THE BOARD
The Board sets the strategic direction for Business NSW and controls company affairs. The Board has appointed independent advisors to help manage our substantial investment portfolio, and established three key committees, each with their own charter as below.

Investment Committee

Greg McNamara (Chair)
Lyall Gorman
Brett Manwaring
Ian Ward-Ambler
Nola Watson

Audit, Risk & Compliance Committee

Brett Manwaring (chair)
Lyall Gorman
Natalie Mitchell
Jenny Dawn (formerly Levy)

People, Remuneration & Culture Committee

Judith Field (Chair)
Lyall Gorman
Ellie Brown
Greg McNamara

Lyall was appointed as Business NSW President in February 2020. He has was elected to the Board in 2014 and has been a councillor ofBusiness NSW since that time. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Evolve Housing and the Head of Property and Investments of the Manly Sea Eagles and was previously the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Cronulla Sharks. He is currently a Director of Cricket NSW. In June 2017 he was appointed as Chair of the Parramatta Park Trust.

In June 2010 he was appointed by Football Federation Australia as Head of the Hyundai A-League and in May 2012 as the founding Executive Chairman of the Western Sydney Wanderers, a position he held until July 2014. Lyall is the former Executive Director of an Australian Securities Exchange ('ASX') listed public company (a merchant bank and investment holding company specialising in corporate finance, corporate advisory, strategic investment, property and asset management) and was formerly its Executive Director of Finance and Administration.

He was the founding Chief Executive Officer and subsequently Executive Chairman of the Central Coast Mariners, one of the eight founding clubs in the Hyundai A-League. Lyall was extensively involved as the NSW Manager for the implementation and management of the Commonwealth Government Block Grant Authority capital construction program involving the assessment of project viability, risk analysis, financial overseeing and monitoring of the construction of property projects valued in excess of $50 million per annum. 

Brett was appointed as Business NSW Vice President in February 2020. He joined Business NSW as a councillor in 2009 before being elected to the Board in 2012.

Brett is a former director of the Illawarra Business Chamber, current joint Trustee of the Illawarra First Fund and is currently Chief Operating Officer for a national rugby league club.

Prior to this Brett’s background includes: 9 years as a director with Australasian advisory firm PPB Advisory; 5 years as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of a major Australian based textiles manufacturing, wholesale and distribution group; and in excess of 10 years banking and finance experience, including roles with GE Capital, St. George Bank and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. 

Nola has been a director of the Business NSW since 2014, is the immediate past President and was previously the Chair of the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee and the Business Environment & Economics Committee. She is a Director of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

She is also the Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce - Australia. Nola is an experienced company director with a strong executive career in risk management, governance and business strategy. She is the Principal of Indar Business Consulting. For over a decade, she has held executive leadership roles in one of Australia’s largest insurance companies, Insurance Australia Group (IAG).

Prior to this, Nola spent many years in senior executive positions within the Commonwealth and New South Wales governments. Nola has been a Director of the IAG and NRMA Superannuation Board and Chair of its Audit and Risk Committee. She was also a Director of Australian Services Roundtable, Business for Millennium Development and the State Records Authority of NSW.

Greg joined Business NSW as a councillor in 2013 before being elected to the Board in 2014.

Greg has spent his entire life working in the agricultural sector, firstly as a dairy share farmer, then moving to farm ownership in his mid-twenties. Greg currently runs a 300-strong dairy herd in partnership with his wife Sue and son Todd at Goolmangar, near Lismore.

Greg has been a Director of Norco Co-operative Limited since 1996 and, in addition, has held the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors since 1999. Greg is a Member of the Northern Rivers Cooperatives Alliance, and Chair of Australian Organic Industries. 

Ellie joined the Business NSW as a Councillor in 2005 before being elected to the Board in 2012, she was previously the Chair of the Human Resources & Succession Committee.

Ellie is the Principal of Ellie Brown Business Solutions, a business consulting company specialising in working with small to medium businesses, focusing on strategy, change and leadership development. She also works for TAFE NSW, Management Services, and Women in Leadership Australia as a Senior Facilitator and Executive Coach.

Previously Ellie was the owner-operator of multi-site/multi-discipline small businesses in regional NSW. Ellie joined the Local Chamber movement over 20 years ago. Ellie was the President of the Orange Business Chamber, the founding President of the Central West Business Chamber before joining the Business NSW as a Councillor.

Ellie was named in the Australian Financial Review and Westpac 100 Women of Influence Awards and Orange Electorate Woman of the Year, for her work within the business community and her involvement with the Business Chamber.

