From 3,000 to 18,000 applications — how the State rebuilt a system under pressure

About this episode

This episode discusses the transformation of Ireland’s International Protection Office as it adapted to a surge in applications from 3,000 to 18,000.

Two years and nine months. That’s how long people were waiting in the system — until everything had to change. What happens when a public service built for 3,000 applications a year suddenly faces over 18,000? That was the reality facing Ireland’s International Protection Office — a system under intense pressure, with growing backlogs, long delays, and real human consequences. In this episode of Transform Gov, Maeve Kneafsey speaks to Emer Mullins and Daniel Drennan, the team behind a transformation programme that didn’t just improve a service — it fundamentally redesigned it. From paper files that could stretch the length of a room…to fully digital workflows, online interviews, and real-time data dashboards… this is a story of what it actually takes to deliver change inside the public service — at scale, under pressure, and in real time. You’ll hear: What the system looked like before — and why it wasn’t sustainable How they rebuilt processes before introducing technology What changed for staff — and for applicants How decisions increased dramatically without simply adding more people What other public sector teams can learn from this This is not theory. This is real delivery…

People in this episode

Host: Maeve Kneafsey

Guests: Emer Mullins, Daniel Drennan

Topics covered

• public service transformation
• digital workflows
• application processing
• system redesign
• backlog management

Keywords

• transformation
• public service
• digital systems
• application backlog
• workflow improvement

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Ireland’s International Protection Office

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