Aoife O’Brien is a ‘happiness at work’ expert. Prior to setting up her own business, she worked in global market-research firms for nearly 20 years, solving problems for global clients including Coca-Cola, Unilever and Heinz. O’Brien’s vision is to empower people to be happier at work by helping companies to hire and retain the right staff for them, understand their organisation better so they find the right 'fit', and develop strong leaders who will set a positive example.
Globally, 85% of workers are disengaged at work, which has a knock-on impact on employee turnover. Hiring the wrong staff can cost companies tens of thousands, and losing an executive can cost up to 200% of their salary to replace them. She partners with HR and business leaders on three pillars: workplace culture, balance and empowerment. She offers a range of services including speaking, training and workshops; happiness audits; online courses and corporate consultancy programmes.
O’Brien’s podcast, Happier at Work, is available in more than 50 countries. The podcast reached 70,000 listens (total) and 4,600 (highest of all time) in February 2023. Listenership grew 39% the last year, reaching number three in the Irish business charts. In February it featured in the Career Moves section on Apple. O’Brien has lived and worked in Dublin, London, Perth and Sydney. She has an MSc in work and organisational behaviour, a diploma in executive and life coaching and a certificate in career coaching. She is currently working remotely in Tenerife.
Nominated by: Aisling Gray, virtual assistant, Virtually Yours
