26 February 2014
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From the circumstances of Andy Giddy’s departure and the tone of this statement, something is obviously seriously amiss at NMIT. Speculation is that NMIT has gone from a relatively comfortable surplus in 2012 (about $6 million) to a burgeoning deficit in 2013. NMIT budgeted for a deficit of $13 million for 2013, but, in the event, it may have been more than double that. This is speculation: we have no independent, verifiable information concerning NMIT’s current financial position.
Nevertheless, it is starting to seem something like that may be the case. NMIT has a pretty strong balance sheet and ought to be able to absorb this shock result, perhaps with some short term financial support from the Victorian government.
But the question is why and how did it come as a shock?
In April 2013 the Victorian government sacked the then board of NMIT and replaced it with its own appointees on the basis that its appointed board would have greater “commercial acumen”.
NTEU national assistant secretary Matt McGowan put it to The Scan:
You’d have to ask why the government appointed board, knowing the financial position, would let the Institute sign up to the Prahran campus lease with uncertain student numbers.
The answer would seem to be the board didn’t actually know the financial situation, which seems a significant failure in corporate governance. This is particularly so given that the board signed off on the Melbourne Polytechnic initiative – an initiative which The Scan has strongly supported – after the conduct of “due diligence” processes. Apparently, these processes did not consider NMIT’s own capacity to sustain the initiative.
We hope it can and that the board doesn’t panic (although we appreciate why it might – “fiduciary responsibility” etc).
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Dr Andrew Giddy, CEO of Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE, has stepped down by mutual agreement with the Board to take up a senior academic post elsewhere.
Announcing the departure, Chairman of the Board of the Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE, John Gibbins said, “Dr Andy Giddy has stepped down as the CEO of NMIT. We are grateful for the input of Dr Giddy to NMIT over the past two years in the role of CEO and the exceptional academic skills he brought to the organisation.”
“Dr Giddy’s departure provides NMIT the opportunity to review operations of the Institute and to determine our next steps. We will put a temporary CEO in place while recruiting the right person to take on the permanent role of CEO.”
Dr Giddy took up the position as CEO in 2012. Dr Giddy has been on the NMIT board since 2006, and has qualifications in business from the London Business School, bioethics from the University of Technology, Sydney, and veterinary science from the University of Melbourne.
Mr Gibbins and the board of NMIT will soon announce the temporary CEO as it embarks on a recruitment process to fill the ongoing position.
SEE
NMIT appoints an “interim” CEO
7 March 2014
NMIT has appointed Ron Gauci, the former CEO of National Rugby League Club, the Melbourne Storm, as its “interim” CEO.
Losses claimed, as NMIT CEO walks
The Australian | 27 February 2014
Victoria’s Labor opposition says the Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE has suffered significant financial losses, amid fallout from the news of chief executive Andy Giddy’s sudden resignation. Dr Giddy’s departure and the suggestions of financial losses cast doubt over NMIT’s strategy to transform itself into a polytechnic by delivering university courses in partnership with La Trobe University. They also raise doubts over whether NMIT will be able to realise its ambition to buy Swinburne University’s Prahran campus, which it has taken over this year under a lease deal.
