The Irish Australian Chamber of Commerce is hosting Young Irish Professionals—an after-work meetup built for connection, ideas, and momentum.
While designed with young professionals in mind, this event is open to all ages, bringing together Generations X, Millennials, and Gen Z for cross‑generational connection and conversation.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Colm Dolan
Colm Dolan is a tech entrepreneur and the founder of Publift, an ad-tech company he built from the ground up in Sydney. Starting from his living room, Colm grew Publift into a business serving more than 1,000 customers globally and employing 80 people across Australia, the Philippines and Dublin. Without raising external funding, the company scaled to more than $20 million in annual recurring revenue before being acquired by CAR Group (Carsales) in January 2023. Today, Colm advises founders, mentors emerging leaders and shares the lessons he learned from building a high-growth business while maintaining a healthy work-life balance and empowering young, ambitious teams.
Born and raised in Portumna, Co. Galway, Ireland, Colm’s approach to business was shaped long before he entered the technology industry. Helping his parents run their family Bed & Breakfast instilled a relentless focus on customer service, while summers spent working on his uncle’s farm fostered an independent “black sheep” mentality and a willingness to challenge conventional thinking.
After landing what many would consider a dream job at Google, working in Dublin & California, Colm became increasingly disillusioned with corporate life. Meetings, politics and performance reviews left him questioning whether success was simply about climbing someone else’s ladder.
Following the failure of his first startup venture, Rollup Media, his confidence hit rock bottom. Unable to secure another role in big tech and facing the prospect of returning home to Ireland, he decided to back himself for the first time and started Publift from his living room in Sydney.
Rather than following the traditional startup playbook, Colm built the company around graduates, giving young people responsibility early and creating a culture centred on trust, autonomy, accountability and personal growth. Inspired by the high standards of his sporting hero Roy Keane, he combined ambitious performance expectations with a philosophy of fun, learning and continuous improvement.
Publift was built differently. The company embraced profit sharing, radical transparency and a belief that great people perform best when they are trusted. Colm’s goal was never to create a business that depended on him; it was to build one that could thrive without him. By focusing on developing people, creating leaders and building systems, he gradually worked himself out of the day-to-day running of the company while rarely working more than 40 hours a week.
The result was not only a successful business, but a thriving community of people who grew alongside it. Many of the graduates Colm hired went on to become managers and leaders, helping build a company renowned for its culture, customer focus and long-term thinking.
Above all, Colm’s story is a reminder that success isn’t reserved for the smartest person in the room. Sometimes it comes from thinking differently, backing yourself when nobody else will, and having the courage to build a life that feels true to who you are.
Save Your Spot.
Places are limited.