Hi, I’m Breda.
I spent the first two decades of my career being the person everyone relied on — the one who could hold a room, fix the budget, calm the stakeholder, and quietly absorb whatever fell through the cracks. On paper, it looked like success. I was leading teams, sitting on executive committees, managing national-scale operations worth hundreds of millions of euro. Underneath it, I was a chronic people-pleaser running on empty, mistaking exhaustion for commitment and silence for strength.
It took me a long time — and a fair few hard lessons — to learn the difference between being indispensable and being fulfilled. Between managing a team and actually leading one. Between saying yes to everything and saying yes to the right things.
That’s the work I do with my clients now.
The credentials, if you need them
I currently serve as Head of Site Operations for one of Ireland’s largest national research centres. I lead a team of 8 and am responsible for strategy, governance and operations across 3 sites.
From 2022-2026, I was the Chief Operations Officer of a national research centre with national responsibility for strategic planning, resource management, and day-to-day operations across a complex, multi-site structure — 8 partner institutions, 450+ staff, and a six-figure funding envelope generating an estimated €1.1B in economic value for Ireland.
I hold a PhD in Analytical Chemistry, an MSc in Work and Organisational Behaviour, and a Bachelor’s in Business Studies with Accounting — plus ICF-accredited coaching qualifications spanning personal, business, career, and addiction coaching.
I’ve spent my career translating strategy into systems that actually work, and I bring that same rigour to coaching: this isn’t just a supportive chat; it’s a plan with structure.
Why this matters for you
If you’re newly managing a team, stepping into a leadership role you weren’t fully trained for, or quietly wondering whether everyone else got a manual you didn’t — I’ve been exactly there. The imposter syndrome. The 11pm inbox anxiety. The sense that you’re performing competence rather than feeling it.
I’m not going to tell you to “just be more confident” or hand you a generic five-step framework. I know from two decades of operational leadership — and from rebuilding my own relationship with work — that what you need is both: a space where you feel genuinely seen and understood, and concrete, practical strategies that hold up under real pressure, real deadlines, and real teams.
That’s what I offer. Acceptance without coddling. Empathy without vagueness. And a partner in your corner who has actually run the operations function, sat in the leadership seat, and knows exactly how to help you build the version of yourself who leads without losing herself in the process.
What I learned the hard way
Here are some of the moments that changed everything for me.
1. Asking questions is a superpower
I used to stay silent in rooms full of experts, terrified of looking like I didn’t belong. The day I started asking questions — really asking — I discovered that confidence isn’t about knowing everything. It’s about being curious enough to find out.
2. Your role matters more than you think
A mentor reminded me early on: if you’re not doing your job, nobody else can do theirs. It reframed everything. You were put in that room for a reason. The work you do holds the whole structure up. Own it.
3. Burnout is a signal, not a badge
I wore my exhaustion like proof of dedication. It took burning out — repeatedly — to understand that you cannot perform for the long term if you don’t take care of yourself. Rest is not a reward. It’s a requirement.
4. Setbacks reveal your strengths
Every role that looked like failure taught me something I couldn’t have learned any other way — about boundaries, delegation, expectations, and what I’m actually good at. The pattern I kept seeing wasn’t a flaw. It was my edge.
5. Celebrate the win before the next one
High achievers are wired to move the goalpost the moment they reach it. I had to learn — with help — to stop, acknowledge what I’d built, and let it land. Progress that goes uncelebrated becomes invisible.
6. A mentor changes everything
Every time I found my way through a hard period, there was someone in my corner who could see what I couldn’t. Not because I was weak — but because you can’t read the label from inside the jar. Everyone needs that perspective.