Corporate Ladder: your weekly guide to executive appointments
South Australia’s premier executive appointments column tracking the movements of those driving the state’s public and private sectors. Plus the latest executive recruitment opportunities.
Leanne Haddad (left), Tom Steeples (top centre), Matt Neagle (centre), Renato Capoccia (bottom centre), Tamsyn Alley (top right) and Dayna Rogers (bottom right) have all been appointed to new positions.
Sydney exec wins top Benson role
Benson Radiology has appointed Clear Skincare General Manager Tamsyn Alley as its new CEO.
Alley joins the South Australian medical imaging company after more than three years leading Clear Skincare in Sydney.
The experienced executive’s other recent roles include General Manager of Communications at Destination NSW, Managing Director of PR and marketing agency Porter Novelli and Chief Marketing Officer at SkyCity Entertainment Group.
Benson Radiology has appointed her to replace outgoing CEO Simon Boag, who was earlier this month tapped to head up healthcare provider sportsmed.
Boag had led Benson Radiology for six years.
Alley is due to start as CEO on December 5.
APA makes SA move
Australian Public Affairs has appointed Matt Neagle to head up its new defence, space and emerging industries practice in Adelaide.
The national strategic communications consultancy announced last week that Neagle would be leading the firm’s new South Australian office, which will also have a focus on the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
The APA’s new office in Adelaide is their fourth location across the country, with the firm already based in Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne.
Neagle joins the APA after a year with Raytheon Australia as Senior Manager, Industry Engagement and three years as Director, Stakeholders Relations at the Naval Shipbuilding College in Osborne.
Following a career in journalism with The Advertiser and Channel 10, he went on to become a Ministerial Adviser during the Weatherill Government years – working across the portfolios of Defence and Space Industries, Investment and Trade, Small Business, and Veterans Affairs.
He is also a former Head of Communications with the South Australian Ambulance Service.
Second LGA President in two months
The Local Government Association of South Australia has elected Kimba Mayor Dean Johnson as President, following the disqualification of Erika Vickery OAM from the role.
Vickery was elected to the top job just last month but had to step down after losing her position as Naracoorte Lucindale Mayor at November’s council elections.
The LGA constitution prohibits a non-sitting councillor from serving as President.
The Association said it would be exploring “any improvements that can be made to the constitution to prevent a similar reoccurrence from happening in the future”.
Johnson – who has been Kimba Mayor since 2014 and was re-elected to a third term this month – was elected LGA President at a special meeting on Monday, November 21.
The regional councillor is also President of the Eyre Peninsula Local Government Association and Chair of the LGA’s South Australian Regional Organisation of Councils committee.
Kimba was named the 2021 AgTown of the year.
New Centacare leader
Catholic social services organisation Centacare has promoted Deputy Director Leanne Haddad to Director.
Haddad, a long-time public servant, has been with Centacare since 2017 as Executive Manager, Children Services and was appointed Deputy Director in January this year.
Prior to that, she spent more than 20 years with the Child Protection Department and its various predecessors.
She is a former Accountability Unit Team Leader and Senior Project Officer at Families SA and was most recently the Child Protection Department’s Assistant Director, Registration and Contract Services.
Her latest promotion sees her take the helm from current Centacare Director Pauline Connelly, who has chosen to return to her previous position of Deputy Director after a year in the top job.
Centacare has also appointed its Foster Care Manager Amalie Mannik as Executive Manager of Children’s Services.
Mannik has been acting in the role sicne May and has been with Centacare since 2018.
Corporate Position: the latest executive employment opportunities
UnitingSA is looking to appoint a new Board Director – Clinical. The community-based organisation, which has over 1000 staff and a turnover circa $100m, is governed by an experienced, skills-based Board of Directors that is committed to business and service excellence, innovation and positive outcomes for clients, residents, employees and other stakeholders. The opportunity presents for a new Director with a key focus on clinical governance, quality and safety standards to join the Board. Expressions of interest are sought from professionals who have a strong grasp of clinical governance and risk management frameworks as they pertain to a provider of aged care services; experience in an executive leadership role within a large organisation within aged care, disability services or a comparable highly regulated domain; and a sound understanding of aged care governance requirements as they relate to Board function. Strongly developed leadership, relationship building, influencing and communication capabilities will be important qualities for effective contribution to this Board and its Committees.
