Bright future for US-Irish special business relationship, says AmCham leader
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Paul Sweetman is the incoming chief executive of the American Chamber of Commerce Ireland, the representative body of almost 1,000 US businesses operating in Ireland, including some of the country’s biggest employers in tech, financial services, medtech and pharma. He will succeed Mark Redmond, who has been a decade in the role.
“The American Chamber is recognised as Ireland’s leading international business representative organisation, and I am very much looking forward to the challenge of the job,” he said. “It is all about competitiveness to me, and while Ireland is a strong and attractive location, competitiveness is that spinning plate we have to constantly tend to. My role will be to work across multiple sectors to maintain the positive competitive advantages we have, and to build and improve upon them in any way we can.”
Having most recently been the managing director of business communications consultancy, Instinctif Partners, Mr Sweetman has also held senior leadership roles with Ibec, in addition to being a board member of Digital Europe and the Data Governance Board for Ireland's public service, as well as Gaisce — the President’s Award. He has a bachelor’s degree in engineering from University College Dublin, and also holds a master’s degree in environmental engineering from Virginia Tech, and a certificate in Sustainable Capitalism and ESG from University of California, Berkeley.
“The real passion for me is working with the team on behalf of AmCham members, making sure Ireland is a location where US multinationals can thrive.”
Ireland won 248 new foreign direct investments in 2023, up 2.5% on 2022 figures, enabling the creation of 19,000 new jobs. At the end of 2023, over 1,800 IDA client companies directly employed 300,583 people in Ireland. IDA also reported that 132 investments were secured across regional locations during 2023, representing 54% of the overall figure. The total number of regional jobs now stands at 163,471.
“These figures underline the positive view of Ireland that exists, in addition to the more than 90 percent of corporate headquarters with locations here who have a similarly positive view of the country as an investment and growth location.”
Further, 60% of AmCham survey respondents said they expect the number of employees in their Irish operations to increase over the next 12 months, while 33%expect to maintain current employee numbers. “These figures certainly represent a bright future ahead, but we must continue with the same vigour of competitiveness that got us to this point.”
“Ireland is an incredibly attractive location for investment, and there are a number of key reasons for this — including being nimble, flexible and effective in responding to global challenges. How we respond to challenges is a real hallmark of our ‘can do’ attitude and approach, which is very reassuring for those who are investing here and encourages further growth and investment.”
The availability of talent and skills is another attractive aspect of Ireland as an investment location, particularly their accessibility throughout the country — as evidenced by the substantial growth of FDI outside of Dublin.
“Having access to talent across the country makes for a very compelling argument for US companies, in that they can look at a number of locations and find which is ideal for their own unique circumstances. That is what companies to Ireland
These drivers of Ireland’s attractiveness require constant monitoring, he says, to keep the aforementioned spinning plates in a state of perfect balance.
“Global competition for inward investment is only going to get stronger. Other jurisdictions certainly know and have noticed what makes Ireland a great success and try to catch up. We must always look at maintaining and growing our key competitive advantages, as well as looking at new advantages and opportunities that are emerging, to accelerate our offering.”
Ireland’s inherent power in its unique position as the bridge between the US and Europe cannot be underestimated, Mr Sweetman believes, in addition to being the only English-speaking, common law country within the EU.
“We have exceptionally strong relationships on both sides of the transatlantic eco-system, and we need to nurture and grow those advantages.”
Indeed, while US investment in Ireland is a long-established reality, there is also phenomenal Irish investment across the US.
“I want to help Irish companies that are continually expanding into the US, I’ve seen how that expansion has grown over the past decades and want to keep the shoulder to the wheel in maintaining that competitiveness. It is another exciting part of the job I’m looking forward to.”
According to the US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Ireland’s FDI into the US is in excess of €216bn, with over 900 companies operating across all 50 states, employing 110,000.
“This doesn’t just yield growth for those companies, but also for the economy and society at large. I think the most compelling stat is that Ireland is the 9th largest FDI investor in the US — a fact that many people don’t realise. That really shows the mutually beneficial economic relationship on both sides of the Atlantic.”
The future of the business relationship between Ireland and the US is very bright, as evidenced by the increasing bottom line figures, the positive view of Ireland and the expected investment growth over the coming year.
“The figures continue to increase year on year, and I do believe that many of the competitive advantages we have remain remarkably compelling for US companies looking to invest here. It is really important to remember just how rigorously US investors examine multiple locations in advance of their investment decisions, a process that includes looking at key metrics such as the R&D environment, economic stability, access to markets and quality of life. We perform well in each of those areas, and the fact that we are so competitive in those spaces is why we win investment.”
Mr Sweetman reiterates again the need for a constant monitoring of our proven advantages to maintain Ireland’s premier position as a location for US companies to come here.
“Competition will get tougher from other jurisdictions, so we must constantly match what companies need and stay ahead of the curve. We have done it successfully in the past and have that track record, so I have every confidence we can do it again.”