Agency spending €220m ‘doesn’t have well-functioning leadership’ – board
Prof Nolan was due to return yesterday but leave extended
A government agency spending €220m of taxpayers’ money “does not currently have a well-functioning, cohesive leadership team”, according to members of its own board.
The state research funding body has been rocked by bullying allegations against its boss, Prof Philip Nolan, and “corporate governance is being eroded”.
The director general of Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) has been the subject of complaints from five senior managers at the quango. Prof Nolan is on medical leave and denies the allegations.
The allegations were contained in protected disclosures filed before Christmas. An investigation commissioned by SFI has found the conduct of its high-profile chief was “at the upper end of inappropriate behaviour and just below bullying”.
Prof Nolan was found to not be in breach of corporate governance. The investigation found his conduct did not constitute bullying and it did not make any finding of misconduct.
But the independent investigation did find he displayed “inappropriate behaviour” towards the staff members concerned – and this was on the “upper level” and “upper end” in the treatment of two senior managers.
The report was ordered by a sub-committee of the board, called a protected disclosures group (PDG). On foot of the investigation, the board of SFI wrote to the five senior staff members with the findings.
The PDG is made up of board members and says the investigation report “highlights a number of instances of poor management on the part of the respondent, having regard to their position”.
It goes on to state its belief that SFI does not currently have a well-functioning, cohesive leadership team, and that this situation warrants serious intervention.
“The PDG believes this has created a situation in which corporate governance, and the ability of the board to rely upon that governance, is being eroded,” the board says.
The SFI board must consider what steps to take following the investigation’s findings.
“The board wishes to make clear to you that it takes the findings made very seriously, and is committed to taking appropriate action on foot of them in line with the policies of SFI,” it told a manager who complained.
Prof Nolan has been on leave since the middle of last month, around the same time as the investigation was provided to the board. He was due back yesterday, but his leave has been extended to next Monday.
SFI has 15 staff on salaries of more than €100,000, including Prof Nolan on €220,000.
The investigation recommends SFI examine “culture” in the organisation. According to a manager, junior female staff “experienced menacing behaviour” from Prof Philip Nolan, while senior staff were being “gaslit”.
Prof Nolan rejected the allegation from his female accuser.
“Other staff in the organisation have come to me and reported feeling intimidated, degraded and having experienced menacing behaviour from PN (Philip Nolan). These include relatively junior staff – all women – most of whom are too intimidated to speak out without the protection of a fully conditioned independent inquiry,” a manager claimed.
Prof Nolan expressed his “absolute rejection” of the allegations made by the female manager.
The professor attained a high profile during the Covid-19 pandemic as a leading member of Nphet. He is a former president of Maynooth University.
Prof Nolan was appointed by Taoiseach Simon Harris as the head of a new expanded agency in charge of all areas of research funding – namely Research Ireland – which will have a higher budget of about €300m a year.
The body has not yet been set up under law, as the legislation is currently being passed through the Houses of the Oireachtas.
SFI says it is fully operational and “continues to deliver on its mandate” to fund research and innovation for the benefit of the economy and society.
Today, SFI will announce over €100m in investment for science, with funding for 600 highly skilled research positions in bioeconomy, agrifood, neurological disease and advanced manufacturing, over the next six years.
The announcement will be made by deputy director general of SFI, Dr Ciarán Seoighe, who says the investment in four SFI research centres follows a rigorous and extensive expert international peer review process of scientific excellence and strategic impact of each centre.