The Executive Director, Surgery and Perioperative Services (SPS) is accountable for strategic leadership, operational management, and performance outcomes of surgical and perioperative services at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH). This role ensures the delivery of safe, high-quality, patient-centred care aligned with RBWH’s strategic vision fostering a culture of innovation, clinical excellence, continuous improvement, and integrated care while supporting research, teaching, and health equity priorities.

This role is responsible for supporting the comprehensive clinical services for Surgery and Perioperative Services. The service provides secondary, tertiary, and quaternary referral services for hospitals and medical practitioners across northern New South Wales, and neighbouring Pacific countries. Surgery & Perioperative operates 22 Operating Suites (covering both general and Women’s theatres), a Minor Procedure Unit (MPU) consisting of 2 theatres, Post Anaesthetic Care Units (PACUs), a day surgery unit, Sterile Processing Centre (SPC), 9 inpatient wards, Statewide trauma service and co-located outpatient departments to provide continuity across a range of surgical specialties

Specialty services consist of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Burns, General Surgery, Orthopaedics, Neurosurgery, Vascular, Urology, Ear Nose and Throat, Ophthalmology, Maxillo-Facial, and Plastic and Reconstructive surgery. These clinical services play a major role in research, undergraduate and postgraduate education programs for all health professionals. This is supported through joint appointments with the Departments of Surgery, The University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology, Australian Defence Force and collaboration with all tertiary facilities.

The successful applicant will deliver the following key accountabilities in alignment with Metro North Health’s (MNH) values, strategic priorities, and commitment to high-quality, patient-centred care.

Leadership Capabilities

• Provide executive leadership to ensure delivery of high-quality, efficient and value-based surgical services.
• Foster clinician engagement and a positive workplace culture to support workforce retention, wellbeing and development.
• Champion health equity by supporting access to culturally safe and responsive care, particularly for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
• Lead a multidisciplinary management team, modelling collaborative, transparent, and accountable leadership.
• Lead effective interdisciplinary clinician engagement and the strategic development of teamwork and model of care delivery, involving all professional groups.

Strategic and Operational Planning

• Provide Executive leadership of SPS and support senior clinical and administrative staff to collaboratively achieve the clinical, operational, and financial objectives of the Service Line.
• Drive strategic planning, service redesign, and innovation aligned with MNH and RBWH objectives.
• Lead workforce initiatives that grow and develop the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workforce, promote cultural safety, and increase the cultural capability of all staff.
• Promote the development of the future workforce, which is resilient and capable of meeting current and future challenges, through collaborations with MNH, university partners, specialist colleges, and other industries and education providers.

Performance Operational Management and Reporting

• Oversee operational and financial performance including achievement of KPIs, patient outcomes, and service growth.
• Ensure effective corporate and clinical governance structures and risk management systems that support data-informed decision making.
• Support timely, accurate and transparent reporting to the service line leadership, RBWH Executive and MNH Executive.
• Ensure financial integrity through the prudent use of resources while maximising the provision of equitable, cost effective and timely clinical services in an environment of significant demand.
• Drive innovation, productivity and service improvement strategies to ensure patients receive care within clinically recommended timeframes.
• Effectively engage with clinicians, health partners, government agencies, and the community to inform service planning and improvements.

Stakeholder Management

• Build strong working relationships across RBWH service lines, Metro North directorates and clinical streams to enhance patient care.
• Strengthen partnerships with key stakeholders including external services, academic institutions, and clinical networks to support care integration, research, and education to meet growing population needs. This includes strategic alignment with emerging health policies impacting surgical and perioperative services.
• Foster effective communication and constructive engagement with industrial partners and workforce groups.
• Ensure effective systems are in place to promote positive experiences and outcomes of consumers and community organisations, to respond to and learn from feedback, compliments, and complaints.

Health, Safety and Quality

• Lead the Surgery and Perioperative Service Line to achieve clinical and service excellence using evidence informed practice and rigorous evaluation of clinical and service outcomes.
• Lead safety and quality initiatives, ensuring compliance with National Safety and Quality Standards (NSQHS), Clinical Care Standards and relevant professional college standards to support continuous improvement. This includes development of resilient systems for patient safety, high reliability, quality improvement and the informed use of evidence and data.
• Promote a culture of clinical excellence, patient-centred care, and service accountability using clinical feedback, incident review, and consumer engagement to inform system and service improvements.
• Follow defined service quality standards, occupational health and safety policies and procedures relating to the work being undertaken to ensure high quality, safe services, and workplaces. This includes developing and promoting strategies that support staff wellness and safety and aligns with RBWH priorities.

• A medical degree from a registered tertiary institution acceptable by the Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency (Ahpra) and the Medical Board of Australia for registration as a Medical Practitioner in Australia.
• Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS), Fellowship of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (FANZCA), Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons (FRACDS), Fellowship of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists (FRANZCO) or Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Medical Administrators (FRACMA), or equivalent Specialist Fellowship qualification acceptable by the Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency (Ahpra) and the Medical Board of Australia for applicable registration as a Specialist Medical Practitioner in Australia.
• Specialist registration with the Medical Board of Australia.
• The successful applicant must hold and maintain appropriate Scope of Clinical Practice (SoCP) relevant to the role, awarded by a Metro North Health Credentialing and SoCP delegate.
  • Information presented for this application may be presented to the Medical Credentialing Committee.
  • All appointments are subject to maintenance of SoCP.
  • SoCP is further limited by the Clinical Services Capability Framework (CSCF) for the facilities in which clinical work is to be undertaken.
  • This process must be completed prior to commencement.
• Certified copies of the required information, including qualification must be provided to the appropriate supervisor/manager prior to the commencement of clinical duties.
• Whilst not mandatory, General Registration as a Medical Practitioner with the Medical Board of Australia would be highly regarded.
• Whilst not mandatory, it would be well regarded if the successful applicant held a current ‘C’ Class Drivers’ Licence issue by the Queensland Department of Transport.
• Whilst not mandatory, a postgraduate qualification encompassing advanced management and leadership skills will be well regarded.
• Whilst not mandatory, a strong clinical background will be highly regarded, particularly when associated with high level clinical leadership experience.

