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The Global Irish
“Ireland is increasingly known as a world leader in innovation and for
embracing technology. As Georgia Tech expands its global horizons, we seek
partners who share our values and goals. Thus, we are especially pleased to
celebrate the formation of this forward-looking collaboration with Ireland
and our Georgia Tech Research Institute.” – Georgia Tech President Wayne
Clough.
As more and more talk turns to globalization, the Irish are in a unique
position – in terms of the global context, we are already there. Whether it
is running the world’s top rated hotel in Dubai, in the operating room of
Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York, or running a telecom business in the
Carribean – no matter where you turn you will find the Irish.
We have spread all over the globe. In proportion to population, Ireland has
dispersed more emigrés than any other country in Europe. Today an estimated
70 million people of Irish descent are living around the world. The largest
portion, some 40 million, are in the United States, but there are pockets of
Irish in Argentina, Mexico, Australia, Canada, and increasingly in Asia.
We are global by virtue of a history that has flung us far and wide – but
there is something else too, something migratory in our make-up. Our ancient
ancestors traveled from afar to inhabit our small island – some say they
came from Sicily by way of Greece, Cappadocia, Gothia and Spain – so perhaps
there is something in the blood that makes our island people want to see the
rest of the world.
While the present economic situation in Ireland means that the Irish are not
forced to emigrate in the same numbers as before, there are still those who
want to leave – perhaps not forever, but leaving the homeland for a few
years after college is becoming a rite of passage for some, and the first
step on a career path for others.
At Irish America’s Silicon Valley dinner honoring the Irish in technology
last March, I met several young Irish men and women in the industry who had
emigrated to Asia before ending up in California.
Which brings us to our cover story on Brendan McDonagh.
Brendan didn’t take the emigrant route as mapped out by earlier generations.
He left Ireland in 1979, when the economy was still in the doldrums. (Many
of the Irish who went to the States at that time ended up as undocumented
workers; though educated, they were confined to the sidelines in terms of
jobs. Few managed to make it into corporate America.) Instead of looking
West as so many others did, McDonagh chose to look East. He went to work for
the Hong Kong bank HSBC in Asia. His move to the East still resulted in his
eventual move to America. Today he is the CEO of HSBC North America.
McDonagh, who lived in Japan, Hong Kong and Guam, as he ascended the
corporate ladder, represents a new (or, perhaps in terms of our history not
new but one rooted in tradition) phenomenon: the global Irish.
The Irish have an uncanny ability to get on wherever they go – perhaps it’s
a skill honed over centuries of diaspora. Perhaps it’s some historic memory
of oppression and poverty that allows us to identify with others, and to
succeed, even in cultures that are traditionally suspicious of Westerners.
Meanwhile, the fact that more and more of our Wall Street 50 are Irish-born
(33 percent of this year’s honorees) seems to indicate that American
companies are realizing that they gain a competitive advantage in the global
marketplace by enlisting more foreigners into their management ranks (note
to Presidential candidates, it’s time to reopen the immigration debate), and
the Irish with their ability to cross cultural divides are increasingly
moving up the corporate ladder.
The connections that the Irish have made abroad are also important in terms
of Ireland’s next stage of economic development. Irish universities have
forged links with American universities, including the renowned Georgia
Tech, which has placed its first applied research facility outside the
United States in Ireland. The development of these special links is helping
to position Ireland in its fight to lead the world in the area of technology
convergence, and already many of the world’s most innovative companies in
the life sciences and ICT sectors have located to Ireland.
Ireland has other advantages too. Following in the tradition of the
emigrants helping those back home, many Irish-born CEOs on our list are on
the advisory boards of Enterprise Ireland, and are helping Irish start-up
companies reach the American market. But perhaps our greatest strength comes
from our “social networking” abilities. For, much as they like to leave
home, the Irish like to keep in touch. And with the increasing emphasis on
globalization, what the Irish already have in place, thanks to the tradition
of emigration, is a worldwide network.
Brendan McDonagh in an interview in this issue tells Niall O’Dowd about
starting an Irish network in Japan. (What especially appealed to me about
the story was how he and a group of young Irish turned a St. Patrick’s Day
celebration in Kobe into a fundraising event for a local orphanage.)
The Irish are also skilled in using the latest technology to keep in touch
with each other. On April 2, BioConnect Ireland linked its members in
Ireland to their network colleagues in the U.S. (Biolink USA-Ireland) and
the UK (Techlink UK-Ireland), via video and weblink to create a network of
networks – from Chicago to Cork to Cambridge, the meeting charted the way of
the future.
And so, as emerging markets – the crucial economic battleground of the
coming decade – become more important, the Irish, with their global
connections and understanding of other cultures, are eager and ready to play
their part.
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