Meet The
Team

Open Ireland Network is a social enterprise dedicated to fostering open source innovation across the island of Ireland. By connecting individuals and organisations from government, business, academia, and the broader tech community, Open Ireland Network promotes collaboration, knowledge sharing around open source best practices. We focus on building sustainable and inclusive ecosystems and supporting emerging open source communities of practice. Find out more at www.openirelandnetwork.com. The Open Ireland Network community was set up with the support of Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet.

Ailbhe Duffy

Head of Marketing & Partnerships

Ailbhe has over 30 years as a seasoned marketing and business development professional with a robust track record in scaling businesses, particularly in telecoms, engineering, software and fintech sectors. She specialises in providing strategic marketing consultancy, helping technology-based companies establish and enhance their marketing functions to overcome growth challenges. Her experience includes developing comprehensive go-to-market strategies, building customer-centric brand identities, and aligning sales and marketing initiatives to drive international expansion. Ailbhe is a powerhouse of strategic insight, actionable planning, and transformative leadership in the business community.

Clare Dillon

Co-founder & Organiser

With over 25 years' of experience in the technology industry, Clare Dillon is currently a researcher with the University of Galway, focusing on researching open, collaborative software development practices. She works with Lero’s OSPO (Open Source Program Office). In 2021, Clare co-founded Open Ireland Network, a community for those interested in promoting open source in Ireland. Clare is a community lead with CURIOSS, a global community for those who work in university and research institutions OSPOs. From 2021-2023, Clare served as the inaugural Executive Director of InnerSource Commons, the world’s largest community of InnerSource practitioners. Previously, Clare was a member of the Microsoft Ireland Leadership Team for 8 years, heading up their Developer Evangelism Group. Clare is also a qualified coach.

Joan Mulvihill

Moderator

Digitalisation and Sustainability Lead for Siemens in Ireland, Joan Mulvihill is at the forefront of driving technology adoption in Ireland for the past decade. Serving as CEO of the Irish Internet Association for 7 years followed by 2 years as Centre Director for the Irish Centre for Cloud Computing, Joan’s role in leading digitalisation for Siemens customers builds on her deep commitment to and understanding of the needs of Irish business to create sustainable value. With her colleagues at Siemens, Joan believes in collaborating with customers in the leveraging of collective domain expertise, creative thinking and problem solving to realise solutions that transform businesses and create a sustainable future.

Michael Meagher

Director & Organiser

With over two decades in the software industry, Michael is a tech-savvy strategist, passionate innovator, and advocate for all things open. As Director of the Open Ireland Network, he is dedicated to helping organisations embrace open source and unlock transformative opportunities of open practices. Michael’s career spans leadership roles in technical marketing and developer evangelism for one of the largest tech companies, where he honed his expertise in community building and audience reach. Michael has also led efforts to develop new frameworks for developing open source policies within Irish universities and fostering collaboration between academia and industry. He has also worked on the creation of a comprehensive directory of open-source skills designed to empower Irish organisations by connecting them with the resources needed to get started and thrive in the open-source ecosystem. Actively engaged with key players driving open source AI initiatives, Michael bridges cutting-edge innovation with practical application. In addition to his work in open source, Michael is a qualified coach and mentor to several technology startups. He brings his wealth of experience to guide emerging innovators, helping them navigate challenges and achieve their goals. Known for his collaborative energy and creative problem-solving, Michael sees huge opportunities to unite academia, industry, and government to shape an inclusive, innovative future for open source in Ireland. Be sure to catch Michael at the Summit and say hell, he’s always eager to share ideas and connect.