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Profile: Aegeus

This month we sat down with Managing Director of Aegeus Executive Search, Tony Grierson, to see how they work with high potential candidates across Board, senior executive, artistic and academic roles across Education, Arts and Culture, Social Enterprise, Public Sector, and Sports, Leisure and Tourism.

Hi Tony. In Greek mythology Aegeus was the father of Theseus – a renowned Athenian King and a builder and reformer of the social, political and cultural institutions in the city.  In the same way you are placing some extraordinary people in the top positions in the country. Tell use about the kinds of positions you are approached to conduct searches for. Our role is much like that of Aegeus, we are the ones who identify and recruit leading candidates with high potential and exceptional cultural fit into key companies and positions. These talented people are the ones who then go onto make a significant impact on the organisation they join, the sector it operates in and, more broadly, in our society. Our firm specialises in the social, political and cultural sectors in Australia and also internationally so we work with arts companies, festivals, arts centres and precincts, government agencies, non-profits and charities, and also sports, leisure and tourism organisations.

Of course, we’ve had some very impressive and well known candidates coming into our offices at Paramount.  Can you reveal any high profile positions or people you have played professional match-maker for? Over the years we have worked with many arts companies and organisations around the country such as Sydney Festival, Carriageworks, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Barangaroo, Opera Queensland, Melbourne Theatre Company, Campbelltown Arts Centre, Perth Festival, Powerhouse Museum, Queensland Ballet and National Arts School amongst others. Of course it would be breaking the seals of confidentiality to who has been in the office (!), however people such as Lisa Havilah, Wesley Enoch, Li Cunxin, James Morrison, Katie Noonan or Circus Oz’s Rob Tannion do know us well!

I remember first showing you our beautiful Paramount Offices before we were even open, and you revealed that you actually used to work in this very spot quite some years ago.  What were you doing then and how did this magnificent building lure you back?  Paramount House has quite a long history with the creative and film sectors, as does this neighbourhood with Twentieth Century Fox next door and the Hollywood Hotel. In one of my previous careers I worked here with Beyond Television who occupied the whole building. When I saw that it now had a new life as a shared working space with an extraordinary fitout that references the building’s past but with an understated modern approach I thought it was the perfect place to base our new firm out of.

You are the father to Harry and Magda, our adorable office Frenchies – what’s the best part about having dogs in the office? Having spent too much time in corporate firms in big city office buildings, I wanted our new firm to be in a space that was welcoming and where staff, visitors and clients felt at home.  Being able to have Harry and Mags in the office for a few days each week was a key requirement, and one which has worked out so well here. They greet visitors in the waiting area, mooch for treats in the kitchen and wander around to all the offices to say hello. Harry likes to stay a minute for a pat, farts and then leaves which causes a lot of yelling and opening of windows!

You work with Circus Oz (in executive placement, not the human canon!), and you’ve very kindly offered TOS clients 20 free tickets to Circus Oz’s new show, Model Citizens, as part of the Sydney Festival, plus a chance to have pre-show drinks with the new Artistic Director Rob Tannion.  What has Rob, with his amazing and unorthodox CV, brought to Circus Oz?   Rob brings a huge amount of international experience across dance, theatre, film, TV and circus to Circus Oz. You are right about his unorthodox CV! Rob is originally a Brisbane boy who followed his dreams and became a performer with the celebrated and Emmy award winning physical theatre company DV8 in the UK, a choreographer of TV commercials for Bacardí, Fosters and  Baileys, and then as an actor in Resident Evil and Stig of the Dump before choreographing major productions including Billy Elliot, Lord of the Rings and Spiral in China, where he was also acrobatic and fight director. Prior to coming back to Australia for Circus Oz Rob concentrated his efforts on circus arts, creating five original shows for the Teatro Circo Price in Madrid and directing productions across Europe, South and Central America and Australia. Model Citizens is Rob’s first show for Circus Oz and it is an entirely new look and feel for the company.  It has had wonderful reviews in Melbourne and I am sure it will be one of the hits of the Sydney Festival in January.   Learn more about Aegeus Executive Search here, and find more about the complimentary Circus Oz tickets Tony has kindly offered TOS clients here.

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