Ronan Dunne
Profile Verified by The Marque
Last Updated: 22 Sep 2026
Chairman
London, GB
Profile Verified by The Marque
Last Updated: 22 Sep 2026
THE MARQUE
In Their Own Right
Biography
Ronan is an Irish businessman and senior telecommunications and technology executive with extensive international leadership experience. He is recognised for a people-first, values-led, narrative-driven leadership style and speaks publicly on purpose, inclusion, and authentic leadership. He is known for reframing the CEO role as “chief cheerleader and chief storyteller,” aligning strategy, culture, and execution through clarity of vision. He has deep experience scaling complex organisations while maintaining strong customer trust. In 2015, he was named CEO of the Year by the Ethical Corporation.
Best known for his tenure as CEO of O2, Ronan transformed it into one of the UK’s strongest consumer brands through customer experience, culture, and digital innovation. He later joined Verizon as Group President and CEO of Verizon Wireless, and subsequently of Verizon Consumer Group, delivering strong growth through experience-led, technology-enabled innovation.
Today, Ronan leads a portfolio career focused on international leadership, customer and employee centricity, and strong values. He serves as Chair of Six Nations Rugby and of the recently launched Nations Championship. He is a Non-Executive Director of Optasia, the AI-led platform delivering digital finance solutions to over 100 million underserved consumers across Africa and Asia. He is Chair of Kore Labs and Ufurnish and strategic advisor to multiple telecom/tech companies and served as an NED at Marks & Spencer.
Ronan is engaged in leadership development, with a particular focus on supporting women and youth. He supports initiatives Balance in Business, Balance the Board and Awaken Hub, and engages with the youth leadership community, One Young World. Born and raised in Dublin, he maintains strong ties to Ireland through Enterprise Ireland’s Tech Advisory Panel and the Irish International Business Network. The American Ireland Fund awarded him the 2019 Corporate Leadership Award.
The Record
Background
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Present
Director
Banque Nationale de Paris
BNP is a leading European bank with a commitment to supporting its clients in an ever-changing world.
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2022 — Present
Chairman
Six Nations Rugby
Six Nations Rugby is the official organising body of the Six Nations Championships and Autumn Nations Series, working in partnership with its member unions and federations in England (RFU), France (FFR), Ireland (IRFU), Italy (FIR), Scotland (SRU) and Wales (WRU).
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2025 — Present
Chairman
ufurnish.com
ufurnish.com is a UK-based, AI-driven search and comparison website for furniture (and home furnishings), recommending to consumers and connecting consumers with sales, offers, and products from more than 100 retailers.
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2025 — Present
Co-chair
Nations Championship
Ronan was named as Co-chair when World Rugby announced the launch of the new Nations Championship – a landmark collaboration between Six Nations Rugby and SANZAAR to create an exciting new biennial rugby tournament featuring the twelve biggest nations globally.
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2016 — 2021
Executive Vice President & Chief Executive Officer
Verizon Wireless and Verizon Consumer Group
Verizon is one of the largest telecommunications companies globally, helping consumers to stay connected. Verizon was the first telecom company to develop a 5G technology network that will redefine how people work, live and play.
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2008 — 2016
Member of the Executive Committee
Telefónica
Telefónica is one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world in terms of market capitalisation and number of customers. Ronan served as a member of their Europe and SA Executive Committees.
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2005 — 2016
Chief Executive Officer
O2 (Telefónica UK)
From 2008 to 2016, Ronan served as the CEO of O2, one of the UK's most innovative telecommunications companies. Telefónica acquired O2 plc in 2008.
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1996 — 2001
Head of Strategic Finance
DHL Exel Supply Chain
DHL is the world's largest contract logistics specialist, creating competitive advantages for customers through customized logistics solutions.
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2001 — 2004
Deputy to Group CFO / Head of Finance
O2 plc
O2 is a telecommunications provider that services millions of customers across the UK with high-speed 5G mobile service and WiFi.
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2022 — 2022
Strategic Advisor to the CEO
Verizon
In his role as Strategic Advisor to the CEO, Ronan Dunne specialized in overseeing prominent initiatives to maximize the potential growth of Verizon's investments.
In The News
Newsfeed
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17 March 2026 · YouTube
From O2 CEO to Six Nations Rugby Chairman: Ronan Dunne on Leadership, Growth & Transformation
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19 November 2025 · Rugby World
Nations Championship: All you need to know about the bi-annual global competition
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17 November 2025 · Marks and Spencer
Marks and Spencer Group plc Directorate Change
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7 November 2025 · Business Post
Dublin-based Chirp launches new funding round for child protection software
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31 October 2025 · Furniture News
Ronan Dunne appointed ufurnish.com Chairman
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22 April 2025 · FYLD
Ronan Dunne joins FYLD Advisory Board to help drive 2025 scale-up initiatives
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20 March 2025 · Trybooking UK
Conversation with Ronan Dunne Chair of Six Nations Rugby
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4 November 2023 · Business Wire
SpinLaunch Announces New Leadership Roles to Accelerate the Commercialization of its Space Solutions
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18 April 2023 · PR Newswire
Glow Financial Services Announces New Addition to its Prestigious Board of Advisors
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10 January 2023 · TechDay
Norwood Systems has appointed a new Strategic Adviser
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17 June 2022 · Retail Gazette
Marks & Spencer appoints new non-executive director
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19 March 2022
Global CEO and Local Leaders to Speak at Council's Talent Summit
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7 December 2021 · Verizon
Verizon to speak at Barclays Global TMT Conference December 8
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25 November 2021 · Sky News
Six Nations Rugby to name former O2 chief Dunne as chairman
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27 August 2021 · CNBC
Housing, jobs and free calls: How businesses are supporting Afghan refugees
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24 August 2021 · Fierce Wireless
Interview with Verizon's Ronan Dunne
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12 July 2021 · Venture Beat
How Verizon delivers a ‘phygital’ customer experience with data, AI
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In Frame
Gallery
Formative Years
Education
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Blackrock College, Dublin
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Chartered Accountants Ireland
FCA
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The Association of Corporate Treasurers
FCT Dip
Areas Of Focus