The leading network of Health, Human Service and Public Sector Leaders.
Our Executive Search & Recruitment network is unrivalled, and by engaging HG we connect our clients to the best talent from around the world. As the competition for talent intensifies, domestically and globally, our clients trust in our ability to secure a successful and timely appointment, the first time, every time.
Recent Key Appointments
Organisations trust HardyGroup
to find great talent to deliver on their mission.
John Doherty
Executive Director | SA Pathology
Shannon Kay
Assistant Commissioner Custodial Operations with the Northern Territory Department of Corrections.
Dr Caroline Seelig
Chief Executive at Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.
Megan Peters
Clinical Services Director at Nelson Tasman Hospice.
Ben Prest
Director Clinical Operations | Family Planning Australia (NSW).
John Doherty
Executive Director | SA Pathology
HG is delighted to announce the appointment of John Doherty as Executive Director of SA Pathology.
John is an accomplished scientific and public sector executive with more than 35 years of leadership across forensic science, justice and health. He has a strong record of delivering complex organisational transformation, strengthening governance, and leading large multidisciplinary teams in highly regulated, high‑stakes environments. His experience includes major operational improvements, accreditation leadership, and strategic delivery of national standards and ISO‑aligned quality systems.
John has held senior executive roles in Forensic Science SA, Queensland Health and Victoria Police, where he oversaw significant reform programs, large technical workforces, and budgets exceeding $75 million. Notably, he delivered statewide COVID‑19 testing capability under extreme pressure and led major workforce, cultural and governance improvements across multiple jurisdictions.
Renowned for his political acumen, crisis leadership, and values‑driven approach, John brings deep experience engaging with ministers, regulators, media and community stakeholders. He is widely recognised for advancing scientific excellence, quality assurance, and public accountability.
HG congratulates John on his appointment with SA Pathology.
Shannon Kay
Assistant Commissioner Custodial Operations with the Northern Territory Department of Corrections.
HG is delighted to announce the appointment of Shannon Kay as Assistant Commissioner Custodial Operations with the Northern Territory Department of Corrections.
Shannon is a highly experienced correctional executive with more than 25 years’ leadership across custodial operations, system reform, and executive assurance in complex and high‑risk environments. He has held senior roles across Corrective Services NSW, with accountability for multi‑site custodial portfolios, large multidisciplinary workforces, and significant operational budgets, consistently driving improvements in safety, performance, and governance outcomes.
In his current role as Director, Security and Custody, Shannon leads sensitive assurance and review activity across high‑security custodial settings, providing strategic advice on legislative compliance, system risk, and operational performance. He has also served as Acting Assistant Commissioner, Work and Education, where he oversaw a $145 million portfolio spanning correctional industries, inmate education, and workforce capability.
Shannon is recognised for leading complex reform and delivering measurable outcomes, including major cost efficiencies, strengthened governance, and system-wide performance improvement.
HG congratulates Shannon on his appointment and is delighted to support him in this important leadership role.
Dr Caroline Seelig
Chief Executive at Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.
HG is delighted to announce Dr Caroline Seelig as the new Chief Executive at Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.
Caroline brings extensive leadership experience in the tertiary and vocational education sector, including senior roles as Acting Chief Executive of Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology and Chief Executive of the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand. She has successfully led large-scale organisational transformation, including the transition to digitally enabled vocational delivery, alongside strengthening academic quality, financial performance, and stakeholder engagement across complex, multi-campus institutions.
With a strong background in educational leadership and system reform, Caroline is committed to innovation, regional connectivity, and excellence in vocational education, and will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.
HG congratulates Caroline on this appointment and looks forward to her continued impact.
Megan Peters
Clinical Services Director at Nelson Tasman Hospice.
HG is delighted to announce the appointment of Megan Peters as Clinical Services Director at Nelson Tasman Hospice.
Megan is a senior clinical pharmacist and pharmacist prescriber with extensive experience across primary care, aged residential care and community health. She is recognised for delivering safe, patient centred care and for her contribution to integrated, multidisciplinary models of practice.
Currently working across general practices in the Nelson Tasman region, Megan provides complex medication management and prescribing services, improving access, medication safety and continuity of care. Her background also includes senior leadership roles in community pharmacy, with responsibility for clinical governance, service development and quality improvement initiatives.
HG congratulates Megan on this appointment and looks forward to her continued impact.
Ben Prest
Director Clinical Operations | Family Planning Australia (NSW).
HG is delighted to announce the appointment of Ben Prest as the new Director Clinical Operations at Family Planning Australia (NSW).
Ben is a highly experienced health leader with deep expertise spanning national standards and accreditation, digital mental health, clinical governance, and large scale program delivery. He brings more than 15 years’ experience operating in complex not for profit and government health systems, with a strong record leading multi site, multidisciplinary services and driving service transformation.
Ben joins Family Planning Australia from St Vincent’s Health Australia, where he has been Program Manager for THIS WAY UP, a national digital mental health service supporting over 350,000 consumers and 40,000 clinicians. In this executive role, he has overseen strategic and operational performance, clinical governance, financial stewardship, workforce capability and large scale digital service delivery. His leadership has been instrumental in strengthening governance frameworks, securing significant Commonwealth investment, diversifying revenue streams and expanding access for priority populations.
