Meet Our Creative Event Management Team
With decades of professional event management experience, the Summit Focus team includes a three strand approach (PLANNING PROMOTING PRODUCING) to provide you with a one stop shop for all your event management requirements.
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Marie Griffin, Managing Director
Managing Director for over five years with Event Management International which she co-founded, Marie successfully developed its conference management business from inception in 2005 before setting up Summit Focus in 2010. A member of the Marketing Institute of Ireland, Marie holds qualifications in Business Studies (Cork Institute of Technology) and Digital Marketing (Fitzwilliam Institute). She also served on the successful steering committee to establish the Events Industry Skillnet and was an active member of NEO Ireland (Network of Event Organisers).
With a background in the financial services sector spanning (dare we say it) almost three decades, Marie has been a full time professional event and conference manager for many years utilising strong marketing expertise from previous employments in the US and the UK. She has been working in Ireland in partnership with leading industry associations to develop relevant internationally reputable conference programmes including the Dublin International Insurance & Management Association (DIMA), Irish Association of Corporate Treasurers (IACT), Irish Association of Investment Managers (IAIM), International Fiscal Association Ireland, Institute of Governance, Risk & Compliance (IGRC), etc. An ongoing member of the Marketing Institute of Ireland (MII), Marie has long established relationships with many organisations including Financial Services Ireland (FSI), Society of Actuaries in Ireland (SAI), Irish Association of Pension Funds (IAPF), Irish Banking Federation (IBF), Insurance Institute of Ireland (III), etc.
Sourcing and securing leading industry experts to deliver quality events every time, Marie and her team engage senior level industry leaders for keynote, presentation and discussion panels, etc. Employing innovative marketing strategies and developing successful online campaigns to promote and market conferences and our client companies, she also maximises on her extensive relationships with local and international companies in the re/insurance, banking, finance and legal sectors; as well as senior industry association representatives, Government ministers and leaders, regulatory authority representatives, key service providers, etc.
Events Marie has developed and promoted in the past include:
- Consumer Compliance Seminar
- Consumer Protection Code Seminar
- Consumer Rights In The Insurance Sector
- Corporate Treasury and Cash Management
- European Insurance Forum
- Leadership Forum
- The Business of Climate Change
- Treating Your Insurance Customer Fairly
A former Irish international soccer player and former Cork senior county footballer, she still harbours dreams of returning to her younger days of past glory!!! But for now, she is content with the more sedate pastimes of mediocre golf, commuter cycling and leisurely hillwalking.
Caroline Swords
A marketing and event management professional in Ireland, the UK and Australia over almost 20 years, Caroline is dedicated to maintaining high quality standards, with strong strategic capability and management expertise. To the Summit Focus team, she brings a strong track record in building influential profitable customer relationships as well as working to deliver strategically planned event marketing campaigns. Self motivated, Caroline is proficient in developing and implementing marketing activity across all events and key disciplines of sales promotion, advertising, direct marketing & digital media
Kelly Sullivan
Kelly is an American import who has been working in the field of event and conference services for nearly a decade. With a keen attention to detail and ability to translate the clients vision into a formidable event, Kelly is a strong asset to the Summit Focus events team. Her experience ranges from prestigious American Universities to distinguished Irish holdings including the American Chamber of Commerce Ireland, the IAPF and many other multinational conglomerates. Her corporate and private experience have helped her seamlessly integrate with Summit Focus and its continued work.
Helen McCarthy
As our senior conference coordinator, Helen brings an innovative mindset and collaborative attitute to the team. With her background in engineering, she loves the processes, the formatting, the planning and development. She enjoys the satisfaction & sense of achievement after final delivery of each conference. A consummate professional with meticulous attention to detail, Helen puts her skills to good use during the development lifespan of every Summit Focus conference.
Mary O’Dwyer
A valuable contributor to the event team for many years, Mary understands the needs of our clients and our conferences as well as the demands of our valued sponsors and exhibitors to deliver a well-planned event. She also manages Summit Focus’ banking, book-keeping, Revenue filings, etc.
Paul Duffy
A RedHat Certified Technician (RHCT), Linux system administrator, VMWare Certified Professional (VCP), Windows system administrator, cisco firewalls and networking equipment, Paul continues to upgrade and maintain Summit Focus’ IT infra-structure.