Ann Loughney - Chairperson

Ann Loughney joined the Board of EmployAbility and currently holds the position of Chairperson on the Board.  Originally with a background in Nursing, Ann worked in residential care supporting  people with intellectual disabilities with Brothers of Charity Galway.  She later moved onto her current role as Western Sector Manager with Brothers of Charity Galway Adult services after completing a post grad in Business Management.

Ann has always had a very person centered approach and while she has moved into a managerial role she has always maintained a strong connection with people with intellectual disabilities she has known over the years.  Her main interest and contribution to the team is to support them with the development of Human Resources Management policies and procedures, and she is always interested in taking part in the recruitment and selection process of the new staff when vacancies arise.  Ann also has a particular interest in providing mentoring and support to all the team in relation to individual client support needs 

JOHN MCHUGO - Board member

John McHugo is one of the founding members of EmployAbility Galway and was involved in the setup of the original Galway Supported Employment Consortium in 2001, which has since developed into the current company.  He played a key role in the original funding application process and in the negotiation of the annual contracts in the intervening years and he has held the position of Company Treasurer since the formation of the Company.

John is an accountant and has worked as the Director of Finance with Ability West since 1990.  His experience has been invaluable in the setting up of our financial systems and processes and he has been the main contributor to all the financial work of EmployAbility Galway over the years and has provided support to the team and the other Board members with his expertise in the areas of financial management and best practice.  He has also led the Board and staff team in relation to compliance with Company Law and Good Corporate Governance.

 In his spare time, John is actively involved in various sporting and community development organisations focused on supporting and developing communities in County Galway and specifically South-East Galway where he lives.

Mark Quick - Board Member

Mark Quick holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) from NUI Galway, a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from Trinity College Dublin and a professional accreditation as a Project Management Practitioner. 

He has spent almost 15 years in entrepreneurship in Ireland and previously co-founded, grew and sold SourceDogg a multi-award winning procurement software company which created 65 jobs in Dublin and Galway.  Mark is now a consultant in the area of economic, environmental & social sustainability with a focus on how procuring organisations can use these criteria in the selection and risk management of suppliers.  He is responsible for the Irish rollout of the Sustainability Index initiative of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS), a global organisation with over 100,000 professional members.   Mark also serves on the Board of Directors of several start-up companies.

He has been involved with not-for-profit work for many years including fundraising & mentoring activities and aims to actively assist in the continuous improvement of the EmployAbility Galway processes to achieve the best possible outcomes for clients.

Gary Stakem - treasurer

Gary Stakem joined the Employability board in 2014. Gary is a Life Assurance Actuary and has been working withGalway based insurer, Acorn Life Ltd. since 2009. Acorn Life are an Irish owned company offering a wide range of financial products. Gary’s main duties include Data Analytics, Financial Reporting, Cash-flow Modelling and Risk Management. Gary holds a BSc. in Financial Mathematics & Economics from NUIG, a fellowship with the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (FIA) and is a Chartered Enterprise Risk Analyst (CERA).

Gary is an Oranmore native where he also currently resides..  He has previously led fundraising projects in aid of disability and cancer support organisations.

Sean Conneally - Board Member

Sean Conneally joined the EmployAbility Galway Board in 2006.   He has worked for over 30 years for people with a learning disability, initially with  Ability West as a psychologist and then in the area of Training and Development with the Brothers of Charity.  He is currently the Eastern Sector Manager with Brothers of Charity Galway Adult Services 
Sean has made a huge contribution to the voluntary and non profit sectors and sits on the Board of 5 voluntary and community groups in total 
He has been a strong advocate of the supported employment model and also has a keen interest in the area of social enterprise as an alternative model of economic and social contribution for people with intellectual disabilities.  His particular interest in EmployAbility has been guidance for the team in relation to the supports they provide for people with disabilities in the East Galway area.  Sean has added made a valuable contribution to the growth and development of EmployAbility Galway through his valuable expertise in the area of Company Law and Good Governance for non profits