades as a strategic leader, both as a volunteer and an employee in a diverse range of non-profit and voluntary organisations.

Working as an independent consultant in the areas of Strategic Planning, Organisational Behaviour and Change Management, his interests include equality and diversity, good governance, advocacy, public policy and organisations with an extra-urban perspective.

He is also a current board member with MOVE Ireland and he has previously served on the Board of University of Limerick (NIHE), Ireland Scholar Athlete Games, USIT Bureau and with the National Youth Council of Ireland.

Ian holds Degrees in Community and Youth Work and in Applied Social Studies and a Masters in Organisational Behaviour.

• Date of appointment: 12^th February 2019

Jane has over 10 years of varied legal experience. She is currently the Group General Counsel for the Linesight Group. Harnessing her background as a criminal barrister and encompassing her more recent inhouse experience in the construction and finance industries to provide clear structure, advice and support to deliver fundamental change and improvement in legal strategy, process and compliance.

Jane holds a Bachelor of Civil Law from UCD, a Masters in Law, Medicine and Healthcare from the University of Liverpool, and a Barrister at Law Degree from The Honorable Society of King’s Inns.

A chartered accountant by profession, Michael Tyndall held senior financial and management positions in insurance and distribution businesses before joining An Post in January 1989 as Head of Financial Accounting. He was appointed Company Secretary of An Post in April 1998 and held that position until his retirement in March 2011. He was also Company Secretary of An Post National Lottery Company and several other companies in the An Post Group and was a Trustee of the An Post Superannuation Schemes. In addition to his role as Company Secretary, he had management responsibility for the Security and Investigations Department, Legal Services, Insurance Services, Heritage and some Administration Services.

He now offers his services on a pro bono basis to various charities and similar bodies and, since his retirement from An Post, he has been

• The Independent Chairperson of the Audit and Risk Committee of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission;
• A Director and Company Secretary of the Asthma Society of Ireland Limited and chairman of that company’s Audit, Risk and Finance Committee;
• The Chairman of Northside Citizens Information Service Limited;
• A Director of Victim Support at Court Limited;
• A Director and Treasurer of Dublin City Childcare Committee Limited and a member of that company’s Audit, Risk and Finance Committee; and
• A Director of Youth Advocate Programmes Ireland Limited.

Currently, he is

• The Chairperson of Crime Victims Helpline Limited,
• A Director of Volunteer Ireland.

Paul manages the Limerick Volunteer Centre and in this capacity is a Volunteer Centre Nominee on the board. He began his career in Irish Defence Forces and served overseas in Lebanon. Later in the UK he was trained in Management with one of their largest national printers. After seven years in the UK he returned to Ireland and worked in sales. In 2006 he commenced his current employment initially as a Volunteer Support Worker and began the journey from what was a local initiative to what is now Limerick Volunteer Centre. He has managed the VC since 2012.

Academically Paul qualified in Youth and Community Work with University College Cork (UCC). In his spare time he is involved in his own community particularly in the areas of heritage and the performing arts. In 2018 he wrote and directed “The Last Druid”. It’s a “community production” that required a cast of 70 locals and was performed in 2018 for the 150 year anniversary of the finding of The Ardagh Chalice.

He has witnessed on many occasions how local quality volunteering projects can develop into something greater than the sum of their parts. He wants service on the VI Board to reflect positively on such developments on a national level.

Orla is the Administrator and Garda Vetting Officer with Leitrim Volunteer Centre.

Orla has a Post Graduate Diploma in Leadership and Management in the Community and Public Sector from St. Angela’s College/National University of Ireland, Galway.

Prior to joining Leitrim Volunteer Centre, Orla has worked in the charities sector for 25 years in financial administration and governance.  Orla also worked in business administration in the corporate sector in London for ten years.

Orla has volunteered in many groups in her local community over the past 25 years and knows the fantastic results a group of dedicated volunteers can achieve.

“I’m delighted to be appointed to the Volunteer Ireland Board as a Volunteer Centre nominee.  Volunteer Ireland supports Volunteer Centres with guidance, training and support.  I hope I can do the volunteer centres justice and make a valuable contribution to the Volunteer Ireland Board.”