Our host and PwC Partner, Di Rutter, speaks with Victoria’s Public Sector Commissioner, Adam Fennessy in this episode of the Government Matters podcast.  Adam has over 20 years of public sector experience at state and federal levels, including four years as Secretary of the Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning.  Responsible for the performance of 1 in 10 of Victoria's workers, Adam has led a complete reimagination of what working in the public sector looks like. Adam has embraced disruption as an opportunity to not only achieve better outcomes from the Vict ..read more

In this episode of the Government Matters podcast, our host PwC Partner Di Rutter sits down with CEO of Urban Utilities, Louise Dudley.  With her career spanning across both the private and public sectors, Louise shares her insightful perspectives on the water management industry and how her career led to being recognised as one of the top 20 most powerful women in water globally. Di and Louise speak about: Louise’s journey to the public sector after 17 years in the private sector and how this ignited her passion and role in water management The process of merging five councils into one ..read more

PwC Partner Di Rutter speaks with Adrian Piccoli in this episode of the Government Matters podcast. Adrian is the Head of Education, Australasia at Korn Ferry and was formerly NSW’s Minister for Education. With an accomplished career in both the public and private sector, Adrian shares his wealth of knowledge in the education sector. He also speaks about the reform he pioneered "Local Schools, Local Decisions" that placed students at the centre of school decision making.   In this episode, Di and Adrian discuss: Adrian’s early start in politics and how he navigated New South Wales p ..read more

In this episode, PwC Partner Di Rutter sits down with the Secretary for the Australian Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Andrew Metcalfe. Having studied to be a lawyer at the University of Queensland,  Andrew has forged a diverse and varied career working across both the public and private sectors, including as head of the Department of Immigration for seven years. In this episode, Di and Andrew discuss: Andrew’s early years and his decision to join the public sector as a graduate What the public sector was like back in the 1980s and the drastic change witnessed in th ..read more

PwC Partner, Suji Kanagalingam sits down with Lesley Podesta for this episode of the Government Matters podcast. Lesley wears many hats, most notably as Founder at Red Mitten, Head of Government Relations at Phoenix Australia, and Former CEO at Alannah & Madeline Foundation. Lesley's story is one of courage, resilience, and great perseverance to lead a number of social reforms that have had a hugely positive impact on the lives of Aboriginal communities, improving the protection of children and more broadly made Australia a fairer and more caring place for all. In this episode, they discus ..read more

In the final episode of season 1 of the Government Matters podcast, our host and PwC Partner, Di Rutter, speaks with the Premier of South Australia, Steven Marshall. As South Australia’s 46th Premier elected in 2018, he has successfully led the state through the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic and reflects on his journey throughout this experience. In this episode, they discuss: Premier Marshall’s early career in his family’s furniture manufacturing business How he entered a career in politics His reflections on the COVID-19 pandemic and what it meant for South Australians The impo ..read more

In this episode of the Government Matters podcast, our host, Di Rutter, sits down with Jen Rufati, General Manager of the Smart Centres Operations Division at Services Australia.   Servicing around 23 million phone calls per year, and processing over 3 million claims for Centrelink, Australia’s security and welfare systems, Jen leads over 10,000 full-time employees and is responsible for maintaining operational and service effectiveness. In this episode, they discuss: How Jen’s role in the private sector prepared her for the public sector The government support and trust increase as a re ..read more

In episode six of the Government Matters podcast, our host, Di Rutter, speaks with Christine Castley who leads Multicultural Australia as their Chief Executive. Across her 25-year career in government, Christine has delivered significant reform and innovation projects, including for adult and youth justice, disaster management response and recovery and public sector ethics and integrity reform. Christine is a passionate advocate for equal access to justice and services for everyone. Tune into this episode to hear: Christine’s first impressions and lessons learnt from immigrating to Australia ..read more

Join PwC Partner, Di Rutter, as she sits down with Emma Hogan, Secretary of NSW’s Department of Customer Service. Following a 20-year career in the private sector working with iconic Australian brands, Emma made the jump to the public sector in 2018 as NSW’s Public Service Commissioner. In this episode, Di and Emma delve into what it’s like to lead teams of 10,000 and her experience as a transformation leader across customer, digital, people, culture and communications. This episode explores: Emma’s hesitancy in joining the public service and how it ended up being her best career move Why she ..read more

In this episode of the Government Matters podcast, PwC Partner Suji Kanagalingam speaks with Lee Miezis, CEO of Victoria's Environment Protection Authority.    Following the devastating bushfires in 2019/2020, Lee was appointed the first CEO of Victoria's Bushfire Recovery agency following an extensive career and record of achievement across service delivery, policy, operations, and regulation in the context of all things relating to the environment. This episode explores: Lee’s start in forestry and journey through the public service The importance of community and understanding th ..read more