Shaun McCarthy OBE has been appointed the new chair of the IEMA Professional Standards Committee.
IEMA said McCarthy, director of consultancy Action Sustainability, would bring experience, expertise, connections and rigour to the panel, which is responsible for developing and upholding membership standards.
He brings more than 20 years’ senior management experience with large companies and 11 years’ experience as an independent adviser to a variety of corporations and governments around the world.
McCarthy replaces Gillian Gibson, who has served the maximum two terms. He is an experienced chair, currently heading the Supply Chain School and was formerly on the Commission for a Sustainable London 2012. He is also a Full member of IEMA and was awarded an OBE in 2013 for services to sustainability and the London Olympics.
McCarthy said he was attracted to the position after following closely IEMA’s development over the past three years. ‘I’ve been extremely interested in and impressed by what IEMA has been doing in recent years, and I really identify with its mission to transform the world to sustainability,’ he said. ‘This is something the world needs, and to do that we need some strong quality controls in place. I think that’s where the IEMA Professional Standards Committee can support the profession towards some exciting things.’
After his work on London 2012, which required extensive stakeholder engagement and iron-clad enforcement of policies, McCarthy believes he can bring ‘real rigour’ to the work of the committee. ‘Sustainability as a concept and as a profession is only credible when it is evidence-based and held to account, and I am pleased to be able to work with a committee that approaches the profession with this ethos at its heart,’ he said.
When asked about the significant challenges he sees for the profession during his tenure, McCarthy said: ‘The profession is ready to grow up. It’s a very young area compared with some of the more traditional, established professions like legal, accounting and engineering. With that comes both challenges and chances to forge new territory. Sustainability is not a finite science in the way, say, accountancy is, which really reinforces the case for rigorous professional standards as new issues and challenges arise. We have some work to do there but it’s an exciting area.’
IEMA chief executive Tim Balcon said: ‘I would like to officially welcome McCarthy to the committee and, by extension, to the IEMA board. He brings an impressive volume of experience to the committee and we are extremely lucky that we will benefit from his expertise, now and in the long term. At the same time, I would like to thank Gillian Gibson for her excellent leadership during an extremely intensive period when we fundamentally reviewed our standards. She has left the committee in a very strong position, and I look forward to seeing the new group come together.’
The committee has recently been repurposed and now has five members – two who have previously served and three new ones. Panel members bring extensive experience of professional standards and personal development to ensure IEMA’s standards are robust, upheld and future-fit, said the institute.
