Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
I've spent two decades working at the intersection of people strategy, operational enablement, and business performance, gaining deep experience in the work that drives meaningful impact. Through that experience, I've learned that the most impactful HR work is often the least visible. When done well, organisations move faster, capability is in the right places, and leaders are equipped to inspire and enable. When it isn't, performance, culture, and credibility suffer My career has taken me around the world and back, and through some of the world's most recognisable brands - Nike, adidas, and now Sazerac - and across roles that have spanned everything from global HR strategy and business partnering at HQ to enterprise and functional change leadership in fast-moving APAC markets. I've led HR functions, built teams from the ground up, partnered with MDs and C-suite leaders, and navigated a variety of complex transformations, divestitures and market restructures. At adidas, I spent a decade leading people and business capability at Director and Senior Director levels - first as a global HR business partner for large, complex functions within Global Operations, then leading HR Strategy Head Office and Planning functions, and ultimately as Head of HR for the Pacific region. That last role was the one that shaped me most significantly: accountable for people strategy and delivery across a 1,000+ FTE business with 50 workplace locations, partnering on P&L and commercial outcomes with the market MD, and leading the region through a pandemic and sustained transformation - multiple restructuring programs, a 50% growth in workforce and workplaces, a brand / business unit divestiture, and a meaningful shift in how the market thought about people as a commercial lever. As a passionate coach and former team sports athlete, I care deeply about capability and performance - building the organisational muscle that lets a business perform at its ceiling, not just its floor. That means having the right culture, talent architecture, leaders who can actually lead, and an HR function that earns its seat at the table by connecting people investment to commercial results. I'm currently leading People & Culture for Sazerac across Asia Pacific, and I'm actively open to Executive Manager / Director / Head of HR opportunities - particularly with large, complex organisations where the people agenda is genuinely strategic. If that sounds like it could be a fit, I'd love to connect for a conversation.
Leading HR / People & Culture across the Asia Pacific region for one of America's oldest, largest and most respected spirits companies - a portfolio brand business with global reach and ambitious regional growth targets. Member of the AUNZ and Asia market executive teams, partnering with senior leadership to design and deliver people strategies with direct input to P&L outcomes and commercial growth. ◾ Accountable for the full People & Culture agenda across APAC - capability, talent, org effectiveness, employee relations, culture and HR operations - all connected to enabling commercial outcomes in market. ◾ Building and scaling the regional people infrastructure to support Sazerac's expansion across Australia, New Zealand and Asia, including the operating model and ecosystem for a growing market. ◾ Partnering with regional MDs and market executive teams - functioning as a genuine executive business partner on performance and growth priorities.
Executive HR leader for the Pacific region (Australia, New Zealand, Pacific Islands) - business partner to the regional MD and member of both the APAC HR and Pacific market senior leadership teams. Responsible for the full People & Culture ecosystem across 1,000+ team members and over 50 corporate and retail locations. ◾ Partnered directly with the regional MD and executive team on strategy, capability, people / workforce investments and org effectiveness - functioning as a genuine executive leader and business partner, not a support function. ◾ 2x recognised with APAC MD Award (2020 & 2021) for People Leadership. ◾ Delivered measurable P&L impact: drove significant improvement in personnel cost efficiency (as % of net sales) while simultaneously improving employee NPS - demonstrating that commercial discipline and people investment aren't in conflict. ◾ Built and sustained enterprise capability through a sustained period of transformation: three market restructuring programs, 50% growth in workforce and workplace footprint, Pacific HQ workplace relocation, HR operating model transformation, and divestiture and transition of the Reebok organisation across Pacific markets. ◾ Moved the dial on representation and equity: female leadership in Director roles grew from 25% to >40%, and the gender pay gap at median was eliminated (from 4% to 0%).
