Niall Horgan

What do you enjoy most about your role? 

No two days are the same, there are new challenges and opportunities on a day-to-day basis. Always having a growth mindset – both for the business and for giving people opportunities to develop.

You never know where the next opportunity will come from in Kingspan – the Group’s is so broad geographically with multiple business units operating in the region. You might think you’re going to a simple meeting, which turns out to be a job interview for the next big step! 

I joined Kingspan as a graduate in 2011. The graduate programme then was in its early days – it’s much more structured now. We were essentially sent out into the world to see what we could do, and many of the graduates from that early cohort are still with the business and doing extremely well.

My background is structural engineering, and my first role was with the technical services team for the Insulated Panels Division. A couple of years into that role, my manager saw that I had a flair for the commercial aspect, so I got more involved in that side of the business, eventually becoming Commercial Director for Insulated Panels in Australia. Then in 2022 I was offered another opportunity as Managing Director of Kingspan Insulation in New Zealand – a different division and a fresh challenge.

What makes you proud to work for Kingspan?

Coming from Ireland myself, I’m proud of Kingspan’s Irish roots, and the fact that it’s a family business that has grown into a global concern. But that ambition for growth is driven by the desire to have a positive impact on the natural and built environment. And this is not a new thing – we set the first big Group level target to become net zero energy back in 2011, and achieved it. Now the Planet Passionate targets are pushing us forward.

We develop people from the bottom up, and as we make acquisitions you can see that people-wise those businesses have the same culture. It’s the Kingspan DNA.

I also think that it is visionary – what’s happening in IKON - Kingspan’s Innovation Centre, where the team are working on products and solutions to problems that will drive our growth over the next 10-15 years.

What professional qualities are helpful in your role? 

Ambition is very important, and anybody who has an aspiration to grow will get that chance here.

Resilience and openness to change are crucial. It’s a fast moving environment and you have to be able to react and make decisions quickly, and be prepared to bounce back if something doesn’t work.

A combination of those three qualities –  ambition, resilience, and openness to change – are the cornerstones.

What’s the best piece of career advice you’ve received?

One thing that sticks out came from my manager in Australia, when I heard him say “If I have somebody who can do this thing, it’s valuable to me”. It got me thinking about what value I can bring to whatever role I am in. If I focus on bringing value to the business, opportunities will come from there.

I’d also say, enjoy what you’re doing now, don’t try and think too far ahead. If you deliver today, the opportunities of tomorrow will come.

How could someone get started in your division of the Kingspan Group?

The Graduate Programme is a great way to get started, and it will give you a taste of many different parts of the business. I’ve also known people who have just found out who the MD of their regional Kingspan Division is, reached out on LinkedIn and ended up being offered a role. If you really want to join us there are so many routes in, but show some initiative and a genuine desire to work for the company and you’re half way there.

We try to promote entrepreneurship and empowerment, so go for it!

What does the future hold for Kingspan?

I think the future holds a real shift in environmental credentials being the number one driver in product selection, and Kingspan is well positioned to meet that demand. Circular, bio-based products, produced in low carbon manufacturing environments will come to the fore even more in the next 10 years. For Kingspan it is the future of our product strategy.

Planet Passionate is the overarching drive towards finding more circular, more sustainable solutions. Those targets are challenging – we are targeting net zero carbon manufacturing by 2030. When we have achieved this there will always be more to do and Planet Passionate will need to be expanded further.