Hazel has a BA in Business and Arts Management from IADT and an MBA from Carlow IT. Her career has spanned many industries including Art & Cultural Organisations, Tourism, Equine Business, Irish Foods, and Rural Development programmes. She was nominated for Shell Young Entrepreneur of the Year (2007) and Women Breaking through in Business (2007). In 2007 and 2010, her work on arts & cultural projects was nominated for The David Manley Awards. Today, she is the Senior Strategic Business Partner at the Walton Institute (formerly TSSG), building out a network of strategic partners both nationally and internationally. She is the site manager for VistaMilk at WIT, Regional Cluster Lead for Smart Agri Hubs Ireland and UK, and she also heads up TSSG’s Digital Innovation Hub in Kilkenny, known as PACE (Precision Agriculture Centre of Excellence).