Dublin, Ireland — September 2026: Microsoft has appointed Lisa Finnegan as Vice President, HRBP for EMEA, marking her return to the technology giant in a senior regional people leadership role.
Based in Dublin, Finnegan will lead efforts to shape Microsoft’s people and organization agenda across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). She brings more than two decades of experience spanning HR business partnering, talent strategy, leadership development and organizational transformation across multinational technology organizations.
Finnegan returns to Microsoft following her role as Managing Director of Lumera HR Consulting, a firm she founded in 2025 to provide fractional HR leadership and talent lifecycle services to high-growth and established organizations. Through the consultancy, she worked with management teams and business leaders to strengthen people strategies and address evolving organizational needs.
Nearly a Decade at LinkedIn
Prior to launching Lumera HR Consulting, Finnegan spent nearly nine years at LinkedIn, where she progressed through a series of senior HR leadership positions.
Her most recent position was Vice President – International HRBP, a role she held for four years. Previously, she served as Senior Director HR – EMEA & LATAM, Senior Director HR – EMEA and HR Director.
During her tenure at LinkedIn, Finnegan partnered with senior business leaders to develop talent strategies aligned with organizational priorities while supporting employees and teams through periods of growth, transformation and change.
Broad International HR Experience
Before LinkedIn, Finnegan served as HR Director – EMEA at Veritas Technologies, where she managed a team of HR managers across the region and partnered with senior leadership supporting renewals and inside sales. Her responsibilities included talent attraction and retention, employee development and the implementation of HR programs across the organization.
A substantial part of Finnegan’s earlier career was spent at Symantec, where she worked for approximately a decade across HR and business-focused positions. She progressed through roles including Staffing Specialist, Senior HR Consultant, HR Business Partner and Senior Manager – HR Business Partner.
At Symantec, Finnegan supported senior leaders across EMEA, the Americas and APJ, gaining extensive experience in international HR operations and business partnering. She also served as Manager – Partner Programmes, overseeing the OEM Partner Programme across EMEA and APJ while working with a matrixed, multi-regional team.
She began her career at Lionbridge as a Resource Coordinator before moving into recruitment with Contract People Ltd.
Leadership Focus
Across her career, Finnegan has developed expertise across HR business partnering, talent strategy, employee relations, recruitment, leadership coaching and business transformation. Her experience working across diverse markets and multinational technology organizations positions her to play a key role in Microsoft’s regional people strategy.
In her new position as Vice President, HRBP for EMEA, Finnegan will be responsible for supporting Microsoft’s evolving workforce and organizational priorities as technology, skills and ways of working continue to change rapidly.
Her return to Microsoft represents another significant step in a career centered on connecting people strategy with business performance and organizational transformation.
About Microsoft
Microsoft is a global technology company focused on empowering people and organizations through technology. Its portfolio spans cloud computing, artificial intelligence, software, productivity tools, cybersecurity, gaming and other digital technologies.
The company operates across approximately 190 countries and has a global workforce of around 228,000 employees. Microsoft emphasizes innovation, continuous learning, collaboration, inclusion and a growth-oriented mindset as it develops technologies and services for individuals and organizations worldwide.
