This Working Life: ‘We are the first and last port people see in Ireland – we take pride in that’

Gary McLean, the managing director of Dublin Airport, chats to Mary McCarthy about his finance background, how his team copes with emergencies and how he keeps his feet on the ground

Gary McLean joined Dublin Airport after enjoying the ‘engagement and buzz’ during a work experience placement

Mary McCarthy

I’m from Sligo, where my parents had a country pub and a shop, McLean’s, in Grange. It was the centre of the community, and I helped out from an early age.

I went to school locally and probably did not have great ambitions, apart from wanting to be a footballer. Though growing up in a family business there was a natural tendency towards business studies.