Josie FitzGerald is Aurecon’s NZ Leader for Water, Environment and Land and one of our newly appointed ACE New Zealand Board members. We’re delighted to welcome Josie to the ACE Board and asked her about her career and what she brings to the role.
Tell us about your career
I’m an infrastructure and consulting executive with more than 30 years’ experience helping shape communities, infrastructure and environmental outcomes across Aotearoa.
As leader of Aurecon’s water, environment and land business in New Zealand, I lead a multidisciplinary team of more than 170 professionals delivering projects across water, transport, land development, environment, defence, manufacturing and civic infrastructure.
My career has spanned technical, market and executive leadership roles, working alongside central and local government, iwi, private sector clients and communities to solve complex challenges and deliver lasting outcomes.
I’m a Chartered Member of the Institute of Directors, and a director of the Urban Development Institute of New Zealand. Previous governance roles include Chair of The Diversity Agenda Steering Committee and Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Association.
I’m passionate about the future of our consulting and engineering sector and the role it plays in improving the wellbeing of New Zealanders. I bring a strong combination of governance, commercial, infrastructure and people leadership experience, together with a deep commitment to diversity, innovation and sustainable growth.
What strengths do you bring to the ACE Board?
I bring a combination of governance experience, commercial leadership, industry influence and future-focused thinking.
Throughout my career I’ve led multidisciplinary consulting teams through periods of significant change, including market disruption, digital transformation and evolving client expectations. I understand the opportunities and challenges facing consulting engineering businesses of all sizes and the importance of balancing member value, sector leadership and commercial sustainability.
I bring strong governance capability through my current and previous board leadership roles. My governance approach combines strategic oversight, risk management, stakeholder engagement and a strong focus on culture and people. I’ve been involved in the development of board strategies, advocacy with stakeholders and ministers, and supported management teams to prioritise and achieve their goals.
In my executive roles, I bring relationships from across clients, government agencies, iwi and communities.
Finally, I’m passionate about helping our profession remain relevant, trusted and influential in a rapidly changing world. I bring energy, curiosity, knowledge of digital disruption and the impact on our sector, and a commitment to ensuring ACE continues as a strong voice for the consulting and engineering sector.
What’s your strategic vision for ACE New Zealand?
My vision is for ACE to be the leading voice shaping the future of consulting and engineering in Aotearoa.
Our sector is facing unprecedented change. Artificial intelligence, automation, digital delivery, climate adaptation, changing client expectations, workforce shortages and new delivery models are reshaping how value is created. These changes present enormous opportunities, but only if we are prepared to adapt and lead.
ACE has an important role in helping member organisations navigate this transition. This includes supporting capability development, sharing emerging insights, fostering innovation and advocating for policies that enable our sector to thrive.
I believe ACE should also continue strengthening its influence and advocacy with government, clients and industry partners, ensuring consulting engineering is recognised as a critical contributor to New Zealand’s economic, environmental and social wellbeing.
At the same time, we must invest in the next generation of leaders, create pathways for diverse talent, and ensure our profession remains attractive, inclusive and future-ready.
And finally, we recognise the importance of Te Tiriti o Waitangi providing an enduring framework for partnership, stewardship and creating better outcomes for Aotearoa.
I believe our success will be measured by the strength, relevance and impact of our industry as a whole.
Tell us something interesting about yourself
A fun fact about me – I have a deep fascination with maps. I can spend an inordinate amount of time getting lost in them, looking at how cities are laid out, how places have been shaped over time, and why places work (or don’t). This probably explains how I ended up with a surveying degree.