Maurice Kinkead, chief executive of EastSide Partnership, a regeneration organisation based in East Belfast which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary.
What was your first job?
I briefly tried a couple of different office jobs in the civil service, which wasn’t for me, but my first real job was as a milkman in Newcastle and Dundrum, which I thoroughly enjoyed.
What qualifications do you have?
I left school with a few O-levels and then gained degrees in theology and social studies before going on to achieve a postgraduate degree in business management.
What do you attribute your success to?
Luck, opportunism, hard work and believing in and enjoying what I do.
How would you describe yourself to someone who’d never met you?
I’m an optimist who enjoys a challenge, always on the lookout for an opportunity. I love my job although I also find time for cycling, hill walking, listening to music, watching sport, drinking craft beer, eating out with friends, cooking and travelling.
Who do you look up to in business?
John De Lorean – I have always been a little in awe of someone who could persuade others that he could build an amazing iconic car in Belfast. I hope someone tries it again.
How do you get the best out of people who work for you?
I always try to only employ people who are well motivated. I never ask anyone to do anything I wouldn’t do myself. I always keep my office door open and try to smile a lot.
If you could change one thing about doing business in Northern Ireland, what would it be?
I would create an environment in which government officials did not feel forced into being so risk averse (although for that to happen ministers would need to take a lead).
Tell us something interesting about yourself.
I bought a guitar over 40 years ago, which still sits on a stand in my living room although I’ve never learnt to play it.
What’s your greatest passion outside work and family?
This changes regularly but it is currently cycling, which I do virtually every day, usually with my good friend Sammy Douglas, who introduced me to his passion for cycling.
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