University of Limerick Alumni Spotlight: Ben Fitzgerald Kiely

In the next instalment of our Alumni Spotlight series, we speak to University of Limerick graduate Ben Fitzgerald Kiely, who studied both the Bachelor of Arts in International Business and the MSc in Entrepreneurship and Organisational Innovation (formerly International Entrepreneurship Management) at Kemmy Business School.

Ben, who is Company Director of Totalcare, a company specialising in beauty and medical aesthetics, is currently undertaking his PhD at KBS. Here, he shares how the skills he developed as a UL student have directly impacted his family business, and his plans to become a leading voice in the region for strategy and scaling companies.

Could you tell us a bit about yourself?

My name is Ben Fitzgerald Kiely, and I live in the beautiful twin towns of Ballina/Killaloe on the Tipperary/Clare border. Living in the countryside, my main hobbies are walking and discovering nature (having a Newfoundland helps with that, too).

I am an avid Munster Rugby supporter too, and with my season ticket I travel to the games in Thomond and Musgrave Parks – the connection between the team and supporters is infectious and is my complete wind-down.

I am also the director of the family business, Totalcare, specialising in beauty and medical aesthetics. Having that background has aided in adding value to my UL journey, combining the theoretical and practical elements of the business world into one incredible journey.

What courses did you study, and what years did you graduate?  

I am an eternal student! I studied for my undergraduate degree, which was a Bachelor of Arts in International Business (BAIB) between 2018 and 2022. I then decided to progress into postgraduate education immediately afterwards, so for 2022 and 2023, I studied International Entrepreneurship Management (IEM). I have recently started a PhD in Strategy and Scaling Atlantic Corridor Enterprises, a HEA and North-South Research Project-funded scholarship called Atlantic Futures, where we have a diverse and multidisciplinary combination of research strengths, insights, and backgrounds to create impact-driven research in the Limerick-Derry region, and beyond. For all three degrees, I have been based at the Kemmy Business School.

Why did you choose to study at UL?  

When choosing my courses back in 2017 and 2022, the primary decision for me had to be the content of the courses. With the family business background, I wanted to craft the best version of myself and have a teaching and learning style that would allow me to immerse myself in both fields (academia and industry) and support my journey in both.

University of Limerick has a rich set of supports and hidden gems that make it incredibly attractive. As a DARE (Disability Access Route to Education) student, I wanted to make sure that the support would be there to help me maximise my potential.

Secondly, I wanted a campus that would provide the right mixture of community and nature – the city centre life was never attractive to me. The UL campus is interconnected and integrated with many spots for connecting with nature and allowing you to decompress away from the hecticness of the academic world, whether it is a stroll to the UL Boathouse or across the Living Bridge, or going into the Courtyard to connect with student support and fellow students; it’s so important to me, and it was a win-win-win on all fronts.

The course content made sense to me, also. For the BAIB programme, there was enough flexibility to allow me to study areas that interested me before college but also new subjects that I could try and specialise in, which led to the postgraduate arena with IEM and now, the PhD.

As a KBS student, you had the opportunity to learn from some of the top academic talent, in state-of-the-art facilities. What was your KBS experience like? 

Kemmy Business School is in the top 1% of business schools globally for a reason. I had the pleasure of being a central student representative in acquiring the third set of accreditations for the school EQUIS, which examined the school through the lenses of Ethics, Responsibility, Sustainability, Connections with Practice, and Internationalisation. The school delivers on these and beyond. They are a really responsive faculty, who engage thoroughly with students and will work to promote student empowerment, democracy, and experience throughout their time in UL. Be it with Clubs and Societies, class and faculty representatives, or the ambassador programme; you can always develop that personal and professional side of your brand to boost your employability and general life skills.

The lecture theatres and classrooms are part of the major transition for students from second to third level, but the orientation process and supportive faculty within KBS and Student Affairs always make the journey as seamless as possible. We hear from the very best, both internally and externally, with prestigious guest speakers often supplementing and adding additional context to the core theories being taught in the modules. The assessments are also industry-focused, allowing students the opportunity to look at challenges in a methodology and viewpoint that they need in the workplace, and to become the strategic leaders of the future. It is a hub of excitement, positivity, and potential!

