One of Ireland’s leading agencies, Connelly Partners, has announced a new Leadership Team comprising Vaunnie McDermott (Client Service and Business Director), Mary McMahon (Strategy Director) and Ronan Doyle (Art and Creative Director). Over the last 18 months, the trio have been involved in a number of high profile wins from both existing and new clients.
“We have won a wide range of clients including 123.ie Insurance, Audi Ireland, Women’s Gaelic Players Association & Gaelic Players Association, Defiant Water, Barnardos and Limerick Enterprise Development Partnership. We have also retained the Bus Éireann / Expressway account, which has been with us for 11 years," commented Vaunnie McDermott, Client Service and Business Director, Connelly Partners.
In 2018, Connelly Partners Boston acquired Strategem, the Irish digital advertising agency (Dublin), with a view to deepening its European roots and increasing global growth. Keith Lee, the then incumbent Managing Director of Stratagem has spent the last number of years managing the transition. In March 2021, as planned Keith stepped aside and the new SMT was put into place. Commenting on the recent changes is Steve Connelly, President of Connelly Partners "We are truly excited about developments in Ireland, and particularly the level and calibre of recent client wins. Mary, Ronan and Vaunnie bring a tremendous knowledge, passion and experience to the company and personally I look forward to working with them all in the future. I would also like to thank Keith Lee for his ongoing creativity and support in recent years."
“Our vision for the agency is to find more opportunities to integrate strategic and creative services between Dublin and Boston. In 2021, our joint ventures have led to new accounts valued at over €1m in turnover, we are now scaling up our teams as a result. This integrated approach will benefit our Irish clients by offering a small, agile, yet experienced team in Dublin that knows the market inside out. Furthermore, central to our offering is our belief that people buy into products and services based on emotion and once you understand those emotive drivers, the most impactful creative will flow from there. We call this being Definitely Human and it underpins everything we do. Connelly Partners has the added benefit of access to the wealth of global experience across different sectors and brands to call on when required; whether to scale projects or deliver to extremely tight deadlines. We see Connelly Partners Dublin more and more as a global agency with local understanding.” says Mary McMahon.
Vaunnie McDermott has over 20 years’ experience working as a marketing professional in media and advertising across both the agency side (with Irish International BBDO) and the client side (with RTE and Irish Examiner). Vaunnie is a natural communicator and works closely with clients to deliver personal and professional customer service.
Mary McMahon joined CP in February 2020. Since then, Mary has been integral in putting the agency on the map in Ireland, building out the team, attracting new clients, and supporting CP’s roster globally through the pandemic. She has an enviable agency background having worked in McConnells, Irish International BBDO, Owens DDB and Chemistry over the last 14 years. Mary is obsessed with consumers and trying to genuinely understand their behaviours and choices. Leveraging CP’s anthropological process, she helps clients tap into those observations to unlock new opportunities for their businesses.
Ronan Doyle has been with CP since 2003 and has consistently delivered award winning work for major brands including 123.ie Insurance, Diageo Global, Danone, Aer Lingus, AIB, Kerry Foods and Premier Foods. Recently Ronan has created visual identities for Bus Éireann, Tipperary County Council, The Shannon Group and Expressway. He loves everything digital and marries new technologies, software and skills with traditional design principles.
The SMT will be busy for the next few weeks, recruiting for a number of roles as they grow the Dublin agency, welcoming a new Strategic Planner hire and currently recruiting for two Account Executives, an Account Manager and an Art Director. What might interest candidates are a number of new policies the agency is implementing which address work/life balance, international opportunities and a focus on blended working.
To learn more about Connelly Partners check out www.connellypartners.com or visit our social channels, Instagram, Facebook.
