Local businessman elected to ISME national council

(Above) Ciaran Murtagh.

A Westmeath businessman has been elected to the new national council of the Irish SME Association (ISME).

Ciaran Murtagh, managing director of Shay Murtagh Precast, is one of 27 business people from across the country who have been elected to ISME's new national council.

Ciaran is the managing director of the family business founded by his father Shay. Over the past four decades Shay Murtagh Precast has established itself as a leading specialist in the design, manufacture and installation of precast concrete products. With over 20 years’ experience in the civil engineering industry, he has been involved in the research and innovation of new products within the company and has developed the Septec Wastewater Treatment system and Rainman Rainwater Harvesting System. Ciaran brought the company to the UK market in 2007 and it is now seen as the leading provider of off-site value engineering solutions to the UK and Irish infrastructure sector.

The new council elected is the first with a female majority, comprised of 56% female and 44% male members, since ISME’s foundation in 1993.

Margaret O’Rourke Doherty was elected as the new chair of the national council for the 2021-2023 term. Margaret is the CEO of the Hair and Beauty Industry Confederation (HABIC) and is the 17th chair of ISME and the second female chair.

Ms O'Rourke Doherty said that she is "delighted and proud to be elected as ISME Chair for the 2021-2023 term".

"It is a significant day for ISME, as for the first time ever the national council has a female majority, with fifteen women on the Council out of twenty seven members. Female entrepreneurs and business owners are not often given due credit for the high number of businesses they run in the SME sector. Our new Council also reflects sectoral diversity, including in the areas of services, manufacturing, food, retail and technology.

“I am also pleased to welcome onto the national council the heads of other trade groups in the childcare, retail, and artisan food and distillery sectors. Together, building on the achievements of our previous national councils, we will cement ISME as the independent voice of small enterprise in the Irish economy.”

Of the twenty-seven new members of the national council, five members have joined from industry associations representing medical and pharmaceutical, childcare, retail, agriculture, and food and beverage sectors. These include: Healthstores Ireland, the Federation of Early Childhood Providers, the Irish Egg Association, the Association of Fine Jewellers and the Irish Craft Artisan Distilleries Association.

With over 10,500 members nationwide, ISME’s new council members are elected owner/managers of SMEs from all over Ireland and from a variety of sectors. 46% of members are based in Dublin, with 19% in the Midlands, 11% in both the North East and South East, 7% in both the North West and South West and 4% in the South of Ireland.