S.2 Ep.21 - Theatre & Entertainment with Cork Opera House CEO Eibhlín Gleeson

Sales management, skills training, the importance of customer engagement & writing are the focal point of this weeks episode with founder of Golden Apple Training & author Eleanor O'Kelly-Lynch. A career in sales was never on Eleanor's agenda, initially teaching & writing were her goals. Eleanor began teaching at the RTC in skills training (now MTU) but her passion for radio led her to taking on a role in marketing & customer service at the pirate radio station ERI seeing the station evolve into Radio South before becoming what we now it as today - 96FM. During her time in radio Eleanor was responsible for maintaining strong connections with customers, creating campaigns, promotions & competitions, ultimately intertwining the station & customers with the listeners. Her career changed as her passion for teaching & writing inevitably resurfaced which led her to establish Gold Apple Training where she trains customer service to stations across Ireland. On the side, she finally got to write & publish her first book 'The Girl With Special Knees' which she is proudly launching this week. You can buy 'The Girl With Special Knees' online & in select bookstores. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

10 Nov 20221h 2min

We're back with a brand new series & to kick start the series we're joined with the CEO of The Kilkenny Group Evelyn Moynihan. The Kilkenny Group in over 50 years in operation, it has become an emporium for the finest of Irish craft and design building a strong ethos in supporting local Irish artists, craftspeople, jewellers & designers. Evelyn took over as CEO of the company in 2021 after holding executive roles in the marketing & branding department. She has an extensive background in business from 15 years in Musgrave Group and roles for Guinness with Diageo. We get an insight into understanding the customer pshyche, the importance of developing strong customer communication & building brands over time. Hear how The Kilkenny Group managed to build it's expand during the recession & persevere through telesales & e-commerce during the pandemic as well future plans for global expansion in the US & UK. It's not one to be missed! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

3 Nov 20221h 2min

With the Irish Podcast Awards coming up, which we're nominated for the Bullseye Award, we thought to bring you a special throwback episode to share some of the useful tips from our guests. As you know, Stephen finishes each episode with two questions for our guests on building a brand. The first is what tip would they give to a business & the second is what tip they would give to an individual. So tune in to hear some of the wise words! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

15 Sep 202213min

With the Irish Podcast Awards coming up, which we're nominated for the Bullseye Award, we thought to bring you a special throwback episode to share some of the useful tips from our guests. As you know, Stephen finishes each episode with two questions for our guests on building a brand. The first is what tip would they give to a business & the second is what tip they would give to an individual. So tune in to hear some of the wise words! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

9 Sep 20228min

It's the season finale of the 24 Stories Podcast & there's no better way to celebrate episode 24, than to bring you something special! The tables have turned & Stephen is in the questioning chair with producer behind the scenes Elaine asking the questions on what exactly inspired him to start the podcast to highlight the success of local Cork businesses & get an inside scoop to their careers & how they built their brands. We reflect on what stories on stories that resonated with us & what we have learned from our guests. A special thank you to all our guests, for coming on to to the show, for telling the backgrounds stories & the career highs & lows & how persistence is the key to success. To our listeners - we hope you've enjoyed season 1 as much as we did making it, we have some special episodes coming soon & we will be back for season 2. Stay tuned! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

24 Mar 202246min

Problem solving, team building & creating a proactive business are the topics of this week as Stephen is joined by occupational psychologist Martin Brennan of Proactive Management. Martin has over 40 years experience in HR & training and started his business in 1987 & from the get go targeted big global corporations from Pepsi Cola, to Telus & Pfizer. He has developed, delivered & validated training interventions for national & international clients, in areas such as Management Development, Coaching, Personal Development, Team building, Training and Change Management. Coming from a family of 14, he took great inspiration from his mother, who in her own right became CEO of the family following the passing of his father at a young age. Martin credits his mother for instilling the skills in him today, which he uses everyday in his own business & that's team management, understanding different dynamics of individuals of the team & coming together in conflict resolution. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

17 Mar 20221h

We have our youngest entrepreneur on this show this week. At just 17 years old Emma Coffey was inspired to start her very own atleisure brand Final Bend. The idea came from her love of athletics where she was a successful pole vaulter, however an injury led to early retirement, but allowed her to pursue Final Bend while keeping a connection to the athletics community. Keeping in mind, this was while she was still in school! What started off as a side project has grown from strength to strength & it's safe to say, it's all down to Emma's drive & hard work. She never gave up on on her dreams & continued to build the brand, while maintaining part-time jobs & attending college. It was during the pandemic when she was out of work that she really gave Final Bend her all. Now at 21 now, she works full time for Final Bend & has many plans in the pipeline for the future. We can't wait to see what's in store! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

10 Mar 20221h 7min

The mastermind behind the secret recipe of one of Cork's most infamous spiced beefs Tom Durcan joins us this week. From trading as a butcher as a young boy to setting up shop at Cork's English Market where he has had over 40 years in business. Tom Durcan Meats has built it's brand on the success of it's product & what Tom says is down to doing the right thing & not cutting corners. Tom's meats have reached the shelves of shops on a national level, the plates of many restaurants & the doorsteps of homes across the world from Italy to even Hong Kong. But how did he reach such highs & what does the future hold for his business? Tune in to find out! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

3 Mar 202254min