Ireland’s Quinn-direct to Create 1000 New Jobs

One Company that seems confident in the growth predictions of the Research & Markets report (See related article) is Ireland’s Quinn Group. It plans to hire as many as 1000 new workers for its insurance subsidiary Quinn-direct.

Micheál Martin T.D., Ireland’s Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, revealed the job plans on behalf of the job creation firm Enterprise Ireland. He indicated they are part of Quinn’s international development. Up to 700 jobs will be located at a new facility in Navan, Co. Meath, with the remainder being created at the company’s existing Irish operations in Cavan and Blanchardstown. The new and expanded facilities will “be created over the next five years, and will enable Quinn-direct to service the growth in its overseas businesses from the Republic of Ireland,” said the ministry’s bulletin.

“I am delighted to announce this very substantial project by Quinn-direct Insurance,” Martin noted. “Quinn-direct’s commitment to building a facility that will provide up to 700 new jobs in Navan is particularly good news for the North East region. He added that the initiative is “an excellent example of how an ambitious Irish Financial Services company can grow and internationalize and Enterprise Ireland will continue to work closely with the company.”

Commenting on the announcement Colin Morgan, General Manager of Quinn-direct stated: “Quinn-direct continues to grow its business in Ireland where we are now the third largest insurer. But as well as growing our Irish business we are very excited about the opportunities for our business overseas, especially in the UK.

“We are delighted to announce the establishment of a new office facility in Navan and continued expansion of our existing offices in Cavan and Blanchardstown. The new jobs created will be across many disciplines including insurance sales, claims administration and customer service and will service Quinn-direct’s UK and European customer base.”

Welcoming the announcement by the Minister, Frank Ryan CEO of Enterprise Ireland said: “This is a major project for Navan and the Quinn Group. Enterprise Ireland is very pleased to be supporting such a significant development by this ambitious company. The internationalization of Irish business is of paramount importance to the future success of the Irish economy. Enterprise Ireland will work very closely with the Quinn Group in its future development strategy.”

Quinn-direct is part of the Quinn Group and was founded in 1996. It currently employs over 1,100 people in the Republic of Ireland and over 500 in the UK and Northern Ireland.

Ed Note: Ireland, once one of the poorest countries in the European Union, has become in the space of 20 years one of the richest. The turnaround came as a result of its highly educated workforce and the government’s ability to attract companies to invest in plants, offices and infrastructure in the country by offering substantial incentives.

The insurance industry is well represented. A number of major companies, including ACE, PartnerRe, XL, Prudential (U.S.), Allied World, Zurich and AXIS Capital, have significant Europe-wide operations in the country.