Profile of Mentor Directors

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Elizabeth Alexander AM: Elizabeth is a Director of Amcor, Boral Ltd, CSL Ltd, Winston Churchill Memorial Trust. She is Chairman of Board of Advice to the Salvation Army (Southern Command), a member of the Takeovers Panel and Financial Reporting Council. She is a former President Australian Institute of Company Directors, a former Director of Gas & Fuel Corporation of Victoria and past State and former National President Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants. She is a former Partner PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Theresa Dyson: Teresa acts for financial institutions, financial packagers, governments, major corporate clients and responsible entities of managed investment funds, providing taxation advice in relation to a range of matters. She is a member of the Tax Subcommittee of the Australian Securitisation Forum and a fellow of the Taxation Institute of Australia. Teresa frequently presents at industry conferences and seminars and has published articles in industry journals on tax issues in relation to asset and project finance arrangements, privatisations, infrastructure and general corporate tax issues.

Bev O'Connor: Bev broke new ground by being the first woman appointed to the Melbourne Football Club, where she currently serves as the Vice-President.

Bev has been a journalist and presenter for 17 years, mainly with the ABC in Melbourne, and more recently with Channel Seven in Melbourne. She hosted ABC TV’s Saturday sports coverage for seven years and remains a contributor to its VFL coverage. As a reporter Bev specialised in economics and politics, hosting the 774 ABC Melbourne breakfast program and a late night news and current affairs program. She remains a regular contributor and relief presenter for the station. Bev presents the weekend ABC Asia Pacific news service broadcasting to 17 million households in the region. Bev is a noted journalist and former Victorian Football League television presenter.

Jane Harvey: Former partner with Price Waterhouse Coopers who retired in 2002 to pursue a career as a non-executive director. Current directorships include The Lyceum Club, Bayside Health Services, (The Alfred, Caulfield and Sandringham Hospitals), Rural Finance Corporation Limited, Victorian Managed Insurance Authority, Royal Flying Doctor Service (Vic), Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman and the Legal Practice Board. Jane sits on the audit and finance committees for many of these boards.

Anne Astin: Anne is the Chief Executive Officer of Dairy Food Safety Victoria and a director of Dairy Australia. She has worked in a variety of roles in environment, public health, forensic science, agriculture, minerals and corporate areas. Anne has considerable experience in leading public sector organisations through change and in customer service delivery. Anne was previously a director at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne. She has chaired several committees, including DNRE’s Audit Committee and the Dairy Quality Assurance Working Party.

Cheryl Batagol: Cheryl is Chair of Melbourne Water and has 30 years' experience in the waste management industry, including commercial, industrial and trade waste management and treatment. She is currently chairperson of EcoRecycle Victoria and a former director of City West Water. Ms Batagol has also been involved with EPA Victoria and the Co-operative Research Centre for Pollution Control and Waste Management.

Joh Barker: Joh has a strong commercial background with an emphasis on change management initiatives. First appointed as a director of the now privatised Victorian Egg Marketing Board, Joh quickly moved onto various Government and Statutory Boards and, more recently, was appointed CFO and Board member responsible for the listing of SMS - a major professional services company in the IT industry. Joh currently has a portfolio of board and consulting assignments. Her strengths are finance and governance particularly complex stakeholder relations and new business initiatives.

Cathy Donovan: Cathy Donovan is Assistant Director in the Office of Women's Policy. Prior to joining the public service Cathy was a member of a government board as the Deputy Chairperson of the Eastern Regional Council of Adult Education and prior to this held a board position on the Southern Western Port Regional Council of Adult Education.

She is currently the Victorian co-convenor of the national women's network Women in Vocational Education and was the national convenor of this network from 2000 - 2002. Cathy has held many voluntary positions alongside her working life which have developed skills important for work on boards such as President of Binnak Park Kindergarten and Sherbourne Primary School Council.

Anne Dalton: Anne is a partner with the lawfirm, Blake Dawson Waldron. She has been practising in the areas of corporate/litigation and government law for more than 15 years. Anne focuses on:

  • Corporate governance (including probity) issues both in the private and public sector;
  • Statutory interpretation; and
  • Complex corporate litigation.

Anne has lectured in law subjects at the Australian National University and at RMIT. Prior to joining BDW, Anne held senior positions in the (then) Australian Securities Commission and was a member of the Victorian Bar for six years. Anne was appointed to the RMIT Council in May 2003 and is the Chair of RMIT Innovations P/L.

Kate Palmer: Kate is Chief Executive of Netball Victoria, a not for profit State sporting organisation, governed by a volunteer Board of 9, including the CEO. Kate is a member of the Australian Institute of Management, the Australian Institute of Company Directors, the Deakin University Sport Management Program Advisory Group and the City of Melbourne Sport Grant Review Committee. A former State netballer, Kate now enjoys individual sports, being a keen triathlete, snow skier and golfer.

