Graham Byrne, head of Ireland and Scotland businesses, Promethean
3rd February 2010
Keeping an eye on the prize.
The prize cannot be measured in simple economic terms as this overlooks the broader societal and cultural rewards: openness, innovation, confidence, knowledge and a greater ability to communicate and express ourselves in the global community. Nevertheless, emerging studies show a clear correlation between economic development and ICT penetration in education and society.
This vision cannot be achieved without deeply embedding ICT into the school curriculum and assessment procedures.
But to realise the entire prize, we must first unlock the potential of human achievement through lifelong education and training.
Achieving the true potential of digital infrastructure in education starts with equipping our teaching professionals with the skills they need to become confident and competent users of technology.
The result will be a new generation of self-assured and self-directed learners who have the skills and flexibility to succeed in a digital society.
The successful nations of tomorrow will have highly adaptable, knowledgeable workforces who have an appreciation of the potential of information technology. Therefore, a carefully thought-out and meticulously executed national digital development strategy is essential to realising this vision.
Graham Byrne's biography
Graham Byrne is the head of Promethean’s businesses in Ireland and Scotland.
He took over the role of Head of Ireland in February 2009 and assumed leadership of the Scottish business in December 2009.
He has overall responsibility for developing and implementing market and channel strategies with a view to strengthening Promethean’s ActivClassroom market position.
A key focus has been building Promethean’s educator support capabilities, and enhancing its strong links with government, teacher and parent communities. Graham has been deeply involved in developing innovative partnerships with fund raisers designed to help schools to finance interactive classroom systems, and with educational publishers to create localised interactive curriculum resources.
Byrne was born in 1973. He began his career in sales with Cable in Wireless, working in a number of senior sales roles, before moving to Global Crossing Financial Markets in London as global account director, responsible for managing its global matrix sales teams. Byrne then joined MCI Worldcom (Verizon) in a similar capacity.
On returning to Dublin, Byrne embarked on a number of entrepreneurial ventures, including founding and selling a retail group and acquiring Ashfield, the second level and IT education group.
Byrne studied commerce in UCD before completing his MBA at the Smurfit Business School in 1996.
