Dr. Deirdre Lillis is Assistant Secretary General in the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science in Ireland, with responsibility for the Research, Innovation, Evidence for Policy and EU/International Division.

She chairs the Impact 2030 research and innovation strategy governance group and the Global Citizens 2030 International Talent and Innovation Strategy Governance group. A proven senior executive, her prior experience includes university leadership roles in university-enterprise engagement in TU Dublin and as Head of Computer Science in Dublin Institute of Technology. She has a track record of research capacity building, internationalisation and transformation in higher education including principal investigator for an unprecedented national investment in university-enterprise engagement (www.convene.ie), the €4m global HubLinked Knowledge Alliance (www.hublinked.ie) and Marie-Curie RISE GETM3 Global Entrepreneurial Talent Management programme. She is a Chartered Director and has served on the Board of the Higher Education Authority in Ireland, the Senate of the National University of Ireland and the Board of the Irish Writers Centre. Her research interests include national research and innovation systems, higher education policy, university-industry innovations and young talent management. She has won European awards for her sustained commitment to developing the careers of female academic staff and for increasing the participation of females in technological higher education programmes.