Meet the Board

Liz Coffey leads the Communications and Development department at the National Library of Ireland. She has over 20 years of experience in communications, stakeholder engagement, public affairs, marketing and development.

Before joining the NLI, Liz was a freelance communications specialist in the arts and heritage sector. Earlier in her career, she held a number of roles in the financial sector, both in Ireland and internationally, including three years at HSBC Markets in Hong Kong.

A graduate of Trinity College Dublin and University College Dublin and a member of the Public Relations Institute of Ireland, Liz has a strong interest in the creative arts. She is the staff nominee to the Board of the National Library of Ireland.

Michael Diviney has over 30 years’ experience, including 20 years at senior management level, in print and digital publishing and media, specialising in professional, business and third-level education markets. In his current role, Mr Diviney is Executive Head of Thought Leadership at Chartered Accountants Ireland, where he previously led the Publishing Department.He has also worked for Thomson Reuters Round Hall, RTÉ, and Reed Business Information. A graduate of University College Dublin (English Literature) and Technological University Dublin (Management and Law), his specialist qualifications and broad experience include stakeholder engagement, intellectual property law, project management, digitalisation, and, returning to UCD, the Professional Diploma in Corporate Governance.

John Grenham is a writer, author, and genealogist. He was project manager with the Irish Genealogical Project from 1991-1995 and later went on to develop his own genealogical software, 'Grenham’s Irish Recordfinder'. In 2005, he was the first Genealogist-in-Residence at Dublin City Library. He was awarded a fellowship of The Irish Genealogical Research Society in 2007 and of the Genealogical Society of Ireland in 2010 and Accredited Genealogists Ireland (AGI) in 2021. He is the author of Tracing your Irish Ancestors (5th ed. Dublin, Baltimore MD, 2019) the standard reference guide for Irish genealogy, The Atlantic Coast of Ireland (2014), Clans and Families of Ireland (1995), and An Illustrated History of Ireland (1997), among other works. John has developed heritage databases with Dublin City Library and Archive and the National Archives of Ireland. He currently manages and curates an Irish ancestry website.

Lisa has been directing digital asset management (DAM), taxonomy, and enterprise content programs in the US and Europe since the mid-1990s for companies, museums, and archives large and small, including Nature Publishing Group, Drexel University College of Medicine, Elsevier, GSK, Amazon and many more. She has worked as a DAM product owner, trainer, and administrator in-house, on the vendor side and as both an independent and corporate consultant. She also teaches in the Rutgers University DAM Certificate Program.

Recent roles include her positions as Executive Consultant at ICP, Global Director, DAM, at Novartis and VP DAM Evangelist at Digizuite. She holds BA and MA degrees in Archaeology from Boston University and University College London, respectively, and an MS-LIS from Long Island University. She is a regular writer, speaker and podcaster in and beyond the DAM space. Find her in Dublin, Ireland.

Lorelei Harris worked for many years as Editor of Arts, Features and Drama for RTÉ Radio 1 and as Head of Arts and Cultural Strategy for RTÉ. She is an experienced broadcast media professional with a deep knowledge and understanding of radio. An internationally recognised and awarded documentary maker, she established and developed the now iconic RTÉ Documentary on One and trained generations of Irish documentary makers. She also contributed to the European Broadcasting Union over a long period of time, serving as Chairperson of the Radio Documentary Group. She is highly experienced in public event development and management, culminating in the large scale 2016 RTÉ Reflecting the Rising public and broadcast event. A skilled cultural producer and manager, she is well versed in partnership development, in strategic planning, in certain areas of governance and in contract negotiation. Since leaving RTÉ, she works independently and is also a board member of the Kilkenny Arts Festival and of the Tyrone Guthrie Centre.

Dr Brian Lang CBE, FRSE was born and educated in Edinburgh. He conducted social anthropological research in Kenya before lecturing for some years at Aarhus University, Denmark. In London, he established the National Heritage Memorial Fund as its first Director and later served as Director of Public Affairs for the National Trust. In 1991 he was appointed Chief Executive and Deputy Chair of the British Library, ensuring the successful completion of the Library’s new headquarters building at St Pancras in London. From 1992 to 2000, he chaired the Forum of European National Libraries. In 2000 he was appointed Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of St Andrews. Dr Lang has chaired and sat on the Boards of major heritage, library and arts bodies, including the Heritage Lottery Fund, National Museums of Scotland and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.

Deirdre Naughton holds a BA in History and a Postgraduate Diploma in Archival Studies from University College Dublin. She currently serves as Chair of the Library & Archives at the Royal Dublin Society and has contributed to a range of archival projects, with a particular emphasis on tourism and education, including collaborations with UCC and as Education Officer at Airfield Trust. For the last number of years, she has been working on the Barmeath Castle Archive. In addition, Deirdre is actively engaged in STEM education and the arts, on the board of the Naughton Foundation. 

Dr Andrew Power is Vice President and Registrar at the Institute of Art, Design and Technology (IADT), Ireland's Campus for the Creative Industries. He is also a Trustee and Chairman of the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) Foundation.  Dr Power holds degrees in Engineering, Business, Music, Art History, and Governance and has published a number of books in the area of Technology and Society.

Caitriona Sharkey is a senior learning, knowledge and organisational development leader with more than 25 years of experience shaping capability, knowledge strategy and professional development across global organisations. In her current role as Head of Learning in Accenture, and previously in similar leadership roles at EY, she has led the design and delivery of strategic learning and knowledge initiatives that drive business performance, AI-driven workforce transformation and organisational excellence. A graduate of Trinity College Dublin, Caitriona is also a qualified librarian and holds Masters degrees in both Strategic Management and Organisational Behaviour. In addition to her executive career, Caitriona has lectured in Management and Library & Information Science at Dublin Business School, contributing to the development of future professionals in these fields. Caitriona brings significant governance experience, having previously served on the Board of Beaumont Hospital and in Patient Advocacy at Temple Street Children’s Hospital. Her career reflects a commitment to advancing organisational capability, innovation and lifelong learning across both the public and private sectors.

Genevieve is a highly experienced professional, who has extensive experience in delivering large scale corporate projects and major infrastructure programs. She is a recognised leader in guiding organisations through growth and structural transformation. She spent over 18 years at Fyffes, holding various roles. She was Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance from 2008 to 2021, leading global mergers & acquisitions and operational matters. She holds a degree in Pure Economics from University College Dublin, a Post Graduate Diploma in Accounting from Dublin City University and is a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland, having qualified with KPMG. She is a non-executive director of Deli Lites Ireland where she chairs the Finance & Governance Committee and Tallaght Childcare Centre where she Chairs the Development Committee. She has acted as a consultant to various corporates such as Balmoral International Land plc and Castle Park School, an Independent private school. She champions Cultural, Educational and Not-for-Profit Organisations and the importance of their impact to society.