Led the Strategy & Planning / Head Office function for Global HR - amplifying the connection between Global HR leadership and a network of Corporate Strategy and market / function HR partners supporting 60,000+ employees across 160 markets. ◾ Drove the functional business planning cycle and development of strategic initiatives, aligning functional programs and priorities with company-wide business and people strategies. ◾ Led team responsible for project management of adidas 2020 People Strategy, delivery and maintenance of Global HR functional roadmaps and HR Delivery Operations framework / process. ◾ (As Director HR Strategy & Transformation - 2019) Seconded to the North America market as HR transformation lead - partnered with the NAM executive and HR leadership teams to diagnose critical capability and commercial risks, and designed large-scale transformative change across Supply Chain, Distribution and Customer Service.
Global HR business partner lead for six large business units within adidas Global Operations - a complex, matrixed environment spanning 1,500+ team members across Western Europe, the Americas and Asia Pacific. ◾ Partnered with SVP and GM-level executives across Product Creation, Innovation, Sustainability and Product Excellence to deliver enterprise capability programs - building new global organisations and closing critical capability gaps with direct linkage to operational and commercial outcomes. ◾ Led and supported delivery of major global transformation / capability delivery programs including adidas Advanced Creation, Sustainability, Innovation Management, and the merger of Global Sourcing and Brand Operations. ◾ Operated as a trusted strategic advisor to senior leadership in a highly matrixed global environment - influencing decisions on org design, talent investment and functional effectiveness across multiple business units simultaneously.
HR talent and transformation partner for Nike's North America business - responsible for the design and delivery of org transformation programs, talent management frameworks and workforce intelligence platforms. ◾ Owned end-to-end delivery of organisational transformation workstreams for North America Supply Chain and Customer Service — including org diagnostics, capability assessment, change design and implementation. ◾ Designed and implemented integrated talent planning and human capital investment programs, building tools and frameworks to enable strategic workforce decisions at scale. ◾ Produced workforce intelligence and org diagnostics platforms to support senior leadership in strategic planning; facilitated talent and acquisition training for line managers and satellite HR teams across the market.
Led development and global implementation of talent planning, recruitment and assessment programs for Aquent - the world's leading creative and marketing talent firm. ◾ Designed and rolled out global talent assessment frameworks and candidate management programs used across Aquent's international network. ◾ Transitioned from APAC regional leadership to a global program remit - bringing market-level operational insight to enterprise-wide talent strategy.
Member of the APAC market leadership team at Aquent - responsible for regional business operations at a time of significant structural change, including a subsidiary divestiture, market restructuring and integration of core corporate functions into a global shared services model. ◾ Led the regional operating model transformation — integrating HR, finance and operational functions into Aquent's global shared services structure while maintaining business continuity across the APAC market. ◾ Managed the regional launch and ongoing operation of HRIS platforms, Talent Rewards programs, workforce planning tools and employee and contingent workforce engagement programs. ◾ Oversaw the regional launch of a new brand subsidiary, including implementation of new business systems, processes and a business continuity plan. ◾ Managed candidate assessment, change management and onboarding programs across the region, ensuring alignment with global standards and local market needs.
Managed local staffing and client support operations for Aquent, alongside delivery of global talent, learning and business reporting functions. ◾ Designed and facilitated new hire training curricula and resource orientation programs for all new hires across North America — improving onboarding consistency and time-to-productivity. ◾ Contributed to global organisational improvement initiatives spanning talent management, learning services and operational reporting.
LAIKA is an Academy Award-winning stop-motion animation studio - home to films including Coraline, ParaNorman and The Boxtrolls. Working in this creative, project-based environment built a strong foundation in the operational and compliance-heavy side of HR. ◾ Designed and administered employee onboarding, global mobility and talent acquisition programs - managing the end-to-end experience for a highly specialised creative workforce. ◾ Managed a high volume of corporate immigration cases (nonimmigrant visas, work authorisations) and employee relocation programs — developing expertise in global mobility compliance and logistics. ◾ Developed and documented HRIS and ATS administration processes, and built tracking tools for onboarding, immigration and mobility progress and costs. ◾ Supported a large-scale restructuring effort through HRIS data compilation, analysis and reporting - building early capability in workforce analytics and HR operations.