Mr Kieran Chilcott, Chair of the Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council (QAIHC), announced today the reappointment of Mr Neil Willmett as Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Mr Willmett will lead QAIHC for the next three years.
“Neil’s insight into how business and leadership expertise can transform QAIHC was evident when he joined QAIHC last year. He has deep business and senior executive management level experience in government, as well as a track record in leading both policy and strategy and achieving outcomes.
“Over the last 10 months, he has successfully led a team that has transformed QAIHC into a more credible, effective and efficient organisation. In addition, he has demonstrated strong values, and shown himself to be an inclusive leader that can build quality relationships,” Chilcott said.
Mr Willmett has 25 years’ experience in health and professional services. He began his career as an Aboriginal health worker in the 1980’s. In the 1990’s he became a human resources practitioner and later a business advisor with roles in and outside of Australia. In 2016, Mr Willmett joined the Queensland Government Department of Housing and Public Works as an Executive Director. His role included advising on policy, strategy, and being a member of the six-person Executive Leadership Team that oversaw the whole-of-department multi-billion-dollar budget.
Mr Willmett is well known for previous work in transforming the Indigenous business sector in Australia. His achievements as a business leader include leading significant Indigenous business reforms that have resulted in more small business owners, introducing procurement policy that has created greater contracting opportunities for small business, and facilitating more support and financial assistance for small business owners.
Mr Willmett holds a Bachelor of Applied Health Science (Indigenous Primary Health Care) degree from the University of Queensland. He has held multiple board positions in the government, business and not-for-profit sectors. Other achievements include being a published business author and a recipient of a (Winston) Churchill Fellowship for Leadership.
The QAIHC CEO position was advertised nationally in late 2017. After a merit-based recruitment process, Mr Willmett has been appointed to the role for a three-year term.
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