Appointments

Former Labor MP Michelle O’Byrne will become Australia’s new ambassador for gender equality, tasked with helping to advance women’s rights.

Melanie MacGillivray has been appointed as the new CEO of the Adelaide Lightning women’s basketball team ahead of the 2025/26 season.

Krissy Barrett will become the first female commissioner of the Australian Federal Police, replacing the outgoing commissioner, Reece Kershaw. 

Helen Conway has promised a more active and inclusive agenda as she takes the helm of Chief Executive Women.

Microsoft executive Cindy Rose has been appointed the Chief Executive Officer of WPP, the British multinational communications company. 

Professor Jane O’Leary has been appointed as Research Director at the Centre for Indigenous People and Work at the University of Technology Sydney. 

Diversity Council Australia (DCA) has appointed Tara Le Friedman and Zak Hammer as new Directors to its Board.

One of Australia’s oldest feminist organisations, the Victorian Women’s Trust has appointed Dr Kirsten Abernethy as its Executive Director. 

Jenny Wilkinson will replace Steven Kennedy as Treasury Secretary, becoming the first woman to hold the role.

Kelly Bayer Rosmarin has joined the board of Airwallex as it moves into the advanced stages of securing an Authorised Deposit-taking Institution licence.

Former Australian of the Year Professor Michelle Simmons AO has been appointed to The Tech Council of Australia’s (TCA) Board of Directors.

Nationally-recognised advocate Brittany Higgins has been appointed the Director of Public Affairs at award-winning PR agency Third Hemisphere.