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For Katy Lumsden, Head of Human Resources at the National Library of Ireland (NLI), the journey to leadership has been anything but conventional. From a background in visual communications to calligraphy, and finally to human resources, her path has been shaped by curiosity, challenges, and an enduring commitment to learning. Her time at the Irish Management Institute (IMI) was a transformative chapter in that journey, reinforcing not only her professional growth but also her confidence as a strategic thinker and leader.

From Calligraphy to HR: An Unconventional Pathway

Originally from Scotland, Katy moved to Ireland at 18 to study Visual Communications at the National College of Art and Design. Specialising in typography and calligraphy, she found herself drawn to the Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland, a division of the National Library of Ireland, where she began as a freelance calligrapher. Her early career involved calligraphy and watercolour painting for one of our former Taoisigh, making place-cards for the dining tables of some high-calibre dinner parties, inscribing the entries into the Honoris Causa Roll of Honour for DCU’s honorary graduands, and even inscribing names onto certificates for graduates of the IMI! As part of Katy’s work with the Office of the Chief Herald, she painted and inscribed Grants of Arms (legal documents conferring new coats of arms) to two Presidents of Ireland; and in 2004 she was part of a project to inscribe vellum documents for presentation to each of the new Accession States to the EU during Ireland’s presidency.

The Decision to Study at IMI

Encouraged by two temporary Heads of HR in 2019, Katy found herself on the path to further study. She had already completed a Strategic HRM certificate with Public Affairs Ireland, and her mentors saw potential for her to go further.

“One of those 2019 temporary managers worked with me to find a programme at post-grad level that would work with my circumstances in relation to availability of study-time; the other pretty much mandated me, in the nicest way possible, to enrol in Andrew McLaughlin’s Organisational Behaviour (OB) programme.  And so, my path to IMI was paved!”, says Katy. “I had no intention of doing more than one diploma, but I ended up completing two more – Organisational Development & Transformation, Leadership, and the MBS capstone.”

Pivotal Moments and Transformative Learning

From her first day in the classroom to tackling advanced frameworks like the Firo-B instrument in the Self-Awareness module, each step shaped her understanding of leadership, team dynamics, and personal growth.

“But for me what really landed was adding up the scores and finding zeros for some areas.  I won’t say which, but they were indicative of some aspects of my life generally that I have really struggled with. I wrote about their impact in my final submission for the OB diploma – it had impacted very profoundly.  My OB class colleagues, who were absolutely the best group of people, also knocked a bit of craic out of it when we discussed our scores in class and suggested emergency medics might be required to check if I was actually alive, so dismal was my scoring in a couple of areas!  They were absolutely a group to keep feet on the ground!”

Two rather more performative modules, on different diplomas, were also game-changers. Katy found the theatre day on the OB diploma to be fantastic, and reinforced for her how much she loves a stage! Katy says that the whole class was very nervous about the day, but it was so enjoyable and learning about ‘stage presence’ impacted everyone differently but deeply.  The improv workshop during the Leadership diploma was also approached by everyone with a feeling of dread about being ‘on show’ in an unscripted way in front of their peers. But Katy recalls that she learned so much about the power of just letting go, being in the moment – and her face hurt from laughing by the end of it!

The Unexpected Rewards

Beyond the coursework, two surprises stood out in Katy’s IMI journey. The first was the sheer impact of team-based learning at Killary, which altered her perception of teamwork and collaboration. The second was being awarded Student of the Year for both the OB and Leadership diplomas—an honour made even more meaningful by the fact that it was peer-voted.

“I nearly fell off my chair when my name was announced for OB Student of the Year,” she recalls. “I had started out feeling like the most junior person in the room. To be recognised by my peers meant the world.”

A Network of Esteemed Associates

“Thinking back over the three diplomas and the Masters capstone, we were so fortunate to meet a huge range of tutors and facilitators, from the programme directors to those who might have come in for a half-day workshop,” says Katy.

Andrew McLaughlin, as the Programme Director for my first diploma, will always be a stand-out.  It quickly became apparent that there was very little that Andrew hadn’t adventured into and become expert in! The whole class valued the wonderful stories as well as the actual programmed coursework, all woven together into the best experience.  Plus Katy has never forgotten his lived advice of never leaving any kind of retail scenario without at least attempting to try out some of the learnings from the negotiations module!

There are some other faculty members who Katy is still in touch with to a greater or lesser extent, largely through LinkedIn – Nina Noonan, Anna Connolly, Anne Caulfield, Fiona Buckley, for example. She also acknowledges the programme support staff she encountered along the way: Fiona Clarke, Sylwia Janik, Marina Feoktistova, who were all integral to the IMI experience and were cheering participants on, often while undertaking their own studies. Finally, Katy would like to salute the IMI Library staff!  Their guidance on referencing and assignment submissions, as well as on accessing material, so often went above and beyond.

The Lasting Impact of IMI

Today, Katy continues to draw on the knowledge, networks, and confidence gained at IMI.

“The connections I made have been invaluable. Early in my studies, we did a social network exercise, and mine was quite limited. Now, I have a strong, supportive professional network that continues to open doors.”

Perhaps the most defining memory? The moment she stood atop the ‘Leap of Faith’ platform at Killary, preparing to jump. “Even now, when I’m faced with a challenge that seems impossible, I hear Phillip Matthews (Programme Director for IMI’s Diploma in Leadership) cheering me on from below.”

Topics that Katy was introduced to at IMI, particularly leadership and followership, have also allowed her to develop programming for children and young people, which evolved into her initiative, Know No Bounds. When possible, Katy is in a classroom doing pro bono work in leadership, followership and culture with children from age 9 upwards. Feedback is consistently extremely positive, and one of the most wonderful pieces of feedback came from a Senior Cycle student who said: “I had never thought of myself as a leader; but I can see now that there are things I do every day that I’d never thought of as leadership before.”

For Katy, the IMI experience wasn’t just about gaining qualifications—it was about transforming her approach to leadership, self-belief, and lifelong learning. And as she continues to evolve in her career, one thing is certain: she will keep challenging herself, one leap at a time.

Photo by Jill O’Meara