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Reprieved HIE board set to select new chief executive

Interviews to select a permanent successor for Alex Paterson as chief executive of HIE will take place in June.
Interviews to select a permanent successor for Alex Paterson as chief executive of HIE will take place in June.

A new head of Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) will be chosen next month, a year after the last permanent chief executive’s departure was announced.

The development agency, which has been at the centre of a political battle over the future of its local board, is currently selecting a shortlist for the £108,181-£118,480-a-year job ahead of interviews in Inverness in June.

A spokesman for the Scottish Government-funded organisation said HIE was “very pleased with the number and quality of applications.”

It was announced last June that former chief executive Alex Paterson was leaving after six years in the role to take up a similar position at new public body Historic Environment Scotland.  The agency’s director of business and sector development Charlotte Wright has been acting chief executive since Mr Paterson left in August.

In the autumn a furious political row broke out after Deputy First Minister John Swinney suggested HIE’s local board would be scrapped and replaced by an “overarching” Scotland-wide committee.  The proposal followed an “end-to-end” review of Scotland’s enterprise and skills services announced by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon earlier in the year.

Critics of the plan claimed it represented “blatant centralisation” of the economic and community development activities carried out by HIE and its predecessor the Highlands and Islands Development Board (HIDB) for more than 50 years.

But a rethink saw the 12-strong HIE board reprieved in March, with Economy Secretary Keith Brown announcing it would retain its powers, despite plans to press ahead with the new national oversight panel.

The search for the agency’s new chief executive was launched shortly after Mr Brown’s announcement, with HIE enlisting the help of Glasgow-based executive recruitment agency Aspen People.

A short video featuring HIE chairman Lorne Crerar and members of staff explaining the agency’s activities and what it is like to work there was published online as part of efforts to attract applicants.  According to the job advertisement, the post will be based in Inverness or “alternative HIE office location in the Highlands and Islands (to be agreed).”

The HIE spokesman said shortlisted candidates would be interviewed by the HIE board and representatives of the Scottish Government.

He added:  “We are very pleased with the level of interest in the post and the number and quality of applications.

“Shortlisting is currently underway in preparation for interviews being carried out in June.”