EMM CEO Announcement

EMM’s Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Luke Stewart, has announced he will step down from the role he has held since 2014 at the end of June – he will remain at the company as an Executive Director. Luke will hand over to the successor, Liz Webb, who will take over from 1 July.

Luke is a founding Director of EMM which commenced operations in 2008 in Sydney.   Throughout his tenure as CEO the company has achieved successful and sustainable growth evidenced through the organic expansion of the team from ~30 to over 220 people; a national office and project delivery footprint; sector and technical diversification; internationally accredited systems and strong corporate governance.   

Luke has driven a culture of trust and empowerment where no one is bigger than the team. He set the foundation for establishing the company’s ‘creating opportunities’ purpose, a guiding principle which underpins decisions linked to clients, the community and the EMM team. 

Reflecting on his decision Luke commented,

“Whilst it has been a very difficult decision for me to make, I know that the timing is right and it is absolutely aligned with our purpose of creating opportunities.  As the company prepares to launch the new three-year strategy, the opportunity for a new leader to deliver and implement our latest vision is ideal. I am very privileged and humbled to have led such a great team, through a period of successful technical, geographic and sector expansion.” 

EMM’s Chairman Gary Flowers praised Luke’s leadership and unwavering values-led focus. “On behalf of the Board I would like to thank Luke for his incredible contribution to the company.  As a leader, Luke has helped take us through a period of incredible growth and change whilst providing an environment for our team to thrive professionally and personally. EMM’s annual staff turnover rate remains low at 5%, a reflection of the company’s strategy, capabilities, and engrained culture”.

Luke will continue as a Director and Board member, Shareholder and Executive with a primary focus on giving back through key major internal and external projects and the EMM Community Hub. He is excited to power into the Community Hub pillars of altruism, health and wellbeing, reconciliation, diversity and sustainability with the pillar teams for the benefit of our clients, community and EMM people.

Underpinned by the company’s approach of creating opportunities for leadership, professional and personal growth, the Board is pleased to announce the appointment of Director Liz Webb to the role of CEO and Managing Director from July 1, 2021. Liz was the successful candidate from within a pool of potential leaders within EMM.

Joining EMM in 2013 and a Director since 2016, Liz has amassed almost 30 years’ experience across consulting science, engineering and the public sector locally and internationally.  A highly respected leader, she has played a pivotal role in the development and execution of previous EMM company strategies as a member of the senior executive team.  Liz has been instrumental in creating and building a highly successful water and land Division that has evolved from a core groundwater team in NSW to a national groundwater, surface water, contaminated land and rehabilitation team. A key highlight was the collaborative lead that the Division played in the environmental approval lead groundwater and surface water assessment for Snowy2.0.

Liz is a hydrogeologist with a Masters in Engineering and a Degree in Science. She is an active member of several national and NSW panels and steering committees and contributes to key decisions on water related topics.

Commenting on her appointment, Liz highlighted:

“I am both honoured and excited to be appointed as the CEO and Managing Director of EMM, to work alongside our extended leadership team and Board and have the opportunity to lead such an amazing team of talented and value driven people.  Luke Stewart’s inspiring leadership has provided a solid platform on which to evolve our sustainable and visionary company into the future. I am focused on deepening our great culture via ongoing authentic leadership and providing a genuine and safe framework for our people to be motivated and inspired to be their best self. The focus on creating opportunities for our people creates an environment where our people belong and own, and one that our clients want to be involved with. Continuing to build relationship and work with our clients in this role is something I am really looking forward to also”.

Chairman Gary Flowers having worked alongside Liz on the board for several years, also welcomed Liz to the role noting her vision, expertise and leadership will enable the company to deliver an exciting new phase in the company’s evolution.