Inside the Regulated Boardroom: Real-World Insights from Financial Services INEDs

Ian Britchfield is a seasoned Independent Non-Executive Director with over three decades of leadership experience across the insurance, reinsurance, financial services and pensions sectors. Since transitioning to full-time INED roles in 2015, Ian has built a distinguished portfolio, serving on more than 20 boards, including major insurance and reinsurance entities, insurance intermediaries, a MiFID-regulated investment firm, and a pensions master trust. He currently chairs the boards of Arch Insurance (EU), Carole Nash Insurance Consultants (Ireland), Nib Travel, and Navigate Master Trustee (Unio Master Trust). Ian is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and a member of the Institute of Directors.

Mary Brennan CDir is a Chartered Director, Certified Investment Fund Director, and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Ireland. In a career spanning over 30 years, Mary has worked in Dublin and New York in audit for KPMG, led the global internal audit function in Elan plc. and developed a blue-chip portfolio of non-executive director roles. She is a highly experienced Independent non-executive director and currently holds the position of chair of the board, chair of the audit committee, chair of the risk committee, and chair of the remuneration committee in her portfolio of financially regulated directorships. Mary previously served on the boards of FBD insurance Plc, BNP Paribas Ireland, Atradius Reinsurance DAC, Macquarie Capital Ireland, the Social Finance Foundation, and Microfinance Ireland. Mary is also the IoD Ireland Faculty lead on our dedicated workshop titled, ‘The Remuneration and Nomination Committee’.

Peter Rossiter CDir is a Chartered Director and an experienced non-executive director, bringing deep financial services, risk and governance expertise following a distinguished executive career in banking across OECD and emerging markets. His career included senior leadership roles with Citigroup in Ireland and overseas, Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, and AIB, where he served as Group Chief Risk Officer from 2012 to 2014. In more recent years, Peter has worked extensively with fintech businesses, holding both executive and non-executive roles in fast-growing, technology-enabled financial services firms. Peter currently serves as an independent non-executive director of Monzo Europe, The Rehab Group, Owl Payments Europe (a Tripadvisor company) and is a Council Member of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman. He is a business graduate of Trinity College Dublin, a Chartered Accountant, and a Chartered Director.

Kian Caulwell is a partner and Head of Financial Services Consulting at Forvis Mazars. He is responsible for delivering regulatory consulting and risk assurance services to our financial services clients. He is an Irish chartered accountant and Certified Ethical and Cultural Advisor with over 15 years financial services experience. Kian advises financial services institutions in banking, asset management, payment services and leasing. In addition, he has significant experience acting for and on behalf of European central banks including, the Central Bank of Ireland, the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority in the UK. Kian and the financial services consulting team have in-depth technical knowledge of anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing, conduct risk (consumer and investor protection), corporate governance, fitness and probity, operational risk, credit risk and risk management frameworks. Some of the solutions and services he provides to clients include regulatory authorisation, remediation and implementation support, skilled person investigations and independent outsourced assurance reviews.

Caroline Spillane CDir is Chief Executive Officer of the Institute of Directors Ireland. She commenced the role in July 2022. Caroline has held several senior leadership roles including most recently as Director General of Engineers Ireland, the all-Ireland professional body for engineers, CEO of the Medical Council of Ireland, the independent statutory regulator of over 25,000 medical practitioners and Assistant National Director of the Health Services Executive. Caroline is an experienced Non-Executive Director serving as a board member of the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), ESB Networks and Irish Manufacturing Research. She is also a member of the Advisory Group to Balance for Better Business, an independent business-led Review Group established by the government to improve gender balance in senior leadership in Ireland. Caroline's qualifications include a BA from UCC and an MA from TUD. She is currently undertaking a Doctoral programme with SETU.