Lánluas names Craig McLaughlin as CEO as Richard McManus retires

Lánluas has confirmed its Chief Executive Officer, Richard McManus, will retire at the end of the year, with Craig McLaughlin set to assume the role of CEO from January 2026.

Leadership change

McManus has led the enterprise systems consultancy for the past two years. During his tenure, he oversaw the company's expansion across the UK and Ireland, and steered the transition from a start-up to an established consulting business. Lánluas now employs more than 45 staff in three countries.

The outgoing CEO presided over a period of growth, with the company's client base increasing by 15 per cent and revenues rising by 34 per cent. He also guided a restructuring of services into three streams covering project consulting, continuous improvement, and supported application services.

Succession process

The board selected McLaughlin, currently the Government Practise Lead, following what it described as a comprehensive succession planning process. McLaughlin will take on the CEO position at the start of 2026.

Lánluas's founder and Executive Director of Growth and Innovation, John Speed, acknowledged McManus's contribution to the company.

"Richard's contribution to Lánluas cannot be overstated. His leadership has definitively shaped our identity, maturity, and culture, and created the platform that now supports our innovation agenda and international growth trajectory.

Speed credited McManus's background as a former CIO and enterprise software vendor for shaping the company's approach to enterprise resource planning challenges and client service models.

Speed also commented on McManus's manner and the culture he fostered, before wishing him well in retirement.

Retirement reflections

McManus reflected on his time at the consultancy and welcomed the succession plans.

"It has been an extraordinary privilege to lead Lánluas into this next stage of their growth, and I was delighted to help shape the end of their first decade in business and what the company looks like heading into their second. I'm proud of what we've built together and of the people who made it possible. As I step into what I hope is a very active and fulfilling retirement, I do so with full confidence in Craig and Lánluas's future. He is exceptionally suited to take the reins and guide the organisation through its next chapter."

Incoming CEO

McLaughlin steps into the chief executive role after joining Lánluas in May as Government Practise Lead. His nearly three-decade career includes positions such as IT software engineer, entrepreneur at Google partner BluePoint, and Head of Strategy and Solution Design at ReadyTech.

He stated his priorities will be to continue expanding the firm's international footprint and growing capability in enterprise systems delivery.

"I'm honoured to take on this role and excited to continue the growth journey that Richard and John have created. Our focus remains on expanding our global footprint, deepening our innovation capabilities, and delivering solutions that help our clients all over the world achieve outstanding results with their TechnologyOne systems. I look forward to working with our people, partners and clients as we accelerate into this next phase," said McLaughlin.