08:15 Registration with Refreshments & Networking
09:00 Welcome & Housekeeping
Keenan Stack, Transport & Infrastructure Policy Executive at Ibec
09:05 Security & Defence: Pillars of a Resilient Europe
Jackie King, Executive Director at Ibec Global
Jackie King, Executive Director at Ibec Global, will discuss the intersection of European competitiveness and security. Drawing from Ibec’s campaign for Ireland’s upcoming EU Presidency, "Making a Resilient, Competitive EU a Reality", she will outline how recent geopolitical shocks have demonstrated that the ability to protect, adapt, and innovate is central to economic competitiveness and how resilience has become the essential foundation that connects Europe’s security, defence and industrial strengths.
Modern businesses require confidence that critical systems, ranging from data and energy to finance, remain secure and future-ready. Economic competitiveness and security now overlap with cybersecurity and critical-infrastructure protection at the top of the agenda. There is a growing need for a whole-of-economy approach, where public and private sector collaboration is required to ensure operational continuity and the stability of essential services
09:15 Legislative Briefing on the Internal Market Emergency & Resilience Act (IMERA)
EU & Trade Regulation Division, Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment (DETE)
The Internal Market Emergency and Resilience Act (IMERA) serves as the European Union's legislative response to the supply chain fragilities exposed by recent global shocks. Set for implementation in late May, this critical piece of regulation is designed to safeguard essential trade routes and will ensure that Ireland remains a resilient and competitive FDI.
A central component of the Act involves mandated supply chain stress tests and simulations with the legislation strongly encouraging organisations to participate in voluntary crisis simulations and protocols to build robust emergency preparedness. To comply with the new regulation, Irish firms will need to equip their workforces with the skills required to ensure compliance, including crisis protocol management and enhanced data reporting structures. DETE will be taking this opportunity to brief the industry leaders in the room and discuss how Government intends to engage business when the next crisis hits.
09:35 Building to Last: Resilient Infrastructure for our Supply Chains
Cormac Kennedy, Head of Commercial at Dublin Port Company
Stephen Prendiville, Infrastructure, Transport & Regional Government Lead at Deloitte
Jackie King, Executive Director of Ibec Global
This panel will discuss the capital investments required to future-proof Ireland’s critical enabling infrastructure, the interconnectedness of our supply chains with our Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) model, raise awareness of the time-sensitive nature of Ireland’s on-time logistics networks alongside the role of our air freight and maritime network.
The panel will also examine how we build anticipatory resilience, integrate new technologies in response to ageing infrastructure, how organisations can respond best to shocks i.e. geopolitical, inclement weather, cyberattacks, adopt international best practices, and cultivate the lifelong learning and skills necessary to safeguard the trade that underpins the Irish economy.
10:15 Weathering the Storms: Skills for Operational Resilience
Dr. Michael Gillen, Head of OSH Policy at Ibec
Barry Whelan, CEO of Excel Recruitment
Aaron Murphy, Head of Distribution and Fulfilment at Tesco Ireland
Jim Hackett, Supply Chain Senior Director at BioMarin
This session shifts the focus to the day-to-day realities of supply chain resilience. Highlighting the expertise across Ibec’s various Supply Chain Groups, this panel will unpack the on-the-ground considerations necessary for maintaining operational resilience while sharing strategies for emergency preparedness, which sectors are most vulnerable to these sudden shocks and reveal best practices for crisis communications, dynamic risk management, and avoiding overdependence on single points of failure.
Panelists will discuss real-world case studies, including the sectoral response to Storm Éowyn and the immediate operational fallout from unexpected port closures, how major organisations navigate Yellow, Orange, and Red weather alerts while ensuring business continuity when critical utilities and digital infrastructures are compromised. We will discuss the human element at the heart of this work required to execute these strategies, discussing the specific skills needed to adapt to Ireland's current infrastructural constraints and the skills gaps that must be addressed to bolster our supply chain resilience.
10:55 Closing Remarks
Celine O’Neill, Principal Officer, Road Freight Policy Division at the Department of Transport