RTÉ - The Business

By the 30th of November, employers with more than 50 members of staff are legally required to publish their gender pay gap reports. Jennifer Keane, founder of paygap.ie, offers insight into this issue following the release of a Fórsa report that showed the average male worker earns 21% above their female counterparts.

In the coming days, a new mural will be completed in Derry, celebrating D:Ream's frontman Peter Cunnah. Richard met with the man of the moment to discuss the mural, his childhood, and the growing use of AI in the music industry.

Founders such Bill Gates and Elon Musk swear by the power of optimism, yet Paul Howard discusses the importance of finding a fine line between hope and horsepower.

Hot on the heels of Australia's world-first social media ban for under-16s, set to take effect in just two weeks, a challenge has already landed in the High Court. Liz Carolan, publisher of briefing.ie, joins us to discuss whether social media bans are effective in ensuring teenagers stay away from screens.

Earlier in the programme, we heard about the upcoming Derry mural to musician Peter Cunnah. This got us thinking about the artists who turn blank walls into canvases, one brushstroke at a time. Dave Macardle takes a closer look at the painters behind the craft - and the vision shaping those walls.

This week, Pascal Donohue announced that he was standing down as Minister for Finance in order to take up a prestigious new job at the World Bank. Chief Economics Correspondent of the Financial Times, Martin Wolf, joins Richard to discuss Donohue's international reputation and what he can expect from his new role.

Richard visited Sam Moffett at his factory in Monaghan to discuss the long line of inventors and entrepreneurs in his family, and how he struck out on his own to set up his company Moffett Automated Storage.

Professor Thomas Donaldson, one of the world's leading experts on ethics, joins Richard to discuss where business standards and ethics lie in our increasingly volatile world.

Yet another video of President Trump went viral this week as he told a female reporter 'quiet piggy.' Margaret E. Ward, Leadership Consultant, joins Richard to discuss whether women still deal with name-calling in the workplace, and if things are getting better or worse?

You've trained together and you've toiled in the trenches together, but what do you do when you're work 'bestie' moves on? Writer Fiona Looney shares her advice.

Over 3000 homes and businesses are without power this morning after the heavy rains and winds last night. David Broderick, director of Small Firms Association, joins Richard to discuss the impact of Storm Claudia.

We've come a long way from how we used money twenty years ago, with many of us tapping and revoluting rather than relying on cash. Comedian Anne Gildea wonders whether cash is still king in light of the Government's warning that families should keep emergency cash at home in case of power outages or cyber attacks.

In 2005 Terry Hughes set up Pivotal, a cash in transit and cash management business. A native of Belfast, Hughes joins Richard to discuss the beginnings of Pivotal, how he's dealt with armed robberies, and his past as a champion kickboxer.

Richard and Denis Staunton, Irish Times Asia Editor, take a look at some of the stories making the headlines about China's economy. While the country is powering ahead on electric vehicles and AI, the intense competition between companies has caused prices to fall so much that many aren't making any money.

The Irish team's unexpected success against Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal team on Thursday night took even the most optimistic commentators by surprise. Professor Ian Robertson, neuroscientist and author of 'How Confidence Works', joins Richard to discuss just how good a surprise win is for the brain.

Earlier this week, Catherine Connolly was inaugurated as the tenth president of Ireland. Yet at the inauguration, quite a few people were caught peeping at their phones rather than starting conversations with one another. Siofra Mulqueen reports on whether we've lost the art of small talk.

Trinny Woodall became a household name in the early 2000s with her TV show 'What Not to Wear' alongside Susannah Constantine. Trinny joins Richard to discuss life after the TV cameras left, and the bold steps she took to launch Trinny London, an online cosmetics business, in her early fifties.

Stephen Witt, author of 'The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia and the World's Most Coveted Microchip' reveals how Nvidia, a video game hardware manufacturer, went from the laughing stock of Wall Street to the most valuable company in the world.

Earlier this week, Elon Musk's $1 trillion pay packet was approved by the board of Telsa. As we wonder whether this huge salary increase will make Musk work harder, chartered behavioural psychologist and CEO of changeable.ie Padraig Walsh joins Richard to discuss just how much money it takes to make you work.

Comedy Writer Aidan Fitzmaurice considers whether the uniform dressing that is so common in the tech bro world is so tech bros can bland in, or so they can stand out.

