Executive Committee

Michael Wright | Chairman:

As Founding Chairman, Michael ensures that the CSC Global Alumni is able to work for its members and community to bring alumni together from across the Commonwealth. 

Michael is a passionate Senior Leader with over 30 years of experience in influencing people, building capacity and shaping cultures. 

As Founder and MD of the Wrightchoice Consultancy Group, he draws on the experience gained through his senior national and global roles in both local and multi-national companies.

15 years of Safety Leadership experience across a diverse range of industries enables Michael to deliver practical outcomes and transformation change to all levels of organisations. He is passionate about the human side of transactions and understands the importance of building strong relationships and trust as the foundation for sustainable change.

Dr Ilka Dunne | Vice Chairman & Membership Committee Chair:

Ilka is an organizational and people developer having worked in a wide variety of fields starting in a theatre company involved in drama and theatre in education to teaching in an NGO. This was a great foundation for moving out on her own and creating Actions Speak Educational Design.

Over its 10 year life span, Actions Speak allowed Ilka to engage with many dynamic and interesting people and programmes. To write a handful of textbooks, create over 700 online lessons for Guardian UK, Mindset and Learnthings, develop over 250 teachers and principals from varying backgrounds with varying needs, research a number of NGOs across South Africa, write a variety of educational film scripts, offer development programmes to corporates and generally stay out of too much trouble.

She attended the CSCLeaders programme in the UK in 2015 and inspired by the amazing people on the programme committed to keep the alumni connected by co-ordinating yearly alumni gatherings in the UK and SA. She is a founding member of the CSC Global Alumni and is a board member for the AELD. 

Currently heading up the Global leadership, coaching and culture team at Rand Merchant Bank in South Africa, she supports the leadership development strategies for all RMB employees across Africa, the UK and India.

Gary Yee | Director & Company Secretary: 

Gary is highly experienced in the fields of Labor Relations and Employee Pension Fund Management. Gary is a Pension Fund Trustee responsible for all facets in the administration for several Canadian Pension Funds including valuation, investments, communications, and governance for Pension Funds with AUM from $440M to $59B CAD.

Gary has experience as a Chair, Vice Chair and Committee Member in Governance, Valuation and Appeals Committees of Pension Funds. Gary has a longstanding involvement in labour relations as a National Representative of the Canadian Union of Public Employees.

John Thompson | Director - Communications & Public Relations:

John has 30 years’ experience in media and public relations… in Australia, Asia, Europe and the United States.  This has included leadership roles at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, New South Wales Police Force, the Royal Australian and US Navies.

John now heads up his own PR firm working across a broad range of sectors including sport, finance, infrastructure, environmental sustainability, remediation, health and not-for-profit.

John participated in the 2016 Emerging Leaders Dialogue Asia and the 2017 CSCLeaders program.  He is a founding member of the Commonwealth Association of Leadership Malaysia and a founding director of the CSC Global Alumni.

Peter Laurent | Director & Company Secretary:

Peter was born in New Zealand, educated in Australia and has worked in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Singapore. Between 9-5 he works to manage and improve the value of commercial property assets for institutional investors and publicly listed companies at a global real estate firm. He has previously been the Founder of several technology companies and a Director and Advisor to Boards of both public and private businesses in Australia, New Zealand and the UK.

Outside of his corporate commitments he is an avid basketball and tennis player. He is an alumni of the first Emerging Leaders Dialogue held in Asia in 2016 and a Founding Director and Executive Committee member of the CSC Global Alumni.  Peter is passionate about reconnecting alumni of CSC programmes from across the Commonwealth.

Julie Overton                     Non-Executive Director

Ian Govendir
Non-Executive Director

Caroline Marsh                 Non-Executive Director

Alpna Khera                         Non-Executive Director