Grant Thornton appoints Brian O’Dwyer as new Head of Advisory and welcomes two new partners
DUBLIN, 05 November 2026 – Grant Thornton has appointed Brian O’Dwyer as Head of Advisory as the firm positions its Advisory practice for its next phase of growth. The Advisory practice has also been strengthened by the appointment of Eoin Daly and Mike Richardson as new partners, reflecting the continued demand for specialist Advisory services.
Brian O’Dwyer, Head of Advisory
Brian O’Dwyer takes on leadership of Grant Thornton Ireland’s 1,300-person Advisory business, serving clients across the island of Ireland and beyond, through the Grant Thornton Advisors multinational platform and Grant Thornton’s global network spanning more than 150 markets. Brian joined Grant Thornton in 2015 and has played a central part in building the firm’s consulting business. He brings more than 20 years’ experience helping organisations shape strategy and deliver complex, large-scale change, working with major domestic and international clients through some of their most significant transformation programmes.
His focus is now on bringing together the breadth of the firm’s Advisory expertise around the industries it serves and the challenges that matter most to clients, helping them navigate complexity, transform and grow. Brian holds a Bachelor of Commerce from University College Cork and an MBS from University College Dublin Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School. He also holds the IoD Diploma in Company Direction (Dip IoD).
Eoin Daly, Partner, Advisory
Eoin joins the firm’s Retail Banking team as an enterprise transformation leader with more than 20 years’ experience delivering large-scale change, primarily across financial institutions in Europe and the Middle East. He has a proven track record in operating model redesign, digital and AI-enabled efficiency, customer-led growth, regulatory compliance and ESG integration, and is a trusted adviser to CEOs and boards. He is a qualified Chartered Management Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Information Systems from University College Cork.
Mike Richardson, Partner, Advisory
Mike joins the firm’s Business Risk Services team, bringing extensive experience working with international banks on controls assurance and regulatory remediation. He has delivered large-scale, multinational projects and spent 20 years in corporate and investment banking across the three lines of defence, building and testing robust control environments. This industry and consulting experience helps him understand clients’ challenges and deliver suitable solutions. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (FCA) and holds a Bachelor of Accounting and Finance from Nottingham Trent University.
Steve Tennant, EMEA CEO of the Grant Thornton Advisors multinational platform, said:
“Brian has been instrumental in building our consulting business in Ireland and brings strong commercial insight and a deep understanding of our people and market to his new role. As we take Advisory into its next phase of growth, Eoin and Mike’s appointments deepen our financial services expertise and strengthen our client offering.”
Commenting on his appointment, Brian O’Dwyer, Head of Advisory at Grant Thornton, said:
“It is an incredibly exciting time for Grant Thornton, both globally and here in Ireland, and I am delighted to take on this role and build on the strong foundations of our Advisory business in Ireland. Our clients are navigating significant change and complexity, and the challenges they face increasingly cut across traditional service lines. Our focus is on bringing together the breadth of our expertise around the industries we serve and the issues that matter most to our clients, helping them transform, grow and deliver strong outcomes. I’m also pleased to welcome Eoin and Mike to Grant Thornton. Their arrival is a strong signal of the ambition we have for Advisory in Ireland. We will continue to invest in our people and capabilities, broaden our market reach and draw on the strength of the wider Grant Thornton platform as we continue to expand our business and support our clients.”
About Grant Thornton
Grant Thornton is a leading multinational professional services firm in Ireland, with approximately 2,900 people in offices across the island of Ireland, Bermuda, Isle of Man and Gibraltar. Our audit and advisory teams work with organisations across sectors including technology, insurance, asset management, banking, life sciences and aviation, as well as the public sector. We deliver practical solutions to help organisations achieve their goals, while maintaining our position as a leader in sustainability through long-term value creation, ethical practices and positive social impact.
Since January 2025, Grant Thornton Ireland has been part of the multinational platform established by Grant Thornton Advisors LLC in the US.
Grant Thornton Ireland is also part of the Grant Thornton International Limited network, which provides access to its member firms in more than 150 global markets.
About the Grant Thornton Advisors multinational platform
The Grant Thornton Advisors multinational platform is a group of firms within the Grant Thornton International Limited network that connects priority markets and operates with aligned standards, technology and delivery expectations. Firms remain locally led and legally separate. The Grant Thornton International Limited network provides access to its member firms in more than 150 global markets.
The platform is currently home to almost 20 aligned firms stretching from the Americas across Europe and the Middle East to the Asia-Pacific region.
These firms bring together more than 34,500 professionals to deliver cross-border solutions powered by advanced technologies, a shared commitment to quality and a growing reputation as an employer of choice in the industry. The platform firms operate as separate legal entities.