The Australian Institute of Architects is on the hunt for a new Chief Executive Officer, at what it describes as a time of growth for the organization.
Clare Cousins, the Institute’s national president, said, “Our ideal candidate for the new CEO role would be someone who can facilitate this growth with a combination of exceptional leadership skills and commercial acumen. Someone who’s a strong and strategic business leader, who’s also passionate about the built environment and is able to advocate at all levels.”
The incoming CEO, to be based in Melbourne, will be responsible for 70 employees across the country at the national level and in state chapters.
“Not only will the new CEO need to work with our team to strengthen our members’ capacity to deliver services,” Cousins said, “but also collaborate and build influence with government, partners and other related industry associations.”
“Ultimately, our goal as an organization is to make the world a better place through architecture. It’s about looking forward and guiding government and policy makers to ensure our cities and communities are liveable places now and well into the future.”
Among the initiatives a new CEO will first have to deal with is a major digital transformation project.
“A new Institute website with various complementary digital platforms will transform the way we operate as a national organization, grow our membership base and improve access to our valued services,” said Cousins.
The Institute named Judith Slocombe as interim CEO in September after advising its members in August that former CEO Jennifer Cunich, who was appointed to the role in May 2016, had left the organization. Slocombe will hold the role of interim CEO while the Board of Directors seeks to appoint someone to the position permanently.
“We’ve seen real change in recent times regarding diversity within the organization,” said Cousins. “In addition to our established practices, we’re seeing an increase in representation of smaller practitioners in leadership roles. We’re also now focused on encouraging younger members and architects in regional areas to join our community.”
