THE head of the Shannon Region Conference and Sports Bureau has been awarded for her contribution to the Mid West economy.
Karen Ronan was given the accolade at the Network Ireland Businesswoman of the Year Awards for 2024.
The awards ceremony, which took place at the Lyrath Estate Hotel in Kilkenny, honoured Irish businesswomen across eight categories.
Karen Ronan, general manager of the Bureau, received the Judges’ Highly Commended award in the Networker of the Year category for her work in attracting business and sports tourism to the Shannon Region over the past two decades.
Having previously worked with Bord Fáilte (now Fáilte Ireland), Ms Ronan was appointed to her current role in the Shannon Region Conference and Sports Bureau in 2003.
The public-private partnership has since provided a free service to hundreds of organisations, event organisers, and local ambassadors to help increase the Shannon Region’s share of the lucrative international business and sports tourism market – resulting in an economic impact of over €150million for the wider Shannon region.
Ms Ronan said the award was “a huge honour for me and I dedicate it to the massive team effort involved delivering events in the conference, corporate, and sports sector for the region”.
“The Bureau works collaboratively with Fáilte Ireland, the local authorities in Clare, Limerick, Tipperary, and Offaly, Shannon Airport, and all tourism stakeholders in the region to attract events of substantial scale and impact that boost the local economy and showcase the region’s capability to host events of international standard.”
Ms Ronan was nominated for the award by the Limerick branch of Network Ireland, of which she is a former president.
