International Irish Business Person of the Year (USA) - 2008


Cameron O'Reilly CEO, Landis+Gyr Worldwide
Earlier this year, Cameron O’Reilly announced the integration of the Bayard Group family of clean technology companies under the Landis+Gyr brand. With O’Reilly as CEO of the Bayard Group, since 2002, it has spent $1.3bn on 14 acquisitions and investments to create the world’s pre-eminent smart metering company, with operational headquarters in Zug, Switzerland.
Prior to establishing the Bayard Group, O’Reilly was chief executive of APN News and Media Limited in Australia. He joined in 1988 and during his 12 years with APN – more than eight of which were spent as CEO or deputy CEO – O’Reilly helped build it from a domestic regional newspaper company into an international multi-media business. He was responsible for successfully re-floating the company on the Australian Stock Exchange in 1992 and was appointed deputy chief executive immediately afterwards.
From a zero base, APN became the largest outdoor advertising and radio broadcasting group in Australasia with more than 75% of the outdoor market and more than 130 radio stations in Australia and New Zealand.
In 1996, O'Reilly was appointed as CEO of APN and continued to direct a programme of acquisition and development over several years. In October 1999, however, he announced that he would leave his executive role at APN to pursue private business interests – he did so in July 2000, moving to Grenoble in France. He remains a non-executive director of APN and of Independent News & Media (INM).
In 2002, O'Reilly returned to Australia and in May 2003 he launched investment house Bayard Capital with AUS$100m from various shareholders. He sold two-thirds of his APN shares in early 2004 to invest in Bayard. This new venture spent over US$200m on acquisitions in its first year. With annualized sales of more than US$1.25 billion, Landis+Gyr operates in 30 countries across five continents, and employs over 5,000 people with the sole mission of helping the world manage energy better.
Irish native O'Reilly currently resides in Sydney, Australia with his wife and four children. He is a director of Sydney Theatre Company, the National Gallery of Australia Foundation, the Australian Ireland Fund, the Central Advisory Board of the Salvation Army in Australia, and a former deputy chairman of the National Gallery of Australia.

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