Engineering firm Agito Group has appointed Emma Townsend as its new CEO; this follows Townsend’s appointment as general manager in April 2018.
Agito designs, manufactures, and maintains systems for the food and beverage; logistics; reusable packaging; and industrial sectors. The company was founded in 1979 and has more than 50 staff in two manufacturing locations in Western Australia and New South Wales.
Agito director and former CEO Michael Musca acknowledged that to continue to grow sustainably, the board needed to enact change within the company and ensure the best management resource and structure was in place.
Musca said Townsend would assume day-to-day management of the company. Meanwhile Musca, as director, is to focus on business development and strategy, with an emphasis on research and development.
“With Emma as CEO, I believe Agito Group has a significant advantage in the marketplace,” Musca said.
“We are on a positive growth trajectory and are well-positioned to continue building on the current momentum. I am excited and pleased that Emma will lead our company, and am happy to be working with her.”
Townsend has more than 15 years’ experience in the packaging and processing sectors and has held senior management roles for more than 10 years. As general manager at Fibre King, she helped develop offshore markets including South East Asia and North America.
She has been involved in the fresh produce industry and reusable packaging space. She was director with the Produce Marketing Association Australia New Zealand (PMAANZ) from 2013 to 2018. Townsend’s experience in the reusable packaging sector ranges from the development and deployment of closed-loop supply chains to the design and implementation of systems to automate the handling of reusable packaging formats – primarily plastic crates.
She has an Executive MBA with distinction from RMIT and is completing her Juris Doctorate degree at the same institution.
Musca said corporatising and appointing Townsend as CEO is the first stage in building a framework that will support anticipated growth.
“This decision has not been difficult, given the dedication and work philosophy that Emma has brought to Agito, and it is this attitude that resonates throughout the company,” Musca said.
