Connolly's RED MILLS directors and leaders
Meet the Connolly family
Decades in the making, the world-renowned RED MILLS brand has grown into its global reputation through the dedication and passion of 5 generations of Connollys. Since the beginning of our journey at the mill on the River Barrow in South-East Ireland, the Connolly family has continued to innovate and pioneer the animal nutrition industry as a world-leading manufacturer of feeds that have garnered the trust, respect and support of our global customers.
Get to know the Connolly family members and the wider team who lead the Connolly’s RED MILLS portfolio of brands today.
Gareth Connolly
Chief Executive OfficerJohn Connolly
Chief Operating OfficerPaul Connolly
Project & Systems EngineerWilliam Connolly
Retail ManagerMichael Connolly
Global Strategy & Business Development Director (Exports)Gareth Connolly
Chief Executive Officer
John Connolly
Chief Operating Officer
Paul Connolly
Project & Systems Engineer
William Connolly
Retail Manager
Michael Connolly
Global Strategy & Business Development Director (Exports)
Our Directors & Leaders
Management Team
Get to know our wider management team members who help to drive the continuous success, growth and innovation of the Connolly’s RED MILLS brand.
Gareth Connolly
Chief Executive OfficerJohn Connolly
Chief Operating OfficerJohn joined the company in 2012 as a 5th-generation Connolly. With a background in Finance from working with Barclays in London and IFG in Dublin, John specialises in Corporate Risk, Pensions, and ...
Paul Connolly
Project & Systems EngineerPaul is a 5th-generation Connolly who joined our team in 2021 after working as a Machine Learning Engineer.
He graduated with a Masters in Electronic and Computer Engineering from UCD. Durin...
Michael Connolly
Global Strategy & Business Development Director (Exports)Michael joined the family company in 1993 together with his brothers, Bill, Joe and the late John Connolly (Snr). Since relocating to Germany in 1994, he has primarily been focused on driving the g...
Michael Shields
Chief Technical OfficerMichael Shields is Chief Technical Officer at Connolly’s RED MILLS and a member of the Senior Management Team.
He holds a B.Agr.Sc degree from UCD and an MBA from RMIT University, Melbourn...
Michael Collins
Chief Financial OfficerMichael Phelan
Agri Business ManagerMichael has worked in the agribusiness for over 35 years, having graduated from WIT Waterford. His main roles have been in Seed production and sales, Raw material purchasing, and Sales Management o...
Gareth Connolly
Chief Executive Officer
John Connolly
Chief Operating Officer
John joined the company in 2012 as a 5th-generation Connolly. With a background in Finance from working with Barclays in London and IFG in Dublin, John specialises in Corporate Risk, Pensions, and Renewable and Non-renewable Energies.
John is highly qualified, having earned a Masters from DIT in Business & Entrepreneurship, as well as a BA in Economics from UCD and Management from UCC.
Today, John is the Director and Chief Operations Officer of the Connolly’s RED MILLS Group and has been at the forefront of its digital transformation since 2016.
Paul Connolly
Project & Systems Engineer
Paul is a 5th-generation Connolly who joined our team in 2021 after working as a Machine Learning Engineer.
He graduated with a Masters in Electronic and Computer Engineering from UCD. During this program, he spent 1 year studying aboard in China, and 1 year as a Robotics Intern for a research lab in San Francisco.
Prior to Red Mills, Paul developed state of the art computer vision and data analytics algorithms while working at an Ag-Tech start up focused on dairy farms in California.
At Red Mills, he will bring an engineering and data-driven skillset to the CRM group.
Michael Connolly
Global Strategy & Business Development Director (Exports)
Michael joined the family company in 1993 together with his brothers, Bill, Joe and the late John Connolly (Snr). Since relocating to Germany in 1994, he has primarily been focused on driving the global expansion of the RED MILLS Group together with his expert teams across the business’ various divisions, namely horse, pet, camel and supplements.
With a Masters Degree in International Business Administration and a Post-Graduate Diploma on the International Sales Programme, Michael has played a strategic role in product and process development. He has spent more than 28 years developing the Connolly’s RED MILLS Group’s global expansion. Michael has also overseen the key technological development of the Nutrient Fresh Management System (NFMS) packaging for an extended product lifespan along with the business’ entry into supplement solutions following the acquisition of Foran Healthcare (2013) and the RED MILLS Subsidiary in Japan (2014).
Since 2019, Michael’s focus has been set on the equine and camel divisions as Managing Director of RED MILLS International FZE in Dubai, UAE. As a fluent speaker of German and with a working proficiency of numerous Asian and European languages and cultures, including classic Arabic, he now leads the Middle East and APAC businesses from his current home base.
Michael Shields
Chief Technical Officer
Michael Shields is Chief Technical Officer at Connolly’s RED MILLS and a member of the Senior Management Team.
He holds a B.Agr.Sc degree from UCD and an MBA from RMIT University, Melbourne. He oversees Feed Formulation, Research and Development, Quality Control, Technical Support and Business Relationships at Connolly’s RED MILLS.
Michael has spent almost all of his career in technical and commercial roles in the Animal Health and Feed industries. His working career has taken him to over 20 countries and he has lived in England, Australia and Central America.
He is a past president of the Irish Pig Health Society and is a member of the Feed Committee of the Irish Grain and Feed Association and the Naturally Occurring Prohibited Substances (NOPS) Sub-Committee of the British Equine Trade Association (BETA). He is a founder member of Marble City Cyclers, Kilkenny’s largest road cycling club.
Michael Collins
Chief Financial Officer
Michael Phelan
Agri Business Manager
Michael has worked in the agribusiness for over 35 years, having graduated from WIT Waterford. His main roles have been in Seed production and sales, Raw material purchasing, and Sales Management of the ruminant feed sales team. Michael is a former president of the Irish Seed Trade Association (ISTA), the Irish Grain And Feed Association (IGF), and the Irish Tillage and Land Use Society (ITLUS).
OUR WEBSITES
Connolly's RED MILLS Group
E-Store
OUR WEBSITES
Connolly's RED MILLS Group
E-Store