Were you a member of any clubs or societies? If so, tell us a bit about your experience:

I certainly was. I was President and Co-President of the UL Consulting and Entrepreneurship Society from 2019 to 2022, and I've been Committee Advisor since. That experience has been unreal and allowed me to network with individuals that I thought I'd only ever get to see on TV screens. I have been able to receive funding for competitions, a summit, and various other student events that have connected hundreds of students with the likes of Martina Fitzgerald, David MacWilliams, Eoin Sheehan as well as lesser-known superstars with incredible stories to tell such as Rani Dabrai, Nicole Ryan, and so many more.

I was also part of the Clubs and Societies (C&S) Executive for two years and helped with the transition and continuation of C&S during the pandemic.

I was a member of the Chess, History, Enactus Social Entrepreneurship, and Economics and Investments Societies at different stages of my UL journey and launched collaborations with them all.

The experience is so worthwhile and distinguishes you from those who do not engage in terms of skill sets, personal growth, and your personal brand. I was very fortunate to have received five President's Volunteer Awards (Gold) and the Mike Sadlier Award for my volunteering and contributions to UL Societies, but the learning and experiences that they gave me are worth as much, if not more than the recognition that they have bestowed on me as a result. It always is and will be a pleasure to give back to the UL community, who have allowed me to do and grow so much within a relatively small period.

At UL, we’re known as the ‘Home of Firsts’ – are there any important ‘firsts’ that you experienced as a UL student?  

I know that I was the first organiser of a Student-Led Entrepreneurship Space on Campus and the first to organise enough pathways for entrepreneurial students (across all faculties and specialties) to earn up to €40,000 for their idea and still own 100% of the idea. However, I still remember the first conversation with my classmates at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and how those conversations have led to life-long friendships. I still remember the excitement of my first A1 (and the challenge of a lower grade at times, too).

I remember the first time I met President Kerstin Mey at an event, representing the Society at an important discussion on the future of innovative learning on campus. There are so many unique and diverse firsts that people will get to experience when they join UL (but the first pint and selfie with Brown Thomas are usually steadfast constants).

How did your courses and your overall UL experience prepare you for entering the workplace?  

My skill sets have radically improved the prospects of the family business. Since 2019, the company has consistently grown by between 8-20%, year on year, despite the many challenges the macro environment has given us. My knowledge gets the immediate test when I work with the team on integrating the knowledge from my programmes into the business, and it has given me the confidence and desire to become a leading voice in the strategy and scaling domains through my PhD work over the next four years.

Could you update us on where you are now in your career?  

Certainly! I still am partially based at the University of Limerick for my PhD, and I am still heavily involved in Totalcare as Company Director, Sales, Servicing & Education Coordinator, and Business Development Advisor for CARELIKA Ireland. I also sit on various working groups and run events with the likes of the Local Enterprise Office, Scale Ireland, and the UL Foundation. I do a small bit of consulting for start-ups and took part in the NDRC Pre-Accelerator for an AI-based startup as a Strategy & Finance Extern, and that idea looks incredibly exciting.

I am also doing the PhD with Atlantic Futures, with a research aim of examining 'Adaptive and Ambidextrous Strategy Formulation Processes for Sustainable Scaling in the Irish Atlantic Corridor', which will have various publications, teaching case studies, business masterclasses, and policy proposals as the key outputs of the programme. I am very excited to see where that will lead me to.

What are your hopes and plans for the future?  

My vision is to become a leading voice in the region for strategy and scaling companies. My honest hope is that it combines both academic and industry elements – I love the hustle and craziness of combining both, and while I have the energy, networks, and information to give, I want to immerse myself in that.

I also want to see Totalcare continue to grow and develop, and I am excited with our new skincare launch, CARELIKA, which will be across both Ireland and the UK in the next few years.

I hope that we, as a country and society, continue to embrace the opportunities that we have, creating an ecosystem of inclusivity, sustainability, and leading from the ground up as well as our well-known globalisation, technology, and FDI strengths. As the seanfhocail say 'Ní neart go cur le chéile' and 'Níl aon tinteán mar do thinteán féin' - there is no strength without unity as together we can achieve so much, and there is no place like home; UL is definitely one of my homes.