Judith joined Lendlease in 2002 and has had various roles within the Communities business with a strong focus on economic and social sustainability across NSW on projects such as Jordan Springs, Ropes Crossing, Calderwood Valley and Fig Tree Hill. Prior to Lendlease, Judith worked for 11 years at the University of Western Sydney in various roles in business development and research commercialisation.

Her career has included early childhood teaching; retail and marketing experience as buyer/senior buyer with the Myer Group; and operation of her own successful marketing consultancy company for six years. Judith has been active in the Western Sydney region through a number of organisations including Penrith Valley Chamber of Commerce where she was a member of the Executive Committee as Vice President and President; as Vice Chairperson of the Board of Mamre Plains Ltd; as a Board Member of Penrith Business Alliance, and Chair of its Finance and Risk Committee.She was appointed to the Board of Western Sydney Parklands Trust in July 2018.

Judith has been a Councillor on Business NSW since 2005; a director since 2016; she chaired the Skills Committee from 2006 to 2018; and was a member of the Investment Committee from 2016 to 2018. 

Natalie Mitchell was elected to Business NSW’s Council in 2015 and was elected to the Board in February 2020.

Natalie’s 25 year career in business management began with accounting and finance roles with Arthur Andersen, AGL and Dairy Farmers. These roles led to involvement in business management and inventory control software, taking her overseas to lead sales and software design and implementation teams in Tokyo, Singapore and Chicago.

Upon returning to Australia 18 years ago, Natalie founded her own business, Capital Office Business Solutions. Capital Office Business Solutions provides business advisory services to businesses in the mid and north coast of New South Wales, including risk management, financial modelling, strategic planning, management accounting and systems implementation services.

Natalie is passionate about promoting and developing businesses in regional Australia and was, for the last two years, the Chair of Business NSW’s Regional Presidents’ Forum.

Natalie holds a Master of Commerce (Professional Accounting) from the University of New England and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Ian Ward-Ambler was appointed to the Board on 6 March 2020. Ian has spent most of his career in financial services, initially with JBWere, which later became Goldman Sachs Australia. During his time at Goldman Sachs and JBWere, Mr Ward-Ambler served as a director and member of the Management Committee and Risk Committee. He was President of JBWere’s Securities Division in New York from 1995 to 2000.

Ian was a director of the Financial Services Council, the industry peak body from 2010 until 2012. His final executive role was CEO of Goldman Sachs Asset Management in Australasia, which had $12 billion in assets under management.

Ian is also a member of the following boards:

●    CBA Group Superannuation Board (Chair, Investment Committee)
●    Melbourne Grammar School (Chair, Investment Management Committee)
●    Trinity College, University of Melbourne (Chair, Finance & Audit Committee)
●    Melbourne University Advisory Board – Indigenous Leadership, Excellence and Achievement Program
●    The Man Cave Global (Chair)

Ian’s previous board roles included Deputy Chair of Voyager Indigenous Tourism (Ayers Rock Resort), Deputy Chair of Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety and Chair of the Indigenous Land Corporation's Board’s Finance & Legal Committee.

In addition to his board work, Ian is an experienced executive coach.

Ian’s previous board roles included Deputy Chair of Voyager Indigenous Tourism (Ayers Rock Resort), Deputy Chair of Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety and Chair of the Indigenous Land Corporation's Board’s Finance and Legal Committee.

In addition to his board work, Ian is an experienced executive coach.

Ian holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Melbourne, majoring in philosophy and economics, and is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program, INSEAD, France.

Jenny Dawn (formerly Levy) was appointed to the Board on 12 March 2020. She is an accomplished executive, who has enjoyed success in various roles leveraging her leadership and experience in technology, innovation, cyber security, digital and strategy.

She has delivered organisation change over a broad range of sectors, including finance, banking, funds management, superannuation, insurance, port authority, recruitment, primary and secondary health care.

Her most recent roles include:

●    Group Director Digital and Transformation at St John of God Healthcare
●    Optus Advisory Board
●    Chief Information Officer at Primary Health Care Limited
●    Non-Executive Director Talent International
●    Chief Information Officer at Perpetual Limited
●    General Manager IT at Sydney Ports Corporation
●    Head of Technology and Chief Operating Officer at Westpac Banking Corporation

Jenny is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and her qualifications include a Master of Business Administration (Southern Cross University) and Masters in Project Management (University of Technology Sydney).

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