Mrs Lawson (51) will start her new job on March 1, replacing Duncan Field, who held the position for 12 years.
This week, she was taken on a tiki tour of the district by Mayor Clive Geddes.
They visited Makarora and Wanaka on Monday and Glenorchy yesterday.
"Clive has taken time to drive [me] around the district . . . to get an orientation of the geography and the local communities in the district and to meet the key stakeholders to give me a bit of background before formally starting [on the] first of March," she said.
Her first impressions of the district were positive.
"It's absolutely staggeringly beautiful and has great diversity.
"There's Makarora with only 80 households and Queenstown is very different to Wanaka.
"It's exciting and interesting."
She said she would not be the type of chief executive to sit in an office all day.
Her first few weeks would be spent settling into the job and meeting up to 200 council staff.
She said the job would build on her experience and skills gained in the United Kingdom.
She relocated from Britain last year to join her Scottish-born husband, who has been working in New Zealand for five years.
Ms Lawson is also a competitive triathlete, representing Britain in six world championships.
She said she was looking forward to taking advantage of the scenery by cycling some of the tracks and perhaps competing in some of the multisport events.
Her career has included executive positions and directorships, including 17 years as chief executive for the London-based Wandle Housing Group.
She will receive a $237,094 salary, a $7608 car allowance and $5298 superannuation.
