SOS Board

Kevin McPartlan – Chair of Directors

Kevin McPartlan is the CEO of Fuels for Ireland – the body representing companies which provide for more than half of the country’s energy needs.

Kevin was educated at UCC and the Honorable Society of Kings Inns. He previously led industry associations in the food sector and gave public affairs and communications counsel to start-ups. multinationals, NGOs and Governments.

Simon Daly – Director

Simon has worked in the Information Technology sector for 20 years, seeking to understand the challenges faced by organisations & to help those organisations understand how technology solutions can help to solve their issues, empower their employees, engage their customers & transform their services. Simon uses this experience to also help the charity sector & has been involved in volunteering & directly supporting many charities over the past 2 decades.

Reason for involvement in SOS:

“I feel that suicide & self harm is sadly all too common in our society. I have lost friends to suicide & rarely a month goes by without hearing another story of how friends or family have been tragically impacted. I first met Caroline around 2010 / 2011 & I was hugely impressed by her spirit, openness & her warmth. I was lucky enough to sponsor & attend some Wellness Workshops at that time & to really get to know Caroline & the wider SOS family. I have always loved the collaborative approach taken by SOS to promote their vision & to deliver their wonderful services & I’m hugely proud to have been considered for a role on the Board, through which I can play my part in breaking the stigma around suicide, self harm & mental health challenges & to contribute towards making our society better.”

Tracey Carney – Director

Tracey Carney is currently Director of Communications with Premier Publishing & Events and previous to that she worked as Events Director with Ashville Media Group. Tracey also lectures with Fitzwilliam Institute in event management and production, and the students run live fundraising events in aid of SOS each year.

Reason for involvement in SOS:

“I genuinely believe in the work SOS do, and I think it is so important to have a mental health plan, to know and expect bad days because no one is immune to them. Prevention through knowledge is key, and I love working with Caroline and the team they make everything fun and engaging.

A close friend of mine was affected by suicide when I was 18, at the time I did not have the tools or the language to help them, but thanks to SOS, I do now.

Having first heard of SOS when I got invited to the annual luncheon in 2013 – I have been back every year since it’s a great day. SOS quickly became my charity partner, and I tried to include them where I could, through my events and Fitzwilliam Institute, and it is an excellent fit for the students as they learn about mental health and gain live event experience”.

Mark Skinner – Director

Mark is Head of Learning and Development for Food Drink Ireland in Ibec; a role that involves developing learning interventions key to success of the Food and Drink industry. In addition to being a qualified Executive Coach, he also has an MBS from UCC, specialising in strategy, leadership and management. Mark is passionate about the connection between thoughts, feelings and behaviours, not only in terms of high performance and personal development but also in relation well-being and mental health.

Lora Shercliff – Director

Lora is currently a Director in Employee Success (HR) in Salesforce and has experience partnering with senior leaders on people strategies in financial services and professional services in Dublin and London. She is passionate about talent management and development and achieving greater diversity across organisations. Prior to following her passion and changing course into HR, she qualified as an accountant, she is also a qualified coach and completed an MSc in Organizational Behaviour.