Richard O'Rawe (Chair)
Richard O’Rawe is the Managing Director of Stellar Leadership Ltd , a company which specialises in leadership development and performance management. He holds an MSc in Executive Leadership from the University of Ulster and has been a management consultant for fifteen years. Formerly a regional manager in the public sector, specialising in strategic planning and communications, Richard is actively involved in volunteering. In 2008 he completed a three-year term as Chair of the Beat Initiative, a carnival development organisation and is currently Chair of the East Belfast Partnership Board’s Connswater Community Greenway Project (recently awarded £32m from the Big Lottery). On 24 September 2008 he became Chair of Audiences NI.

Tony McCance (Vice Chair)
Tony McCance is Manager at the Burnavon Arts & Cultural Centre, which acts as a catalyst for the development of the arts within Mid Ulster. As a community focused arts and cultural resource, the facility caters to the arts and cultural needs and aspirations of the inhabitants of the Cookstown District and the greater Mid Ulster region. He is a Board member of the Association of Regional Theatres Northern Ireland (ART NI) and a member of the Northern Ireland Theatre Association as well as the Arts Marketing Association. Tony was elected to serve by Band Two members of Audiences NI to serve as Board member for a one year period until August 2006.

Mary Canny
Mary Canny FCCA is an Associate Lecturer in Accounting at the School of Business and Management for the University of Ulster. She currently also lectures part-time at Queen’s University, delivering accounting courses on the MBA and MSc in Management Programmes and is an Examiner on Corporate Reporting for Certified Public Accountants in Ireland.
Mary is experienced in providing accounting and business advice to small and medium sized businesses, and conducting research into governance and regeneration.

Ailís Corey
As Marketing Officer for Moving on Music, Ailís Corey is responsible for the co-ordination and ongoing development of the organisation's promotional activities. Prior to her current role with Moving On Music, Ailís was also involved in the arts, as she was the Marketing and Public Relations Officer at Linen Hall Library. Her varied career path has also provided her with experience of the voluntary, media and tourism sectors, as she has held marketing and PR related posts at the Multiple Sclerosis Society NI, BBC NI and the Sperrins Walking Festival. Ailís is a BSc graduate of Communication, Advertising and Marketing.

Lydia Gamble
Lydia is responsible for overseeing the marketing, development and education and outreach functions at the Ulster Orchestra. Lydia joined the Ulster Orchestra in June 2008 having previously spent seven years in the Economic Development Sector in Northern Ireland. Lydia was a Business Development Manager at Castlereagh Enterprises Ltd (Local Enterprise Agency). Lydia was also instrumental in the set up and growth of the business network Business for Business (B4B) which supports the networking and development of SMEs in Northern Ireland.

Nick Garbutt
Nick Garbutt is managing director of Asitis Consulting, the Belfast-based public relations and public affairs consultancy. He is a specialist in corporate communications and crisis management. Nick is a former editor of the Irish News and deputy editor of the Belfast Telegraph. He was also head of corporate affairs, Europe for National Australia Bank. In September 2007 he founded Mightier Than The Sword, Ireland’s first dedicated writing school. Nick writes a weekly column in the News Letter.

Tim Husbands
Tim has worked within the arts, tourism and conference sectors for over twenty years, managing large concert halls and conference venues in Blackburn, Folkestone, Doncaster and Torquay. For the last twelve years he has been managing director of the Belfast Waterfront Hall and is also responsible for the management of the Ulster Hall. He was a director of The Beat Initiative and has recently assumed responsibility within Belfast City Council for the Culture, Arts and Heritage remit in the city.

Brenda Kent
Brenda heads up Voluntary Arts Ireland, the charitable body promoting participation in arts and crafts across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. She has extensive research and marketing experience, having worked with the Integrated Education Fund, the Prince’s Trust, the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action and the Simon Community. She has also worked in advertising and PR and in the arts has worked with a wide range of organisations, including Opera Northern Ireland, the Golden Thread Theatre Committee, the NI Visual Arts Forum and Down Arts Forum, as well as the Steering Group for the formation of Audiences NI.

Siobhan McCormick
A Master of Arts graduate in Cultural Management, Siobhan has extensive experience in creating, developing and marketing programmes of activity on a local and national level within the private and public sectors. Having joined Lisburn City Council in 1996 as Arts Development Officer, Siobhan now heads the Council’s Arts Service, where she is responsible for the strategic development of the arts and the management function of Island Arts Centre. Siobhan was previously a Board Member of Tinderbox Theatre Company and is a member of the Executive Committee of the Forum for Local Government and co-Chair of the NI Arts Managers Group.

Áine McVerry
Áine is currently employed by the Old Museum Arts Centre as Director of Marketing and Development for The MAC, Belfast’s new purpose-built multi-million pound arts centre in the Cathedral Quarter due to open its doors in May 2011. Áine has been with Old Museum Arts Centre since 2004, when she joined as Marketing Manager, in September 2006 she moved into the role of Deputy Director with the responsibility for programming OMAC’s live events.Previous to this, Áine worked in marketing and fundraising for an international charity. She has also been the Chair of the Belfast Arts Marketing Group. Áine is an English Literature graduate with a MSC in Communication, Advertising, and Public Relations.

Mary Trainor  
Mary has worked in marketing for the arts and the business sector for over ten years. Arts marketing roles in Northern Ireland have included five years with the Grand Opera House, where she set up and headed the marketing function, marketing for the Arts Theatre heading up the marketing departments of both the Lyric Theatre and Ulster Orchestra. She is currently Northern Ireland Director of Arts & Business.

Damian Smyth
As Arts Development Officer with Arts Council of NI, Damian serves as Observer from the Agency’s principal funding body.