I’ve been an AuSAE member since…

The early 1990s.

The most valuable thing about my AuSAE membership is…

Information about how other organisations manage their governance issues.

Before I was a director of an association management company I was…

Manager of a public hospital and completing a law degree at the University Of New South Wales.

If I wasn’t a director of an association management company I would be…

Raising cattle on our few acres on the New South Wales south coast.

The thing that gets me out of bed every morning is…

Knowing that we must change the aged care system now in order to meet the needs of the ageing population in Australia. Today there are 2.8 million Australians over 65 years of age. Within 35 years that number will climb to 7.2 million. Ensuring that the Australian aged care system can meet the growth in demand and that future consumers can have a greater choice of services will be a cornerstone to the future.

My career highlight would have to be…

In a former life I worked for the Uniting Church in New South Wales on a project which had the objective of proving the veracity of mediation services to help separating couples make joint decisions about their financial and child care arrangements. The Federal Attorney General ultimately accepted the outcomes of this project to support the broader deployment of mediation services in a broader range of applications within the Australian family court system.

I love working with the not-for-profit sector because…

My membership is a combination of for profit and not-for-profit providers of aged care services and therefore provides a pleasant interface between the ownership types including the interplay between members’ needs and association requirements.

The trouble with some associations is…

A failure to focus on the longer term needs of the broader industry to ensure long term industry sustainability.

As a director it’s important to…

Ensure that member communications are constantly refreshed and maintained as a two-way channel of communication.

The relationship between a director and a board is…

A dynamic relationship that must be constantly tendered and nurtured. The average board consists of seven to eight persons who often change on a regular basis. Like any governance structure, it is important that the board and its CEO regularly review the needs of the board and to try and ensure that those needs are met where possible.

I am inspired by…

Organisations that really consider what the customer wants and how to deploy services and products that will best meet those needs.

When I am not working you can find me…

Working on the place I call home – a 1830s original colonial farmhouse with stables, dairy and silo on the New South Wales south coast.