SPP - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Senior Engagement Manager
Adrian Coates is a Senior Engagement Manager at SPP who helps clients solve their most complex and challenging strategic issues with a customer-centric, data-driven and commercial mindset. Adrian's experience has seen him work across a number of B2C and B2B sectors and geographies. Prior to joining SPP, Adrian spent 8 years working in the media and entertainment sector across manager roles in strategy, data and research.
Aleksandar Vuruna is a Senior Associate at SPP who brings close to three years' experience working at both a global professional services firm and a fast-growing technology start-up, delivering strategic and commercial analysis to solve customer and business problems.
Aleksandar holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Economics and Finance) from the University of Melbourne.
Andrew Wei is a Senior Associate at SPP with key interests in complex problem-solving, business strategy, and government. Prior to joining SPP, Andrew gained extensive experience in the civil engineering industry, with a focus on designing complex commercial structures in regions prone to high seismic activity.
Andrew holds a dual degree in Civil Engineering and Commerce from the University of Auckland.
Anthea Sijan is a Consultant at SPP with experience in public policy, economics and strategy consulting. Prior to joining SPP Anthea spent three years working in Big Four consulting on business cases, evaluations, and regulatory reviews for public and education sector clients. Anthea has particular experience undertaking cost-benefit analysis to support high value, high risk business cases, and mixed method evaluations for social policies.
Anthea holds a Bachelor of Biomedicine (Immunology and Microbiology, specialising in Biotechnology) and a Master of Health (Economics and Evaluation), both from the University of Melbourne.
Job Titles:
- Consultant
- Senior Consultant
Astrid Munder is a Consultant at SPP with extensive experience in the higher education and research sector. Prior to joining SPP, Astrid worked in Enterprise and Innovation at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health. Astrid furthermore holds a PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Cambridge and spent over 10 years in biomedical research at leading universities/institutes before moving to consulting.
Ben Apted is the Senior Partner of SPP. Ben leads SPP's Education, Research and Digital Practices. Ben is a thought leader and contributor nationally and internationally on higher education strategy, engagement and operations. He has led transformation of government service delivery in three states. Ben has also developed new policies and programs in innovation, ICT, growth & productivity and sector development.
Ben Widmann is a Research Associate at SPP, with key interests in asset intensive industries, financial services, government, and consumer. Prior to SPP, Ben has worked in strategy consulting both domestically and internationally, whilst gaining experience in economic advisory and the local start-up space in Australia.
Ben is currently completing his Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in Economics and Finance at the University of Melbourne.
Bruce Bayley is a Partner at SPP and has built strong expertise and connections in the Education and Government sectors. At the University of Melbourne, he held positions including Director of Strategy and Commercialisation and VP International. Bruce has also worked with other tier 1 consultancies including the Boston Consulting Group, and with Big 4 and other accounting firms. Working on commercial projects for clients, he brings an extensive knowledge of the evolving online education space; a deep understanding of innovation and commercialisation, hands-on operational expertise; a strong understanding of doing business in Asia through establishing operations in these markets; and, direct experience in the vocational education sector.
Cian Langan is a Consultant at SPP, specialising in growth strategies, business case development, and process improvement. With previous experience at a Big 4 consultancy and a Fortune 500 technology company, Cian has expertise working with clients in diverse sectors including government, higher education, consumer goods, and medical industries. Cian is passionate about building collaborative relationships with clients to drive sustainable success in their business. Cian holds a First Class Honours degree in International Relations from the University of Queensland.
Clara Yates is a Principal at SPP and works closely with organisations to tackle their major strategic challenges. Clara brings particular expertise in the Education sector having worked with Universities, VET providers, Online Education Providers, Research Institutes and education policy makers for over 7 years.
Clara's sector experience also spans government, consumer goods, sports and entertainment, transport and logistics, and not for profit. A former engineer, Clara brings functional expertise in business case development, growth strategy, organisational strategy and transformation and performance improvement.
Prior to joining SPP Clara worked for the Victorian Government in senior strategic planning and policy roles. She holds degrees in engineering and science from Melbourne University, and a MBA from Melbourne Business School where she graduated on the Dean's Honours List.
