Each month, we put the spotlight on a Tirlán employee and for our February newsletter, we’re talking to Philip McCabe

Ensuring that Kilkenny Cheese Ltd is ready to begin operations from January 8th next year is now top of the work agenda for Strategic Programmes Manager with Tirlán, Philip McCabe.

“I’m part of the Tirlán Strategy team and am currently working on a number of projects including the ORP Programme for Project Orange. A big part of my role at the moment is to make sure that we have the people and the processes in place ahead of our start date next January.

“We have 80 people to hire in the next year. A number of roles have been filled and some are currently advertised such as Automation Manager, Quality Manager, Planning Manager and Environmental Health and Safety Manager.

“We will have other roles coming on stream after that. All roles can be viewed on the careers section of the Tirlán website and elsewhere. Anyone who helps us fill these positions is eligible for a referral bonus, so we’re asking everyone to keep their eyes and ears open so we can attract the best possible candidates.

“It’s currently a very competitive recruitment environment as we have full employment. Having said that, these are unique opportunities for people to start in a greenfield dairy plant. The dairy industry is also a very stable industry, particularly when you compare it to what is happening in the tech industry at the moment.

“This state-of-the-art plant will be here for the next 60 years and beyond… We’re very fortunate to have fantastic partners in Royal A-ware and this new team will be responsible for a whole new way of processing cheese in Ireland. It will be an exciting place to work.”

Philip will be eight years in Tirlán in April and revels in his role. He began as a HR Business Partner in Agri and was heavily involved in the transition to Glanbia Ireland. The decision to go back to our cooperative roots was a very positive one, he believes.

“It has been a landmark year. The move to Abbey Quarter was fantastic and it’s great to have the teams together in one building. It has been a huge game changer for us and it’s great to be back in the same building as the agri team, many of whom I wouldn’t have seen because of Covid. I really like the idea of being a cooperative and that we are returning shareholder value to our suppliers and our communities.”

How does he unwind from the demands of such a challenging role? “I do a bit of jogging. I have small children so unfortunately I’ve no time for golf or cycling presently! I like following Meath football in good times and bad. It’s great to see my old Economics teacher in charge of the team and Sean Boylan on the line!

“I’m also proud to be on the board of the local cancer charity, Cois Nore, and am delighted to see Tirlán sponsor the local 5k run. Every euro raised by the charity is put to good use in offering services that wouldn’t be available in Kilkenny otherwise.”