#1YearOn with Sarah Irwin
We cannot believe a year has passed since we interviewed Sarah Irwin for our blog; it was a lovely piece that really gave you a sense of who Sarah is. We are delighted to shine the spotlight on Sarah again and catch up on what has changed for her #1YearOn #FollowSarahIrwin
Sarah – almost a year ago we asked you to describe yourself using the @JKhoey method of six words or less. Then you said ‘Anglo-Irish soul that believes in you’. Are we still chatting with the same person or would you now describe yourself slightly differently?
I am the same but different - I think we have all evolved since the pandemic began 18 months ago and I hope for everyone it has been possible to take some positives from that. Using the @JKhoey method again: “CommTech lawyer lightening her colleagues’ workloads”. I can’t wait till she can make it over to Ireland so I can explain what I mean by that IRL over canapés!
We absolutely love to see the women in Awakenhub’s community grow and spread their wings. You have spent the last 6-7 years finding your true path as a qualified solicitor seeking out unique opportunities to work with game changers, entrepreneurs and visionaries bringing your corporate experience to bear in the world of start-ups. You recently took up post of head of legal for Tines. Why the move and what are you most excited about in this new role?
I moved because I have always wanted to be head of legal for an exciting tech start up in hyper-growth mode and to bring my legal expertise to a table filled with game changers/disrupters. It was actually one of your co-founders, Mary Carty, that pointed out years ago that my non-linear legal career would be very well suited to this type of role and it has been incredibly rewarding and validating to discover she was right! I really enjoy that I get to make my colleagues’ lives easier by plugging skills gaps across all verticals which frees up their time to focus on what they do best. I am however most excited that it was the right culture/personality fit for me - our co-founders, Eoin Hinchy and Thomas Kinsella, are two seriously authentic leaders (and outspoken feminists!). Their ethos is infectious and their values are clear to see in each and every Tines employee here in Ireland and across the pond.
Can you share with AwakenHub what are you top three tips for being legally-prudent? We appreciate this isn’t professional advice but for the women in our community who are starting out on theirfounder journey and might not have the luxury of in-house legal team – are there a few basic tips they should keep in mind.
Instead of three small ones, I’ll give you one big one that is market in the US and in my view should be here too: appoint a lawyer as a non-executive director and pay them in equity if you don’t have the cash yet. Most early stage companies don’t have an in-house legal function and doing it this way will fill a huge operational skills gap and buy you plenty of runway in terms of giving you a steer on things like employee incentivisation, protection of IP and corporate governance basics. There is of course no replacement for appointing a law firm when you need to outsource legal projects and/or for the depth of expertise that comes with that (you should do this when you start fundraising and before you sign any terms sheets!) but this approach will potentially save you (maybe significant) value leakage down the line and will mean far fewer headaches when dealing with the due diligence process on top of your day job when you come to fundraise.
What do you see are the biggest challenges to the start up ecosystem in Ireland in the next 3 years and do they differ for women v male founders?
We have still not solved the existing bias towards investment in male-led companies, or connected the dots between the supply out there of all those highly capable girls/women/protected minorities in STEM on the one hand, and the demand for talent in STEM jobs in the start up scene here on the other, BUT thankfully AwakenHub is now ON IT (with my full support and involvement!).
As you settle into your new role at Tines – is there anything the AwakenHub community can do for you?
Yes - help me to help you sort out the challenges mentioned in Q4 above :)
Who has been your favourite guest at AwakenHub over the last year (controversial we know…) and why?
This is nearly impossible to answer as each guest speaker has brought something different to the mix, but if I must, I would say Naomi McGregor (Founder of MoveTru) who spoke at your NextGen young founders event in March earlier this year. It is hard to give praise without sounding patronising, but she was so insightful and eloquent and savvy; we were all inspired! I also think we need to include younger voices as part of our approach to diversity and inclusion because the next generation has fresh perspectives and is very good at holding you accountable!
What is your live or die mantra?
Take everything as it comes.
If you want to connect with Sarah then find her on Twitter or LinkedIn
