Entrepreneurial Ambassador with the School of Business Technology, Retail, and Supply Chain

 

Karl O’Connell is an investor and advisor to several mid to late-stage start-up companies. Karl primarily focuses on funding and advising organisations on their product development, technology direction, operational efficiencies and their international go to market strategies. Companies that Karl works with provide B2B technologies, web commerce applications, medical informatics systems & information and news technology applications.

Prior to his current role, Karl was founder and CEO of Nexala Technologies, a leading provider of software and hardware solutions to the transport sector. Nexala was the market leader in the rail industry, providing technology solutions for high-speed rail, commuter rail, metro and tram systems.  As CEO, Karl was responsible for the overall direction, management, operations and growth of the business, leading to its eventual acquisition in 2014 by Trimble Navigation PLC.

Prior to Nexala, Karl was CTO and VP Marketing with Norkom Technologies, and prior to Norkom, he held the roles of Chief Technical Architect and Head of Services with Misys banking Systems (formerly Kindle Banking)

In terms of enterprise areas, Karl is particularly interested in AI in production automation and medical diagnostics, technologies to assist in the transition to green energy solutions and the smart grid, smart sustainable cities and the associated relevant technologies, and large scale distributed applications.

As Entrepreneurial Ambassador in the School of Business Technology, Retail, and Supply Chain, Karl is looking forward to working with students who are interested in developing new entrepreneurial disruptive ideas. He will be able to assist with identification of go-to-market strategies, advise and guide students on the understanding and impact a disruptive entrepreneurial concept has on an organisation or the marketplace, and help students with the transition from a concept into a concrete product or service. 

Karl holds a PhD in Computer Science & Engineering from Trinity College Dublin and a BSc in Mathematics & Computer Science.  He also obtained a Diploma in Accounting & Finance from the ACCA and is a graduate of theTU Dublin Diploma in New Business Development.

When not working Karl enjoys running, cycling, boating & watching rugby.

 

A message from Karl:

“I am honoured and excited to have this opportunity  to share my experiences  of building innovative companies from inception to successful acquisition. In particular, I look forward to discussing the challenges, pitfalls heart aches, and the success points along the journey to entering international markets.  I'm looking to help and hopefully provide concrete real world advice to students to assist developing a business idea into a functioning reality.”

 

Book your one to one session with Karl:

To book an appointment with Karl submit your request here.

 

Karl entrepreneurial journey

Watch Karl talking to GROWTHhub about his entrepreneurial journey.

Practical Advice for start-up companies

 

The GROWTHhub project is a HEA funded project that is working to build student entrepreneurship competences by linking with the TU Dublin entrepreneurship ecosystem.