Inside Joe Queenan’s Playbook: How Foxford’s Managing Director Defies the Odds and Rewrites the Rules of Executive Leadership
Ever wonder why finding the right crew in business feels like trying to herd cats — yet somehow, pulling it off is the secret sauce that makes everything worthwhile? Joe Queenan, the managing director over at Foxford, knows this struggle all too well. Raised on a tiny farm in north Mayo and having navigated the winding road through London and back, Joe’s journey isn’t your typical suit-and-tie story. It’s packed with real talk about battling anxiety, wrestling with procrastination, and learning that sometimes, the best advice comes with a twist — like “Partners are for dancing!” For Joe, the daunting task of gathering the right people around him has been both the toughest challenge and the richest reward in his business life. Curious to see how his experiences shaped Foxford into what it is today and what lessons you can steal from a man who’s been in the trenches? LEARN MORE
‘Gathering the right people around you in business is difficult, but it is also the most rewarding thing’ – Joe Queenan, managing director at Foxford
Tell me a little bit of background before you started your career?
I was brought up on a small farm in north Mayo in a village called Lahardane. Secondary school was Gortnor Abbey in Crossmolina, followed by Sligo Regional Technical College (now ATU Sligo).
Like most young people at the time, I emigrated to London in the early 1980s.
I qualified as an accountant there before returning to Mayo in 1986.
I joined an accountancy practice in Ballina, which happened to be appointed receivers to Foxford Woollen Mills in 1987. Hence my first introduction to Foxford.
Were you a good student?
I didn’t like national school, but enjoyed Gortnor Abbey and Sligo Regional Tech. I had some great teachers and lecturers there who were so influential.
What is your motto in life?
You are who you want to be.
What is the best piece of business advice you have received?
Partners are for dancing!
What’s the most difficult thing about running a business?
Gathering the right people around you. It’s also the most rewarding thing.
Which business people inspire you?
Michael O’Leary. He scaled an Irish brand to the world stage.
What’s the last holiday you took?
A weekend on Achill in August. I really enjoyed Kevin Toolis’s Achill Colony Tour – [there is] such history and beauty on that small island.
What are your best and worst business habits?
In the early years [my worst was] procrastination, which I think I’ve got over now. Together with worrying and catastrophising, it burns up so much positive energy — particularly when most of your worries never materialise. I think [my best is that] I work well with people and have got more agile as the business has grown.
Regrets — we’ve had a few. Can you tell me one of yours?
Critical time wasted in the early years of Foxford when anxiety and depression were a major distraction from the business focus.
What do you wish you’d known at an earlier point in your career?
Everything will be fine!
What’s your favourite day of the week and why?
Thursday, because it’s just before Friday and there is a real anticipation of the weekend ahead. The anticipation is often better than the arrival.
If you could be Taoiseach for a month, what legislative change would you make happen?
Ireland is an export-led economy and anywhere there are uncompetitive practices acts as a break on developing and growing business. The cases I would look at include reform of the energy market (especially electricity), continuing the good work the government has already done on the insurance front, reform of the legal system as demanded by the Troika as part of the [EU/ECB/IMF] bailout, and, probably the most important of all, increasing house building.
These are all policies that would get my attention if I had the privilege of being Taoiseach for a month.
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