Eugene qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1991 and has over thirty years of experience across all areas of practice, but mostly focusing on taxation.

He has headed busy taxation departments in both small and large practices and gained a wide variety of experience across all taxations heads.  These include advising clients on group reconstructions, merger and acquisition transactions, VAT on property and succession planning for retirement. Eugene has a wide experience across various sectors including construction, agricultural, financial services and the entertainment industry.

Eugene joined Woods & Partners in 2018 after heading up the ROI tax department with PKF-FPM Accountants Ltd. This role included managing large cross border corporate reconstructions, he is a regular speaker at taxation briefings to various business groups. He oversaw the running of a busy ROI taxation department and was part of an overall award winning taxation team.

Eugene is a keen rugby supporter and is a member of County Cavan Rugby Football Club. He also is a keen runner and swimmer. He is married to Deirdre and has three children.  He has served on various committees and is currently PRO for Breifne Swim Club and a member of the executive committee.

Having worked for a number of years in KPMG and Kingspan PLC in a management and leadership role, Conor established Woods and Partners in 2013. Over that time, the firm has grown to over 30 staff, across four offices and we are servicing a diverse range of clients both internationally and domestically.

Conor’s key areas of expertise are in Audit and Business Advisory services to our SME corporate client base and Charities in Ireland. As a Senior Statutory Auditor, Conor have over twenty years’ experience in Audit and Business Advisory. Conor’s clients operate in aviation, technical & engineering, media and entertainment, life sciences, charity and not for profit.

In 2010 Conor was appointed Accounting Technical Advisor to Senator Mary Ann O’Brien on the drafting of the accounting framework for Charities in Ireland. Having been appointed as the inaugural Chair of the Charities Regulatory Authority in 2014 by the Minister of Justice, he played a key role with the setting up of the Charity Regulator in Ireland and also sat on the Audit and Risk Committee of the Authority for two years. Conor now advises a large number of Charities in Ireland in the area of governance, transparency and financial reporting and he lectures with Chartered Accountants Ireland in this area. Conor’s key areas of expertise are Corporate Governance, Accounting and Regulation for Charities in Ireland in the context of the Charities Act 2009, the Governance Code and SORP FRS 102 and is also former Chair of Chartered Accountants Ireland Charity and Not for Profit Group.

In 2015 Conor was appointed to sit on the Strategy Board of Chartered Accountants Ireland by the President of Chartered Accountants Ireland.

According to Conor, his major motivation in setting up the practice in 2013 is to provide technical and advisory services in Audit and Tax, to the standard of the “Big 4”, but without losing the access to Partners and intimacy with clients that comes with a smaller practice.

Interests outside of work

Conor is married to Ann and has 3 children. He is heavily involved with Carnaross GFC in Meath, where he coaches the U10 and U7 teams. In addition to the GAA, Conor swims, rows and cycles and competes in the occasional triathlon and plays golf badly at Headfort GC. He also sits on the Board of Management and Parents Association of Carnaross National School.

BAAF (Hons), MBSA (Hons), FCA

Noel has recently joined Woods & Partners having spent 24 years with a top 5 firm having joined as a trainee in 1996. He was made director of Audit and Assurance Services in 2001 and was appointed to the partnership of that firm in 2011.  In 2007 he led a team to set up a regional office in Newbridge aimed at providing specialist services to local industries in the areas of corporate finance and restructuring, wealth management and specialist tax planning.

As lead of the Portlaoise office, at the crossroads of Ireland, being less than an hour from Dublin and Limerick and just over an hour to Cork, he is centrally located to serve all of his current and future client needs.

With over 20 years’ experience in the not for profit and Social Housing sectors, Noel was the audit partner responsible for charities and Not-for-Profit clients of Grant Thornton and has published surveys and reports on the sector.  Noel served as a member of a Big 5 Global steering committee which was responsible for setting that firm’s global strategy on this sector. His other main areas of expertise are in the food and beverage, agri-business, retail, and leisure industries especially in the owner-managed, privately held sector. Noel was also responsible for providing audit services to many Irish subsidiaries of large multinational organisations, together with divisional responsibility for Irish quoted entities.

Noel is a current technical reviewer and judge for the Carmichael Good Governance Awards.

Noel is a fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI). He has a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Accounting and Finance and a Master’s degree in Business Studies and Accounting, both from Dublin City University (DCU).

Noel is married to Sinead and has 3 children. An avid sporting fan he has a keen interest in GAA in his native Laois, having trained teams at club and county level and remains deeply devoted to his local club Ballyroan Abbey GAA. Always open to a challenge he likes to explore the path less travelled.

Maria joined the Woods & Partners family in January 2020. Maria brings to the clients of Woods & Partners a wealth of knowledge from twenty years’ experience of carrying out roles in bureau services across private practice, SME’s and multi-national corporations. Maria is adept at managing the needs of our bureau clients in the fast changing environment within which businesses operate today.

Maria key areas of expertise are in the managing of operational reporting of bureau services that comes with experience from different business environments.