Craig Lofts is a Principal at SPP and brings broad experience and perspectives having consulted and worked in the education, government, NFP, property, defence and manufacturing sectors. Craig has a proven track record of delivering pragmatic outcomes for clients who need complex problems resolved with clear insights, interpretation and solutions. Craig leads projects with an inclusive and collaborative approach and, as a trained in futures thinking practitioner, likes to combine sharp focus on the goal with a full spectrum thinking approach.
Job Titles:
- Senior Consultant
- Senior Consultant ( Data Specialist )
- Senior Consultant and Data Specialist
Daniel Mellish is the Senior Consultant and Data Specialist at SPP, with over 20 years of experience in key finance and data analysis positions in ASX Top 50, Big Four consulting and other large organisations. He brings expertise in data visualisation, financial analysis and performance and management reporting. Daniel is a Chartered Accountant (CA), a Financial Modelling Valuation Analyst (FMVA) and has completed a Graduate Diploma of Applied Finance and Investment.
David Mackay is a Partner at SPP and he leads SPP's Sports, Media & Entertainment and FMCG/Retail practices. David assists organisations to develop and execute business and technology strategy, and improve business performance through people, process and technology. David has worked extensively across government, education and the private sector to foster and grow cross-sector collaborations and achieve transformational change.
Fraser Roberton is a Research Associate at SPP with a comprehensive academic background in finance, economics and accounting. Fraser's passion lies in strategy and utilising a collaborative-driven approach to support transformational change. While working with SPP, he is undertaking a Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Finance at Monash University.
Prior to joining SPP, Fraser has volunteered with 180 Degrees Consulting specialising in funding and feasibility analysis in the not-for-profit sector. He has also engaged with sponsors and other stakeholders while working with the Economic Student Society of Australia.
George Waterman is an Associate at SPP with key interests in growth strategy, business case development and process design. George takes a structured approach to problem solving to support clients in developing impactful solutions to their strategic challenges. Prior to joining SPP, George worked in the public sector across energy markets, infrastructure regulation and industry codes.
George holds a Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Economics and Politics) from the University of Melbourne, with an Honours year completed in Economics.
Graeme Chipp is a Senior Advisor at SPP which merged with Growth Solutions Group (GSG) in 2018, a firm he co-founded and led for 20 years.
Graeme is an acknowledged leader in the fields of growth and brand strategy, marketing, channel and organisational effectiveness. He brings a unique mix of management consulting and senior executive experience to strategy development, marketing, and organisation transformation.
His 30 plus years business experience offers a unique mix of board, strategic advisory and senior executive line and marketing roles including twelve years serving on RACV Group board.
Graeme has advised many of Australia's leading companies across a variety of sectors including retail, leisure, apparel, grocery, food, wine, tourism, home and garden, health and financial services.
He is a Fellow of the Australian Marketing Institute, co-author of the book, Marketing in the Boardroom and in 2007 was awarded CPM Marketer of the year.
Gustaf Sorman-Nilsson is a Consultant at SPP who assists organisations design and deliver strategies. Gustaf has deep expertise in developing operational plans and leading their implementation in higher education.
Prior to joining SPP, Gustaf spent more than ten years working in strategy and operational roles in professional services, the not-for-profit sector as well as the Australian and Swedish higher education institutions.
Hannah Jackson is a Senior Associate at SPP with key interests in Research, Government, Education and Business Strategy. Hannah takes an analytical, collaboration-driven approach in creating transformational change to support clients in achieving their strategic and operational goals.
Hannah holds a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts from Monash University
Ian Cooke has worked across the interface of science and industry since commencing his professional career with joint appointments at Princeton University and AT&T Bell Laboratories in the US.
He has extensive experience in the conduct, management and leadership of major translational research and technology commercialisation ventures across the fields of infectious diseases and neuroscience and has formed and led spin-off companies in both disciplines.
He has held senior academic and executive management positions at Deakin University, Monash University, the Burnet Institute and The Florey Institute and was the CEO of the Australian Cooperative Research Centre for Mental Health.
Additionally, he was formerly the Principal Analyst and then CEO at the distinguished boutique consulting firm Foursight Associates, where he provided expert technical advice to venture capital and private equity investors in life science ventures and strategic advice to major Australian academic and research organisations.
He is currently a Professorial Fellow at Monash University, where he teaches technology commercialisation in several masters degree programs and is engaged in the early-stage commercialisation of neuroscience innovations.
