Institutional Leadershipand Governance

Line leadership, portfolio responsibility and governance roles in three universities since 2006

LeadershipAll sections

Professor Ghaffarian’s leadership record is cumulative rather than episodic. Each appointment added a layer of accountability that the next one depended on: course and programme leadership in Malaysia, where he led accreditation work with the Malaysian Qualifications Agency; programme direction at AUT, where he carried the Architectural Engineering major through its first Engineering New Zealand accreditation; departmental headship of Built Environment Engineering from 2020, which added staffing, budget and a multi degree portfolio; and, from January 2026, headship of the School of Future Environments, which places those responsibilities within the University’s senior academic governance.

Leadership Appointments

2026 to present
Current

Head of School, School of Future Environments (Huri te Ao)

Head of School; member of the Faculty Executive Committee

Leads a School of more than 100 academic and professional staff with full responsibility for a multi-million dollar annual operating budget, organised as the departments of Architecture and Built Environment Engineering and the School office. Leads the realignment of the School’s academic portfolio to architecture and built environment engineering following the discontinuation of the Creative Technology programmes (BCT, MCT and PGCertCT), including the redevelopment of the Creative Technology minor for the Architecture department.

2020 to 2026

Head of Department, Built Environment Engineering

Head of Department

Led the department that delivers AUT’s architectural and construction engineering, construction management and engineering project management degrees. Led the department’s Engineering New Zealand accreditation working group (2021), chaired the external examination of its undergraduate courses (2021), and was head of the host department for IGLC32 (2024), the first International Group for Lean Construction conference held in New Zealand.

2018 to 2020

Programme Director, BE (Hons) Architectural Engineering

Programme Director; Industry Engagement Coordinator, Architectural and Construction Engineering

Directed the Architectural Engineering major through its first Engineering New Zealand accreditation and led the programme’s accreditation working group (2018). Engineering New Zealand lists Architectural Engineering and Construction Engineering at AUT as accredited from 2018, with the next review in 2028; the accreditation is recognised internationally under the Washington Accord.

2011 to 2014

Academic Principal Senior Lecturer and R&D Coordinator

Faculty of Architecture and Built Environment

Coordinated research and development for the Faculty, led its accreditation working group with the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (2013), developed five programmes from foundation to master’s level, and moderated LUCT programmes and the Curtin University (Australia) programme delivered at LUCT.

InstitutionLimkokwing University of Creative Technology (LUCT), Malaysia

Quality bodyMalaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA)

2006 to 2011

Researcher and Lecturer

Universiti Putra Malaysia

Taught research methodology to PhD and MSc candidates and architecture courses to BSc students; academic moderator from 2010 for the MSc and PhD programmes in Architectural Studies and Integrated Design Studies.

2002 to 2006

Architectural Practice

Architect

Practised as an architect before entering academia: Junior Architect with the Civil Organisation of the Medical University of Mashhad (2002), then Architect with Arjan Tarh Architectural Consultancy (2003), The Designers Architectural Consultancy (2004) and Atrium Architectural Consultancy (2004).