Auckland Council has appointed Julian Smith as a new director to the board of its council-controlled organisation, Watercare Services Limited.
This appointment will fill the need identified for additional skills in stakeholder engagement and customer communications on the Watercare board.
The appointment was approved by a panel of the Mayor, Councillor Christine Fletcher and Independent Māori Statutory Board Chair, David Taipari under a delegation approved by the Appointments and Performance Review committee (APR) in November.
Councillor Chris Darby represented the committee on the interview panel and welcomes the new appointment.
“The interview panel was unanimous in supporting Julian’s appointment from a strong field of candidates. His skills and insights will be invaluable in strengthening Watercare’s customer focus as it embarks on a substantial capital works programme and embeds water efficiency into the organisation’s operating model,” says Cr Darby.
“In readying for national water reforms Julian’s customer journey expertise will be all-important.”
The APR is responsible for all appointments to the boards of council-controlled organisations, in accordance with the council’s Appointment and Remuneration Policy for Board Members and the Local Government Act.
About Julian Smith
Julian is an independent director with 13 years governance experience having retired from his executive career in late 2019 as Chief Customer Officer for Meridian Energy where he was responsible for $1.2b in revenue and a team of 400.
His executive career saw him hold a number of senior executive roles in the internet/digital, financial services, telecommunications sectors as well as central government.
Julian is a chartered member of the Institute of Directors and sits on the boards for The Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra and the Look Good Feel Better Trust. He also sits on the advisory board for Vadacom Limited - a NZ based software developer and telco.
Julian is a strategy, transformation and customer experience expert with extensive marketing and corporate affairs credentials and has worked in a range of international markets across Asia, Australasia, the Middle East and the UK. He holds an LLB and BCom from the University of Auckland and an associate diploma in public speaking form Speech NZ.
