Board of Directors

Mr Charles K Allen AO (Chairman)

MA MSc

Mr Charles Allen was born and educated in England. His working career was in the oil and gas industry, initially as an exploration geophysicist with Shell in various parts of the world, and later in production and general management. After being posted to Australia in 1979, hee became Managing Director of Woodside Petroleum in 1982 and retired in 1996. He has been a Director and Chairman of CSIRO, National Australia Bank and Air Liquide Australia. He has also been a Director of Metals Manufactures, Amcor and AGL.

Professor Geoffrey Donnan (FNI Director)

MBBS MD FRACP FRCP (Edin)

Director of FNI, Professor Geoffrey Donnan was previously Director of the National Stroke Research Institute and Professor of Neurology, University of Melbourne, Austin Hospital campus. His research interest is clinical stroke management and he was co-founder of the Australian Stroke Trials Network. He is immediate Past-President of the World Stroke Organisation. He received the American Stroke Association William Feinberg Award for Excellence in Clinical Stroke Research in 2007 and the 2008 Bethlehem Griffiths Research Foundation Medal for outstanding contributions to research in stroke.

Professor Graeme Jackson (BRI Scientific Director)

BSc (Hons) MBBS FRACP MD

Professor Graeme Jackson is the founding Director of the Brain Research Institute and a Neurologist at the Austin Hospital. He is internationally recognised for his work in new MR technologies, particularly in the field of epilepsy. He is a Professorial Fellow of the Department of Medicine and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Radiology, University of Melbourne; an Honorary Neurologist at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne and a Board member of Neurosciences Victoria.  Professor Jackson recently won a highly prestigious 2008 NHMRC Excellence Award.

Mr Andrew Abercrombie

BEc LLB MBA

Mr Andrew Abercrombie is a Founding Director of FlexiGroup Limited and is a non-executive Director on the FlexiGroup Board as he continues to mentor and advise the CEO and management team.

In 2007, Andrew was appointed by the Minister for the Environment to the Mt Buller and Mt Stirling Alpine Resort Management Board (ARMB); impacting on the governance and sustainability of Victoria’s premium alpine area and the fragile alpine environment.

More recently, Andrew has diversified his commercial interests into real estate and other investments.

He is a former Chairman of the Melbourne Chapter of Young Presidents’ Association. He continues to be involved with YPO at both a local and international level, including leading study groups at the annual YPO Seminar at Harvard Business School.

Mr Craig Drummond 

B.Comm (Melb) ACA SFFIN

Mr Craig Drummond is Chief Executive Officer and Country Head of Bank of America Merrill Lynch Australia, and brings with him more than 20 years of banking experience.

Emeritus Professor Andrea Hull AO 

BA Dip Ed (Univ of Sydney) MBA (MBS, Univ of Melb) FAICD FAIM

Professor Andrea Hull has had a distinguished career  in  CEO and executive roles, and also as a non-executive Board member in government and not-for-profit organisations.
She is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Melbourne, and sits on the Boards of the National Museum of Australia, the National Gallery of Victoria, and the Breast Cancer Network of Australia. Professor Hull has undertaken numerous international and national assignments, and served on many international, federal and state bodies to advance the integration of economic, social and cultural agendas.

Mr Mark Jones

BA (Hons) (Sheff) MBA (MBS)  

Mr Mark Jones is a Partner in KPMG’s Advisory Services practice, with national responsibility for corporate governance and internal risk management. He has previously provided external audit, internal audit, and accounting and advisory services to clients. He is a member of the Australian executive team for the Advisory Services practice, with responsibility for internal risk management. Mr Jones is a Fellow of both the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, and is a member of both CPA Australia and the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Professor Anne Kelso AO

BSc (Hons) PhD (Melb)

Professor Anne Kelso has been Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza at Melbourne Health since February 2007. She is also an honorary professorial fellow at the University of Melbourne where she undertakes research on immunity to influenza. Professor Kelso was previously a senior principal research fellow atthe Queensland Institute of Medical Research and, from 2000 until 2006, Director/CEO of the Cooperative Research Centre for Vaccine Technology. She is currently a member of the Council of QUT, the Board of the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research and a number of committees advising the WHO and the Australian Government on influenza.