Ian is a Senior Advisor at SPP having been a Partner of the firm prior to July 2022.
For over 35 years, Ian's principal focus has been on growth strategy working with high tech, telco and consumer facing businesses across Australia, Asia, Europe and North America.
Prior to SPP, Ian was the Asia-Pacific Managing Partner for Delotte's Strategy and Operations Practice, a member of the Board's of both the Australian and New Zealand Deloitte member firms.
In addition to his professional services experience, Ian has been a C-Suite executive with a top 50 ASX Listed corporation and serves on a number of Boards.
Ian has a Bachelor of Economics (Monash) and is a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Ian completed his first degree in Newcastle upon Tyne England and moved to Melbourne Australia in 1984 to complete his PhD and embark on a post doc at Prince Henrys Institute. In 1991 Ian moved to the Baker Heart Research Institute and was Associate Director until his move to Monash University in 2004. Up until the end of 2020, Ian was Vice-Provost (Research & Research Infrastructure) at Monash University, where he played a university-wide leadership role, with responsibility for research strategy, infrastructure and alliances. A major focus was building linkages to industry and encouraging large companies and SMEs to use the university's globally-recognised research capabilities and tools to innovate, capture new opportunities and solve problems.
Ian has a background in both industry and research. He is a leader in his field of medical research, which has resulted in over 260 publications and many patents. Ian still receives regular invitations to speak at international meetings and his research has had a direct impact on human health leading to changes in clinical practice. Ian also co-founded a proteomics-based, publicly listed, biotechnology company, which he helped build to IPO and trade sale and he continues to collaborate and consult widely with the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry.
Ian is now Professor Emeritus at Monash and as well as consulting, Ian is a board director and chair of a number of national and international senior government and non-government governing and advisory boards as well as serving on a number of national and international committees.
Ian's unique background in business and research drives his passion to get entrepreneurs and industry collaborating and using university research capabilities to innovate. He believes that Australia lags behind many countries in utilising this enormous asset and is passionate about finding ways to make the collaborative process as efficient and effective as possible for industry, sharing outcomes and success stories to build awareness.
James Carrington is a Senior Consultant at SPP who helps clients develop meaningful solutions to their most complex strategic challenges with a collaborative, customer-focused and commercial approach. Prior to joining SPP, James has worked in professional and industry-focused consulting roles with a focus on customer growth strategies, business case development and process design.
Job Titles:
- Senior Engagement Manager
John Colley is a Senior Advisor at SPP and is the founder of JTC Coaching and Consulting and brings a unique mix of commercial expertise, executive coaching, strategy development, operational best practice and culture transformation.
Before joining SPP, John's experience included being the inaugural Chief Operating Officer for a private start-up in the property/hospitality sector and several highly successful years as a General Manager within Deakin University.
John is a performance-driven management consultant and project executive with over 18 years of experience in leveraging transformational change management strategies, delivering innovative solutions and the development of best practice. He has worked with some of Australia's leading tertiary and secondary education brands, along with start ups and SMEs in a variety of industries. He has a proven record of achievement, from establishing the strategic vision and direction of companies to implementing operational strategies for sustainable organisational change.
Jordan Kibukamusoke is a Consultant at SPP with experience supporting a number of clients address their strategic and operational challenges. Jordan has primarily engaged with the public sector to provide project management improvement, transformational change, risk and assurance advisory.
Jordan holds a Bachelor of Commerce (majoring in Economics) and a Bachelor of International Security Studies from the Australian National University.
Job Titles:
- Associate / Consulting Team
Nellie Foo is a Senior Associate at SPP with key interests in business strategy, complex problem solving and data-driven insights. Prior to joining SPP, Nellie worked at a boutique management consulting firm providing strategic advice to C-suite on their most critical business challenges. She has experience in pricing strategies, data analysis, financial modelling and research.
Nellie holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting and Finance) from the University of Melbourne.
Phil Noble is the Founder and Managing Partner of SPP. He is an experienced General Manager, Consultant and Entrepreneur and has worked in a wide range of industries including financial services, telecommunications, infrastructure and Not for Profit. Phil has significant expertise and experience in business strategy development, major projects strategy development, and running large scale transformation programs.
Job Titles:
- National Talent Acquisition Manager
Job Titles:
- Associate / Consulting Team