Parc generates a significant proportion of its Euro109m turnover from its aviation business, supplying pilots, crews and logistics services to airlines around the globe. Keenan is not impressed by the way the aviation industry has been targeted by, among others, British junior environment minister David Miliband.

"I don't think the almost hysterical crowing about the issue that we've heard in the UK recently makes sense, " he says.

Even if the airline industry halved its carbon emissions it would cut total global emissions by only 1%, according to Keenan, who accepts that measures need to be taken to curb emissions and combat climate change but objects to airlines being singled out for special punishment.

His willingness to jump to the defence of the sector is easy to understand. Parc Aviation's future performance is strongly tied in to the growth prospects of global aviation. The company released figures last week showing turnover was Euro119m in the year to March 2006 and operating profit climbed 15% to Euro4.1m. More than half of Parc's revenue during the period, Euro66.2m, was generated by the aviation business.

Keenan says that, over the past 12 months, group turnover has reached Euro130m with its Asian aviation business contributing strongly to growth. "Most of our growth in the next year or two will be in Asia."

Deregulation of the airline sector in Japan has been a major boon to Parc. The growth of new airlines, emergence of new low-cost subsidiaries from flagship carriers and expansion of routes has added greatly to traffic in the region. More traffic means more aircraft movements and more demand for pilots and crews, which plays into Parc's hands. Keenan says the company is now expanding the range of services it offers to include pilot training and certification.

Parc began life as a division of Aer Lingus, providing pilots for hire to needy airlines.

From his position as an accountant with the wider Aer Lingus group Keenan was parachuted into Parc as "acting financial controller" in 1983. "I still haven't gone back, " he jokes.

In fact he has moved quite a distance forward, leading a management buyout of the company in 1998 with backing from private equity house Hg Capital. At the time Hg acquired over 50% of the company, with management - including Keenan - and staff putting up the balance. By 2001 Parc was doing so well that the management team could afford to negotiate a Euro22m cash deal with Hg to buy out part of its stake, leaving it with just under 24% of the company. "We bought out the bulk of their investment at a damn good price, " Keenan says.

That was in July 2001. Within eight weeks Parc was dealing with an airline industry in crisis and Keenan was left to ponder how the terms might have differed if the deal had been concluded after the US terrorist attacks on 11 September that year.

If it rankles, though, he doesn't show it.

Keenan describes himself as an avid reader of history and, it seems, if there is one thing he has absorbed through his business career it is how to learn the lessons of the past.

Parc rode out the downturn in aviation. The underlying strength of its recruitment business in Ireland and the UK was a sturdy safety net. It also vindicated the company's strategy over the previous decade.

In 1991 Keenan had seen Parc's turnover halved overnight when the Gulf War brought an abrupt end to a recruitment contract it had held to supply medical staff to hospitals in Iraq. Painful lesson learned, Keenan resolved that Parc would never again be so exposed to one sector or to geographic risk in one region.

That decision has informed its push into Asian aviation, reducing its dependence on North America. It has also informed the development of Parc's recruitment business, the most profitable unit in the company.

Parc has moved away from the nuts and bolts of putting bums into vacant office seats.

It still makes a significant chunk of its profits from providing workers for construction, engineering and financial services companies in Ireland and the UK. Keenan says the future, however, is what Parc calls "recruitment process outsourcing". He singles out the contract with British homebuilder Taylor Woodrow as an example of where the company wants to be.

As is common in the construction industry, Taylor Woodrow's demand for temporary staff at its various sites fluctuates dramatically. Before retaining Parc's services, the company's area managers negotiated with separate recruitment companies in different regions of the UK. Parc now handles the company's recruitment function, negotiating common terms with local recruiters and keeping a lid on costs. It also deals with the staff, processing queries from a call centre in London, monitors staffing requirements and produces detailed reports for Taylor Woodrow using a specially designed IT system.

Keenan can't discuss financial details of the contract but the numbers involved are clearly significant. Taylor Woodrow has previously stated that it saved £3m in the first year of the three-year contract it signed with Parc.

That deal has recently been renewed, much to Keenan's delight, since Parc beat off competition from global recruitment powerhouse Hays to retain the contract.

He sees it as "a validation" of Parc's proposition. The accepted wisdom within the recruitment industry, according to Keenan, was that even if Parc could convince a client to jump on board, the relationship would come to an end once the initial cost savings had been realised and the contract was up.

"People said you'll get one of those contracts once but you won't renew it. We've proven that wrong, " he says. "I'm hoping too, that we will be able to announce another contract with a major public company in the next few weeks."

Keenan admits there are a limited number of companies large enough to need such a service. With one in the bag and another deal likely to be sealed in the near future, though, he believes the momentum is building.

"If this resource management thing takes off in a big way you could see step growth there over the next couple of years."

While that push is ongoing, Parc remains bullish about the Irish recruitment market.

The company generates about 20% of its sales in Ireland. Keenan points to particularly strong growth in financial services.

From Parc's point of view he says it is encouraging that "recruitment agencies' share of the labour market is probably increasing". In the UK recruitment agencies fill 2.5% of all vacancies. In Ireland the figure is around 1.3%, which Keenan not unreasonably concludes is a good indication that there is room for more growth.

Exploiting that opportunity will take up most of Keenan's time in the coming year but at the same time he is cognisant of the fact that the company is rapidly approaching the tenth anniversary of its MBO. Its VC backers have not been hammering on the door for an exit but that 23% minority shareholding is still an issue awaiting a final resolution.

"The likelihood is we'll buy out the Hg Capital stake in due course, " he says.

The management shareholders themselves will also be looking at taking some cash off the table at some point to reward their efforts.

Briefly, in the late 1990s, Parc considered a stock market flotation as one option for achieving that but concluded that the timing wasn't right. It's not on the agenda for the near future, according to Keenan. But he says the company will have to look at shareholder realisation, most likely through a trade sale or flotation at some point.

He feels confident that if it chose the latter option there would be plenty of willing suitors. "I don't think a year goes by when we don't have an approach, " he says.

There is nothing on the table at present, however, and he says selling out is not on the agenda for the time being. But Keenan has seen enough twists of fortune in his time at Parc to realise that anything can happen.

He reflects briefly on how the business nearly folded at a stroke in 1991 following the loss of the Middle East medical recruitment contract and smiles sagely: "What is it they say?

'Men make plans and God laughs'."

CV PETER KEENAN
Age: 56
Personal: Married with three children.
Background: A chartered accountant by training, Keenan was working for Aer Lingus when he was appointed to its subsidiary, Parc Aviation, as "acting financial controller" in 1983. He stayed on with the company full time, eventually becoming chief executive. In 1998 he led a management buyout of the company.

Newsworthiness: The company has just released its 2006 results, showing an increase in turnover to Euro118.9m and operating profit up 15% to Euro4.1m.

Interests: Enjoys studying history and, as his three children are all involved in acting and theatre production, he takes a healthy interest in the arts.

Keenan is also involved (both as a donor and a volunteer) with the Centre for Reconciliation in Glencree, Co Wicklow, which he sees as having a valuable role to play in the Northern peace process.