Due to the constantly changing COVID environment, the decision was made to move the FEAL National Conference to a virtual event. The Members' Discussion Forum and Members' Dinner is to be held on Wednesday 24th November after our AGM and Luncheon Briefing. Make sure to mark this date in your calendar.

This year we focused on engagement, we were delighted to have Dr Don Russell, Independent Chair, AustralianSuper speak on ‘Maintaining engagement with large and growing teams’.

Dr Don Russell

Dr Don Russell was jointly appointed by ACTU Super Shareholding Pty Ltd and the Ai Group as an Independent Director of the Board on 2 May 2019. He was appointed Chair of the AustralianSuper Board on 26 September 2019. Since June 2018 Dr Russell has been a director of the Centre for Policy Development. Previous directorships include with CSIRO and Chair of State Super. Until 2018 Dr Russell was the Chief Executive of the South Australian Department of the Premier and Cabinet.

Don has a PhD from the London School of Economics, a MEc from ANU and a BEc (Hons) (First) from Flinders University as well as the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

The conference opening session was engagement with our teams. We were pleased to have Andrew Kakabadse join us from London as our opening speaker, Andrew spoke on ‘The Value Equation - how highly engaged teams drive value’. Andrew also participated in the panel session on ‘Team Engagement’.

DR ANDREW KAKABADSE

Andrew is Professor of Governance and Leadership at Henley Business School and Emeritus Professor at Cranfield School of Management. Andrew’s research covers boards, top teams and the governance of governments.

He is Advisor to the UK Parliament and numerous corporations, NGOs and other governments.

Panel session
Team Engagement

Chair: Ross Piper, Christian Super; Dr Anthony Howard, the Confidere Group, Andi Breslin, Atlassian and Dr Andrew Kakabadse.

ROSS PIPER
CEO
Christian Super

Ross is the Chief Executive Officer of Christian Super and a FEAL Director. He has over 25 years of leadership and management experience in corporate and non-profit contexts.

ANTHONY HOWARD
ceo
The Confidere Group

Dr Anthony Howard is known as the ‘CEO Whisperer’ and as a business philosopher. He is the CEO & Founder of The Confidere Group and CEO & Founder of the Socratic Leader Academy, on a quest to re-invent the way the world does leadership, in more human ways.

ANDI BRESLIN
Head of people opperations
atlassian

Andi is Head of People Operations at Atlassian. Her proven track record extends across strategy development and execution; including digital transformations, software development, UX, service management, process improvement, complex system integrations & data migrations, infrastructure, cyber security and compliance programs.

We heard from our guest speaker Andrew Inwood, founder and principal, Coredata. He spoke on ‘Engaging with members: The views of members and retirees.’

Andrew Inwood

Andrew has more than 30 years’ experience in the Australian financial services industry. He started his career at Rothschild Australia Asset Management where he headed the marketing team, before moving to AMP Investments where he spent more than a decade. During his time at AMP, he was seconded to Virgin Direct in the UK to help establish the finance and investment arm of the group.

Andrew is the author of more than 50 pieces of significant research into clients and their behaviour and has a particular focus on the value of the client experience in financial services.

Panel session: Does size impact member engagement?
Chair: Paul Watson, HOSTPLUS; Ange Greenhalgh, Mercy Super; Astrid Dare, Christian Super; Tyrone O’Neill, REST Industry Super. Q and A

Paul Watson
Group Executive, Member Experience
HOSTPLUS

Paul provides key executive strategic leadership, development and management of Hostplus' Member Experience division, and is responsible for the achievement of high-quality experiences and outcomes for members, employers and stakeholders. His portfolio encompasses marketing/brand, product, platforms, retirement solutions, financial planning and advice, key account management and new business growth.

Ange Greenhalgh
Manager of Member Experience
Mercy Super

Ange has been working in the financial services industry for the past 22 years’. She joined Mercy Super in 2020 and leads their member facing teams in the areas of Financial Education, Member Services Centre and Financial Advice. Ange is responsible for stakeholder relationships and guiding the teams in delivering a great end-to-end member experience.

