1974 – National Management Centre, Sandyford, Co. Dublin

The Irish Management Institute was originally headquartered in 81 Grafton Street. As its activities increased it required greater space prompting several moves before, constructing the purpose-built, National Management Centre in Sandyford, which opened on 25 September 1974.

The architect Arthur Gibney was awarded with the RIAI Gold Medal 1974-1976 for the building, which took design inspiration from the system of step terraces used in the Oakland Museum of California (by Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates). The design accommodates office space in a two-storey, square temple-like structure around an inner courtyard, and a training facility, which is quartered in a cluster of cubical units. The units are placed in an irregular plan that follows the contours of the terrain with its distinctive trees and small hills, as well as Clonard, a mid-nineteenth century house. The landscaped hard surfaces are composed of grey in-situ concrete, designed to encourage staining, while the buildings are all of glistening, white precast concrete.

Around the time of the sale of Clonard, the secluded site was considered a prospective location by Soviet Russia for its embassy in Ireland. Later extended with a residential block and conference centre for which Arthur Gibney & Partners won the RIAI Best Commercial Building Award in 2005.