Our people

Advisory board

Chairperson

Dr Alexander Gosling, AM

Principal, Capstone Partners

As founding director of Invetech, Dr Gosling has been working in the field of process and product development and related R&D for clients ranging from high-tech start-ups to “smoke-stack” industry global companies for nearly 40 years. This has provided him with an exceptional base of practical experience regarding what it takes to progress new technologies to commercial success. He was part of the management team that led Invetech firstly to public listing (as Vision Systems Ltd) and then to its acquisition by the US Danaher group for over $800 million. 

Dr Gosling is a Past National President of the Australasian Industrial Research Group, a Past National President of the Australia-Malaysia Business Council, a Fellow of the Academy of Technology and Engineering, and a Governor of the Warren Centre for Advanced Engineering.

Members

Mark Albert

Managing Director, MtM 

Mark Albert is the Managing Director of MtM Pty Ltd, an automotive components manufacturer in South Oakleigh, Melbourne. Founded in 1965 as Melbourne Tooling Co., MtM has quickly expanded to include manufacturing before moving onto component design, specialising in complex value-added automotive and non-automotive components. MtM’s innovation is driven by the desire for comprehensive functionality embodied in simplicity. As a recognised supplier of high-quality components, MtM supplied the original five local customers of Ford, Holden, Toyota, Nissan and Mitsubishi for over 30 years.

Phillip Butler

Chair of Textor Technologies 

Phillip Butler is a member of the Strategic Advisory Committee of CSIRO Manufacturing Division, a fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering, and Chair of Textor Technologies. Textor is an example of a highly successful Australian textile company that manufactures components for nappies, feminine healthcare and incontinence products. The company has been transformed through constant innovation into a state-of-the-art operation supplying multinationals operating throughout the world. The business is a family-owned SME that collaborates with Australian research institutes and takes world-class innovation into global supply chains. Currently, the business exports fabrics to 18 countries around the world. 

In addition to leading this transformation, Phillip has been the Chair of the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Industries Innovation Council; a member of the Prime Minister’s Manufacturing Taskforce; a member of the National Placed Base Advisory Group (Department of Human Services); Deputy Chair of the National Precinct Board; and Chair of the Innovative Manufacturing CRC. 

Tony Dunstan

Director, Tauraqua

Tony Dunstan is a CEO with a demonstrated track record of achievement in both industry and commerce. Following eight years building a broad financial skillset at Price Waterhouse, he then moved into industry, holding a diverse range of roles within Olex Cables (later Nexans Olex), a power cable solutions business servicing the building, energy, infrastructure and resources sectors in Australia and New Zealand. 

Tony has led a number of major business transformation projects and turnarounds, including the closure of a major factory in Australia (and the establishment of resultant supply chains out of Asia and the USA) plus the complete redesign of the sales function into value streams to deliver customer service excellence. Between 2001 and 2006, Tony was heavily involved as a shareholder in the private equity buyout of Olex Cables, leading both its acquisition from Pacific Dunlop and subsequent divestment to Nexans. At the time, this was the most successful private equity divestment in Australian history.

Professor Michael Gilding

Principal, Capstone Partners

Sue Heistein

Director, Outcomes and Performance Evaluation, Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions

Sue Heistein is the director of Outcomes and Performance Evaluation at the Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions, which is focused on building a better evidence base for decision making and helping shape department planning by building a stronger evidence and evaluation culture across the department, generating insights through the evaluation of strategic projects, data analytics and use of economics modelling and assessment tools. 

Sue has a long-standing career working in government including at the Department of Premier and Cabinet, Department of Justice, Department of Planning and Community Development, Department of Innovation, Industry and Regional Development, and the Department of Sate Development, Business and Innovation. 

Anita Hill

Chief Research Scientist in Future Industries, CSIRO

Dr Anita Hill is a chief research scientist in Future Industries at CSIRO. Prior to that, she was Executive Director of Future Industries. Future Industries is a $310m pa sector comprised of over 1,500 researchers across 25 sites in Australia and overseas and includes Agriculture and Food, Health and Biosecurity, Manufacturing, and CSIRO Services including CSIRO Publishing, Education and Outreach, Futures, Infrastructure Testing, and Small to Medium Enterprise Engagement. 

She also served as Chief Scientist for CSIRO (February 2017 to September 2018) and in 2014 and 2015 during the transition of the CSIRO chief executives she served as acting Chief Executive. Previously she was Executive Director of Manufacturing, Digital Productivity, and CSIRO Services, and before that Executive Director of Manufacturing, Materials, and Minerals. 

Prior to that she was an Office of the Chief Executive Science Leader and Chief of CSIRO Process Science and Engineering. She is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science (AAS), Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE) and former Chair of the Victorian Division, and Fellow of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI). She is a current member of the advisory boards of the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN University of Queensland), Australian Centre of Excellence inElectromaterials Science (ACES University of Wollongong), Chair of the Science Advisory Board of The Australian Synchrotron, Swinburne Industry Research Board, Industry Advisory Board of the School of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering (ITEE University of Queensland), and Journal of Polymer Science: Polymer Physics (editorial board). She is a former member of advisory boards for the Victorian Centre for Sustainable Chemical Manufacturing (VCSCM), the Australian eHealth Research Centre (AeHRC), the National Centre of Excellence in Desalination Australia (NCEDA), and the Institute for Frontier Materials (Deakin University). 

Dr Hill’s research is in materials and process engineering — specifically focusing on transport of atoms, ions and small molecules in condensed matter. Dr Hill was awarded a Bachelor of Engineering and a Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science from Duke University, USA.

