Louise Adams appointed CEO of Aurecon from July 2025

Louise Adams has been appointed as the new Group Chief Executive Officer of Aurecon, succeeding William (Bill) Cox on 1 July 2025.

Louise Adams, currently serving as the Chief Operating Officer at Aurecon, will take over the role from Bill Cox, whose term has witnessed the company achieve significant growth dealing with challenges such as energy security, clean water, urbanisation, and climate change.

Aurecon Chair Giam Swiegers commented on Adams' appointment, noting her exceptional ability to foster an engaged corporate culture and deliver strong financial results as instrumental to Aurecon's future progress. "Louise is a globally recognised business leader, with decades of experience across Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the Middle East," Swiegers stated.

Speaking about her new role, Swiegers said, "She has honed razor-sharp insights and strong business acumen over the last four years delivering exceptional results as the group's current Chief Operating Officer. This combined with Louise's deep expertise in Asia will continue to enhance our people, trade and investment links across Asia Pacific, supporting our vision of a connected and networked Aurecon."

Adams will be the first female CEO of Aurecon and will lead a workforce of approximately 7,500 across 31 locations in Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Macau, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and Greater China.

The Asia Pacific region remains a significant area of focus for Aurecon, with Adams highlighting its rapid growth, driven by economic and technological advancements. "In today's world, engineering is not just a means to an end – it's a force for good. The skills and capabilities that we, as engineers, uniquely bring to the table are key to providing safe and sustainable outcomes for society," she said.

Adams added that Aurecon has already started diversifying its service offerings to meet the pressing needs of its clients, such as addressing climate change, transitioning to renewable energy, and investing in essential technologies. "Immense change is occurring across Asia Pacific and in response Aurecon has diversified our service offerings to address our clients' most pressing challenges including combating climate change, transitioning to renewable energy and investing in the right technologies. I look forward to using this new role to continue elevating our important work."

Having joined Aurecon in 2000 as one of two female engineering graduates from the University of South Australia, Adams has been an advocate for equality in STEM fields. She became the first female Executive Director on Aurecon's Global Board and is a global spokesperson for women in leadership through the Chief Executive Women programme.

Swiegers expressed the Board's appreciation for Cox's contributions, noting his role in achieving record profits and geographical expansion for Aurecon. "Under Bill's leadership, Aurecon achieved record profits and expanded its geographical footprint with Aurecon becoming one of Asia Pacific's largest employee-owned engineering and advisory companies," Swiegers said.

After stepping down, Cox will continue to work with Adams over the upcoming months and plans to further his involvement in the engineering sector through various directorships and other roles.