DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs is close to finalising a deal to leave the State-owned operator of Dublin and Cork airports by mutual agreement with the board, according to sources.
A deal, which would involve a financial settlement, may be confirmed as soon as the weekend, the sources said. Mr Kenny’s total remuneration package last year came to almost €375,000.
The exit negotiations followed a rift between Mr Jacobs and the wider board, chaired by Basil Geoghegan, and a period of intense board scrutiny of his management style, sources previously told The Irish Times.
A spokeswoman declined to comment.
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Mr Jacobs (51), a former Ryanair executive, took charge of DAA at the start of 2023, succeeding Dalton Philips, who left the business at the end of that summer to become chief executive of sandwich maker Greencore.
[ DAA and Kenny Jacobs engage lawyers to resolve boardroom rift at airport operatorOpens in new window ]
While Mr Jacobs was the subject of two protected disclosure complaints by DAA staff members in relation to dignity-at-work matters, it is understood that the allegations were not upheld after being examined by senior counsel Mark Connaughton.
Still, tensions between Mr Jacobs and the board have persisted, leading to both sides engaging lawyers and industrial relations veteran Kieran Mulvey being called on to act as mediator. The matter had also been brought to the attention of senior Government figures, including Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien, the shareholder in DAA on behalf of the State.
The rift follows a period of strong financial performance by DAA, with the company reporting during the summer that its revenue rose by 9 per cent last year to top €1.1 million, enabling it to commit €233 million to capital investment and for the board to recommend a €68 million dividend to the State.
[ Rift opens up between DAA board and its CEO Kenny JacobsOpens in new window ]
While Mr Philips’s final months at DAA are remembered by many for the chaotic post-Covid scenes of snaking queues and thousands of passengers missing flights at Dublin Airport in the early summer of 2022, Mr Jacobs is credited with tackling congestion issues and improving amenities.
However, his self-confessed willingness to stick his “elbows out” and “take no s**t” attitude often grated with certain parties, including Fingal County Council, the local authority for Dublin Airport, and Department of Transport officials.
DAA is seeking to secure permission from Fingal County Council to increase the annual passenger limit at Dublin Airport to 40 million from 32 million. It is also facing challenges to advance a major development plan at its campus.
DAA submitted a €2.4 billion investment plan to the council in late 2023. However, the local authority said the process has stalled as noise regulators await documentation from DAA.
The body was hit with an enforcement notice by the council in June after Dublin Airport last year breached the 32 million passenger cap. It gave DAA a two-year period to comply with the passenger capacity conditions, even as the restriction has effectively been paused by the High Court since April pending a separate ruling from the European Court of Justice.
The board ultimately decided that it had no option but to apply for a judicial review of the enforcement notice, a spokeswoman confirmed to The Irish Times this week. Otherwise, failure to comply with the council’s order would have amounted to a criminal offence with no right of appeal.
Mr Jacobs, from Cork, previously worked for more than six years at Ryanair as its chief marketing officer, where he led the airline’s digital, customer service, marketing and communications operations. He has also previously worked at the Metro Group, MoneySuperMarket and Tesco.
