David Manley, who died on August 15th aged 50, was an accountant and business strategy consultant with an active interest in sport and the arts. A thinker who got things done and adept at cutting through red tape, he achieved much in his relatively short life.
Motor sport was in his blood. His father, Barney, was the driving force behind the thrilling Phoenix Park races of the 1950s and 1960s, and, as a 19-year-old student David Manley was racing at Mondello, the Phoenix Park and Kirkistown.
Success on the track was one thing, and he had four race victories in his Mallock U2 in 1976, but it was his approach and vision off the track that set him apart. His Red Arrows team set new standards of professionalism and he was quick to understand sponsors and their needs.
David Manley was the first Irish driver of his generation to race in Europe and his victory in Nagaro, France, in 1976 was his proudest moment on the track. He was an expert at hillclimbs, and he enjoyed many contests with his great friend Derek Shortall until retiring in 1995.
Irish motor sport is especially indebted to David Manley for the ability and energy he devoted to securing its future. At critical junctures, he convened committees to save Mondello Park, rescue the Phoenix Park races and ensure the continuation of rallying when insurance problems arose.
He used his wide network of contacts to raise sponsorship for Leinster Motor Club events which brought world class drivers like Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen and others to race in Ireland. The Dún Laoghaire Grand Prix in 1987 would have been impossible without him.
David Manley was first and foremost a fan. He attended race meetings from Grand Prix to truck-racing level, but always with an eye as to how lessons could be learnt and applied in Ireland. He continued his links with motor racing as chairman of the strategy development committee of Motorsport Ireland, the sport's governing body.
In recent years, he took up golf and joined Luttrellstown Golf and Country Club.
He was born on March 30th, 1952, the second son of Barney and Rose Manley, North Avenue, Mount Merrion, Dublin. He was educated at Willow Park Junior School and at Blackrock College. On graduating in business studies from Trinity College Dublin in 1974, he joined Stokes, Kennedy, Crowley (later KPMG).
In 1979 he established Newmarket Consulting, offering a range of strategic, marketing and financial consulting and management support services to high potential, owner-managed companies. The sectors serviced by the consultancy included arts and culture, healthcare and tourism.
He was a member of many business and professional bodies, including the Trinity Business Alumni and the TCD undergraduate association Foresight. He was a member and a former chairman of the Marketing Institute of Ireland. His election to the chair in 1988 was a rare honour for an accountant and stemmed from the recognition that he was a marketing man at heart. As chairman he mapped out a strategy that was to spearhead the development of the institute into the 1990s. He was elected a fellow of the institute in 1996.
David Manley was company secretary of Rehab Lotteries Ltd from its inception in 1987. He was a key member of the project management team which set up the company and continued to play an important advisory role until his death. He also worked on extending the Rehab Group's lottery activities to the UK.
Active for many years on policy committees of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce, he served a term as president (2000-2001) during which he highlighted the concerns and needs of small and medium-sized enterprises.
He played a leading role in the development of the Enterprise Ireland Mentor Programme, whereby established business people share their knowledge and experience with entrants to the business world, basically lending a helping hand to emerging companies. He practised what he preached and many such companies benefited from his experience.
David Manley was acting CEO of the Not for Profit Business Association, a professional trade body representing the interests of not-for-profit organisations which provide services to people with physical and sensory disabilities and lobbies government for adequate resources. A member of the accreditation board of Excellence Ireland, he was appointed last year to the Railway Procurement Agency, the body responsible for the provision of infrastructure and services to light rail and metro systems.
He was an early member and former chairman of Business2Arts (formerly Cothú), a body which aims to promote a creative partnership between the worlds of commerce and culture. Inspired by his interest in, and admiration for, the creative energy of artists, he made a major contribution to the organisation. He was also active as a member of the board of the St Patrick's Festival.
David Manley had drive, enthusiasm and generosity in abundance. He drew great strength from the love of his family and was totally dedicated to his wife, Shelagh, and daughters Louise, Sarah and Emma, who survive him. He was predeceased by his parents and brother Peter.
David Manley: born 1952; died, August 2002