Edward Hendrick

CEO

Ed holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agribusiness & Rural Development and a Higher Diploma in Enterprise Development and Entrepreneurship.

Since founding Sonru in 2007 with the vision of introducing Video Interviewing to mainstream recruitment, Ed has established the organisation as a global leader and one of the top recruitment SaaS companies worldwide.

With numerous accolades to his name such as the Sunday Business Posts ‘Top 40 Under 40’ and IIA Net Visionary award for innovation, Ed is recognised as one of the world’s leading experts in video recruitment technology and is a renowned industry speaker.

With a passion for new technology and how it can be used to make life easier for people in the real world, Ed has been instrumental in shaping the current landscape of the Video Interviewing industry.

Chris Horan

CTO at Sonru

Chris graduated from Trinity College Dublin with an Honours Bachelor of Science Degree in Physics and Computer Science and went on to complete a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Science in Physics and Computer Science as well as a Higher Diploma in Enterprise Development.

With almost 20 years’ experience in the software engineering and computer science space, Chris has worked with leading technology companies such as Accuris, CAPE Technologies and BearingPoint.

Chris has been at the forefront of Sonru’s product development since the company’s inception in 2007.

Daniel Richard

Managing Director EMEA

Sonru’s Europe MD, Daniel Richard, graduated from Queen’s University, Canada with a Master of Science in Industrial and Organisational Science.

A trained Occupational Psychologist with more than 15 years of sales and consulting experience in multinational recruitment and HR services companies, Daniel leads Sonru’s sales efforts within EMEA, helping to grow its rapidly expanding customer base.

Prior to joining Sonru, Daniel spent 10 years at Oracle Taleo helping to build the company from a small regional start-up to a true industry leader. Daniel has held a variety of sales and consulting positions on various continents, including the US and Europe.

Fergal O'Byrne

Non Executive Director

Fergal holds a Bachelor of Science in Electronic Engineering from Dublin Institute of Technology and is an experienced Internet industry entrepreneur.

Since founding Interactive Return in 1998, Fergal has been a member of the Board of Directors of IGOpeople.com, WINC, and CCD Limited and was a previous chair of the Project Advisory Group for Fáilte Ireland’s eBusiness Support Initiative.

A recognised influencer within the industry, Fergal has served as CEO of the Irish Internet Association and has published four books including ‘10 Online Marketing and Search Engine Essentials’ and ‘10 Technologies Every Executive Should Know’.

In 2015, Fergal was inducted into the IIA Internet Hall of Fame in recognition for services to the internet industry.

George Pennock

Chairman

George holds an MA in History from Oxford University and is a previous Partner and Head of Saphir UK at Saphir Capital Partners.

George spent several years with the Goldman Sachs Group as a mergers and acquisitions banker before moving into private equity where he has spent most of the past 15 years. He has served as a Senior Investment Manager and COO at Pi Capital, and worked with Botts & Company Ltd where he made private equity investments in the leisure, publishing, branded goods, retail, and technology sectors.

Having spent the past two decades working with a myriad of talented and unconventional entrepreneurs, investing in everything from online employee benefits platforms to river boats and book publishers, George is passionate about backing exceptional people and interesting businesses and believes that while a mediocre management team can ruin even a great plan, a great management team can make a success of almost any business opportunity.

John Penning

Director

Currently, I am a Director of Sonru, the leading Online Video Interviewing company. Previous career highlights include; CEO of the Irish Internet Association, Chairman of IGOpeople.com and Founder and CEO of Interactive Return. In 2015 I was very honoured to be inducted into the IIA Internet Hall of Fame in recognition for services to the internet industry.

Benoit Tesch

Director

Benoit holds a BA Economics from Vesalius College in Brussels and a Masters in Environmental Science from the Université de Montréal, Canada.

Benoit joined Saphir UK in July 2015 to support the team with corporate finance and investment projects having previously worked for Bank of New York Mellon and Steven Winter Associates in New York and PwC.

During his time with PwC, Benoit worked for the Corporate Finance Team at PwC Luxembourg with a focus on mergers and acquisitions of technology companies. Benoit was also involved with PwC’s Accelerator, where his responsibilities spanned over the entire Fund Raising process and worked for the PwC sustainability and climate change department.

Georges Schmit

Director

A native of Luxembourg, Georges graduated with degrees in Economics from the University of Louvain, Belgium (BA) and the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (MA). Besides his native Luxembourgish, Georges is fluent in French, English and German.

Georges served the Government of Luxembourg from 1981 to 2016 and throughout most of his career he focused on innovation and technology policy, economic development and trade and investment promotion.

During his time with the Government of Luxembourg, Georges served as Secretary General of the Luxembourg Ministry of the Economy and was a member of several European Union high-level advisory bodies including the European Commission's "Enterprise Policy Group”. He also served as both Vice-Chairman and Executive Chairman of the National Credit and Investment Corporation (SNCI) of Luxembourg.

Georges has served on the Board of Directors of both listed and private companies including the world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal, the Luxembourg-based global satellite operator SES, the Luxembourg Post and Telecommunications Company, and the Luxembourg State and Savings Bank, among others. Most recently, he contributed to the design and launch of several major Luxembourg Government innovation policy initiatives and sits on the Luxembourg Government’s Advisory Board on Space Resources.

Luke Falvey

Director

With an educational background in business and accounting from universities in Galway and London, Luke is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA), a Certified Master Coach from the Behavioural Coaching Institute (BCI) and a member of the International Coaching Council (ICC).

In addition to being Sonru’s CEO for the Asia-Pacific region, Luke is Founder and Managing Director of Insight Strategy. He has 30 years’ international experience in General Management, Finance, M&A, Strategy and Coaching, spanning market and regional leadership in Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Caribbean, working with some of the world’s leading companies (including Diageo & Gallaher – JTI).

Luke is passionate about getting strategy into action and driving performance through superior execution. During his career, he has acquired and built companies in Asia and Europe. He has overseen the creation and execution of strategic alliances in China and Vietnam. Luke has also identified, set up and managed importer-distributor partnerships in several countries across the Asia region.

Luke has developed and executed multiple brands and market launches, and has advised on and led the disposal of businesses. He has facilitated multiple international clients wishing to gain access to markets in the Asia-Pacific region and has a wide network of resources throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Luke is an Executive Coach and Mentor. He combines his coaching ability with his career experience to offer confidential counsel to business leaders, Directors and Executives and this often extends to being a trusted advisor along the journey to achieving their full potential and end game.

Patrick Sweeney

Director

Patrick holds a Bachelor of Business Studies Degree in Accounting, Management, Human Resources, Marketing and Economics from University of Limerick as well as Masters of Education in Management, Human Resources and Training and Development from University of Sheffield.

For 25 years, Patrick held the position of Human Resources and Public Affairs Director for Aughinish Alumina where he was involved in change management, restructuring and international mergers and acquisitions.

Patrick also undertook many other leadership roles including operations management, training and development and employee relations management. In addition to sitting on the Board of Directors at Sonru since 2011, Patrick has operated his own strategic management and human resources consultancy firm for the past 8 years.