Food manufacturer Patties Foods is on the hunt for a new Finance Operations Manager. Reporting directly to the Group Operations Finance Manager and working closely with Site Operations Manager, key responsibilities of this important role include proactively contributing to the site’s commercial success as the key internal financial advisor; planning, directing, developing and administering the financial management of the site and ensuring the provision of detailed analysis and information to inform key business decisions and manage risk. Applications are encouraged from suitably qualified and driven finance professionals. Other key attributes sought include well-developed commercial and technological acumen, exceptional stakeholder management and the ability to balance both strategic and operational priorities. Experience in cost accounting within a FMCG environment will be a distinct advantage.
ReturnToWorkSA (RTWSA) is looking to appoint a new Customer Experience Lead. The statutory authority has commenced its newly formed Customer Experience (CX) Strategy as one of the key strategic programs of work. The CX Lead is critical to the development, implementation and ongoing success of the strategy and will work with the RTWSA Senior Leadership Team to ensure and embed customer centric insurance and regulatory services. The role will best suit an experienced CX practitioner adept at moving between conceptual design, collaboration, coordination and the hands- on development of human-centred services, processes, tools and practices. Applications are encouraged from appropriately qualified and accomplished individuals who can demonstrate a successful track record in a comparable customer journey role within a medium to large entity. Whilst an understanding of workers compensation insurance may be an advantage, applications are strongly encouraged from customer focussed leaders from comparably complex and regulated domains.
ASO exec makes Festival Centre move
The Adelaide Festival Centre has appointed Renato Capoccia as Head of Marketing.
Capoccia will rejoin the Festival Centre in the newly-created role on January 9 after working there as Marketing Executive from 2006 to 2016.
Since then, he has gone on to hold senior marketing roles with the Adelaide Festival and most recently the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, where he has been for the last five years.
“The entire Adelaide Festival Centre team look forward to working with Renato in this new leadership position,” Adelaide Festival CEO Douglas Gautier said in a statement.
“He is one of the great arts and entertainment marketeers, and will be a key player in promoting Adelaide Festival Centre’s 50th Anniversary celebrations and our year-round attractions at the Riverbank precinct and The Maj.”
Foley’s new government gig
Former Labor Treasurer and Deputy Premier Kevin Foley has been appointed Presiding Member of Super SA.
Foley, who was Treasurer from 2002 to 2011 during the Rann Government years, has since moved into a career of corporate advisory and lobbying – running his own firm Foley Advisory since 2012.
Appointed by current Treasurer Stephen Mullighan, Foley replaces former Port Adelaide Football Club President Greg Boulton as Super SA Chair.
The appointment puts Foley in charge of a fund with more than $35 billion in assets under management as of June 2021 last year.
Law firm finds new COO
Botten Levinson Lawyers has appointed Dayna Roberts as its inaugural Chief Operations Officer.
She joins the Franklin Street law firm after six years with Kain Lawyers as Marketing and Operations Manager.
Her time there followed a stint as Executive Officer with workplace health management firm Sitemed, a year as Board Secretary at Hockey SA and two years as Operations Manager at CQUniversity Australia.
Roberts currently sits on the board of the Australian Legal Practice Management Association.
New role on Hutt St
Hutt St Centre has appointed senior ac.care manager Tom Steeples to the new position of General Manager, Homefulness.
Steeples, due to start with Hutt St Centre on January 9, has worked for numerous South Australian social services groups, including Aboriginal Family Support Services, Uniting Communities, Streetlink Youth Health Service, FocusOne Health and Uniting SA.
He is currently with regional teenage foster care charity ac.care as Senior Manager, Family Services.
According to Hutt St Centre, Steeples has also served on the boards of the South Australian Network of Drug and Alcohol Services, Youth Affairs Council of South Australia and the Health Consumers Alliance of South Australia.
“In this new role Tom will provide leadership of the Centre’s homefulness services to help advance Hutt St Centre’s vision of ending homelessness,” Hutt St Centre CEO Chris Burns said in a statement.
