The Board

Michael joined in June 2020 and has brought some additional finance and accounting resources to the Board. He is a Chartered Accountant and partner at Accru Hobart, one of Hobart's premier accounting and business advisory firms. The firm, led by Michael and his partners, approaches business with a forward-thinking mentality and over 44 years of combined experience.

Michael wears many hats, and he has gained valuable experience by working in other board positions including CPAAI, Caritas Australia, and St Joseph Affordable Homes. Michael is keen to see the Foundation continue to grow and achieve its strategic goals. He has a passion for assisting researchers solve big problems and he has set a personal goal to ensure the Foundation continues to grow from strength to strength for generations to come.

Anna Grant joined the Board of Governance of the Royal Hobart Hospital Research Foundation in April 2015.  Anna brings to the Board a strong background in non-government board positions having previously been Director of Variety Children’s Charity Tasmania and served as Chair of that Board for two years.  Anna also served as a Director on the National Board of Variety the Children’s Charity until July 2015.  Anna also previously held the position of Community Member for the University of Tasmania Human Research Ethics Committee (Tasmania) Network.

Anna is a Partner at Butler McIntyre & Butler Lawyers specialising in Family Law. Anna serves on the Southern Law Council of  The Law Society of Tasmania and since 2010 has been the Coordinator of the practical components of the Family Law Practice for the post-graduate course for legal graduators conducted by the University of Tasmania.

Anna brings to the Royal Hobart Hospital Research Foundation experience and understanding of governance and the research sector, drafting and implementing policies and objectives, skills in developing and implementing events and a commitment and passion to achieving results that will enable the Royal Hobart Hospital Research Foundation to continue to meet and exceed its goals.

Craig Watson is the Executive Director of Services – South for the Tasmanian Health Service (THS), responsible for the Royal Hobart Hospital as well as the other southern area operations and current statewide services.

Prior to his present role Craig has held a number of senior and executive positions in a variety of state agencies during a 25 year career in the Tasmanian public service.

Nick is the Managing Director of Symic Pty Ltd. Symic is a private investment company specialising in venture capital, property development and equity investment.

Nick has extensive experience in the financial planning and stock broking industries and in merger and acquisitions in the financial services sector. He is a director of several companies including Symic Pty Ltd, Symic Developments Pty Ltd, Shippies (Hobart) Pty Ltd, 29 Trumpeter Street Pty Ltd and Focap Pty Ltd.  He has been a Responsible Manager and Responsible Executive for several Australian Financial Services Licensees.

Nick was the Chief Executive Officer responsible for the 2008 merger and integration of 14 leading independently owned financial advisory firms that formed the Shadforth Financial Group, creating one of Australia’s largest non-aligned financial advice groups. In 2014 SFG Australia was acquired by IOOF Limited for $670m making the combined group the 4th largest wealth management company in Australia.

Nick has a master’s degree in Applied Finance and a Master’s degree in Business Administration. He was awarded the McCarthy Medal as the top MBA graduate. He also has a Diploma of Financial Planning from Deakin University and was awarded the ANZ prize as the top graduate.  He has a Certificate in Financial Markets from the Securities Institute of Australia and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Nick is proud to serve on the RHH Research Foundation Board and helps guide the Foundation's investment and financial decision making.

Professor Tracey Dickson (BSc Hons PhD) is the Associate Dean Research, for the College of Health and Medicine at the University of Tasmania.

She leads a research group in the Menzies Institute for Medical Research and has a national and international reputation, and over 15 years’ experience, in the field of neurodegenerative disease research. She has successfully led previous NHMRC project grants, ARC Discovery projects and currently oversees a large multi-disciplinary Translational research program focussed on transitioning a novel Motor Neuron Disease drug targets along the preclinical to clinical pipeline.

Professor Dickson was recently awarded the Academic Mentoring Award at Menzies for recognition of the significant and ongoing contributions she has made to the career and professional development of staff and students.  The RHH Research Foundation was delighted to welcome Tracey to its Board in December 2018, a role in which she makes a significant contribution through a combination of expertise, insight and good humour.

Kathryn is a highly analytical healthcare management professional with over 18 years of experience in senior acute private hospital executive roles. Over 34 years of her life have been spent in the health industry which has given her great insight into how the industry operates from the ground up. Her passion for quality care for patients and the community is why Kathryn continues to strive for optimal patient outcomes in all clinical and hospital settings and continually sets ambitious targets for the teams she leads.

Kathryn is proficient in financial management and is an active member of the Foundation's IFARM committee.  She is the CEO of the Hobart Private Hospital where she currently mentors a number of up-and-coming future leaders, manages the hospital's operations, and directs the hospital's key stakeholder management.

Her passion to support the Foundation comes from a desire to ensure that Tasmania has a well-resourced medical research capacity now and into the future.

Hayden Armstrong joined the Board of the RHH Research Foundation in late 2021 and served on its Business Development Committee since 2020.

Hayden is the Managing Director of Armstrong’s Insurance Brokers Pty Ltd. Armstrong’s are a Tasmanian owned and operated General Insurance Broker specialising in the commercial insurance sector with offices in Hobart and Launceston. He has over 24 years’ experience in the insurance broking industry, and is a Responsible Manager under Armstrong’s Australian Financial Service License.

Hayden holds a Diploma of Financial Services (Insurance Broking) through the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance, he’s also a Senior Associate of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance, and a Certified Insurance Professional (C.I.P).

Hayden is extremely proud to represent the RHH Research Foundation Board and he’s excited to assist in shaping the foundation’s future directions as both a board and committee member.

Leani joined the board in 2022 and is the Director of Operations at the University of Tasmania for the College of Health and Medicine. Leani has an extensive background in Human Resources and related functions primarily within the healthcare sector. Leani’s experience has been gained from senior HR roles in the Australian and New Zealand Public and Private healthcare industries. Notable achievements include supporting the commissioning of two new private hospitals in ACT and South Australia, and overseeing the research governance function for a health service in Victoria.

Leani has undertaken business and healthcare tertiary education at both undergraduate and postgraduate level including a BA Hons (Psychology) and Masters of Business Administration specialising in Human Resources. Leani is a Certified Professional Member of the Australian Human Resources Institute and brings with her a wealth of knowledge in corporate governance. She has a passion for the Health and Community sector and has wants to see the RHH Research Foundation become one of the peak not for profit medical organisations in Tasmania.

Andrew joined the Foundation’s Board in 2022 and currently works in Executive Transformation, Digital and Strategy for TasNetworks.  

Andrew is a senior commercial executive with extensive experience in the business sector. He brings a wealth of knowledge to the board with his experience delivering outstanding business results when responsible for setting the strategy of an organisation & being responsible for its delivery.

Andrew has a passion and track record for creating profitable and customer-focused businesses, underpinned by high levels of employee engagement, and, as a result, he has driven innovation and transformational change both across domestic and international settings. Andrew, has been recognised as an expert on business strategy, profitable growth, customer-centricity, operations, and digital & cultural transformation.

Andrew looks forward to bringing these skills to the Foundation and being an active member of the Foundation’s Investment, Finance and Risk Management Committee and Business Development Committee.