Barry Phillips (CEO) BEM founded Legal Island in 1998. Since then, the company has become the leading workplace compliance training company in the island of Ireland. He was awarded a British Empire Medal in the New Year’s Honours List 2020 for services to employment and equality.

Barry is a qualified barrister, coach and meditator and a regular speaker both here and abroad. He also volunteers as mentor to aspiring law students on the Migrant Leaders Programme.

Barry is an author, releasing his latest book titled 'Mastering Small Business Employee Engagement: 30 Quick Wins & HR Hacks from an IIP Platinum Employer' in 2020 along with Legal Island MD Jayne Gallagher.

Barry has worked at the European Parliament, the European Court of Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation in Geneva before qualifying as a lawyer in 1993.

He has travelled extensively and lived in a total of eight different countries considering himself to be a global citizen first, a European second and British/Irish citizen last of all. His guiding mantra in life is “Never react but respond. Get curious not furious.”

Barry is an Ironman and lists Russian language and wild camping as his favourite pastimes.