Our leaders

Sue Woodward AM commenced as Commissioner of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) on December 12, 2022. Previously she was Chief Adviser for Not-for-profit Law with the charity Justice Connect.

Sue was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in 2021 for “significant service to the not-for-profit sector, fundraising and the law.”

Sue played an instrumental role in the formation of the ACNC, serving as the inaugural Director of Policy and Education during the early years of the Commission.

She has been involved with a number of leadership bodies including: the Victorian Government Volunteer Strategy Taskforce, the Victorian Government’s Social Services Regulator Taskforce and the National Strategy for Volunteering Council.

In pursuit of a stronger, more resilient sector, Sue also contributed to the governance of organisations in the sector, most recently sitting on the boards of the Victorian Council of Social Service (VCOSS), the Human Rights Law Centre and the Australian Communities Foundation, and previously SANE Australia.

As an academic at Melbourne Law School, she made a seminal contribution to reform of the regulation for the charity and not-for-profit sector with her 2004 research report: 'A Better Framework: reforming the not-for-profit regulation'. Justice Connect’s Not-for-Profit Law service was established in 2008 based on her research recommendations.

Sue is also a staunch supporter of reducing unnecessary regulatory obligations on the sector. She has worked with an alliance of peak bodies and federal and state governments to make modernised and harmonised fundraising laws a priority.

To hear more from Sue, you can follow her on X @acncommissioner and on LinkedIn, and read her monthly Commissioner's Columns.

You can also listen to Sue talk about her career in the charity sector and her vision for the ACNC in our Charity Chat podcast.

Natasha is the senior legal advisor to the ACNC Commissioner and contributes to corporate and strategic leadership as a member of the Executive team.

Natasha has a broad range of experience and expertise across law and service delivery. She has held a number of senior leadership roles in the public service, specialising in both in house legal services and taxation law, in particular not-for-profits.

Natasha was awarded the first ACNC/ATO joint secondment to Justice Connect in recognition of her skills. Most recently, Natasha has led large workforces in the provision of service delivery with a heavy focus on the client experience. She was a 2023 National Finalist and the South Australian winner of the Auscontact Excellence Award ‘Customer Experience Champion.’

Previously at the ACNC, Natasha served as a lawyer and later as Acting Director Legal and Policy. She has been a volunteer and board member for several charities.

She is admitted to practice law and holds a Bachelor of Laws, a Bachelor of Arts, a Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice and a Master of Taxation.

A member of the ACNC management team since the establishment of the Commission, Rachel has worked in leadership roles in not-for-profit regulation for state and commonwealth agencies.

She guided the consumer protection services strategy for vulnerable and disadvantaged Victorians. She has also served as the District Registrar of the Migration Review Tribunal and the Refugee Review Tribunal which conducts independent merits review of decisions made by the Australian Government relating to migration and refugee visas and visa-related decisions.

Prior to her public service roles, Rachel worked in the not-for-profit sector for ten years at Australian Volunteers International, a registered charity committed to achieving economic and social development outcomes across Asia, The Pacific and the world through sharing skills, knowledge and experience. Rachel has also served on several not-for-profit boards.

Lisa is the acting Director of the Registration Team.

She has been with the ACNC since its establishment, initially working as a Senior Manager in the Registration team. In recent years, Lisa has focused on providing strategic solutions and operational oversight of new reform measures that impact the Registration area.

Lisa began her career as a chartered accountant at KPMG and has spent over 20 years specialising in the provision of taxation and business advice to small and medium sized businesses.

Lisa holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Master of Taxation Laws from the University of Melbourne and a Master of Business Administration from RMIT University.

Rajan is the Technical Director of the Registration team, and oversees the legal interpretation and risks associated with assessing charity registration eligibility at the ACNC. He is also responsible for the technical capability of the team.

Rajan commenced at the ACNC in 2012, and has worked in roles across the agency. He has a strong understanding of charity legislation and case law and has led the development of key ACNC wide initiatives.

Prior to joining the ACNC, he worked at a large professional services firm and has a background in tax and accounting.

Outside of work, Rajan has regularly volunteered at charities and been involved with community organisations.

As a values-driven professional, Karen's focus has always been communications with purpose, dedicating her career largely to not-for-profit organisations and to support pressing social issues. She has worked for organisations including the Australian Psychological Society and Our Watch.

As a leader she takes a collaborative approach to get the best out of her team, recognising their strengths and expertise. She has managed multi-disciplinary teams to deliver complex digital marketing and communications campaigns on critical issues affecting the health and wellbeing of Australians.

Karen also has extensive experience in public affairs, acting as an adviser to senior leaders. She provides advice on strategy, risk and reputation, as well as best practice communications tactics.

Joanna provides strategic advice and develops strategies to deal with and solutions to complex policy and operational law problems. She also provides leadership and direction to the in-house legal team.

Joanna started her career at Gadens Lawyers in Sydney before joining the NSW Crime Commission as a lawyer in law enforcement and integrity agencies. She then worked with the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission in Sydney before moving to Melbourne in 2013 to take up a role at the Independent Broad-based Anti-Corruption Commission.

Joanna is experienced in criminal law, administrative law and in managing the legal risk in compliance and investigations work in a law enforcement and integrity context. Joanna is pleased to be able to bring these skills to the regulatory environment.

Joanna holds a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of New South Wales. She was admitted to practice as a lawyer in 2003.

Tim’s team leads the collection of reporting from charities with a focus on reducing unnecessary regulatory obligations and ensures the ACNC has sound corporate governance arrangements.

Tim has been with the ACNC since its establishment, initially working as an analyst in the Registration area. He has worked across the public service for over 13 years.

Tim holds a Bachelor of Commerce/Arts (majoring in Economics and Finance) and is an accredited Project Management Professional with the Project Management Institute.

Prior to his work in the public service, Tim volunteered for a range of charities, with a focus on charities that assist asylum seekers and culturally and linguistically diverse communities.

Michelle is a career public servant of 25 years, with experience working in a variety of different agencies.

She started her public service career as a national park ranger, before becoming a sworn police officer and running investigations in the Australian Federal Police’s major crime units.

Michelle has worked as a director overseeing investigations, and compliance and regulatory operations for the last 15 years. Her specialties include building and construction, workplace relations, counter terrorism, aviation and maritime security, and identity fraud.

Michelle holds a Master of Politics and Policy with Distinction from Deakin University, a Bachelors Degree of Applied Science (Environmental Science) and a Graduate Diploma of Business Management.

Rob leads ACNC’s Information and Technology team in managing and developing its cloud hosted business and enterprise systems.

Rob has broad industry experience in Information Technology spanning 18 years across Australia and Europe.

His most recent roles include leading technical teams within the Department of Premier and Cabinet. Prior to this, he has held multiple roles in professional services and software companies.

Rob holds a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) and is completing a Masters of Information Technology Leadership.