Brendan Mooney, CEO of Kainos Group plc, has been selected as EY Entrepreneur Of The Year for 2016 from a shortlist of 23 other contenders.

Founded in Belfast in 1987, Kainos is the largest indigenous IT services company in Northern Ireland, employing approximately 950 people in five countries. The company went public in 2015 and currently has a market capitalisation of £235 million.

Mooney, 48, didn’t start Kainos but he’s been there since 1989, when he joined the company as a computer science graduate from University of Ulster. He was appointed managing director in 2001 and had 17 million Kainos shares valued at €28m when the company was floated on the London Stock Exchange in July 2015.

The IPO was a spectacular success for Mooney (pictured) and his colleagues. After extracting €13m in dividends two months before the IPO, executives and investors slimmed down or sold off their Kainos shares in exchange for €61m cash from UK institutions. Mooney’s gross from the IPO was €4.2m, and on an ongoing basis his annual remuneration package is €490,000.

Subsequent to the IPO in July 2015, priced at 139p per share, the Kainos stock roared ahead, peaking at 290p last November. That was as good as it got, with the share drifting back to a post-Brexit nadir of 124p on 27 June 2016. Happily, the counter has recovered back to the 200p level.

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Anne Heraty, chairperson of the judging panel, commented: “Brendan Mooney is an inspirational leader who has grown Kainos from 12 employees to a global business employing almost 1,000 people today. With a clear vison he has positioned the company as a leader in digital technology supporting over 150 customers globally.”

Veteran property developer Stephen Vernon was named Industry Entrepreneur Of The Year. Paul Quigley and Andrew Mullaney of Newswhip picked up the award for Emerging Entrepreneur Of The Year.

Orla Battersby of Enterprise Ireland said: “As an Enterprise Ireland high potential start up since 2013, Paul Quigley and Andrew Mullaney have grown the company at an exceptional speed with over 300 paying customers in Ireland, the US and the UK. This achievement, together with the founders’ singular focus on scaling their business to achieve their global ambitions, makes them a stand out winner within the category this year.”

Commenting on Stephen Vernon’s award win, Jeremy Fitch of Invest Northern Ireland said: “The judges found the Industry Category very difficult to decide and at the outset of the deliberations there was no clear winner.  Ultimately we selected Stephen Vernon because of his outstanding ability to read the market and identify significant business opportunities. His success is best illustrated in the performance of the business and the outstanding returns he has achieved.”

The judging panel consisted of Anne Heraty, Michael Carey, Mark Roden, Terry Clune, Edmond Harty, Joe Hogan, Jerry Kennelly, Brian Long, Pat McDonagh, Denis O’Brien, Orla Battersby and Jeremy Fitch.

The 2017 programme will be open for nominations from January 2017.

Pix: Maxwell Phototgraphy