News
| 05 May 2022

A rewarding journey

The time has come for me to leave my position as CEO of Engineers Australia.

What a rewarding journey the past two and half years has been! I’m thrilled and honoured to have played a role in the transformation of Engineers Australia, to have led a talented and dedicated group of people who are taking the organisation to new heights.

It’s not an overstatement to say the change has been dramatic. Engineers Australia’s bold vision and insightful commentary has seen us take a seat at the table to be an effective part of multiple important national conversations.

Where to for Australia? How do we solve climate change? What do we do about the skills shortage? How do we attract more women into STEM?

Engineers are leaders and innovators. Engineers Australia is the vehicle through which we can advocate for effective resolution of some of the most pressing issues facing us as a nation and globally.

We must keep challenging our own assumptions and the assumptions of our communities. Among the broader challenges I mentioned earlier, there are critical issues that must be addressed urgently.

Women are underrepresented in engineering. This means society and the profession misses out on half the latent talent in the population. And that half of the population is not adequately considered on far-reaching design decisions. This disadvantages us all.

Our workplaces must allow everyone to contribute. This means our leaders must build organisations that create psychological safety at work and provide effective mental health support.

We must address the big global challenges of climate change. This means accelerating engineering innovation for a swift transition to a sustainable economy through practical solutions that transform systems, technologies and infrastructure.

At Engineers Australia, the right structures and leaders are in place to step up to these big, challenging issues. We have the advantage of modern governance arrangements les by a mature and sophisticated board and Chair/National President and an outstanding executive team. This combination gives us the ability to have an impact at scale and pace.

I want to acknowledge the fantastic team at Engineers Australia, the visionary board of directors and the committed and passionate volunteers and members. Engineers Australia’s purpose of advancing society through great engineering continues to be a vital and galvanising call to action.

Thank you for your support throughout my tenure as CEO. It has been an immensely rewarding and uplifting experience, and I hope to have left a meaningful legacy for the organisation to build on.