Dawn Leane,
Chief Learning & Development Officer

Owner, Leane Leaders & Leane Empower

Diploma in Executive Coaching

Masters in Business Administration & Management

Postgrad. Diplomas in Organisational Behaviour, Leadership and Strategic Human Resources Management

Dawn Leane has long had an interest in womens development. During her role as Director of People and Resources with Chartered Accountants Ireland she worked closely with boards, leadership teams and individuals across a number of sectors. Prior to taking up this role Dawn contributed in a variety of industries including manufacturing, publishing, recruitment, education and the charity sector. 

Having observed how some organisations succeeded in promoting balance at senior levels while others struggled to do so ignited Dawn’s curiosity. All of Dawn’s work supports organisations and individuals on their journey to better gender balance across all sectors of society. 

Jean Evans,
Chief Connection Officer

Owner, NetworkMe & Ignite Business Network

Life, Business & Executive Coach

Career Coach

DiSC Practitioner & Facilitator

QQI Train the Trainer

Global Certificate In Meetings & Business

Before founding her businesses, Jean amassed 25 years of diverse experience spanning private sectors, semi-states, and international corporations in tourism and business tourism. Renowned for her networking prowess, she excels in team-building and fostering organisational growth.

Currently chairing various networks, including those in Ignite Business Network and Monaghan Women in Business Network, Jean is a past President of Network Ireland Wicklow and serves as the current membership officer.

Despite being a self-described "anti-networker" due to her introverted nature, Jean's journey from shy introvert to seasoned professional equips her with invaluable insights into effective networking strategies. Through her training, blog, podcast, and social media channels, Jean shares her expertise to empower others to network with confidence and purpose.

Recognising that genuine connections are indispensable for success, Jean's unique blend of life and career experience, coupled with her coaching qualifications, make her an invaluable asset to the Advancia team.

Gemma O’Halloran,
Chief Operations Officer 

Owner, FreestylePM

Postgrad. Cert. Innovation & Enterprise Development (Dist.)

QQI Level 6 Training Delivery & Evaluation

Postgrad. Diploma Event Management (Dist.)

MSc. Environmental Archaeology, Queens University Belfast (Dist.)

B.A. Science, Trinity College Dublin

Gemma is a creative operations and project management professional with nearly 20 years experience working nationally and internationally in a number of industry sectors. 

With the combination of working in an international company, a global events agency and running her own business for nearly 10 years, Gemma has learned what gets results and what doesn’t. She sees both the big picture, and every system and step needed to get there. Gemma brings an extensive knowledge of planning and delivering a range of projects for Advancia. Her background in science and critical thinking gives her a unique perspective while paying particular attention to excellent customer experience, a hallmark of everything we do.

She has extensive knowledge of planning and execution of a range of projects and has expanded her range to include training, mentoring, guest-speaking, accountability programmes, masterminds and other formats to support others in achieving their goals and realising their ambitions.