Conducting an Executive Search for a Chief Marketing Officer to Lead Brand Transformation and Drive Student Recruitment in a Regional Higher Education Institution
The Brief
Future Leadership™ was engaged by a leading public health service in the Australian Capital Territory to appoint a new Chief Operating Officer (COO). This senior executive role emerged during a pivotal leadership transition, following the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer and the departure of the previous COO. The organisation had recently undergone significant structural reform, including the integration of a major hospital into its network, and was preparing for the implementation of a territory-wide Digital Health Record.
The COO role was designed to lead clinical operations across all sites and services, with executive accountability for a budget exceeding $1.9 billion and a workforce of approximately 9,000 FTEs. Reporting directly to the CEO, the COO would be responsible for driving operational performance, patient flow, and service transformation, while fostering a high-performing, values-driven culture.
The successful candidate would need to demonstrate strategic leadership, operational and financial acumen, stakeholder engagement, and resilience in a complex public sector environment. The role also required deep understanding of clinical governance, safety and quality systems, and the ability to lead through ambiguity and reform
The Process
Future Leadership™ undertook a national executive search across Australia and New Zealand, tailored to the organisation’s strategic priorities and reform agenda. The search was aligned with the concurrent recruitment of a General Manager for one of the network’s hospitals, allowing for strategic sequencing and potential cross-influence between appointments.
Key steps included:
- Briefing and Strategy Development: A detailed client briefing was held with senior executives, including the CEO and Acting Deputy CEO, to define the role’s strategic context and expectations. The Future Leadership team collaborated closely with the client to align on the position description, search strategy, milestones, and capability framework.
- Candidate Attraction: A targeted advertising campaign was launched across public sector platforms and Future Leadership’s proprietary channels. The search focused on candidates with executive experience in tertiary hospital operations, clinical service transformation, and digital health integration.
- Assessment and Shortlisting: Six candidates were shortlisted and assessed using the Future Leadership Capability Framework (FLCF), including Hogan Personality Inventory and Hogan Development Survey psychometrics. The shortlisted candidates were evaluated against six mission-critical capabilities including Adaptability and Resilience, Innovation and Creativity, and Systems Thinking.
- Panel Interviews and Referencing: Shortlisted candidates underwent behavioural interviews, psychometric debriefs, and panel interviews with the selection committee. Comprehensive referencing and candidate care protocols were applied throughout the process.
The search process was designed to ensure cultural alignment, strategic capability, and readiness to lead through complexity and reform. The Future Leadership team provided ongoing support with scheduling, documentation, and stakeholder engagement
Future Leadership Capability Framework
Adaptability and Resilience
Demonstrates positivity, curiosity, and the ability to pivot when confronted with change, pressure, adversity and disruption.
Responsive to strategic environmental, social and corporate challenges and opportunities.
Initiative and Drive
Identifies and implements improvements to the organisation, delivers high quality work, sets and achieves short- and long-term goals for both personal and work outcomes.
Develops and delivers organisational change initiatives.
Emotional Awareness
Understands own emotions and drivers and how they impact self and others.
Manages self in challenging or high stress situations.
Adjusts behaviour to respond to difference in others to achieve effective outcomes.
Communication and Influence
Articulates messages with clarity and impact to build understanding, inspire action, persuade others and enable information exchange.
Considers the audience and draws on different styles to create impact.
Innovation and Creativity
Demonstrates curiosity through challenging the status quo, expected norms, and workplace paradigms.
Contributes new ideas, solutions, and perspectives to current challenges and thinking practices.
Creates new products, solutions and opportunities and identifies opportunities for improvements.
Systems Thinking
Views situations in their entirety, understanding all the parts at play.
Identifies the interconnected factors and how they influence each other, impacting the whole system.
Takes a strategic perspective.
The Outcome
A highly experienced executive with a strong background in multi-site clinical operations, digital transformation, and stakeholder engagement was appointed as the new COO. The candidate demonstrated:
- Proven leadership in complex health service environments.
- High emotional intelligence and resilience under pressure.
- Strategic capability to drive reform and operational redesign.
- Strong alignment with the organisation’s values and cultural aspirations.
The appointment was finalised with a comprehensive onboarding plan and transition support. The new COO is expected to accelerate strategic reform, enhance system-wide performance, and foster a high-performing, inclusive culture across the health service network.
