Margaret Sweeney has announced plans to step down from her role as CEO and executive director of Irish Residential Properties REIT (I-RES) in April next year.
Sweeney joined the board as an independent director in 2016 and was appointed CEO of I-RES in November 2017.
A process to appoint a successor will commence immediately, led by the REIT’s nomination committee. Sweeney has agreed to continue with the business beyond her six months’ notice period if necessary, to ensure an orderly transition to her successor.
Sweeney said: “It has been a privilege to lead I-RES for the past six years and I am proud of the team and portfolio that we have built. The company has transformed over the last two years, in particular, becoming a fully integrated Irish company led by an experienced team with a market leading operating platform.
“Having served for six years as CEO, I believe that now is the right time to retire and support the transition to new leadership in 2024. I would like to thank the board, management, employees, shareholders, our banks and many other business partners for their support over the years and I am confident that the I-RES team will continue to deliver successfully for all stakeholders.”
Declan Moylan, chair of I-RES, added: “Margaret has made an outstanding contribution to I-RES and has been an exceptional CEO since assuming the role in 2017, with I-RES establishing its position as the leading provider of quality private residential rental accommodation in Ireland. Under Margaret’s leadership, I-RES delivered a significant transformation in scale, growing its portfolio by over 60% to circa 4,000 units, put in place new long-term funding structures and significantly strengthened the balance sheet.
“More recently, she led the successful internationalisation of the business, built I-RES’ operating platform including the successful implementation of a new technology platform and integrated the business on acquisition of the management company in 2022. I-RES continues to perform strongly as is clear from today’s trading update and Margaret leaves the business well positioned for the future. We are also grateful that Margaret has committed to an extended notice period to facilitate a successful transition to new leadership.”
In its Q3 trading update, I-RES reported 99.6% occupancy across its portfolio and said it remained on track to deliver a broadly stable NRI margin for the full year 2023 (77.5% at 30 June 2023).
