Kieran O'Donnell

KIERAN O'DONNELL

Paul joined K2 Construction Management in 2023 as Managing Director. Paul is a chartered surveyor with a varied background covering business management, mergers & acquisitions, investments, project management and construction. He also brings leadership experience from his previous career as an officer in the British Armed Forces.

What motivates you?

I have always treated my clients or employers’ money as though it were my own to get best value. I get a lot of job satisfaction from pulling together all the moving parts of a construction project from initial concept through to final handover to our clients.

What do you enjoy most about the industry?

I have worked throughout the UK, Ireland and very briefly the USA making many friends along the way, many of whom I keep in touch with to this day.

What’s the proudest moment of your career?

In 2003 I was given the opportunity to work as a Q.S. on a £750k Pali Radice mini piling project at Wembley Arena, this project evolved into a £40m+ cut and carve project on Wembley Arena which I was fortunate to work on. The relationships formed by the construction and commercial team during that project cemented future work of over £1bn with our client Quintain. I am proud to say I worked on four subsequent projects on the Quintain campus at Wembley (Approximately 2,000 apartments) which has transformed the landscape adjacent to Wembley Stadium over the past 22 years.

What skills and characteristics do you look for in people?

In work I look for characters who will always work to the best of their ability, not be afraid to ask questions, be honest and act with integrity.

How did you get into construction?

My family is from a fishing and farming background with little or no involvement in the construction industry. I had a good teacher at school called Mr Whelan who took our construction studies class, it was from here that I got interested in construction. Initially I did a construction management diploma and worked as a site engineer, returning to complete a degree in surveying before moving on to the commercial side of construction.

Do you have a favourite building?

The Eiffel tower.

What’s your personal philosophy?

Make choices in life that are true to the person you are, the values you hold and the person you want to be, we need to be able to look at our reflection in the mirror and think we did our best and were honest and respectful in doing so.

Who inspires you?

My parents always inspired me.

What are your passions outside of work?

I lead a fairly active life, occasionally playing soccer, kayaking, fishing, playing tennis and shooting, In my younger years I played Gaelic football at a decent level before injuries cut short my career.