Recruiting a Chief Human Resources Officer for the Department of Housing and Public Works

Gerard Kerr

About The Department of Housing and Public Works


The Department of Housing and Public Works required a Chief Human Resources Officer capable of operating across a large and complex Queensland Government environment.


The role sat within the Department's People and Culture function and required an executive capable of delivering strategic workforce leadership while influencing outcomes across a substantial public sector portfolio.


The position extended beyond traditional HR leadership. The successful candidate needed expertise across workforce strategy, organisational transformation, industrial relations, governance, executive influence, workplace health and safety, and public sector accountability.

Recruiting a Chief Human Resources Officer for the Department of Housing and Public Works Queensland Government
The Hiring Requirement

The Department sought an executive leader who could:

  • Lead enterprise-wide workforce strategy
  • Influence executive stakeholders across a large government organisation
  • Deliver organisational transformation initiatives
  • Navigate industrial relations complexities
  • Support governance and public sector accountability
  • Drive people and culture outcomes at executive level



The successful candidate required a combination of technical HR expertise, strategic leadership capability and high-level executive influence.


Role We Hired

Chief Human Resources Officer (SES3L)

Channels We Used

Executive Search and Targeted Advertising

The Challenge

Many of the strongest Chief Human Resources Officer candidates were already employed in senior leadership positions and were not actively seeking opportunities.


The challenge was identifying a candidate who could combine:

  • Deep human resources expertise
  • Executive leadership capability
  • Strategic workforce planning experience
  • Government sector understanding
  • Enterprise-wide influence


Kingston Human Capital needed to access both active and passive markets to ensure the department could evaluate the strongest possible field of candidates.


Our Objective

Kingston Human Capital was engaged to secure a high-performing executive capable of leading workforce strategy across a complex Queensland Government department.


The goal was not simply to fill a vacancy but to build a diverse, high-calibre leadership field that would provide the panel with confidence in the final appointment decision.


The recruitment process was designed to maximise market reach while maintaining integrity, merit and governance throughout every stage.


Our Strategy

Accessing Both Active and Passive Talent Markets

Kingston Human Capital adopted a dual-market recruitment strategy combining:

  • Targeted advertising to attract active candidates
  • Executive search to engage passive talent
  • Direct market approaches
  • Professional networks
  • Executive referral pathways



This approach ensured the department could assess a significantly broader field than advertising alone would generate. [Chief Huma...Case Study | Word]

Expanding Candidate Reach Through Executive Search


Alongside the advertising campaign, Kingston Human Capital identified 21 executive search candidates.


These candidates represented approximately 43% of the expanded candidate pool and significantly increased market reach beyond actively applying candidates.



The strongest executive talent was identified through proactive market engagement, executive search and professional networks.

Building a Diverse Talent Pool


The search produced a highly diverse candidate field:

  • 67% women
  • 32% men
  • 1% non-binary candidates


The campaign attracted candidates from:

  • Government and public sector
  • Consultancy
  • Academia
  • Not-for-profit organisations
  • Transportation and infrastructure sectors


The search also reached candidates across multiple Australian states and international markets.

Structured Assessment and Merit-Based Evaluation


Candidates progressed through a rigorous assessment framework including:


Written Application and Resume Review

Assessment was conducted against:

  • Executive leadership capability
  • Workforce strategy expertise
  • Organisational change leadership
  • Industrial relations knowledge
  • Governance capability
  • Stakeholder management experience


Structured Executive Interviews

Candidates were assessed consistently against the executive capabilities required for the role.


Written Executive Exercise

A practical assessment focused on:

  • Strategic thinking
  • Executive judgement
  • Executive influence
  • Communication with senior leadership audiences


Applications Received

Queensland-Based Candidates



Women in Candidate Pool


Executive Search Candidates

Applicant Pool Generated Through Direct Search

From Interviews to First Selection Report

49

67%

89%

21

43%

2 Days

Maintaining momentum without compromising rigour

A defining characteristic of the campaign was the speed of delivery while maintaining public sector governance standards.


Key milestones included:

  • Longlist delivered just 2 days after advertising closed
  • Panel interviews completed on schedule
  • First Selection Report delivered within 2 days of interviews
  • Selection documentation submitted for delegate approval shortly after final assessment



This approach ensured recruitment momentum was maintained without sacrificing process integrity or assessment quality.


Process integrity and governance

Speed was supported by robust governance controls.


The recruitment process included:

  • Conflict of Interest Declarations for all panel members
  • Management of late applications through approved governance processes
  • Structured assessment tools
  • Comprehensive selection documentation
  • Referee information and candidate evidence
  • Selection reports and probity material



The result was a transparent, merit-based and defensible executive recruitment process.


What the client valued most?

The panel highlighted both the quality and speed of Kingston Human Capital’s work.


Feedback included:


“Very comprehensive, no changes from me.”


and


“Thanks for getting this back to us so quickly.”


The delivery of a comprehensive Selection Report within two days of interviews demonstrated KHC's ability to combine executive search, assessment rigour and responsive client service.

Impact Delivered

✅ Expanded access to both active and passive executive talent

✅ Generated a diverse and high-quality leadership field

✅ Delivered 21 executive search candidates alongside the advertised campaign

✅ Maintained rigorous governance and assessment standards

✅ Delivered a complete Selection Report within 2 days of interviews

✅ Reduced administrative burden for the recruitment panel

✅ Supported an evidence-based and defensible executive recruitment process

Ready to Appoint Your Next Executive Leader?

Gerard Kerr, Co Founder and General Manager of Search and Selection at Kingston Human Capital, Queensland Government Executive Recruitment Services

Meet Gerard Kerr

Gerard Kerr is Co-Founder and General Manager of Search and Selection at Kingston Human Capital.


With more than 20 years’ experience in recruitment, Gerard has deep networks and extensive expertise managing complex search and selection projects across a range of sectors including local state and federal government, statutory authorities, government-owned corporations and ASX-listed companies.

We work as an agile team across retained recruitment projects, ensuring we can commit the time and effort of our entire search team. This allows us to reach further into the market, which means we get to evaluate more candidates and get high-quality results.

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