Irish Innovation Night – 14 September
News
08 September 2023The Consulate General of Ireland in Miami is delighted to partner with Venture Café Miami and the World Affairs Council Miami for an “Irish Innovation Night” on Thursday, September 14, 2023.
Starting at 5 pm, there will be an opportunity to network and sample some aspects of Ireland, including language, literature, sport, food and dance, before a discussion on Irish innovation and US-Ireland economic relationships, with a focus on tech.
As well as the Consulate, you will have an opportunity to hear from IDA Ireland, Brenock and Fenergo, and to meet lots of interesting, fun people with an interest in, or connection to, Ireland. Short biographical notes on the featured speakers are below.
The event will take place on the first floor of the Converge Miami Building, located at 1951 NW 7th Ave, Miami, FL 33136.
We very much hope that you can join us on the night.
Keynote speaker
Sarah Kavanagh
Sarah Kavanagh took up her post as Consul General of Ireland in Miami in October 2022 and is leading the establishment of Ireland’s first Consulate General in Florida. The Consulate has responsibility for Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. Its role is to foster closer economic, political and cultural and diaspora links and to provide consular services to Irish citizens.
Ms. Kavanagh previously served as Deputy Director of the Human Rights Unit of the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin. Prior to joining the diplomatic service in 2020, Ms. Kavanagh served as Special Adviser to the Minister for Justice and Equality (2017-2020) and Special Adviser to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (2014-2017). She also served for a brief period as a ministerial Special Adviser in the Department of Children and Youth Affairs. From 2005-2014, she worked in the Houses of the Oireachtas (Parliament of Ireland) in a range of policy, strategy development and political communication roles.
Ms. Kavanagh is originally from Galmoy, Co. Kilkenny in the southeast of Ireland. A lawyer by training, she holds a Barrister-at-Law Degree (2012) and a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Studies (2010) from the Honorable Society of King’s Inns, Dublin. She also holds Masters Degrees in Political Communication (Dublin City University, 2017) and Politics (University College Dublin, 2021) and a BA Degree in History and Politics (University College Dublin 2020).
About the Panel
Manus Walsh
Manus Walsh is an Irish entrepreneur who founded Brenock Technology in Miami in 1995 expressly to specialize in emerging web technologies. Prior to Brenock Technology’s inception, Walsh consulted for many Fortune 100 companies. He has extensive full life cycle software design and development experience within the Manufacturing, Private Banking, Marine, Healthcare and Hospitality industries.
Brenock initially focused on developing supply chain optimization software for a global fast food company before progressing into becoming a full-service provider of comprehensive technology solutions for the marine and cruise line industry, and an innovative developer of cloud-based and mobile friendly applications.
In 2020, Brenock entered into a Joint Venture with Tideworks Technology, a division of Carrix, allowing it to leverage their global network and accelerate its growth, through expansion into commercial shipping and cross marketing to their customer bases.
Catherina Blewitt
Catherina Blewitt represents IDA Ireland, the Irish Government’s inward investment and promotion agency responsible for attracting Foreign Direct Investment to Ireland. There are currently almost 1,800 multi-national companies with operations in Ireland employing over 300,000 people.
An accomplished international trade and development professional, Catherina brings a wealth of expertise to her current role of VP Technology, Consumer, Content, and Business Services at IDA Ireland. Operating from Atlanta, she is responsible for business development and client relationships across seven states: Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
Catherina relocated to the US with her husband and young family in early 2022 from Galway on the West coast of Ireland following an influential decade-long tenure as the West Region Manager for IDA Ireland. Her steadfast leadership during this period, played a pivotal role in advancing the agency's regional development initiatives, and consistently drove yearly increases in both the number of FDI companies and the employment opportunities they generated within the West Region. Preceding this role, Catherina held executive positions within IDA Ireland’s Property, and Corporate Communications Divisions.
Ms. Blewitt is an alumna of the University of Galway (UCG) and University of Dublin (UCD) where she earned her master’s degree in Regional and Urban Planning and Development. Her academic foundation complements her professional trajectory, underscoring her commitment to shaping thriving communities and fostering economic progress.
Chris Zingo
Chris Zingo is the Chief Revenue Officer at Fenergo where he is responsible for Fenergo’s revenue growth. At Fenergo, Chris has hit the ground running, quickly establishing and opening the company’s new Miami, Florida, office. Chris’ focus is on accelerating Fenergo’s global go-to-market (GTM) transformation and defining the strategy, target operating model, and ability to expand routes to markets, to further differentiate Fenergo’s SaaS offering.
Chris is a forward-thinking, influential leader with a distinguished career record of achievement and attainment of growth objectives and EBITDA goals. Chris brings more than two decades of growth experience across FinTech industries, developing and executing business models and integrated solutions for global scale. With more than two decades of experience in driving growth across fintech industries, Chris Zingo brings deep experience in transforming GTM operations and steering firms through growth stages from start-up to private equity through to exit.
Before joining Fenergo, Chris was a key member of the leadership team who spearheaded the merger of Misys and D&H and the subsequent rebrand to Finastra, where he held the role of CRO. Prior to this, Chris held senior roles at Calypso Technology, SuperDerivatives and Thomson Reuters. Chris holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Technology and Finance.