THE boss of an award-winning York recruitment agency has the task of taking a regional business organisation in new directions at the start of the 21st century.

Fifteen months after embracing her new role as chairman of the North and East Yorkshire branch of the Institute of Directors (IoD), Di Johnson has been re-elected to the role, following a shake-up within the organisation.

Following changes brought in nationally, figures in the IoD such as Di now have clearly-defined job descriptions, in a bid to improve accountability and the way committees operate.

Di, who operates her highly-successful Yorkshire Executive Search & Selection (YESS-recruit.com) recruitment agency from an office off York's Hull Road, said the new operating standards aimed to give "best value", and she welcomed them as "very positive".

As chairman, she presides over hundreds of bosses in charge of thousands of employees.

Her task is to bring together directors to share their knowledge and experiences, when times are tough as well as good.

The IoD runs events from breakfast briefings to evening networking sessions, while also paving the way for members to meet business leaders, politicians and opinion formers.

She admits her term in office so far has been "challenging" but enjoyable, and she is already focusing on the way forward.

"From a standing start two years ago, we have delivered a diverse programme of events for the York area," she said.

"We intend to expand on this and reach out to members throughout North and East Yorkshire who have yet to participate in these events."

She said her personal challenge was to bolster branch membership above the current 600 mark.

Members come from a diverse range of backgrounds - from cosmetics to coal-mining and banking to housing associations. Membership of the IoD across Yorkshire tops 2,200.

Yorkshire born and bred, Di is well-known across the county as a lively business professional whose knowledge and expertise of the recruitment sector spans more than 20 years.

She specialises in appointments ranging in wage terms from £10,000 to £100,000 a year, as well as assisting businesses in identifying and implementing best practice in their recruitment processes.

Updated: 11:16 Wednesday, September 15, 2004