The NSW Government has confirmed 2 new appointees to the board of Venues NSW for the positions of Chairperson and Member of the Public Service.
The Cabinet has endorsed former Premier of NSW Morris Iemma as the new Chairperson and has endorsed Emma Hogan as a board member.
The role of Chairperson was advertised after the previous chair vacated the position in February 2023.
The NSW Government instructed the Premier's Department and the Office of Sport to lead an appointment process for this role.
An assessment panel shortlisted the candidates. The assessment panel was comprised of Office of Sport CEO Karen Jones, Diane Lesson (nominee of the Acting Secretary, Premier's Department) and Axiom Managing Director Peter Perry.
A selection panel assessed candidates on their skills, experience, suitability and capability. The selection panel was comprised of International Olympics Committee Vice President John Coates AC, Office of Sport CEO Karen Jones and Axiom Managing Director Peter Perry.
A former Premier of NSW, Mr Iemma has 40 years' experience in public administration and the non-government sector.
Mr Iemma is currently chairman of the NSW Government Cancer Institute, the Usman Khawaja Foundation, Clean Energy Partnerships and the Astra Institute of Higher Education.
The former premier is currently on the boards of Football NSW and the Ingham Medical Research Institute and was previously a trustee of the Sydney Cricket Ground Trust (which has since become a part of Venues NSW).
The former government also appointed Mr Iemma to:
- Chair, Greyhound Racing NSW
- Board Member, NSW TAFE
- Commissioner South District, Greater Sydney Commission.
Ms Hogan joins the Venues NSW board after leading the Department of Customer Service since 2019.
She was only months into the role when she guided the department to support the NSW Government's response during the unprecedented 2019-20 bushfire season, followed by the COVID-19 pandemic and flood and storm events more recently.
She is currently a board member at Destination NSW and ReachOut Australia, is a Fellow of the Institute of Public Administration and is a member of Chief Executive Women.
NSW Minister for Sport Steve Kamper said:
"First and foremost, I would like to thank the work of those involved in the selection process and those who put their name forward for the roles.
"I am looking forward to working collaboratively with Morris Iemma and the entire Venues NSW board to ensure that we can continue our mission to make NSW and our venues the premier destination in the Asia-Pacific region.
"Morris Iemma is an outstanding candidate with a wealth of experience, including as the 40th premier of NSW - and that is something that history shows both sides of politics can agree on.
"Emma Hogan is an incredible leader and public servant. Her work leading Service NSW and the people of NSW throughout COVID-19 was exemplary. She is an outstanding professional who will no doubt bring invaluable customer-focused experience to the board."
