Irene McMonagle
Dublin
Summary
Commercially astute Head of Finance–level leader and Fellow Chartered Accountant with 15+ years’ experience leading finance functions across complex, multinational and high-growth organisations. Proven track record of owning financial planning, reporting, governance and commercial insight, partnering with senior leadership teams to drive profitable growth, capital efficiency and strategic decision-making.
Highly experienced in finance transformation, ERP implementation (SAP/Oracle), internal controls, audit leadership and developing high-performing finance teams. Trusted advisor with ability to translate complex financial data into clear, actionable narratives for executive and board-level stakeholders.
Overview
26
26
years of professional experience
Work history
Business Consultant
One Environments Ltd
, UK
2025.07 - 2025.11
Delivered clear, decisive support to the business navigating transition to Employee Ownership Trust, ensuring alignment of every financial and strategic step with long-term value for successful ownership transfer.
Senior Finance Manager
Siemens Energy Plc
, UK
2023.06 - 2025.06
Led Controlling and Finance team, reporting to Head of Commercial and Finance UK&I Substations construction business unit.
- Owned monthly close, management reporting and financial governance, improving close cycle by 30% while maintaining full IFRS and UK GAAP compliance.
- Led annual budgeting, forecasting and long-range planning, delivering 10% improvement in forecast accuracy through enhanced variance analysis and stakeholder challenge.
- Acted as finance partner to senior operational leaders, influencing commercial decisions, resource allocation and risk management.
- Led internal and external audits and strengthened internal control framework, ensuring robust financial governance.
Executive Education / Travel
Certificate in Sustainable Strategies
2022.08 - 2023.05
Head of Commercial Finance
Barbour Group Ltd
, UK
2018.09 - 2022.07
Led Commercial Finance team in family-run, British luxury brand.
- Established and led a newly formed Commercial Finance function, embedding business partnering model across a £300m revenue, multi-channel organisation.
- Key finance advisor to senior leadership team, influencing pricing, customer strategy, investment decisions and long-term planning.
- Developed robust financial models and scenario analysis to support strategic initiatives, margin improvement and growth investments.
Commercial Finance Manager
Three
, Ireland
2015.09 - 2018.08
Managed Commercial Finance post-acquisition of O2, servicing 2 million customers in a competitive market.
- Collaborated with commercial teams to deliver comprehensive business reporting and evaluations.
- Conducted thorough analysis of third-party commercial arrangements and forecasting.
- Monitored performance against forecasts, identifying trends and variances for strategic insights.
- Led team of seven professionals, fostering high performance through effective leadership and mentoring.
Finance Roles
Diageo Plc
, Ireland & UK
2005.06 - 2015.06
Progressed through multiple senior finance roles within a FTSE-listed multinational operating in over 180 countries.
- Accounting & Reporting Project Lead 2013 – 2015
- Packaging Finance Manager 2011 – 2013
- Group Finance Performance Analyst 2010 – 2011
- Customer Service Finance Manager 2008 – 2010
- Customer Service/Inventory Finance Analyst 2005 – 2008
General Accounting Team Lead
Accenture Plc
, Ireland
2003.03 - 2005.05
Trainee Accountant/Audit Senior
KPMG
1999.09 - 2003.09
Education
Fellow Chartered Accountant -
Chartered Accountants Ireland
Bachelor of Science - Accounting
Queens University Belfast
Certificate - The Circular Economy and Sustainable Strategies
Cambridge Judge Business School
Certificate - American Business Practice
Rocky Mountain College, Montana
Skills
- End-to-End Financial Leadership (Planning, Reporting, Controls, Audit)
- Strategic Planning, Budgeting & Forecasting
- Commercial Finance & Business Partnering at Executive Level
- Financial Governance, Risk & Regulatory Compliance (IFRS, UK GAAP)
- Finance Transformation, Systems & Digitalisation (SAP, Oracle, Power BI)
- Stakeholder Management (CEO, Board, Audit Committees, External Advisors)
- Building & Leading High-Performing Finance Teams
Accomplishments
- Finance Transformation and Digitalisation: Orchestrated reporting automation project in Siemens Energy, reducing report preparation time by 20%, improving data quality and enabling faster executive decision-making.
- Major Systems Investment & Change Leadership: Finance lead for £30m SAP CRM implementation at Diageo, ensuring robust financial governance, improved trade investment effectiveness and enhanced gross margin outcomes.
- Corporate Restructuring & Optimisation: Directed liquidation programme for 20 entities at Diageo, delivering £150k in annual cost savings through governance and proactive engagement with internal/external stakeholders (Legal, Property, Tax teams).
- Value Creation & Commercial Negotiation: Directed financial modelling and negotiation strategy for revised trade terms with key wholesale customers at Barbour, delivering £7m incremental annual revenue (8% uplift).
Affiliations
- Running – competed in three marathons
- Tennis – member of Women's club team
Timeline
Business Consultant
One Environments Ltd
2025.07 - 2025.11
Senior Finance Manager
Siemens Energy Plc
2023.06 - 2025.06
Executive Education / Travel
Certificate in Sustainable Strategies
2022.08 - 2023.05
Head of Commercial Finance
Barbour Group Ltd
2018.09 - 2022.07
Commercial Finance Manager
Three
2015.09 - 2018.08
Finance Roles
Diageo Plc
2005.06 - 2015.06
General Accounting Team Lead
Accenture Plc
2003.03 - 2005.05
Trainee Accountant/Audit Senior
KPMG
1999.09 - 2003.09
Fellow Chartered Accountant -
Chartered Accountants Ireland
Bachelor of Science - Accounting
Queens University Belfast
Certificate - The Circular Economy and Sustainable Strategies
Cambridge Judge Business School
Certificate - American Business Practice
Rocky Mountain College, Montana