22nd April 2026 Young Logistics Professionals Event at Port of Cork

On Wednesday 22^nd April, the IIFA Young Logistics Professionals tour of Port of Cork set sail down the River Lee. With 70 delegates in attendance, including IIFA members and students of the Logistics Associate Apprenticeship, the tour was part of Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Week. Now in its 4^th year, Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Week is an initiative of the Department of Transport intended to promote careers and educational opportunities in the Irish logistics and supply chain sector.

The tour of Port of Cork brought the delegates from Custom House Quay, past Tivoli and Monkstown, before docking at Paddy’s Point, Ringaskiddy. The tour had been cut short due to strong winds, with the group arriving at the National Maritime College of Ireland earlier than planned.

After lunch, Dr Jane O’Keeffe organised a tour of NMCI’s facilities to keep the afternoon sessions on schedule.

This was followed by talks from:

Alan O’Brien, National Sea Logistics Trade Lane Manager at Kuehne & Nagel Ireland Ltd
Leila Currie, General Manager, Ocean Product at DSV Ireland Ltd
Caoimhghin Daly, Replenishment Transformation Manager at Musgrave Ltd

Each provided an insight into their careers, the challenges faced, and the skills needed to succeed in the industry. Of note, the speakers highlighted topics such as:

Networking and maintaining relationships,
Continuous learning,
Communication skills,
The importance of up to date knowledge of geopolitics for operational efficiency,
Adaptive planning, and
How the supply chain underpins social stability.

L-R: Alan O'Brien, Leila Currie, Caoimhghin Daly

Following the talks, a panel discussion took place on the subject of self-development and advancing your career. The panel consisted of Kellie de Lacy, Head of HR - Supply Chain at Musgrave Ltd, and Efce van Heerden, Lecturer Logistics and Supply Chain Management at Munster Technological University.

L-R: Efce van Heerden, Kellie de Lacy, Seamus Kavanagh

The day concluded with a bus tour of Port of Cork’s container terminal, before delegates were returned to Cork City.

IIFA would like to express its thanks to Port of Cork, the crew of Cork Harbour Cruises, and the National Maritime College of Ireland for their combined efforts in facilitating the activities of the day. The Association is grateful to the Department of Transport for enabling IIFA to include this event as part of the 2026 Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Week. IIFA would like to thank Alan, Leila, Caoimhghin, Kellie and Efce for their time and presentations during the event, and Dr Jane O’Keeffe for working with the Association as a representative of NMCI.

Irish International Freight Association are committed to promoting Freight Forwarding as a career path of choice and will continue its work with the Department of Transport’s Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Working Group.