Earlier in his career, Ben held senior roles at the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, where he led the development of the National Safety and Quality Digital Mental Health Standards and contributed to national implementation of the NSQHS Standards. He has a strong background in stakeholder engagement, policy development, partnership management and advancing evidence based, consumer centred models of care.
Ben holds a Master of Public Health and a Bachelor of Arts (Hons, First Class) from the University of Sydney.
HG is delighted for Ben as he steps into this role with Family Planning Australia (NSW), contributing his operational, commercial and governance expertise to support high quality, accessible reproductive and sexual health services across NSW.
HG’s Panel Partnerships
HG is a trusted advisor and provider of permanent and interim recruitment solutions for clients across Australia and New Zealand. In circumstances which require it, HG can also be your partner of choice by engaging us through the following government panels.
WA Country Health Service Panel
SA Recruitment Agency Services Panel
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment Panel
Executive Recruitment Panel
Central Australia Health Service Panel
All of Government Talent Acquisition Services (TAS) contract.
NSW Government Talent Acquisition Scheme
LGA Procurement – Labor hire and recruitment Services
Recruitment and Immigration Agency Panel Primary Agency – Canberra Health Services
The Management Advisory Services (MAS) Panel
Industries we serve
Public Health
Private Health
Primary u0026 Community Care
Aged Care
Disability Services
Public Sector
Meet our Principal Consultants
HG’s Principal Search Consultants have held Chief and Senior Executive roles within the industries we serve. Their extensive leadership profiles enable them to swiftly establish trust and rapport with both clients and candidates, clearly understand the roles they have been asked to recruit to and importantly, the organisational and environmental context in which they exist.
Our evidenced based search methodology, extensive networks and talented team have led to the successful placement of 4,000+ executives.
Lynette Taylor
Executive Director, Search & Recruitment
A senior executive leader with experience in private and public sectors across health, logistics and human resource sectors. With nearly two decades of experience as a senior executive in a multinational company, Lynette brings a comprehensive global and commercial perspective to her role, focusing on the attraction, retention, and development of executive-level candidates.
Paul Ingle
Chief Executive Officer
Paul Ingle is the Chief Executive Officer of HG. In addition to his leadership responsibilities, he conducts senior executive and board recruitment assignments and facilitates HG’s Executive Learning Sets. Paul has been a Chief Executive in both the public and private sector for over 20 years, having worked in New Zealand, the UK and Australia. He brings a wealth of experience in supporting organisational leadership, reform, employee wellbeing, and cultural transformation.
Christine Leahy
Executive Director Leadership and Learning
Christine Leahy is a seasoned executive Human Resources specialist with over 25 years of experience in prestigious national and international corporations. Armed with a Bachelor of Commerce, she has played pivotal roles in HR, aiding companies in recruiting and retaining top-tier talent, thereby enhancing organizational culture and business performance. In addition to her leadership responsibilities, Christine conducts senior executive recruitment assignments and facilitates HG’s Executive Learning Sets.
Sarah Buckler
State Manager, Queensland
Sarah Buckler has an extensive background and in-depth understanding of the public sector in Australia and New Zealand. She has over twenty-five years of experience in executive leadership roles and appointments to advisory and governing boards across public, private and quasi-government boards and authorities. Sarah is a recipient of the Australia Day Honours and was awarded the Public Service Medal for her contributions to regional development, investment attraction, public sector administration, leadership, and governance.
David Price
National Manager, New Zealand
David Price is the National Manager of HG New Zealand. He is an internationally experienced senior leader and healthcare innovator known for pioneering system design, co-design, and patient experience reform across New Zealand, Australia, and the UK.
Liz Hlipala
Principal Search Consultant
Liz Hlipala has an in-depth understanding and knowledge of the healthcare sector in Australia today. She brings more than three decades of experience working in the healthcare sector at senior executive levels to any consultancy she undertakes. Liz has participated as an Executive Director of the governing boards and senior leadership teams of large health networks and the department of health in South Australia, given her an understanding of these complex organisations’ leadership and performance requirements.
Dr Karen Bridgewater
Senior Researcher
Karen is an academic researcher with experience investigating, designing, recruiting, conducting and reporting. Through her career, Karen has not only finely honed her academic and population-relevant research skills, but also forged relationships in the public and private health sectors, multiple universities, and non-government organisations. Consequently, Karen brings to HardyGroup a unique combination of established research excellence, and industry-relevant, highly valuable interpersonal relationship insights and skills.
Janine Hammat
Principal Search Consultant
Janine is a versatile senior human resources executive with many years’ experience at the executive level in both the public and private sectors. She is a proactive leader of people strategy and cultural alignment in diverse and complex organisations. Her knowledge across all facets of human resources and her ability to partner with other senior executives and staff, and to translate organisational strategy into pragmatic and operable outcomes, enables her to deliver quality results.
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H26_5529
Advanced Divisional Nursing Director, Division of Paediatric Medicine
Adelaide, South Australia
Ready to make people your organisation’s greatest asset?
