Name: John Dunne.

Position: Chairman, IDA Ireland.

Why he is in the news: The agency has warned that its job creation rate will halve this year to about 12,000. For the first time, however, IDA Ireland has no specific target for the number of new positions it wants to support.

Background: Mr Dunne is a former director general of IBEC. He played a central role in the national pay agreements that helped underscore the boom. While virtual full employment has prompted the IDA to reposition itself as an "investment and development agency", he remembers the hardy economic times when all was not well.

Family: Married to Hazel, they have three grown children.