Letterkenny's Aoife Warren on move back to the North West as senior EY leader

When EY opened its base at Ebrington Plaza in Derry this year it marked a new chapter for the city, the global professional services firm and its employees.

But for one senior EY leader, that milestone was also deeply personal, representing a full-circle journey that began here in the north west decades earlier.

Letterkenny native Aoife Warren, EY Northern Ireland's Northwest Office Lead and Consulting Partner, had only moved back to her native north west with her husband and children a few years ago, after building a life and an impressive career in Belfast since moving there as an undergraduate in the late 1990s.

EY supports organisations across a broad range of industries and sectors, in areas such as Audit, Corporate Finance, Tax and Law, Consulting, AI and Data Analytics. EY currently employs more than 1,000 people in Northern Ireland and over 5,100 people on the island of Ireland, with offices in Belfast, Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford.

"I was in Belfast for over 20 years until we moved back home here to the north west in 2021," Aoife explains. "I'm married to a Derry man and we always thought we'd still be in Belfast, but once Covid hit it exposed to us that even though we weren't too far from home, we were far enough that you couldn't see anyone for a long period of time. We also had two young kids at the time as well.

"That, combined with then knowing that we could work more flexibly and wouldn't have to be in Belfast every day, made the possibility of moving to the north west a real option for us, as with a lot of people at the time who were moving back to various locations in Derry and Donegal, so we just went for it.

"Then with the opening of the office here, it was a bonus and ensured we could continue that on a long-term basis as well."

EY's core business would traditionally have been considered accountancy, and in particular, advice and auditing. Over the years, Aoife says, that has expanded to include tax advice, consulting and advising on transactions and strategy for business growth as well as data analytics and Artificial Intelligence.

"More recently the part of the business I'm in, consulting, has been the biggest growth area and that is where we work with companies to help move their business through transformation, for example putting in new IT systems, or helping them manage change in the organisation and to get the best out of their talented workforce. Now we reach into so many areas across the business and we are constantly looking at that to make sure we are equipped and have the right people to help meet the needs of our clients which are continuing to change. So it's a constant refresh, investment and building new skills in EY."

Aoife described the welcome EY has received in Derry as 'amazing'.

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"Even before the launch we were meeting people from the Chamber, the Council, the universities and institutes here and other people from the private sector and everybody has been so welcoming and encouraging and onboard with us being here in the city and working together to help create the talent pool we need here in the north west and that has all been very exciting. We've been overwhelmed by the support from the wider community as well."

Indeed, because of that support and that cross-sector unity of purpose here, the company was able to bring forward the opening of their base in Derry by around a year. "You really feel everybody is on the same page here."

Given EY's experience, Aoife has already been speaking to other firms about the benefits of expanding into the north west. "A lot of them have thought about it but I do hope us making the move will help drive that consideration a bit more seriously because there is great talent in the area, and now with hybrid working and more flexible models, you are basically ruling out this talent pool if you don't have something here.

"The way I see it you are giving people more options to be able to work and live in the area where they grew up and where they want to make their home, but also able to have the same high value jobs as in Belfast or Manchester or wherever. We see a lot of people living in London or Australia for a couple of years and then coming back and they have to have something to come back to. That's where I see we are giving people options to come back to. Quite a lot of our roles are now open to either Belfast or Derry locations, that's a model we can now accommodate."

Aoife, who travels regularly from Derry airport to London Heathrow and onward destinations in Europe with EY, also said the ongoing transformation and development of the city and region here - not least in terms of infrastructure, connectivity and quality of life- is something she has also been speaking to others about as these too are vital in attracting businesses and people to the region.

Aoife herself has had a remarkable career, and like others in the EY office in Derry she did not initially start out in accountancy and consulting, having gone to Queens University in Belfast to study Psychology back 1997. After graduating, Aoife got on to the first ever Masters in computer based learning at Queen's. Half-way through this, with an eye to potential career pathways, she signed up with a programme aimed at getting graduates into firms, taking up her first post in 2001. She developed a career with UTV before accepting an offer from EY to come and meet them. That was 19 years ago, and Aoife hasn't looked back since.

EY's graduate programme is open to people with all types of degrees. Skills in terms of research, engagement are all valuable and transferrable and there is also on the job learning, core skills, negotiations, strategic development. "We have people on our team who have a degree in psychology, history or astrophysics, nothing to do with business at all. The main thing is you have a curiosity and ambition to learn. One of our managers did a degree in history, a masters in politics," Aoife said.

There are currently around 40 people working form the EY base in Derry, and with capacity for 120 employees, that will continue to grow. It is also expected that skills clusters within EY will develop here, with a number of live openings at the minute.

Aoife is hoping more people like herself will have options to live, work and build a career in the north west in the years to come. And the best thing about being back home? "Being closer to family is number one for me... back to our own roots. And from a lifestyle perspective there's all the beaches and we enjoy the great outdoors down here. Everyone has been so welcoming as well. There's a difference in spirit, and closeness and there's just a different vibe here.

"It's the best of both worlds. Before Covid I thought if I'm going to move home I'll have to change jobs and I wasn't sure. So this has been great."

Keen to get actively involved in the community here, EY are also a sponsor of this weekend's Waterside Half Marathon, and the company has around 10 people signed up for the run, Aoife among them, with a few relay teams. The local workforce will be raising funds for their current charity partner, Action Cancer.

So if you see them running past in their red vests this weekend, make sure to give some of Derry's newest additions a wave and a bit of encouragement to spur them on.