Advisory
board

Dr George Beaton

Dr George Beaton is Executive Director of WellmarkPerspexa (a Melbourne-based business communications firm) and Executive Chairman of Beaton Research and Consulting (a leading global consultancy firm for professional services). During his 25 years as a consultant, George has successfully guided clients through a wide range of strategic and marketing decisions.

Today his practice focuses on an eclectic mix of advisory, performance improvement, marketing strategy and trouble-shooting projects. George is well placed to understand the challenges and opportunities facing business and marketing organisations given his background in business school teaching and extensive work in public and private companies, universities and governments.

George’s considerable management experience includes executive director roles in a number of consulting, communications and marketing research firms as well as professorships with leading universities in Australia and South Africa.

George has a strong interest in business sustainability in the broadest sense, encouraging organisations to think and act for the long-term, and answer the growing call for greater transparency in the corporate world.

Jane Fenton

Jane Fenton is the Principal of Fenton Communications, a social marketing and strategic communications consultancy firm she founded in 1987. She provides advice on communication strategy, stakeholder relations, issues management and social marketing, and is a sought-after speaker, writer and facilitator. Jane is head of the company’s sustainability and infrastructure arm as well as a key adviser to its health group.

In addition to running her own business, Jane also holds the position of Chair of VicHealth. She has acted as a director of the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, is past president and life governor of Very Special Kids, and is a member of the Ministerial Taskforce for Cancer. Jane has contributed to various advisory boards and committees including the Centre for Cultural Partnerships, the University of Melbourne, RMIT, the International Public Relations Association and the Australian Professional Services Management Association.

Jane was awarded an Order of Australia Medal (AM) on Australia Day 2004 for service to the community, in particular her support of various health, medical research, youth and women’s groups. She is also a Telstra Business Women’s award winner and a Fellow of the Public Relations Institute of Australia.

Dr Simon Longstaff

Dr Simon Longstaff is a philosopher whose focus is on the field of applied ethics encompassing the wider community beyond academe. He has held the role of Executive Director at St James Ethics Centre since 1991. Established in 1989, the centre is an independent, not-for-profit organisation that provides an open forum for the promotion and exploration of ethics.

In his role as Executive Director, Simon promotes integration of ethical considerations into the strategic thinking of the management community. He also encourages and contributes to the active discussion of ethical issues amongst the widest possible audience.

Simon has a Bachelor Degree in Education and won scholarships to study at Cambridge, where he read for the degrees of Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy.

Andrew MacLeod

Andrew MacLeod is the CEO of the Committee for Melbourne, an independent member network of Melbourne leaders working together to ensure Melbourne’s liveability and economic prosperity.

Andrew previously worked as a Marine Litigation Attorney in Melbourne, Sydney and London before being recruited by the International Committee of the Red Cross to deal with military factions in Yugoslavia and Rwanda. He was also previously a Senior Advisor on Disaster Management for the United Nations, running high-level humanitarian teams. In these roles, Andrew served in several conflict zones and natural disaster settings including Bosnia, Kosovo, Serbia, East Timor, Pakistan, Philippines and Sri Lanka.

Most recently, he was the Head of Humanitarian Investment and Political Risk Analysis at Responsible Investment, advising companies on their community investments including corporate responsibility initiatives, community improvement programs and political risk in emerging economies.

Andrew has been awarded several decorations by different governments including the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal by Australia, the Silver Medal for Humanity for work in the Balkans and the Australian Davos Connection Leadership Award.

Professor Rob Moodie

Professor Rob Moodie is the inaugural Chair of Global Health at the Nossal Institute for Global Health, University of Melbourne. He is responsible for leading the development of the Disease Prevention and Health Promotion group within the Institute.

In 2008, Rob was appointed Chair of the National Preventative Health Task Force. The task force presented the National Preventative Health Strategy to the Federal Minister for Health in June 2009. He is also a current member of the Commission of AIDS in the Pacific and chairs the Technical Advisory Panel of Avahan, an Indian HIV-prevention program funded by the Gates Foundation. Rob also holds the position of Chair of the Melbourne Storm Rugby League Club.

His previous roles include: Chair of the Audit Expert Group responsible for reviewing Melbourne’s major urban plan, Melbourne 2030; member of the Minister of Foreign Affairs’ Aid Advisory Council; Vice-President of the International Union of Health Promotion and Education; Editor-in-Chief of the Health Promotion Journal of Australia; CEO of Victoria’s health promotion agency, VicHealth; and inaugural Director of Country Programs at the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

Since 1979, Rob has worked for Save the Children Fund; Medecins Sans Frontieres; Congress, the Aboriginal Health Service in Alice Springs; the Burnet Institute; and the World Health Organization.

Rob has co-edited and co-written four books, his most recent being Recipes for a Great Life with Gabriel Gate. He has also authored numerous book chapters and major reports, as well as opinion editorials for the Australian mainstream press.

Dr Jane Thomason

Dr Jane Thomason has spent the past 25 years working in the public health sector in Australia and the Asia-Pacific Region. She has lived for extended periods in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea (PNG) and the Philippines, and has also worked in Fiji, Pakistan, the Solomon Islands, and Samoa.

Jane is an Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Queensland, is on the Consultative Council of the Australian Centre for International Tropical Health and Nutrition, is the Chair of the Industry Leaders Group for the Queensland Health Skills Formation Strategy, and is on the Executive Board of the Australia PNG Business Council.

In 1999, Jane established JTA International – an innovative, international health services firm which focuses on remote and challenging locations and has offices in Australia, Fiji, Indonesia and PNG. She gave a speech on the ‘Measurement of Business Contribution Towards Millennium Development Goals’ at the International Council on Mining and Metals meeting in 2009. Jane is also part of a global collaboration to develop a framework to measure business contribution to development.

Jane has held executive roles in Australia and abroad which include: Chair of the Wesley Hospital Board; Chief Executive Officer of the Queensland Royal Children’s Hospital; Director of Women’s Health in Queensland; Senior Social Sector Specialist at the Asian Development Bank in Manila; and Head of the Department Of Community Medicine at the University of Papua New Guinea.

Professor John Wiseman

Professor John Wiseman is Director of the McCaughey Centre, VicHealth Centre for the Promotion of Mental Health and Community Wellbeing, Melbourne School of Population Health, University of Melbourne.

John has worked in a wide range of public, academic and community sector settings. Between 2003 and 2006, he held the position of Professor of Public Policy at Victoria University. From 2000 to 2003, John was Assistant Director, Policy Development and Research, Victorian Department of Premier and Cabinet.

His community sector roles have included: Moderator, Cranlana Program of the Myer Foundation; Advisory Board member, Centre for Cultural Partnerships (Victorian College of the Arts); President, Victorian Council of Social Service; Member of Public Policy and Education Advisory Committee, Oxfam Australia; and Board member, Wesley Mission.

John has published a number of books and articles on social justice and public policy issues, concentrating on the role of local communities and civil society in responding to the challenges of globalisation. The major focus of his current research and policy work is on reducing the risk of climate change through social, economic, environmental and political reforms that are also just, democratic and sustainable.