Dr Mary-Liz Trant is the Director of the National Apprenticeship Office (NAO), a body jointly established in 2022 by SOLAS and the Higher Education Authority to implement the Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025. Prior to heading up the NAO Mary-Liz was an Executive Director in SOLAS. She has also held senior posts in the Higher Education Authority, leading on enterprise engagement, Springboard+ and equity of access to higher education. A teacher by profession, earlier in her career Mary-Liz taught at second and third-level and worked with early school leavers. Mary-Liz holds a doctorate in Education and Masters’ Degrees in Education and in French.

Vivienne Keenan is Vice President of the Teachers’ Union of Ireland, a teacher in Further Education with Laois Offaly Education and Training Board with a keen interest in advancing the apprenticeship model of education. Vivienne is a strong advocate of lifelong learning, having recently completed her third masters, suggesting that building the capacity of lifelong learning is key for the sector. Currently working on a Key Acton 3 Erasmus project on Green Micro Credentials.

Megan Yeates is a WorldSkills Champion, having won the Gold Medal in Freight Forwarding and Logistics at WorldSkills Kazan 2019. She is a Logistics industry ambassador who works to highlight and promote the opportunities in the industry for young people, especially women. Megan is currently working for the Freight Transport Association of Ireland as an Apprentice Coordinator for both, the Transport Operations & Commercial Driving, and Logistics Associate Apprenticeships.

Amanda Fennell is Director of EMEA Marketing in Autodesk Construction Solutions and Autodesk Ireland Site Lead. She has over 20 year’s marketing experience in IT, including working with some leading cloud organisations. Amanda holds an MA in Communications and Cultural Studies from DCU and is based in Autodesk’s European headquarters in Dublin.

Patrick Atkinson is the Chief Executive of the Grafton Group Plc Distribution business for the island of Ireland. He joined the Group in 2015. Patrick Atkinson is a board member of the Irish Green Building Council, a member of World skills Ireland committee, Chairman of the Access to Apprenticeships Advisory Board in TU Dublin and a member of the President’s Cabinet committee in the Engineering and Built environment of TU Dublin. Patrick Atkinson has worked in the building materials business for over 30 years in several roles. He is a business graduate of Dublin City University and also holds a Master’s degree in both business and International marketing together with four other Post graduate qualifications.