AVBC NED & Chair Recruitment

About the Roles

With over 73% of households in Australia/New Zealander owning pets and agriculture being a top 3 export, these roles offer a massive opportunity to make a major impact on the lives of everyone, on animal welfare, on the standards of veterinary medicine, and on the economy of Australia and NZ.

Following the governance review in 2024 the establishment of a formal, skill-based board of directors with responsibility for the oversight, direction, and accountability to the council of members. This board is accountable to the AVBC Council for managing the operations and resources of the organisation, including establishing and maintaining effective internal budgets, controls, and reporting. All directors serving on the board will be expected to bring high standards of governance and integrity, with a thorough understanding of effective corporate governance an appreciation of the role, responsibilities and duties of directors.  

AVBC seeks to appoint to a newly formed  board a new Chair and four (4) Non-Executive Directors from either Australia or NZ with the following skills and experience:

1 X Chair

• An experienced chair with the emotional intelligence, intellect, and commitment to lead the board for an initial three-year period
• Proven experience as a Non-Executive Chair, with a strong track record of board leadership -ideally in  membership-based organisations serving a profession and operating in complex regulatory environments.
• Deep understanding of assurance and regulatory expectations, including providing independent, credible assurance to state and territory regulators while maintaining organisational integrity and independence.
• Highly developed board and governance leadership, demonstrating and embedding an inclusive, enabling board culture that underpins sound decision-making and the effective discharge of statutory, fiduciary, and public-interest duties across multiple jurisdictions.
• Expertise in balancing member interests with regulatory obligations, ensuring the organisation maintains the confidence of the member regulators while constructively engaging the profession it serves.
• Strong stakeholder leadership and influence, with the credibility to work effectively with regulators, government agencies, professional bodies, members, and senior executives across Australasia.
• Sound strategic and risk oversight capability, including guiding organisational strategy, overseeing assurance frameworks, and managing reputational, regulatory, and operational risk.

4 X Non-Executive Directors (NEDs)

NED Role 1 – Finance, audit, and risk

• Senior financial and commercial acumen, with deep experience in financial reporting, audit processes, internal controls, and regulatory compliance within small and medium-sized membership-based organisations.
• Proven audit and risk oversight capability, including chairing or serving on Audit & Risk Committees and constructively challenging executive management and external auditors.
• Strong risk management expertise, covering enterprise risk frameworks, internal assurance, controls, and emerging risks (including cyber, technology, and ESG-related risks).
• Sound judgement and independence of thought, able to provide objective challenge, make balanced decisions, and contribute effectively at board level.
• Excellent stakeholder and communication skills, with the credibility to engage confidently with auditors, regulators, executives, and fellow board members.

NED Role 2 – Education and professional standards

• Deep expertise in professional education, training, and standards, including accreditation, competency frameworks, continuing professional development (CPD), and assessment of professional capability across an Australasian context.
• Strong understanding of assurance and regulatory interface models, with experience providing independent assurance, advice, or oversight to government or statutory regulators at the state and territory level.
• Proven capability in governing professional standards and quality frameworks, including monitoring compliance, evaluating outcomes, and driving continuous improvement in education and professional practice.
• Sound governance and board-level experience, with a clear understanding of public-interest accountability, risk, and statutory expectations within regulated professions.
• Independent judgement and integrity, able to provide objective challenge, evidence-based decision-making, and balanced advice to regulators and stakeholders.
• Highly effective stakeholder engagement skills, with the credibility to work constructively with regulator members, universities, and technical specialists.

NED Role 3 – Deep Regulatory Expertise

• Deep understanding of profession-specific regulation, including registration, accreditation, standards setting, compliance, and disciplinary pathways within an Australasian statutory or delegated regulatory framework.
• Demonstrated experience providing independent assurance to regulators, with the ability to assess the effectiveness of professional standards, education, and regulatory controls against legislative and policy requirements.
• Strong governance capability in a regulatory context, with experience at board or committee level and a clear appreciation of regulatory independence, public protection, and multi-jurisdictional accountability.
• Highly developed regulatory judgement and independence of thought, able to interpret complex evidence, apply proportional regulatory responses, and provide robust, defensible challenge to management.
• Expertise in regulatory risk, compliance, and assurance reporting, including identifying systemic risks within the profession and ensuring transparent, regulator-ready reporting.
• Credible with regulators and the profession, able to engage constructively with state and territory regulators, professional bodies, educators, and practitioners while maintaining confidence in the regulatory system.

NED Role 4 – Lived Experience as a veterinary health professional

• Extensive lived experience as a veterinary healthcare professional, with deep, practical insight into contemporary clinical practice, professional pressures, and standards across the Australasian veterinary sector.
• Strong understanding of veterinary regulation and professional standards, including registration, accreditation, continuing professional development, conduct, and fitness-to-practise processes.
• Ability to translate frontline “real life” professional experience into effective assurance, informing regulators’ confidence in education quality, professional standards, and compliance frameworks.
• Sound governance capability and board-level judgement, with an appreciation of public interest, animal welfare, and community expectations of the veterinary profession.
• Independent, balanced perspective, able to provide constructive challenge while maintaining appropriate separation between professional advocacy and regulatory assurance.
• Credible engagement with regulators and the profession, able to build trust with state and territory regulators, practitioners, educators, and professional bodies across Australia and New Zealand.