Jim McDowell

Jim McDowell is a lawyer and defence sector businessman in South Australia. Since March 2018 and as of August 2019, he is the Chief Executive of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet of the Government of South Australia. He is a former CEO of BAE Systems Australia.

Early life

McDowell went to school in Belfast, Northern Ireland and university in England. He graduated with honours in law from the University of Warwick in 1977.[1]

Career

McDowell worked in legal, commercial and marketing roles with aerospace company Bombardier Shorts for 18 years after graduation.[2]

In 1996 McDowell left Bombardier Shorts and joined British Aerospace in their Singapore office. Three years later, following the merger of British Aerospace and Marconi Electronic Systems, he was appointed Regional Managing Director of BAE Systems for Asia. In March 2001 he was appointed as Chief Executive of BAE Systems Australia. Under his leadership, the company expanded to become Australia's largest defense firm, with more than 6,500 employees and annual sales of approximately AUD $1.7 billion. He oversaw a significant expansion of BAE's Australian operations and established the company's headquarters in Adelaide, South Australia. He ran operations from Adelaide until September 2011 when he was tasked to lead BAE Saudi Arabia.[3] In 2011, David Allott replaced McDowell as Chief Executive of BAE Systems Australia.[4]

In 2014 McDowell left BAE Systems Saudi Arabia and returned to Adelaide, marking a career shift from the private to the public sector. During a total of 38 years in the defense, aerospace and technology sector he lived and worked in the United Kingdom, the United States, Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.[1]

Chancellor of the University of South Australia

On 1 January 2016, McDowell replaced Dr Ian Gould as Chancellor of the University of South Australia. McDowell had previously served on its Council from 2007 and on its Business School Advisory Board and the Law School Advisory Board from 2010.[5]

He resigned as Chancellor in 2018 and became the Chief Executive of the Department of Premier and Cabinet.[6]

Governance Roles

McDowell served as Chair on a range of boards including the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation [7] and was first appointed Deputy Chair in March 2014.[8] He was also Chair of private company Total Construction Pty Ltd,[9] and non-executive director of public companies Codan Ltd , Austal Ltd and Micro - X Ltd. [10]

In 2015, McDowell was a member of the Expert Advisory Panel on the Future Submarine Competitive Evaluation Process, formed by the Australian Government.[11] McDowell's contract was valued at $275,000 for 50 days' work and included travel expenses. Concern was expressed regarding the remuneration for the advisory panel members by independent senator Nick Xenophon.[12]

In April 2017, McDowell was appointed as a director of the Adelaide Football Club.[13]

McDowell was a director of the RAA and remains a member of The Australian Strategic Policy Institute Council and is on the Council of Governors at St. Peter's College.[13]

Honours

On 24 April 2019 McDowell was awarded an honorary doctorate (D.Univ. Honoris Causa ) by the University of South Australia.

References
  1. UniSA. "Defence industry high-flyer UniSA's new Chancellor". www.unisa.edu.au. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  2. "Jim McDowell" (PDF). australianapprenticeships.gov.au. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  3. "BAE Systems Announces Leadership Change in Australia". www.baesystems.com. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  4. "BAE Systems Announces Leadership Change in Australia". baesystems.com. 5 July 2011. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  5. "ADM: From The Source: Jim McDowell, Chief Executive Officer, BAE Systems Australia - ADM Nov 2010". www.australiandefence.com.au. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  6. "New Chief Executive for the Department of Premier and Cabinet". premier.sa.gov.au. 26 June 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  7. "New appointments at ANSTO". www.ansto.gov.au. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  8. "Australian Government Department of Defence". Archived from the original on 2016-05-06. Retrieved 2016-04-15.
  9. "Chairman, Jim McDowell, PART OF THE $20 BILLION SUBMARINE PROJECT". www.totalconstruction.com.au. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  10. "Austal - Investors - Biography". investor.austal.com. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  11. "Minister for Defence – Expert Advisory Panel on the Future Submarine Competitive Evaluation Process". Australian Government Department of Defence. Archived from the original on 2016-04-25. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  12. Jean, Peter (2015-12-21). "Future Submarines: Four expert panel members paid $1.1 million for 50 days work". The Advertiser. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  13. "AFC Board - AFC.com.au". afc.com.au. Retrieved 2017-09-29.
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