The Business

Gangs control two thirds of the capital, half of the population don’t have enough food and some charities are leaving. This is the reality on the ground in Haiti where Denis O’Brien started operating in 2006. This week the billionaire businessman ceded control of the Caribbean mobile phone company he founded five years earlier. To look at the reality of operating in Haiti we’re joined by Kieran Tansey, commercial director of EBS and Samantha McCaughren, business editor of the Sunday Independent.

The Brexit negotiations have been all consumed with the world of trade - how to move goods across borders without upsetting too many. This week The Windsor Framework was born - some suspect the title was designed to win the hearts of Unionists. Writer Fiona Looney says there’s nothing more persuasive than using the right words at the right time in life and business.

News this week that the two leaders at the helm of the Social Democrats were standing down, hot on the heels of the recent resignations of Jacinda Ardern and Nicola Sturgeon certainly reinforced the notion that it’s a challenging time to be a leader. My next guest has carved out a career in the field of leadership. Having first come to attention as one of the stars of the Armagh football team who won the All Ireland in 2002, when he retired as an inter-county player, he honed the skills he’d acquired on the football field and has since gone on to work with teams across an array of sports and in the world of business. His new book “Commit 2 lead...unlock your true leadership potential” was launched this week.

You might be wondering what do Boris Johnson, Ann Doyle and Michael O’Muiriheartaigh have in common? The answer is, not a lot, apart from the fact that they all have fantastic speaking voices. While you might not like what the former British Prime Minister has to say, the reality is that you’re unlikely to switch off when you’re listening to him in the way that you might when you hear someone with a less commanding voice. So how much of an advantage is it to have a good speaking voice? To discuss this, I’m joined by two people whose dulcet tones continue to deliver for them. Actor Barry McGovern and former RTE news reader turned communications and public speaking adviser, Clodagh Walsh.

A meeting of Central Bank governors and ECB board members was held in Finland this week to, reportedly, discuss how the introduction of a digital euro currency can be sold to a sceptical public. The ECB is hoping that the digital euro will be in use by 2027. But why do we need a new digital currency? And are those who are opposed to it justified in their scepticism? To discuss this and issues related to the new legislation which is coming down the tracks to regulate our online interactions, I’m joined by Liz Carolan, Executive Director of the campaigning body, Digital Action.

Well, from leading in business to leading in fashion. With award season in full swing and the Irish film industry to the fore in the nominations, we’ve seen lots of coverage in recent weeks of the red carpet glamour. And as the countdown begins for the Oscars, it’s not just the movie makers who have skin in the game. Siofra Mulqueen has been chatting to some Irish designers who know the value of having their work show-cased by the stars.

Born and bred in Derry, my first guest has had a broad and chequered career that started at the age of 14 when he got his first job delivering papers for the Belfast Telegraph. Within a few months he’d recruited 6 of his peers to work under him. Since then he’s worked in a number of roles which have included being the city centre manager for Derry, a mediator on the parades commission, Chief of the Vintners Association, head of an international marketing company, one of the organisers of an electronic dance festival and his current role as CEO of Manufacturing Northern Ireland.

We were talking to Chupi Sweetman earlier about her decision to take Russian diamonds out of her supply chain on foot of that country’s invasion of Ukraine. As the first anniversary of the war approaches, the EU has announced that it plans to ban exports of critical industrial goods worth €11 billion, to target Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps for aiding Russia. This will be the 10th package since the war began - but are any of these sanctions actually working? To discuss this further, Economist at BlueBay Asset Management, focusing on Russia and Ukraine, Timothy Ash joins me on the line now

That was Oliver Callan on last night’s Callan’s Kicks revisiting one of his favourite parodies, former Taoiseach Enda Kenny’s fondness for a can of Lilt. Lilt hit the headlines this week when it was announced that its name is being changed as it becomes amalgamated into the Fanta family. Lilt joins a litany of other popular brands that have had their names changed over the years. To look back at some of them and to talk about whether it’s worth all the bother, we’re joined by Peter Robbins, Assistant Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at DCU’s Business School.

First, to the Government’s plan to deal with the ongoing cost of living crisis. There was a lot of speculation in recent days about the package of new measures which are expected to be announced early next week… against a backdrop of easing inflation levels recorded for the month of January. We’re joined by economist John Fitzgerald to discuss what these new measures are likely to look like