EY Alumni Interview - March 2023

EY Alumni Interview with Barry Doyle, Investment Director with MASV

ENERGY radiates from Barry Doyle, EY alumnus and investment director of strategic investors MASV. “We pronounce it massive,” he explains, “makes it easier to say, and describes our attitude.” But the road to Cork, where MASV is based, started back in EY Dublin office in 2005, when the then second-year university student interned in EY’s Tax and Audit divisions for 12 weeks.

“As a relatively young student you were in a role where you could take responsibility if you wanted to, speaking and engaging with different business owners and understanding their perspectives and business needs. I look back on it as an invaluable experience.”

Variety has been key to Barry’s career, working with big media names, recruitment companies and tech start-ups. This breadth of opportunity has brought Barry to his next venture, as he takes over as president of Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) in May 2024. “I really want to get out the message that this profession and our members are so much more than the historical stereotype – our members are varied and diverse and have a broad reach, many working in roles far beyond the world of accounting.”

After graduating in 2006, Barry returned to EY to work and train in assurance. “I loved my time at EY right from the get-go,” he says. “They always tried to look at things a little differently. I was allowed to take on responsibility and I was supported. I wouldn’t have succeeded in the start-up world without that grounding.”

However, like many young professionals Barry heard the call of the open road and went travelling with a group of friends. “We backpacked in China, through south-east Asia, Philippines, and down the east coast of Australia.

“We were only supposed to stay for a few weeks in Sydney but we ended up running out of money and had to get some work!” His job was initially just a contract for a few weeks with what was then just the National Geographic Channel, but, though he is too modest to say, the EY alumnus must have impressed hugely.  The business was rapidly expanding at that time becoming what would be Fox International Channels. “In a matter of weeks, the job escalated into a full-time role as finance manager,” Doyle says.

On his return to Ireland two years later, he met Mark Little, founder of Storyful, the online news and content verification company. The two clicked immediately, talking long past the scheduled duration of their first meeting.  At that time, Little was considering selling his innovative news agency and Doyle’s experience with big media in Australia attracted the journalist-businessman.  “It was an amazing couple of months. I joined in August 2013 and we sold the business just before Christmas.”

After Storyful he moved to xSellco, a connection which arose from Storyful. “I was asked to help grow and scale that business. It was early days, we had a small team, but we had hockey stick revenue growth, and were one of the Deloitte Fast 50.” At xSellco he spent over two years as CFO before opportunity came knocking again, in the guise of the COO role at recruitment firm Mason Alexander. This, Doyle says, gave him the chance to expand his skills into sales team management. “We grew the business, rapid growth, it was fantastic.”

In 2020 Doyle was approached to develop a family office with a portfolio of early-stage businesses. This became his role at MASV. “The investment and venture side of things had always interested me and the opportunity to work with entrepreneurs is something that I really enjoy, there is an infectiousness with their passion and personalities,” he says. He is level-headed about the start-up world. “I would always say, you have to make sure you go in with your eyes wide open. Starting a business or working in a start-up is hard work and high risk. You have to consider what stage you are in life, and does a start-up marry with where you are on your own journey.”

Doyle lives in Dublin, and packs his days to the brim. MASV means lots of meetings with entrepreneurs and investors. On top of that he is a director of Republic of Work, where he is part of the team that helps to foster and develop early stage businesses through their various accelerator and innovation programmes.  

Given his colourful professional quilt, is he a risk taker? “That’s a good question,” Doyle says. “I am, to a degree, but more outside work. I love skiing, I do triathlons and long distance running, I would challenge myself in other ways. But when it comes to the day job of managing a portfolio of investments, you do need to take a relatively conservative approach.”