Pat Hayes, who heads up State Street’s hedge fund business in Ireland, meets with members of its 1,000 strong workforce through an employee townhall meeting that brings together local employees and the teams in Jersey, Poland and the US. The townhall meeting gives him a chance to meet with employees and brief them on the company’s performance. State Street’s hedge fund business services a significant proportion of the 40 per cent of the world’s alternative investment funds that are adminstered in Ireland and Hayes says ‘we will continue to grow the business and provide opportunities for the many talented and highly qualified people in Ireland.’

The role of an accountant has changed considerably over the past number of years, and while a head for numbers is still important, Vincent MacMahon, a partner with the Investment Management Audit and Business Advisory Services practice of PricewaterhouseCoopers in Dublin, says that to excel in the profession, a desire to work with other people is what is really needed.