AOL's digital prophet David Shing
AOL’s digital prophet David Shing and Irish Government CIO Bill McCluggage will be speaking at the Digital Ireland Forum in Dublin on Friday, where the country’s success as a global destination for 21st-century business and technology industries and services will come under the spotlight.
One of the internet’s biggest brand companies, AOL employs close to 6,000 people around the world, providing a vibrant internet ecosystem that includes major titles like The Huffington Post, TechCrunch, Engadget, Mapquest and many others.
The company employs more than 155 people at its Dublin operation, engaged in developing systems to enable AOL’s content management systems and future media platforms. Earlier this year, the company announced plans to create 35 new jobs for software engineers to work on critical technologies in the area of Hadoop and big data.
By day, Shing – or Shingy as he is known – is AOL’s digital prophet, working across the world to identify new opportunities for the business. Prior to his current role, Shing was based in London and held the position of VP media and marketing for AOL Europe. He regularly speaks at conferences worldwide, discussing the latest trends and the future of the web, and providing insights into the evolving digital landscape. By night, he’s a singer-songwriter.
This past May, Ireland’s Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin, TD, appointed McCluggage to the role of Government chief information officer (CIO) to develop the ICT strategy for the Irish Government and the wider public service.
As director of e-government and then-CIO for Northern Ireland, McCluggage led the development and successful implementation of a range of strategies that have transformed Northern Ireland’s public services’ interface with the citizen and the delivery of public-sector back-office services. As deputy government CIO in the Cabinet Office in London, he led a multidisciplinary team that developed the government’s national ICT strategy.
Both Shing and McCluggage will be joined by the CEOs and managing directors of Eircom, BT, the Digital Hub, Dell, Interxion, TelecityGroup, Storm Technology and KPMG to discuss Ireland’s future as a global business and technology hub.
Silicon Republic’s sixth Digital Ireland Forum takes place on Friday, 20 September.
