I will be stepping down as Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in July 2016 to take up the position of Chancellor of the University of Queensland.
I turn sixty in March next year and will have completed thirty eight years in the public service. I now wish to turn my attention to the next phase of my career which I would like to build across the university, corporate and community sectors. It had always been my intention to return to Brisbane after DFAT.
The timing of this decision has been driven by the wish of the University of Queensland, which is keeping the Chancellor position open for six months, to make an announcement about my appointment. It still leaves me with seven months in the Secretary's job to take forward our big policy and management agendas.
It is never easy to leave a career which has been so much more than a job. But I know that the time is right. There will be plenty of time for reflection and farewells and in the meantime there is much that still needs to be done.