|
The Centre for Social Impact
It has been a great pleasure to catch up with many of you during a busy couple of months. It's not easy establishing a new institution from scratch. I have been buoyed by the extraordinary support for the Centre among nonprofit, corporate and public sector leaders during this start-up phase. Thank you all. People often ask me about the personal transition I made in February, from my former post as head of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet to chief executive of the Centre at my old university. So I'll leave you with a couple of the personal highlights of these early months. One was the opportunity to talk to UNSW commerce graduates in a graduation address on 3 April. I spoke to them of the complexity of the issues they'll face as they enter the world of business. I emphasised the significance of the challenges faced by those leaders who worked in the social economy. I encouraged them to ask future employers about their corporate social responsibility policies and to check what opportunities they would have to engage personally with the nonprofit sector. I like to think that from such ripples, waves are made. I was also asked to speak to a most engaged and encouraging audience at a meeting of the senior leadership alumni of the Benevolent Society of NSW. As I said then, I am stimulated not only by the depth of knowledge, support and commitment that exists in the community, but by the chance to continue working on matters that are profoundly important to public policy from a different perspective. Is there better immunity against what has been so memorably described as Relevance Deprivation Syndrome? I welcome your continued engagement with the Centre over the months and years ahead. Please feel free to contact me at csi@unsw.edu.au. Peter Shergold,
Appointments Executive assistant Eva Burns has been with me from the beginning. Eva has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of New South Wales and a Graduate Certificate in Applied Science from the University of Sydney. She was the founding Secretary of the University of Sydney Coaching and Mentoring Association and has worked on a voluntary basis as a Lifeline counsellor. She has been a coach/mentor for many senior executives, particularly in the health sector. Anne Measday joins the Centre as General Manager. She has previously been Director of the MBA (Executive Program) at the Australian Graduate School of Management and Manager of the Centre for Continuing Legal Education at the University of New South Wales, and for the past five years has been General Manager at the Australia New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG), so I know first-hand her extraordinary energy and ability to deliver. I am delighted that Violetta Braach-Maksvytis, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Innovation and Development) at the University of Melbourne, has been seconded to work part-time on the Centre's establishment. With a BSc from UNSW and a PhD from the University of Sydney, she is on the Board of Governors for the Foundation for Development Cooperation, a not-for-profit with extensive expertise in micro-finance. She is also the Deputy Chair of the Ian Potter Museum of Art. Danielle Begg joins the Centre as an Executive Research Officer. With a Bachelor of Psychological Science (honours) from the University of Queensland, she joined the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet graduate program in 2006. She was the Young Queenslander of the Year in 2002 for her work establishing the youth advocacy group Australian Teens Advocating Change. Accommodation Strategic Planning CSI very much appreciates those who are committing their time and experience to the focus groups. Bain and Company led by Richard Fleming is providing high quality pro bono support on this business planning process. A draft of the strategic plan is available on request by emailing csi@unsw.edu.au. CSI welcomes your comments on any aspect by the end of May. Finances With final stages of anegotiations with the Department of Employment, Education and Workplace Relations underway, it is anticipated that the $12.5 million funding from the Australian government will be placed with the Centre by the end of June. It will be treated as an endowment, the value of which is to be preserved. The Australian government funding comes with the requirement that the Centre raise $12.5 million from other sources over the next four years. A good start has been made with several individuals committing a total of $4 million over the four years. These are fantastic contributions for which we are extremely grateful. Thank you for your interest. We look forward to staying in touch as CSI starts to take shape. Stop Press
The Centre for Social Impact |
