The announcement comes after a turbulent period for North Melbourne, which ended Clarkson's tenure with a year remaining on his contract. Graham, most recently Fremantle's forward-line coach, narrowly missed senior roles at Carlton and Essendon before being selected as the Kangaroos' seventh coach since the start of the 2019 season, including Brad Scott.
Chief executive Jen Watt said: 'Throughout the process, it became clear that Jaymie had really strong values alignment to North Melbourne. He demonstrated a very clear vision for our football program and playing style, underpinned by his principles of high care and high accountability.'
Graham, a former West Coast Eagles player, spoke about the influence his grandparents had on him while growing up in Western Australia. He has yet to farewell the Dockers after their grand final loss just over a week ago.
The club sought a strong but caring people manager capable of delivering a modern game plan suited to a younger generation of players, and Watt indicated Graham's hiring marked a shift towards what she described as a feel-good press conference, a contrast to the 'daggers' that club president Sonja Hood and football department boss Todd Viney threw at Clarkson last month.
Watt was pressed on the reasons for Clarkson's departure but handled the questions diplomatically, turning attention back to Graham, who was told by club officials 'to just be himself' before facing the media.