Lisa Wilson: Lisa is a senior manager and agribusiness professional with 17 years experience across a diverse range of roles. She joined AWB Limited (formerly the Australian Wheat Board) in 1991 and is currently AWB's Senior Manager Marketing & Compliance. In this capacity she manages the strategic development and delivery of the marketing and communications program for AWB International (AWB's "single desk" wheat export subsidiary) and the AWB National Pool. She also manages the corporate governance and compliance framework that underpins AWB International's relationship with AWB Limited.

Lisa is a Director of the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation (since 2001), was a founding Board member of the Foundation for Australian Agricultural Women (1994-1998). She is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Mary Gillett: Parliamentary Secretary, Volunteers, Commonwealth Games and Women's Affairs. Elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly in Victoria in 1996, representing the seat of Tarneit.

Jay Bonnington: Chair of Dental Health Services Victoria, a Director of Vic Power Trading, and Warrnambool Dairy Co-Operative, a Member of Gippsland Water Authority, and a Trustee of Health Superannuation Funds Ltd and the Melbourne Exhibition and Convention Centre.

Leon L'Huillier: Director of Woolworths Ltd, a Member of the Audit Committee of the Automotive Parts Group Ltd (Repco) and Chairman, the Co-operative Research Centre for Eye Research and Technology. He is an experienced Chief Executive and Company Director in the grocery manufacturing and liquor industries, most recently as the CEO of Lion Nathan Australia Pty Ltd. Leon was previously a Director and Audit Committee Chairman of Fortis Ltd, a Director of MPG Logistics (now part of Mayne Logistics) and was the former Chairman of the Australian Prime Property Fund, one of Australia's largest retail shopping centre groups. He is a former Director of MLC Ltd and Challenge Bank Ltd.

Jane Tongs: Jane is a member of the Institute of Company Directors, the Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Institute of Internal Auditors. She has a Bachelor of Business from RMIT, an MBA from Melbourne University and is a Williamson Community Leadership Fellow. Prior to 1999, Jane was a Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers specialising in the financial services sector.

Her current appointments include Chairman of Netwealth Investments Limited and a Director of the Government Superannuation Office, Work cover South Australia, Leadership Victoria and the Australia East Timor Foundation. She has previously been Chairman of Australian Alpine Enterprises, Deputy Chairman Bayside Health Services as well as a Director of a number of other enterprises.

Susan Oliver: Managing Director of Futures Alliance, an Australian consulting practice in strategic planning, futures studies and scenario planning. She is a non-executive director and chairman of several public and private sector organisations and sits on the Boards of Transurban City Link, Medical Benefits Fund, Programmed Maintenance Services, The Smith Family, Methodist Ladies College and the Australian Foresight Institute at Swinburne University in Victoria. Susan was previously chairman of ScreenSound Australia, a founding Director of the Big Issue Australia, Managing Director of the Australian Commission for the Future, a member of the Victorian Premiers Multimedia Taskforce, Director of Interact Events, Chair of FHA Design P/L and a Director of the Victorian Institute of Marine Sciences.

Genevieve Overell: Genevieve has extensive legal expertise in major property development projects for both the public and private sectors. She heads the Property, Development & Infrastructure team in our Melbourne office of Sparke Helmore. Genevieve is a Victorian Councillor of the Property Council of Australia and chairman of the Australian Property Law Group (Victoria). Genevieve holds a number of board appointments and is an active member of the Law Institute of Victoria.

Alana Johnson: A farm partner, rural consultant and family therapist from Benalla in Victoria. Alana is a Director of the Foundation for Australian Agricultural Women and the Victorian Women’s Trust. She is an inaugural member of the Victorian Rural Women's Network reference group and Australian Women in Agriculture.

Ruth Medd: Chair, Australian Ethical Super Ltd, President National Foundation for Australian Women and Director, NSW Casino Control Authority.

Val Lang: A member of VICWIRC, the rural women’s advisory group to the Victorian Government, a Director of the Foundation for Australian Agricultural Women and Council member of the National Rural Women’s Coalition. Val's community activities have included being a member of a number of rural hospital boards through successive amalgamations and chairing the local steering committee as part of a three year state-wide Community Capacity Building Initiative. She is presently Chair of the Derrinallum Lismore Community Association.

Leigh Snelling: Chair of the Centre for Education and Research in Environmental Strategies and Manager of Governance and Strategy for the Victorian Local Government Association.

Julie Ankers: Managing Director of EnterTrainers & Speakers, will MC the event.