The Spaces That Shape Us: Maeve McMahon

Maeve McMahon, President, EMEA, OFX

Our earliest career experiences can teach us a lot.

For my college work placement, I spent six months in telesales at a transport company in a Paris suburb. From a small office above a warehouse, I rang French businesses importing and exporting goods to and from Ireland, attempting—in French—to sell them space in the back of a truck. Because the office was tiny, I sat right next to the CEO, passing on any good leads I got directly to him. An enthusiastic man, he became wonderfully animated when a sale closed. It was quite a buzz, and by the end of my placement, when they offered me a post-graduation role, I had learned two valuable lessons.

One, if I could sell successfully in French, I could handle any business environment. Two, I didn’t want to work in a very small company.

Since then, I’ve worked at many different places—American Express, GE Capital, Mastercard, NatWest, Ulster Bank, and more—in roles spanning sales, business development, marketing, customer experience, product development and more.  The variety—and the knowledge gained from each experience—have contributed directly to my current role as President of Europe, Middle East, and Africa at OFX. Today, I set the regional strategy, working alongside my leadership team in Ireland and the UK to manage business activities and drive growth.

OFX is a global payments company founded in 1998 in Australia with the vision that moving money internationally should be simpler. Today, our digital platform helps more than one million clients seamlessly transfer money across more than 170 countries. We’re also expanding further, creating a unified financial management tool for small businesses that will help automate all their supplier payments, both domestic and international

I joined OFX at the end of 2021 as the CEO of OFX Payments Ireland, focused on driving growth across Ireland and Europe. But  first, I had to find a new office.

Why the right space matters

When I joined OFX, our office was essentially a windowless box, scarcely comfortable for two people. It hindered collaboration and failed to inspire confidence, directly conflicting with two of our company values.

I called my boss and explained that the first thing I had to do to put our team on a successful path was to find a new workspace.

Spaces have an incredible effect on our work and our mindset. When I think back over the course of my career, the most inspiring environment I’ve experienced was GE’s Crotonville Campus. Situated beside the Hudson River, an hour’s drive from New York City, the sprawling campus hosted management courses and leadership development programmes.

Participants in these two-week residential courses came from all over the world. I was in GE Capital, but I met people doing wonderful, interesting work in completely different industries like healthcare, aviation, and aerospace—all part of GE’s umbrella.

Although GE has changed considerably, and Crotonville Campus has been closed and sold, my experiences there significantly shaped both my career and who I am as a leader. It was a special place.

The campus was extraordinary. Professors-in-residence—remarkable business leaders—shared inspiring yet practical lessons that I could apply in my day-to-day work. The environment was intentionally designed to blend traditional and collaborative learning—with social spaces integrated into the buildings that contained traditional learning spaces like lecture theatres. It felt like going back to university, with lush green spots, communal areas, bars and coffee stands.

Finding the right space for OFX in Dublin took a while. In Ireland, we’re a relatively small team—about 20 employees in Ireland. After looking at numerous possibilities, we found Glandore’s Fitzwilliam Court.

Fitzwilliam Court offered us an ideal working environment where we can meet other small companies at a similar growth stage. There’s a great space where our team makes a point of trying to go for lunch because there we meet and exchange ideas with people from other businesses on the premises.

We see a lot of benefits from being located in a space that fosters collaboration and social connection. Facilitating that feeling of community is something that Glandore is particularly good at. Notably, they call us members—not tenants—a subtle but important distinction.

Glandore organises networking and social events, like  Paddy’s Day or Easter celebrations, nurturing that sense of belonging among the different organisations in their buildings. For smaller teams like ours, being a part of this larger community is invaluable: it provides us a chance to interact with, learn from, and possibly to do business with other member organisations.

Perhaps because OFX began in a garage on Australia’s northern beaches, our company culture remains friendly and laidback. We balance productivity with wellbeing. Glandore has a similar culture. Initially, we occupied a calming space on the first floor, which was conducive to collaboration—and it had windows. We recently outgrew that space moving to a fifth-floor room filled with natural light. In just a few years, we’ve come a long way from our windowless box.

Networking and mentorship in trusted spaces

Beyond creating community, opportunities for networking and socialising can have profound and unpredictable effects on careers, both in the short and long term. My last four roles, including my current position, came about through personal recommendations and networks. Networking is inherently reciprocal—you strive to give more than you take—but ultimately building a network means knowing that help is just a phone call away.

Recently, I’ve reached a stage in my professional journey where I can mentor women at earlier stages in their careers, which is a passion of mine. It’s deeply important to me that I throw the ladder back down to those who are coming after me. I  have a strong desire to bring people along and make sure that they feel supported as they build their careers.

With their events, Glandore offers an opportunity to meet many emerging female leaders on their way up. Because they’ve created a place that cultivates trust and community–an almost family–like environment—Glandore provides the ideal conditions for mentorship.

Most full-time employees spend about 31 percent of their waking hours at work each year, so when you find a workspace where you connect with others, have meaningful interactions, and can work productively, you can’t help but think, “Isn’t this a great place to be?”

Read more about Glandore’s Flexible Workspaces