Name: David Hughes.
Age: 36.
Background: graduated from University College Dublin (UCD) with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1984. Spent two years working in US with Bausch & Lomb, eyewear manufacturers. Went to London in 1987 where he joined Arthur Andersen to train as an accountant. Qualified as accountant in 1991 and worked for two years with Mercury Communications, UK telecoms company which is part of Cable & Wireless group. He was then headhunted by British Telecom where he worked for 18 months.
Returned to Republic where he worked for Barlo group, before joining MCI/WorldCom (then known as TCL Telecom) in 1996.
Family: Married to Deirdre (Dee) he has a son, Mark, and a daughter, Lauren.
Hobbies: Soccer, tennis, cycling.
Why he is in the news: His parent company MCI/ WorldCom has announced the biggest merger in corporate history (valued at $129 billion) with Sprint, a rival US long distance carrier.