Maria is an active member of a local equestrian club and is involved various aspects of the Meath Hunt Pony Club. Maria is married to Kevin and together they have 3 children, all of which are involved in different equestrian areas.

Tomás joined Woods and Partners full time in 2015 after previously completing our summer internship programme. He qualified as an ACA after completing his final exams in 2018. Prior to joining Woods and Partners, Tomás graduated from Dublin City University (DCU) with a BA (Hons) in Accounting and Finance.

Tomás has amassed significant experience and exposure beyond that of a typical training in a firm outside the Top 10. He has worked with both large international and local clients and has acquired a strong knowledge across the areas of Charity, Aviation Finance and Leasing, Agriculture and Agri-Business, Construction and Owner-managed Businesses. He now works on various projects across Statutory Audit, SME Consultancy, and Corporate finance. Tomás has a simple goal – “to act as a trusted business adviser, always aiming to add value to your business”.

In 2015 whilst still in DCU, Tomás started his own farm enterprise. He now farms in partnership with his family, operating a large suckler-beef operation in his time outside of office hours. Whilst the agri-sector is going through major changes and challenges at present he declares “the outdoor farm environment delivers an incredibly healthy lifestyle and can be highly rewarding”.

Tomás is an active member of Carnaross GFC serving on both the Executive and Finance Committees, whilst also a player on the first team. He has a passion for Irish language and culture and also a keen interest in horse racing, just don’t ask him for tips.

Elaine joined Woods and Partners in 2015 and is currently in her final year of completing her training contract and exams. Prior to joining the team at Woods and Partners, Elaine graduated from Waterford Institute of Technology with a BA (Hons) in Accounting.

Elaine manages a diverse portfolio of clients from large indigenous companies to SMEs and owner-managed businesses and sole traders and provides them with varied technical and practical business support. This includes the production of management information, statutory financial reporting, general business advisory and strategic growth advice. By gaining an in-depth understanding of her clients’ businesses, Elaine works alongside them to help them grow, meet their targets and stimulate them to think beyond the day to day operations of their businesses.

Her portfolio includes a broad range of business sectors including Charity and Not-for-Profit, Religious Orders, Pharmaceutical, Construction, Agricultural and Equine, Manufacturing, Opticians, Interior Design and Retail.

Interests outside of work

Outside of office hours Elaine has a keen interest in horse riding, owns her own horse and is an active member of the Meath Hunt serving on the Meath Hunt Committee. Elaine also swims regularly and is a qualified swimming teacher.

Shane works in our Portlaoise office as a senior manager in the audit and business advisory department. Shane recently joined Woods & Partners after spending five years working in a top five accountancy firm where he initially joined as a trainee before quickly progressing in to management.

Throughout his career to date, Shane has serviced a wide variety of clients, from sole traders and owner-managed businesses to large groups. Shane maintains strong relationships with all of his clients and is a trusted advisor in providing technical guidance & recommendations as well efficient business solutions for clients.

Shane’s diverse portfolio of clients spreads across a number of different sectors which includes clients in the hospitality, construction, retail, manufacturing, agricultural and pharmaceutical industries.

Shane is a member of Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) and holds a BA (Hons) in Mathematics and Education from National University of Ireland Galway (NUIG).

Outside of the office Shane is a big sports fan holding a keen interest in GAA and horse racing in particular. Shane is also a passionate supporter of the Portlaoise GAA club and enjoys a social game of golf.

Shane recently joined Woods & Partners after spending nearly nine years working in two Dublin based firms. Shane trained with a medium sized practice in Ranelagh and after qualifying joined a top ten firm where he progressed in to management.

Shane is a qualified Chartered Tax Advisor (CTA). He also holds a BSc (Hons) in Biotechnology from National University of Ireland Maynooth (NUIM) and a postgraduate diploma in accounting from the University of Ulster.

During his career to date, Shane has gained a wide variety of experience across all tax heads and has worked on a varied client base including sole traders, owner-managed businesses, clients from the professional service industries and entertainment sector. Working with a varied client base has allowed Shane to gain extensive experience in the areas of Income Tax, Corporation Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Capital Acquisition Tax.

Shane enjoys developing and maintaining client relationships. He puts a key focus on meeting the needs of his clients. Due to the ever changing nature of taxation, Shane is keen to keep up to date in order to advise clients on how these changes will impact them and their business.

Outside of the office Shane enjoys keeping active and is a keen runner and gym goer. He also follows all sports particularly GAA and soccer. Shane also enjoys keeping up to date with current affairs.

Cormac joined Woods and Partners in 2016 and is currently in his final year of completing his training contract and exams. Prior to joining the team at Woods and Partners, Cormac graduated from National University of Ireland Galway with a BA (Hons) in Commerce. Cormac is a senior associate in the accounts and audit department.

Cormac enjoys playing with his local hurling club, Kilskyre and has represented Meath in Leinster and All-Ireland Championships for Handball. Cormac also has a keen interest in the family farm.