Keynote Presenters

Elizabeth Broderick

Elizabeth Broderick is a lawyer, mentor and innovative leader, 2001/02 Telstra NSW Business Woman of the Year and Australian Corporate Business Woman of the Year.  She is also the Sex Discrimination Commissioner and Commissioner responsible for Age Discrimination.

Elizabeth has been a partner at one of Australia’s leading law firms, Blake Dawson Waldron and has more than 20 years experience as a legal practitioner.  At Blake Dawson Waldron she developed the firm's business case for flexibility in the workplace. This effectively demonstrated that without flexible work practices, business performance, profitability and productivity would be severely impacted by many millions of dollars. Her efforts created a workplace where more than 20 percent of the law firm’s workforce now use flexible arrangements.

She established the first Legal Technology Group within a law firm in Australia and is widely recognised as a leader in technology and the law, legal compliance and the delivery of online legal services to educate individuals about the law.

Elizabeth has been included in Business Review Weekly’s list of 20 rising female stars in Australian business, developed mentoring programs for teenage girls at State High Schools in Sydney and later a mentoring program for female university students.

Elizabeth has a particular interest in issues related to the impact of the internet, women in business, work and life balance, gender equality and corporate social responsibility. She is a regular speaker at international and domestic conferences.
Elizabeth is married and has two children.

David Gonski

David Gonski is Chairman of Investec Bank (Australia) Limited, an investment and advisory bank in Australia. Investec acquired David's corporate advisory firm, Wentworth Associates Pty Ltd, which he established after leaving Freehills where he was a partner.

David is also Chairman of Coca-Cola Amatil Limited and a Director of the Westfield Group, Singapore Airlines and ASX Limited,  Chancellor of the University of New South Wales, Chairman of the UNSW Foundation and Chairman of Sydney Grammar School.

He was previously a member of the Takeovers Panel, President of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Director of ANZ Bank Ltd and Chairman of the Australia Council for the Arts

Prof. Peter McGraw

Peter is director Labour-Management Studies Foundation, Macquarie University, which he joined in February 2005. He has also worked as an academic at the University of Technology, Sydney and an industrial relations practitioner in Australia and the United Kingdom.

In his eleven years at MGSM Peter held a number of senior administrative positions including Director of Postgraduate Diploma Programs and Director of Corporate and Executive Education. He was a member of the MGSM Executive from 2002 – 2004.

Peter has researched and published in a number of areas concerned with management and employee relations. His current research interests include management strategy in multi-national firms, employee involvement processes, change management and international human resource management. He is the author of many academic papers in refereed journals and has co-authored a best selling HRM textbook. Peter has held visiting academic positions at Sydney University and IMD in Switzerland.

At MGSM, Peter was consistently ranked as one of the best teachers and most sought after corporate educators. As a consultant he has worked with a large number of clients including many large private sector organisations as well as public sector and non-profit organisations. In 1997 Peter was honoured with a Macquarie University Outstanding Teacher Award.

Peter is a well known management consultant and trainer. His clients include large and small organisations from diverse private sector areas, domestic and international as well as public sector and non-profit organisations.

Jane Allen

Jane is a Partner at Egon Zehnder International, the world's largest privately held search firm with more than 300 consultants located in 60 offices in 36 countries. The firm specialises in senior level executive search, board consulting and director search, management appraisals, and talent management.

Jane has been at Egon Zehnder International for eight years where she leads the Consumer Products Practice Group, across Asia Pacific including India, China, Japan, and South East Asia as well as Australia/New Zealand. In addition she sits on the Global Consumer Products Practice Group for Egon Zehnder International worldwide. She is the first female Partner in the Australia/New Zealand Practice. She has a particular interest in senior executives within the consumer products, retail and publishing industries as well as senior and emerging women executives and/or board directors across all industries and professions. Jane has authored a number of articles that have appeared on the CEO Forum website including “Retaining Talented Women” and “Women on Boards: Why Would You Do It?”

Prior to joining Egon Zehnder International Jane worked at Procter & Gamble in both Sales and Marketing in the US and Australia. Jane has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Arts from Smith College.