Co-Founder, States of Change

Over 20 years experience of working on and leading innovation and reform initiatives around the world, the last 13 of which as a senior executive in government and not-for-profit organisations. I am a respected leader in the
global innovation community and over the last ten years, have advised governments in over 20 countries on ways that they can build an innovation culture and improve outcomes for citizens. I am recognised as an innovative
and strategic thinker and I regularly present to and advise national and global audiences on a wide range of issues relating to innovation and reform. I am currently the co-founder and Executive Director of States of Change, a global not-for-profit organisation committed to building the next generation of public innovation. States of Change was spun out of Nesta, one of the world’s pre-eminent innovation institutions, where I spent over six years as Executive Director of Global Innovation Partnerships and Director of Innovation Skills. I previously established The Australian Centre for Social Innovation in Adelaide as its founding CEO and have held several executive roles in the South Australian Government.

Chief Executive
Department of the Premier and Cabinet

Rick Persse was appointed to lead the Department of the Premier and Cabinet in December 2024.

An accomplished public sector leader, Rick joined the department after a successful period from April 2022 as South Australia’s Under Treasurer leading the Department of Treasury and Finance.

Prior to Treasury, Rick was Chief Executive of the Department for Education for 6 years, after leading the Attorney-General’s Department for 4 years.

With expertise in policy and strategy development, transformation, public sector reform and major project delivery, Rick’s knowledge of public administration comes from an expansive career building and leading teams in the Government of South Australia.

Sandy is an experienced public-sector leader, having led government agencies in both Victoria and South Australia.

Sandy was the inaugural Secretary of the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing in Victoria, an agency that supported six Ministers and spanned human services, child protection, family violence, housing and communities’ policy and service delivery.

Throughout the height of the pandemic in 2020 Sandy led the Victoria COVID-19 response that returned the state to COVID-19 zero.

Sandy’s initial role in Victoria was leading higher education, skills and training.

Prior to working for the Victorian government, Sandy was the Chief Executive of the South Australian Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources, where she focussed on a vibrant nature-based tourism strategy for South Australia, connecting people to parks and delivering on the state’s ambitious Climate Change agenda.

And prior to that, Sandy was Deputy Chief Executive of the South Australian Department of Premier and Cabinet for five years.

She has also served as the Director of the South Australian Office for Women.

In 2012 Sandy was awarded the South Australian Telstra Business Woman of the year for the Community and Public sector category, and went on to win the national title in November 2012.

Sandy has worked in London, primarily as the head of Corporate and Parliamentary Affairs in the UK’s Commission for Racial Equality, and has previously worked in Commonwealth public sector roles in Canberra and Sydney.

Educated at the University of Adelaide, Sandy has degrees in law and the humanities.

She was raised in Mannum, has two children, a dog and a puppy to keep her on her toes.

In August 2022, Sandy returned to the South Australian Government as Deputy Under Treasurer, after working for several years in the Victorian public sector. She is currently the Chief Executive of the Department of Human Services.

Principal Workforce Planner,

Department for Health and Wellbeing

Katherine is an experienced and strategic workforce planner with a strong track record in leading system-wide health workforce initiatives. She is skilled in applying data-driven modelling, labour market analysis, and stakeholder engagement to inform recruitment, retention, and redesign strategies, with a proven ability to align workforce planning with clinical priorities, emerging service demands, and long-term reform objectives to support a sustainable and capable health workforce.

Katherine is the Chair of the Department’s ‘Access All Areas’ Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Employee Resource Group, championing initiatives that improve access, belonging and representation across disability, neurodiversity and caring responsibilities.

She is an active mentor with the University of South Australia (now Adelaide University) Business Career Mentor Program and the Department’s Peers Offering Peers Support Program, contributing expertise to support the next generation of health sector professionals.

Katherine is also a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD), Certified Health Informatician Australasia (CHIA), member of the Australasian Institute of Digital Health (AIDH), Vice President of the Australasian College of Health Service Management (ACHSM) SA Branch Council and Treasurer of the Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) SA.

She is passionate about innovation, ethical governance, and designing healthier systems for the future – and always open to connecting with peers who share a commitment to creating positive change.