LAST UPDATE | 7 Jun 2023
THE NEW HEAD of Transformation for the Defence Forces has begun work today.
Brian Molloy has been appointed and met with the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces Lieutenant General Seán Clancy this morning.
The role is a key recommendation in the Commission on the Defence Forces – a study which identified critical failings in the Irish military’s resourcing, staffing and equipment.
Molloy’s role will be to implement the High Level Action Plan devised to push through the change needed to bring Irish army, navy and Air Corps up to the required standard. He will report directly to the Chief of Staff and will be a civilian on the senior leadership team of the Irish Defence Forces.
Clancy welcomed the appointment and said: “we are delighted to welcome Brian to our senior management team, where his significant and varied experience will be a major asset to the Defence Forces.
“His new role, leading and driving the significant transformational change in the Defence Forces is necessary to ensure that now, more than ever, the Defence Forces is fit for purpose and the progression to a Defence Forces’ capability, equivalent to level of ambition two, is the first step on this journey.”
The job is at Assistant Secretary level in the DOD and will carry a wage in excess of €150,000.
Molloy has previously worked in a senior position in the Department of Social Protection which he joined in 2019.
His role was initially as principal officer with operational responsibility for a variety of issues such as pensions and disability allowances. He also held operational responsibility for redundancy and insolvency schemes.
He rose through the ranks in the department and was subsequently promoted to Chief Appeals Officer with full operational and strategic responsibilities for the appeals function across the Department of Social Protection.
His role was to lead the Social Welfare Appeals Office, provide strategic direction to the management team, support them in the delivery of an efficient, transparent, independent and fair appeals decision service.
Molloy came from the private sector where he worked for 30 years across a wide variety of roles in the pensions, investment and financial advisory sectors, working with indigenous Irish and large multinational firms.
The role was described in the job specifics as ‘drive, support, advise and enable the future transformation” of the Defence Forces in line with the Government’s High Level Action Plan (HLAP).
“The successful candidate will lead the delivery of challenging strategic transformation programmes across the organisation, working closely with senior colleagues and also with external consultants as required.
“Transformation delivery programmes will be iterative and updated to reflect evolving priorities and strategies within the broader organisation and wider Defence and Public Services sector where appropriate and relevant,” the booklet states.
The appointment comes a week after a Dáil committee strongly criticised the pace of implementation.
Charlie Flanagan the chair of a Dáil committee has said that TDs are becoming increasingly “frustrated” with the pace of implementation of the action plan for resourcing of the Irish Defence Forces.
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