Iris Wade on Fostering Diversity in Leadership within the Construction Sector

By April Lara

January 06, 2025

Meet Iris Wade, MSc, the dynamic force behind Pennypop and a proud sponsor of the Irish Construction Industry Awards 2024. After 12+ years with multinational giants, Iris launched Pennypop to bring tailored marketing solutions to time-strapped industries like construction.

In this Q&A, she dives into her journey from corporate life to entrepreneurship, shares how Pennypop leverages AI for impactful campaigns, and reveals her drive to foster local business connections through the Louth Business Network.

What inspired the creation of Pennypop after your experiences in larger corporations? Did you identify a specific market need?

After over 12 years working with large multinational corporations, I realised that my passion lay in supporting and developing smaller, more agile brands. While large brands offered stability and scale, they often came with rigid structures and limited opportunities for creativity or personalised approaches. I found working with multiple smaller brands much more dynamic, allowing me to explore tailored strategies that truly addressed individual business needs.

What particularly stood out to me was the construction industry. Through my experience, I observed that professionals in this sector are incredibly time-poor, with their focus consumed by on-site work and project deadlines. Marketing often fell by the wayside, not due to lack of interest, but simply because they lacked the capacity to prioritise it. Having a strong understanding of the construction industry’s language, challenges, and workflow, I saw a clear opportunity to provide specialised support.

This insight became the foundation of Pennypop. By focusing initially on the construction sector, we were able to craft marketing solutions that met their specific needs. Over time, this approach expanded into other industries, but the initial spark came from identifying a gap where expertise, creativity, and understanding could make a real difference for time-strapped businesses.

Could you share some of the significant challenges faced while launching Pennypop and the strategies used to address them?

Launching Pennypop came with several significant challenges, but each provided valuable lessons. One major hurdle was understanding the inner workings of a business. The company thankfully experienced rapid growth in its first year but building the right team and cultivating the desired culture required patience, and some churn. A mentor once advised me to “hire slow and fire fast,” a principle that proved invaluable during the first 12–18 months as I carefully assembled a team aligned with our values and goals.

Another challenge was starting from scratch. With no case studies, client base, or established reference points, we had to build credibility from the ground up. Marketing is an incredibly diverse field, and pricing our services correctly to reflect our value was something I initially struggled with. It took time to truly understand how to position our offerings in a way that resonated with clients and aligned with our worth.

By learning quickly, remaining adaptable, and staying focused on long-term goals, we navigated these challenges and emerged stronger. These experiences helped shape the foundation of Pennypop’s success, and the lessons learned continue to guide our growth today.

How is AI and automation shaping the marketing industry, and could you provide an example of how Pennypop is leveraging these technologies for client benefits?

At Pennypop, we embrace AI and automation while exercising caution to ensure they enhance, rather than diminish, our marketing efforts. For a small business, these technologies enable us and our clients to achieve much more than would typically be possible with limited resources. However, as AI continues to evolve, we’ve noticed a trend of creative content losing its unique human touch, often becoming overly generic. This underscores the need for careful management. For example, we have a list of banned ‘AI typical’ words when using AI at Pennypop!

AI tools are particularly effective in helping clients save time, cut costs, and streamline resources by generating ideas, creating content, or even producing headshots and video content. However, we consistently emphasise the importance of maintaining editorial oversight and creative control. This ensures that automation supports the brand's identity without compromising its uniqueness or authenticity.

What drove you to initiate the Louth Business Network, and what impacts do you foresee it having on local enterprises and the community?

Being an entrepreneur can often feel isolating, especially in the early stages of building a business. I noticed that many local networking groups were either paid—without offering much value—or focused solely on women entrepreneurs. While women-only groups are valuable, I didn’t see why business networking needed to be exclusive. That realisation drove me to establish the Louth Business Network as a free and inclusive space where local businesspeople could connect, share experiences, and support one another. The idea was simple: create a welcoming environment where people could grab a coffee, chat, and form meaningful connections.

The impact has been incredibly rewarding. Beyond helping individual businesses grow, the network has inspired others to start their own groups, which is humbling to see. It’s brought a culture of collaboration and community that continues today.

Although I’ve become busier as my business has expanded, making it harder to dedicate as much time to the group, its positive ripple effects are undeniable. For me, it’s been about creating a foundation for businesses to thrive together.

If you could offer one piece of advice to other CEOs aiming to make an impact in the fast-evolving marketing sector, what would it be?

My advice to CEOs looking to make an impact is to focus equally on consistency and implementation, not just strategy. All too often, marketing agencies deliver impressive strategies that look great on paper but fall short because there’s no practical plan for implementation. A strategy is only as strong as its execution, and without clear steps to bring it to life, even the best ideas won’t deliver results.

Another critical consideration is resourcing, especially for small to medium-sized clients. These businesses often lack the budget or workforce power to fully implement ambitious marketing plans. As a CEO, it’s vital to ensure that the strategies you create are realistic, actionable, and appropriately resourced. Tailoring solutions to fit a client’s actual capacity makes a far bigger impact than presenting an elaborate plan they can’t execute.

Ultimately, marketing success hinges on balancing vision with practicality. A solid plan executed consistently will always outperform a brilliant idea left unimplemented. CEOs should focus on the alignment between strategy, resources, and follow-through, ensuring that clients see tangible results and long-term growth.

Be part of the Irish Construction Industry Awards 2025 to honour the best in construction and innovation. Details will follow soon, but you can get involved now and be part of Ireland’s premier industry event.