Bernard Jackman is a former Irish international and Leinster player whose story of success and failure – of bouncing back – makes him an engaging and entertaining speaker who can talk with authority, ease and humour about what success looks like and how to take responsibility for, and create, your own success.
Bernard was born in Tullow, Co. Carlow and raised on his parents’ farm. He attended Newbridge College in Kildare before going on to study business and Japanese at University College Dublin.
He played rugby in school and was persuaded by Warren Gatland to turn professional. He went on to play for Connacht, the Sale Sharks and Leinster and, internationally, for Ireland, before retiring in 2010 due to a concussion injury. Today he remains an Ambassador for Acquired Brain Injury Ireland, whose ‘Mind Your Head’ campaign he strongly supports.
In 2011, he published his autobiography, Blue Blood, before making the move into coaching at club level when he joined FC Grenoble on a consultancy basis. He went full-time in the 2012-2013 season and was appointed head coach at Grenoble in June 2016. He then moved to the Welsh team the Dragons for 18 months. Since leaving coaching behind in December 2018, he has been working as a rugby pundit and columnist whilst rapidly building his profile as a motivational speaker and high-performance consultant.
Bernard maintains that when it comes to building a high-performance culture, ‘Success leaves clues’. In other words, learn from others. Identify the key behaviours that have built a successful culture and then find ways to foster those behaviours throughout an organisation so that it becomes not just a collection of people, but a cohesive team with real clarity of purpose. When you have buy-in from people at all levels, success is inevitable because everyone is willing to go the extra mile.
In recent times, Bernard has excelled as a regular commentary contributor and analyst for International & Professional Rugby. Bernard has received high praise for his regular contributions to RTE, BBC, TNT, & Premier Sports during the Rugby World Cup 2023, The Champions Cup, & The URC.
His previous clients include Molson Coors, Aviva, Sogeti, Bank Populaire, Microfocus and Goodbody Stockbrokers.
Notable Achievements:
- Played professionally for Leinster and Sale Sharks, earning accolades for his performance and leadership on the field.
- Coached Grenoble in the French Top 14, leading them to significant successes.
- Regular rugby analyst and commentator for various media outlets, providing expert analysis and insights.
To book Former Irish and Leinster rugby player, Head Coach and Leadership Speaker Bernard Jackman for your event, contact Front Row Speakers on +353 1 485 3991 or email welcome@frontrowspeakers.com.
Leadership and Team Dynamics: Drawing from his extensive experience as a player and coach, Bernard shares valuable lessons on leadership, team building, and creating winning cultures.
High Performance: Insights into the principles of achieving and sustaining high performance in both sports and business environments.
Resilience and Mental Toughness: Strategies for developing mental toughness and resilience, essential for overcoming challenges and achieving goals.
Sports Strategy and Analysis: An in-depth look at the strategic elements of rugby and how these can be applied to broader organizational contexts.
Transition from Player to Coach: Personal stories and lessons learned from transitioning from a player to a coaching role, with a focus on adaptability and continuous learning.
Available As:
- Speaker & panellist: Bernard captivates audiences with his engaging storytelling, blending humour, inspiration, and valuable insights from his rugby career.
- Event Host/MC: With his professional demeanor and charismatic presence, Bernard is an ideal choice to host or MC events, ensuring they are well-organized, engaging, and memorable. Notably, he has successfully MC’d various high-profile events, showcasing his ability to connect with diverse audiences and manage events with poise and flair.
“Bernard has an innate and special ability to translate the learnings and common threads from high performance sport to high performance business. His experiences and lessons are inspiring, insightful and entertaining, all at the same time. I would recommend his services highly to anyone looking to build a high performance culture.”
–Paul Turley, Senior Director ServiceNow Ireland
“Bernard was the keynote speaker for the launch of our People Strategy, he was just excellent. He had everyone entertained with his stories and enthralled by his insights into high performance cultures. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him.”
–Elizabeth Stuart, Director of HR and Change at Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA)
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