Astrid Dare
Chief Member Experience Officer
Christian Super

Astrid is responsible for analytics and insights, marketing and brand, communications, and member engagement. Since joining the fund in 2018, she has refined its overall communications approach, further accelerating new member growth and improving member retention.

Tyrone O'Neill
Group Executive, Member Engagement
REST Industry Super

Tyrone is responsible for REST's member experience and engagement. His role includes design and delivery of digital experiences such as the Rest app and website, member communications, brand and marketing, and data analytics. Tyrone has nearly two decades’ experience in strategic marketing, digital, data, and insight roles, including senior leadership positions.

our guest speaker david gait, Head of Sustainable Funds Group, Stewart Investors. David Spoke on Engaging with companies: How can we positively impact a mutually beneficial outcome?

David Gait

David is Head of the Sustainable Funds Group and a Portfolio Manager. He sits on the Stewart Investors Board. David joined the team as a graduate in 1997.

He is lead manager of Asia Pacific Leaders Sustainability and Asia Pacific Sustainability strategies, as well as Pacific Assets Investment Trust.

David holds an MA with honours in Economics from Cambridge University, and holds a Master of Science in Investment Analysis from Stirling University

Panel session: Positive engagement: Liza McDonald, Aware Super, Alison Ewings, Regnan and David Gait, Stewart Investors. Chair, Alexis Cheang, Mercer.

Liza McDonald
Head of Responsible Investments
Aware Super

Liza has over 20 years’ experience in the superannuation sector, and is a specialist and passionate advocate for Responsible Investments.

As Head of Responsible Investments, she has led the development and implementation of the Fund’s Responsible Investment policies, the execution of the Climate Change Adaption Plan and also manages the ESG policy compliance including manager and asset class ESG reviews.

Alison Ewings
Head of Engagement
Regnan

Alison joined Regnan in 2016 with responsibility for managing its engagement program, meeting with the boards and senior executives of ASX listed companies raising investors concerns regarding the financial impacts of environmental and social issues. She has worked in sustainability for over a decade and was formerly the Head of Sustainability at Westpac, a globally recognised sustainability leader, where she oversaw the development of environmental, social and governance frameworks and policy.

Alexis Cheang
Responsible Investment
Pacific Region
Mercer

Alexis is a Partner in Mercer’s Wealth business and leads the Responsible Investment team in the Pacific. She works with clients to develop and implement a set of responsible investment beliefs, policies and practices throughout the investment process. This includes integrating environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into the investment process and making use of ownership rights through proxy voting and engagement.

We heard from Roger Urwin, Co-Founder, the Thinking Ahead Institute and Hugh Mackay AO, author and social researcher. Roger spoke on “How engaging with companies has evolved and is likely to continue to evolve”. whilst Hugh spoke on Engaging with social change. Is a “Kindness Revolution” feasible or an optimist’s dream?.

Roger Urwin

Roger Urwin is Global Head of Investment Content for Willis Towers Watson, a role he assumed after acting as the Global Head of the investment practice from 1995 to 2008.

Roger joined Willis Towers Watson to start the firm’s investment consulting practice and under his leadership, the practice grew to a global team of over 500.

Roger’s current role includes work for some of the firm’s major investment clients around the world, and thought leadership within Thinking Ahead Institute. He is the author of a number of papers on asset allocation policy, manager selection, sustainability and governance.

Hugh Mackay AO

Hugh Mackay is a social psychologist and researcher, and the bestselling author of 22 books, including eight novels. His latest book is “The Kindness Revolution”, published in 2021.

He has had a 60-year career in social research, and was also a weekly newspaper columnist for over 25 years. He is currently an honorary professor in the Research School of Psychology at ANU, and a patron of the Asylum Seekers Centre. Among other honorary appointments, he has been deputy chairman of the Australia Council for the Arts, the inaugural chairman of the ACT government’s Community Inclusion Board and an honorary professor at Macquarie, Wollongong and Charles Sturt universities.

We will announce the winner of the Fund Executive of the Year 2021 & the recipient of the Michael Dwyer Leadership Scholarship at the FEAL Members’ Dinner. The Feal members’ dinner will now be held on Wednesday 24th November, further details will be announced soon.

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