The death has occurred of Dr Ivor Kenny, a former chief executive of the Irish Management Institute and one of the country’s best-known authors of business books, which included many interviews with leading business figures.

Born in 1930 and a native of Galway, Dr Kenny was a graduate of UCD and the London School of Economics. He was managing director of the Irish Management Institute (IMI) for 20 years, from 1963 to 1983, establishing it as a leading force in executive training.

He was an outspoken commentator for business over many years, appearing widely on radio and TV and in newspaper columns.

He was the author of 13 books, most of them including interviews with senior business figures such as Sir Anthony O’Reilly, Dr Michael Smurfit and Dr Tony Ryan, as well as management guidance from Mr Kenny’s own career in the IMI, and subsequently as a consultant.

He held a number of non-executive directors, including being chairman of Smurfit Paribas bank and a director of Independent Newspapers.

He is survived by his wife Maureen and children Dermot, Conor, Ivor, Helen and Mark.