CEO announces retirement

Harness Racing New South Wales chief executive officer John Dumesny has today (Aug. 3) announced his retirement.

Dumesny will step down from the role on June 30, 2023.

The Chairman of HRNSW, Ken Brown, issued a letter to the industry that states:

The Board of HRNSW wishes to advise that its Chief Executive Officer,

John Dumesny, has informed the Board of his intention to retire from the position effective from 30th June 2023.

The process to find Mr Dumesny’s replacement has commenced with relevant documents issued to a number of recruitment firms that were requested to lodge tenders by Friday 15 July. The firms were asked to provide an outline of their services, their selection techniques and strategies and past experience in the appointment of similar level positions in both the private and not-for-profit sectors.

Watermark Search International (“Watermark”) was subsequently appointed by the Board to undertake the search.

Mr Peter Blair, a Partner of Watermark, will meet with HRNSW and commence the process this week. Mr Blair is expected to report back to the Board over the next two to three weeks with his initial findings and thereafter on a more regular basis until all recruitment actions are finalised.

We expect a number of industry participants will approach the firm or be contacted by Mr Blair as will a number of non-harness candidates. Mr Blair will be responsible for screening all candidates and in turn providing a recommended short list of candidates for interview.

The Board believes that the entire selection process will take between six and ten weeks with the successful candidate to commence with HRNSW in early 2023.

by Amanda Rando, for Harnesslink