Frank Gannon to quit Science Foundation Ireland for Australia

Frank Gannon, the new Director and CEO of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research

QIMR Council Chair John Hay said Gannon had been selected following an extensive national and international search. “Professor Gannon was the ideal candidate for the role. He has significant experience in managing science, widespread ties with the international scientific community and a passion for scientific excellence,” Hay said.

“Professor Gannon’s appointment comes at a particularly important juncture in QIMR’s history. The Institute is poised for a period of exponential growth and research achievements when our new 13 floor research facility, the Smart State Medical Research Centre, at Herston is completed in early 2012.”

Gannon said he was very pleased to have the opportunity to take over the leadership of QIMR at this time. “Growth brings with it new opportunities, but also the need to adhere to the qualities of research for which QIMR is renowned. The decision to leave Ireland was difficult, but the challenge of contributing to increasing the scientific reputation of Brisbane worldwide is something that I look forward to eagerly,” he said.

Before joining the SFI in 2007, Gannon was Executive Director of the European Molecular Biology Organisation and Senior Scientist at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, in Heidelberg, Germany.