THE largest employer in the north is beginning a fresh search for its first permanent chief executive.
The Education Authority (EA) launched the job competition in August last year to find someone to lead a "programme of transformation" but halted it in October.
It has a budget of approximately £1.5billion and is the largest employer in the north, with close to 40,000 people.
The top job was described as "one of the most demanding chief executive appointments in Northern Ireland", and "one of the biggest educational leadership roles in the UK and Ireland".
It also comes with a considerable public sector salary of up to £164,000 a year.
The EA replaced the five area education boards in April 2015. It was accepted as an alternative to the planned Education and Skills Authority after rival parties failed to agree its establishment.
It delivers and funds services including school meals, transport, support staff for classrooms and special educational needs.
Gavin Boyd, the former head of the CCEA exams board, has been in charge as interim chief executive since December 2014.
When the EA launched, Mr Boyd admitted it would take years before the old board structures merged completely.
A selection panel set up to appoint a new head completed an initial screening and shortlisting process last year. It halted the competition, however, after taking the view that there was "potentially an insufficient number of candidates whose applications demonstrated the standards required for this very demanding role".
The number of candidates likely to go forward to the next stage, the panel said, was "not viable in terms of ensuring the competition remained sufficiently competitive and robust".
A review of the competition has been carried out and the authority has started its search again.