This week there was more bleak news for consumers as it was announced that car insurance premiums are set to rise. For the average consumer, it feels like prices are rising everywhere we look. David McWilliams, Economist and founder of Kilkenomics, joins Adrian to discuss whether this cost of living crisis will end, or if its the new normal.

James Kelly joins Adrian to share his journey of how he rose from an apprentice in LMH Engineering to becoming its managing director, and all the people who inspired him along the way.

Better known as the creator of Dracula, Siofra Mulqueen has been sinking her teeth into the story of Bram Stoker's business interests.

One of the biggest stories this week is the ultimate fall from grace for Prince Andrew, now Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. Today, The Guardian reported that Andrew will receive a six figure sum and an annual stipend from his brother King Charles. Enda Brady, TRT World Presenter, discusses the financial implications of losing a title.

In the recent Presidential Election, the issue of Deepfake videos and how realistic they can actually be became very clear. Wired Magazine's David Gilbert joins Adrian to discuss whether we are reaching a point where we soon won't be able to believe our eyes.

As the nights close in and the winter descends, Donegal photographer Adam Rory Porter gives a snapshot of what it is like following the aurora borealis.

David Walsh first joined us on the show nearly ten years ago, when he was scaling his security enterprise Netwatch in the States. Today, he rejoins Richard to discuss the process of building up his second company Halo Care and the lost of his wife Beatrice Pembroke Walsh. https://www.idonate.ie/forms/BeatricePembrokeWalshFoundation

While Artificial Intelligence continues to replace human workers, Fiona Looney wonders if there are certain jobs that only an Irish person can do that are beyond even AI's capability.

Justin Urquhart Stewart, international financial and investment commentator, joins Richard to discuss concerns over the health of regional banks in the United States, following Donald Trump's suggestion yesterday that heightened tariffs on Chinese imports may not last.

This week, an article in The Telegraph described how industry Chief Executives were shocked when they visited factories almost entirely staffed by robots in China. Managing Director of Kuka Robotics Ireland Brian Cooney joins Richard to discuss China's advances in robotics and whether the West, and indeed Ireland, are keeping up.

As Michael D. Higgins and Sabina prepare to return home as the race to elect the next President of Ireland enters its final week, Dave McArdle reports on whether a house that comes with a job can ever become a real home.

This week, financial institutions such as The Bank of England and JP Morgan warned that AI stock has reached bubble levels. Adrian Weckler, technology editor with the Irish and Sunday Independent, joins Richard to discuss whether AI investments will meet a similar fate to the 1990s dot com boom and bust.

Siofra Mulqueen reports on a younger generation's passion for restoration and the growing popularity of older trades.

Bryan O'Sullivan, a world leading interior designer, joins Richard to chat about his family influences, his path into design, and work-life balance. Originating from Kenmare in County Kerry, O'Sullivan has designed high end residential projects in Paris, The Berkeley and Claridges hotels in London, and even the odd yacht or two.

With the return of the Trump Administration, the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also known as ICE, raids are being conducted throughout the country. Lori Flores, author of Awaiting Their Feast: Latinx Food Workers and Activism from World War II to Covid-19, discusses the impact of these raids on food production.

With billons being poured into anti-aging research and Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping recently caught discussing the possibility of living well into their hundreds, writer Paul Howard shares his thoughts on why people are so obsessed with immorality.

Elaine Carey, chief executive of Three Ireland, joins Richard to discuss how she made the leap from answering calls in the call centre to now calling the big shots in the same building, sharing the lessons she learnt along the way.

Sinéad O'Sullivan, defence economist, aerospace engineer and author of Good Ideas and Power Moves: Ten Lessons for Success from Taylor Swift, shares how we can learn from Swift in life and business.

Author of Punishing Putin: Inside the Global Economic War to Bring Down Russia, Stephaine Barker, offers an analysis of the impact of the West's sanctions on Russia since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.

David O'Sullivan, EU Sanctions Envoy, continues the conversation on sanctions and their wider impact, offering insights from Dublin's International Trade- The Challenges Ahead conference at which he gave the keynote address.

Síofra Mulqueen reports on how to succeed in jobs interviews, which may well be useful for the presidental candidates as they prepare for upcoming debates with less than three weeks to go till election.

An excerpt in remembrance of Manchán Magan, who wrote an Ode to Local Shops for us coming out of one of the lockdowns. Magan was a rare storyteller who truly brought Ireland's heart and soul to life and we were deeply saddened to hear of his passing. Manchán Magan, 1970-2025.