With an extensive background in sport, both as a professional player and coach, Richie brings with him a wealth of knowledge in developing teams. Alongside having spent more than 14-years working across education, both in high-schools and at a tertiary level, he has transferred his education and sports skills into the business environment at corporate, SME and non-for-profit sectors. Richie is the director of P.R.I.D.E Business Coaching and has been assisting businesses for more than 25-years in identifying and fulfilling their potential.
A Director of CHD Partners, Michael’s passion is to work with owners and directors of small to medium business to develop systems and procedures relevant to their business to protect them from prosecution, disgruntled employees and unethical customers. Prior to the formation of CHD Partners, Michael spent 15-years working for NSW Police.
Trent is a Principal with PKF’s Business Advisory Services team and is based in Newcastle. He has more than ten years of experience as an accountant and has focused on providing quality advice to his clients that operate across a diverse range of industry sectors.
At just 23-years of age, Jacks brings with him a wealth of knowledge in the media and broadcast space, along with a strong understanding of the challenges which face young people in the region. The director of Oasis Media, Jack is also the founder of non-for-profit organisation, Project Aurora, and is a member of the NSW Regional Youth Taskforce.
Michelle O’Toole has been a resident of Lake Macquarie all her life and is an advocate for sustainable growth of the region. Michelle completed her studies locally as well including a Diploma of Hospitality Management at Hunter TAFE before then moving on to complete a Bachelor of Business in Hotel Management.
Michelle has over 25 years experience in Sales, Marketing and Public Relations in the Corporate, Not-For-Profit and Government sectors but is most passionate about Tourism in the Lake Macquarie region as well as the growth of small businesses.
Liz Sealey is a genuine, warm and committed individual that has a passion for fostering meaningful and trusting relationships.
By nature, she invests the time needed to understand people’s needs and is committed to delivering positive outcomes for all parties, an attribute that serves her well in both personal and professional environments. Her desire to join the Chamber is to contribute to the development of successful businesses, improve employability options in our region and be a voice that represents the youth of our community.
Liz is a Senior Consultant in recruitment services at ASR Recruitment. She loves consulting as it offers the opportunity to work with candidates to help identify their strengths and values, and align those with an aspirational job opportunity. Similarly, taking time to understand her client’s needs and growth plans allows her to offer strategic solutions for their businesses.
Jonathon is the Founder and Managing Director of Empowered Community Services. His passion and inspiration is derived from supporting both parents with lifelong disabilities along with several years as a disability support worker for complex needs. While doing so, Jonathon completed his Bachelor of Psychological Science at Newcastle University. His work hasn’t gone unnoticed, winning the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the Hunter Business Chamber, 2020 and the award for the Ambassador of Lake Macquarie for his contribution to the community, 2021.
Lynette completed a Bachelor of Business-Human Resources and landed a leadership role in mentoring – where she discovered her passion for helping people. Lynette then became a small business owner growing one discount store into five, then challenging circumstances prevailed with the GFC and the business never recovered. This further built Lynette’s resilience and understanding + appreciation for how hard small business owners work.
An exciting opportunity then arose with Castle Personnel for Lynette to work with disadvantaged members of the community, leading to a management position of the Toronto Disability Employment Services Branch. Lynette loves nothing more than assisting individuals with diverse backgrounds and assisting employers in the recruitment phase.
Darren’s 15 years in Operations in the Franchising and Fast Moving Consumer Goods sector (FFMCG) has seen him assist business owners in achieving their goals and his recent roles with Perform HR and WORK IG have extended his skills in Human Resource Development.
Additionally, Darren has a strong professional skill set in negotiation, business planning, management, customer service, performance management and a great ability to cultivate and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders. Darren is energised but the opportunity to be part of Lake Macquarie Business and looks forward to bringing his expertise to the table.
Shaun’s upbringing and career in the military allows him to be naturally comfortable with complexity and ambiguity. He has a specific focus on engaging organisations on a journey of strategic navigation, discovery and sense making., bringing enlightenment towards new identities through a regenerative lens and posture. Shaun brings new frames for organisations and communities to think in systems and the principles of nature, permitting the constant tensioning and resilience towards sustainable and prosperous outcomes.
Malcom has 40 years experience in the fields of Logistics and Supply Chain covering several areas. Retail, third party logistics, manufacturing and import / wholesale industries all fall under Malcolm’s skills, as well as his own third party logistics business in China. Malcolm has spent 15 years of the last 40 years consulting to a variety of organisations, increasing his exposure. Malcom’s latest venture is in designing, installing and servicing automated warehouses. In his spare time, Malcolm volunteers with Marine Rescue NSW.
