The Board of daa has appointed Kenny Jacobs as the company’s new Chief Executive Officer. Mr Jacobs will take up the role in January, succeeding Dalton Philips, who left the business at the end of the summer. Mr Jacobs has been appointed for a seven-year term.
daa has airport and travel retail business interests in 15 countries around the world. daa’s principal activities include operating Dublin and Cork airports in Ireland, global airport retailing through its subsidiary Aer Rianta International (ARI) and international aviation consultancy and investment through daa International. The company is state-owned and headquartered at Dublin Airport.
Kenny Jacobs, a Cork native, has extensive experience in marketing, commercial and operations in large consumer serving businesses. He spent over six years at Ryanair as Chief Marketing Officer, where he led digital, customer service, marketing and communications. During his career, he has gained valuable international experience working for major companies, including Metro Group, MoneySuperMarket, Tesco Ireland & UK and Ryanair.
daa chairman Basil Geoghegan, said: “We are delighted that Kenny is joining daa as CEO. He brings a unique knowledge of aviation and retail businesses and understands the importance of excellent customer service, commercial growth, retail, and marketing and communications. He has a proven track record of putting the customer at the heart of the business and on the delivery of outstanding service. His leadership, expertise and experience will be vital to our operations at Dublin and Cork airports, in ARI and in daa international as we embrace the growth opportunities that lie ahead. Kenny is keen to engage with our customers, employees and other stakeholders to champion the implementation of our new daa corporate strategy under his tenure. I know Kenny will make a strong positive impact on our people and on our business at home and abroad. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my thanks and appreciation and that of the Board to Catherine Gubbins, who has acted as daa’s Interim CEO as well as fulfilling her role as CFO during the transition.”
Kenny Jacobs said: “I am delighted to be taking up this role at an important time for daa and I am looking forward to working with daa’s experienced and committed team, as well as our airline and airport customers and other stakeholders to progress our growth plans for a sustainable future. I know first-hand the vital role that everyone at daa plays in supporting inbound tourism, providing connectivity for businesses in an open island economy and enabling the love of travel that Irish consumers have. My focus will be to deliver an efficient travel experience for consumers using our airports, supporting traffic growth and building on daa’s vast experience of operating national strategic infrastructure, at home and abroad as a key economic enabler in terms of trade, tourism and social cohesion.”