Emeritus Professor Richard Larkins AO

MDBS LLD (Hon) PhD (University of London) FTSE

Richard Larkins is an Emeritus Professor at Monash University, where he was Vice-Chancellor and President from 2003 to 2009.  From 1998 to 2003 he was Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences at the University of Melbourne, and the James Stewart Professor of Medicine of the University of Melbourne at the Royal Melbourne Hospital from 1984 to 1997. His current roles include President of the National Stroke Foundation, President of Australian University Sport, Chair of the Council of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Australia, and Chair of the Incorporated Joint Venture Board for the Parkville Comprehensive Cancer Centre.

Dr Brendan Murphy

MBBS PhD FRACP FAICD

Dr Brendan Murphy was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Austin Health in January 2005. Prior to this appointment he was Chief Medical Officer and Medical Program Director at St. Vincent's Health, Melbourne, and Professor/Director of Nephrology at St Vincent's from 1992-2005. Dr Murphy was previously a Board Member of the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, a Director of the Kidney Health Australia and President of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nephrology. He is currently a member of the Board of Health Workforce Australia, Chair of the Victorian Health Department Management Innovation Council and a Professorial Fellow with the title of Professor at Melbourne University.

Professor Peter Rathjen

BSc (Hons) (Adel) D Phil (Oxon)

Professor Peter Rathjen is currently the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) at the University of Melbourne.  Prior to taking up this position, he was Dean of Science at the University of Melbourne from 2006 - 2008. He was previously Chair of Biochemistry at the University of Adelaide in 1995, foundation Head of the Department of Molecular Biosciences in 2000, and in 2002 was appointed Executive Dean of the Faculty of Sciences. In 2005 he received the inaugural Premier's Award for Scientific Excellence (Research Leadership) in South Australia. Professor Rathjen was a founding member of the ARC Special Research Centre for the Molecular Genetics of Development, and the Australian Stem Cell Centre (ASSC).

Dr Thomas Schneider

AB magna cum laude with highest hons (Harvard) D Phil (Oxon) JD (Harvard) Hon D Laws (Deakin)

Dr Thomas Schneider is the President and CEO of Restructuring Associates Inc. in Washington, DC, and the Chairman and CEO of Schneider (Australia) Consulting Pty Ltd in Melbourne. He is Of-Counsel to the law firm of O’Connor & Hannan in Washington, DC. Dr Schneider is a Board member of the J Venter Institute and the American Australian Educational Leadership Foundation. He was a member of the US Secretary of Energy’s Advisory Board from 1994-2000, and was the Science and Technology Policy Advisor for Presidential candidate Bill Clinton in 1992 and for General Wes Clark in 2004.

Mr Stephen Spargo

LLBLLM

Mr Stephen Spargo is a solicitor practising in the financial services and projects department of Allens Arthur Robinson where he has been a partner since 1983.  He is a director of Asialink, Asia Society Australasia Centre and The Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria Limited and a member of the Committee of the Melbourne Cricket Club and the Victorian State Council, Committee for the Economic Development of Australia.  His professional associations include the Australian Institute of Company Directors, the Law Institute of Victoria, International Bar Association, Banking and Financial Services Law Association, Australia Japan Business Cooperation Committee and Australia‑Japan Society of Victoria.

Mr Robert Trenberth

BEng (Melb) MA Sc (Waterloo, Canada) MBA (Harvard) FAICD

Mr Robert Trenberth began his professional career as a structural engineer and now serves as Chairman and Director in a number of companies and not-for-profit organisations. His corporate business career includes consulting with McKinsey & Company, followed by senior executive appointments with Carlton and United Breweries Ltd and McPherson’s Ltd. His current company appointments include Chairman of Riviera Properties Ltd and of Upstream Print Solutions and Director of the CRC for Polymers. Mr Trenberth’s not-for-profit appointments include Chairman of the Australian Sustainable Industries Research Centre and Vice President and Director of the National Stroke Foundation.