The Archdiocese of Sydney has welcomed its new Director of Finance Peter Foley, who has described his appointment as the next stepping stone in a long journey in the service of his faith.
Following a career spanning more than 25 years as Chief Financial Officer and General Manager of Finance across a diverse range of large organisations comprising thousands of employees, and multi-million-dollar revenues, Mr Foley will be joining the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney with a wealth of financial experience and business acumen.
“I’ve always been close to my faith and wanted my next career step to be a truer reflection of my beliefs and purpose I find important to me,” Mr Foley said.
Having risen to senior positions in the corporate world, Mr Foley has remained steadfast in his service to the Catholic Church in Sydney, first holding several positions including president and treasurer of the Waverley College Old Boys Union for more than 20 years, and more recently as a council member for Edmund Rice Community Services.
“When I first left Waverley College, I thought how can I give back, how can I help others? I have always had a thread in me that wanted to give back and help other people, so I see this as another extension of that mindset and a continuation of that journey.”
Archdiocese of Sydney Executive Director Michael Digges said that following the retirement of former Director of Finance, Michael Moore, who provided more than 23 years of dedicated service to the Archdiocese, a careful and extensive recruitment process was undertaken over many months to ensure the right person for such a significant responsibility was found.
“The Catholic Church is the largest non-government provider of health, education, and social services in Australia. Peter will have an important role in supporting these agencies and services, within and beyond the Archdiocese.”
“A quarter of the way into this new century, a servant with Peter’s depth of knowledge and experience will bring immense value to the Archdiocese and significantly contribute to continuing the mission set out by Christ more than two-thousand years ago,” Mr Digges said.
The Executive Director added the demands of this role of overseeing the financial aspects of the Archdiocese’s mission, meant they had to find someone who not only possessed the necessary skills, knowledge, and experience, but who is an exemplar of resilience, dedication to duty, and committed to responsible financial stewardship.
“Peter Foley brings a fresh perspective and deep financial experience combined with love of our Catholic faith and commitment to parish life, all of which no doubt will help make him successful in this role and in continuing to improve this function of the Archdiocese.” Mr Digges said.
Peter Foley is a parishioner of Mary Immaculate parish Waverley and is looking forward to joining the Archdiocese in service of his faith.
“I feel very much at home and connected with the people here, naturally because of my faith, and also because I look forward to contributing directly to the mission of the church,” Mr Foley said.
Mr Foley will officially commence in his new role at the Archdiocese next week.