Full House for ‘Beyond Burnout’ as Leadership Wellbeing Takes Centre Stage
Platform94, in partnership with Vhi, today welcomed a full house to the Clayton Hotel Galway for ‘Beyond Burnout: Resilience, Recovery & Leadership’, a major leadership wellbeing event that booked out following unprecedented demand. The overwhelming response signals how deeply the topic of burnout, leadership wellbeing, and sustainable high performance is resonating across the regional business community.
Hosted and moderated by Marie Donnellan, CEO of Platform94, the event brought together a powerful lineup of leaders whose experience spans elite military performance, global industry, high-growth entrepreneurship, and digital transformation. Opening the event, Marie reflected on a burnout ‘epidemic’ with almost 80% of Irish employees saying they have experienced burnout in their current role stating that “we have come to normalise that which is not normal, and not sustainable”. She urged leaders to rethink the pressures we now accept as standard and to re-establish healthier, more sustainable approaches to performance.
Attendees heard a compelling keynote from Ray Goggins, former Irish Army Ranger Wing Special Forces leader, bestselling author of Ranger 22, and one of Ireland’s foremost voices on leadership, resilience and high performance. Drawing on over two decades of elite military experience, Goggins explored how leaders can sustain clarity, energy, and composure under pressure, sharing practical tools for navigating adversity and supporting teams through demanding times.
Following his keynote, Ray joined an expert business leadership panel featuring Caroline Dunlea, Co-Founder & CEO of Core Optimisation; John Concannon, Founder & CEO of JFC Group; and Nancy Costello, Founder & CEO of The Belle Brush. Together, they explored the real-world complexities of leadership under pressure, sharing honest and relatable stories about recovery, responsibility, scaling businesses sustainably, and the personal toll of relentless growth and change.
Speaking on behalf of Vhi, Mark Kerins said “Burnout impacts not just individuals, but entire organisations, families, and communities. At Vhi, we see every day how vital it is to support leaders in building cultures where wellbeing is valued as highly as performance.”
Reflecting on the success of the event, Marie Donnellan said “This conversation is long overdue. Today’s full house proves that leaders are ready to rethink the significant pace, pressure, and expectations we’ve allowed to creep into our work and our lives. True leadership isn’t about endurance at all costs; it’s about the courage to create environments where people can truly thrive”
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