You will be assessed on your ability to demonstrate the following values within the context of the “Key Accountabilities”.

The ideal applicant will be able to demonstrate the following:

Values and Behaviours

• Respect – demonstrates interpersonal savvy, manages conflict appropriately, communicates effectively and balances the needs of all stakeholders with utmost respect to all people at all times.
• Teamwork – collaborates effectively, develops talent, values differences and builds effective teams to bring about best use of resources to deliver healthcare services.
• Compassion – is patient / client focussed, demonstrates self-awareness and the effects of behaviour on others, deals with or manages ambiguity and complexity, demonstrates resilience in the delivery of patient services or support in the delivery of services to patients.
• High Performance – cultivates innovation, is action oriented, drives results and supports Metro North Health’s vision and purpose to exceed expectations of our patients and stakeholders.
• Integrity – demonstrates sound decision quality, ensures accountability, demonstrates courage in the face of adversity and works effectively / manages complexity to ensure work output and decisions are ethical and invariably of a high standard.

Professional Capability

• Professional standards: creates and sustains professional standards of excellence in service delivery and patient care.
• Drive for results: A strong commitment to making service performance improvements and a determination to achieve positive service outcomes for users.

Research Capability

• Research culture: creates and sustains a culture of world class research and innovation
• Collaborative research: leads a department which supports integrated research across professional disciplines.

Leadership Capability

• Self-awareness: knowing your own strengths and limitations and understanding your own emotions and the impact of your behaviour on others in diverse situations.
• Holding to account: the strength of resolve to hold others to account for agreed targets and to be held accountable for delivering a high level of service.
• Effective and strategic influencing: being able and prepared to adopt a number of ways to gain support and influence diverse parties, with the aim of securing health improvements

Management Capability

• Communication: adopt appropriate strategies to gain support and influence others; communicate effectively in the public domain and with senior boards and external stakeholders.
• Business planning: create strategic plans that meet hospital and whole of government priorities and position the hospital to meet future challenges.
• Financial management: develop, interpret, monitor and analyse trend data in organisational financial and establishment reports; forecast, monitor and manage revenue and expenditure; develop strategic procurement plans; ensure the organisation has the health infrastructure to meet demand in growth areas.

This role has accountability for managing a $321M budget.

• This role reports to the Executive Director, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.
• This role supervises 1,255 FTE.
• The Executive Director, Surgical and Perioperative Services is a member of the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Executive Leadership Team.
• Finance Delegations as per band 5 and HR Delegations as per band 6.
• Provides single point of accountability for executive leadership of Surgery and Perioperative Services within RBWH.

Fixed-term temporary full time for 3 years with possibility of extension for an additional 2 years.

• Where a substantive Metro North position is not held, the successful applicant may negotiate to be appointed to an underlying permanent clinical role.
• Salary Classification: SMO: L18 to L24 and L25 to L27
  • $424,290 - $447,015 Per annum (L25-L27) plus $33,660 per annum Clinical Managers Allowance (CM7) (Full time equivalent) (SMO)
  • $357,998 - $408,969 Per annum (L18-L24) plus $33,660 per annum Clinical Managers Allowance (CM7) (Full time equivalent) (SMO)

Executive Contract

• Salary Classification: HES2 (High)
  • $256 051 - $276 661 Per annum

Location: Brisbane, QLD

• This position may be required to work throughout Metro North HHS as/where required.
• This position may be provided the opportunity to work with other HHSs as/where required.

Employment Terms

• This role will be required to participate in an on-call roster.
• The successful applicant may request, for consideration by the delegate, to undertake clinical duties as part of this role. Clinical duties would be subject to an approved role description within the relevant specialty area and the mandatory requirements of that role description

Employment Conditions

Disclosure of Serious Disciplinary History:

Under the Public Sector Act 2022, applicants are required to disclose any previous serious disciplinary action taken against them.

It is a condition of employment for this role for the employee to be, and remain, vaccinated against the following vaccine preventable diseases during their employment (Health Employment Directive No. 01/16):

• Measles, mumps, rubella (MMR)
• Varicella (chicken pox)
• Pertussis (whooping cough)
• Hepatitis B
• Tuberculosis

Role Description - SMO: L18 to L24 and L25 to L27

Role Description - HES2 (High)

Metro North Executive Organisational Chart

Metro North Hospital and Health Service Strategic Planning Framework

Strategic Plan 2024 - 2028

The closing date for applications is Sunday, 4 Janaury 2026.

The reference number to include in your application is H25_5327

Note: Please use the online HardyGroup platform to submit your application. It will not be accepted via email.

If you require assistance in submitting your application online, please get in touch with Executive Search Coordinator, Sarah Prebble: sprebble@hardygroupintl.com | +61 (0) 430 219 787

Your application must include:

1. Cover letter addressed to the Principal Consultant;

2. A written response addressing the key selection criteria and

3. An up to date copy of your Curriculum Vitae

It Is standard practice for HardyGroup to acknowledge receipt of your application no later than the next business day. We request that if you do not receive the acknowledgement, you contact the search coordinator listed above as soon as possible after the 24-hour business period and arrange to resend your application if necessary.

For a confidential discussion, please contact:

Ms Sarah Buckler PSM
​​HG Queensland State Manager

M. +61 (0)429 486 740

E. sbuckler@hardygroupintl.com