Penelope Lane

CEO, Optix Advisory

Penelope Lane has held leadership positions in Australian and international biotechnology and healthcare companies for over 20 years. In addition, she has held positions within the Victorian State Government in the Department of Health as the Lead of Global Health Melbourne, and as the Senior Investment Manager (Healthcare, MedTech and Pharmaceuticals) for Department of Economic Development Jobs Transport and Resources. 

Penelope’s career has focused on the development of healthcare, biomedical and technology strategies for global organisations, investment communities, and rapidly growing young technology companies. Her experiences include technology commercialisation, international expansion strategies, capital raising and acquisitions, the development of global healthcare programs, and the facilitation of advanced government and large investor projects. 

Penelope is currently the CEO of Optix Advisory, a provider of detailed strategic advice, innovation and commercialisation for the biomedical and healthcare industries. She holds several board positions, is actively involved in Melbourne and SCALE Angel networks, and has worked for international and global projects including BlueStar (across South East Asia), Marie Stopes International Women’s Health and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Professor Timothy Marjoribanks

Associate Dean (Research & Engagement), Faculty of Business and Law, Swinburne University of Technology

Dr Benjamin Mitra-Kahn

Chief Economist, IP Australia

Dr Benjamin Mitra-Kahn has been the Chief Economist at IP Australia since November 2012, where he provides evidence-based policy advice on Intellectual Property. IP Australia is responsible for legislation, enforcement, international negotiation and granting of patents, trademarks, designs and plant breeders rights. Previously, he was the senior economist at the UK Intellectual Property Office, where he covered areas as diverse as the EU patent, patent funds, thickets, backlogs, business performance and IP rights. He also led on economics for the UK’s Hargreaves Review of intellectual property. Dr Mitra-Kahn’s background includes time as an academic, consultant and company director, and a number of expert panels with the OECD and other organisations. 

Associate Professor Alfons Palangkaraya

Deputy Director, Centre for Transformative Innovation, Swinburne University of Technology

Julie Toth

Chief Economist, Ai Group

Julie Toth heads the Australian Industry (Ai) Group’s economics team, producing economics research, comment and policy advice for Ai Group and its members. Julie oversees Ai Group’s highly regarded monthly ‘performance of industry’ surveys and its economics research program. She is an active participant in Australia’s national business, industry and economic policy conversations and consultation processes.

In addition to her role at Ai Group, Julie is an Adjunct Professor of Economics for the MBA program at Deakin University’s Business School. She is an advisory board member for the economics faculty at Deakin University and a panel member of the Melbourne Economic Forum, hosted by the University of Melbourne.

Julie has more than two decades of experience in Australian economic policy and research, working across the public and private sectors. Prior to joining Ai Group in 2012, Julie held senior economics roles with the ANZ Bank, the Productivity Commission, the Bureau of Immigration and Population Research and other federal government agencies. Julie holds a Master of Industrial Relations and Labour Economics (Monash University), a Bachelor of Economics (Honours) (University of Melbourne) and a Bachelor of Arts (University of Melbourne).

Dr Leonie Walsh

Dr Leonie Walsh has more than 25 years of technology leadership experience in a broad range of industrial applications both locally and globally, with a focus on the development and commercialisation of technology. Dr Walsh has previously represented Victoria on the Forum of Australian Chief Scientists and currently sits on a range of advisory committees spanning innovation, education and advanced manufacturing. 

Dr Walsh held the honorary role of President of the Australasian Industrial Research Group (AIRG) from 2011 to 2015, with the recent transition to Immediate Past President. In this role, Dr Walsh established international collaborations through a new World Federation of Industrial Research Associations and as a founding partner of the Australian Government’s SME to Researcher collaboration (CAESIE) between Australia and the European Union. 

Dr Walsh received a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science from Swinburne University of Technology, a Master of Business Administration (Exec) from the Australian Graduate School of Management and is a Fellow of the Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering. In 2014, Leonie received an Honorary Doctorate from Swinburne for contributions and leadership in scientific enterprises, innovation and the community.

Professor Beth Webster

Director, Centre for Transformative Innovation, Swinburne University of Technology

Paul Wright

MA, FAICD

Paul Wright is currently a Non-Executive Director of product development company Hydrix (ASX: HYD) and bio-separations company Memphasys (ASX: MEM). He is also a member of the advisory board for digital water solutions provider Waterwerx. 

In his executive career, Paul spent 18 years as CEO of three of Australia’s leading international technology companies. At ASX-listed Universal Biosensors (UBI), Paul built long term partnerships with global diagnostics leaders Siemens Healthcare and Johnson & Johnson, and led the company through a period of strong international sales growth and new product development. Before UBI, Paul was CEO of Invetech (1999–2007), an internationally renowned product design and development company, and Vision BioSystems (2007–2008), the major subsidiary of ASX-listed Vision Systems Limited that developed, manufactured and marketed diagnostic instruments and consumables to pathology laboratories worldwide. 

Prior to this, Paul spent over eight years working in Europe, North America and Asia with corporate strategy consultants Bain & Company, advising multi-national clients on growth strategy, mergers and acquisitions, and operations improvement. As General Manager of Corporate Development at TNT Logistics, Paul played a key role in the development of a major contract logistics business in Asia establishing business infrastructure in China, Malaysia, and Indonesia. 

Paul has a Masters of Engineering from the University of Cambridge, has studied corporate finance at the London Business School, and is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.