Kathryn Brennan

APA is a leading Australian energy infrastructure business, owning and operating a $25 billion portfolio of gas, electricity, solar and wind assets

In this role, I lead a team of 29, serving as the crucial link delivering cross-functional technology and corporate business outcomes. I steer modern technology-driven change to meet stakeholder goals under a strategic roadmap. My focus is on delivering business-aligned project initiatives through innovative use of technology, enterprise application strategy, and implementation and monitoring of portfolio and product management. I have excellent communication with positive stakeholder relationships

• Leadership and Team Building: I show transformative leadership, having turned fragmented teams into a high-performing, cohesive department. I secure top talent, encourage professional growth, and build strong morale and psychological safety; driving high performance and successful delivery under pressure
• Change Management: I developed and led a strategic change project platform aimed at harmonising business processes, enterprise systems and services across key departments and preceded by Target Operating Model(s), successfully delivering on time and on budget $90M Workday implementation
• Governance and Strategic Vision: I align technology portfolios with business units, establishing a robust governance framework, ensuring regulatory compliance, optimising organisational investment and operations, and achieved audit readiness, enhancing transparency and accountability across the IT Domain team and Finance, Procurement and People Safety and Culture
• Continuous improvement: Lead and oversee Information Security Management and Cyber Awareness initiatives, collaborating with Security, Data, Portfolio teams
• Organisational Transformation: Spearhead the shift from a service provider to a valued business partner, achieving a 67% uplift in maturity from 1.5 to 2.5 on the Gartner Maturity Assessment Scale within 12 months
• Digital transformation Workday Implementation: Led the successful program delivery of SaaS ERP solution for Financials, HCM, Procurement, and Workday Strategic Sourcing. In the largest Workday implementation attempted in Australia until this point I overcame significant obstacles through strategic acumen, stakeholder management, and agile decision-making
• Operational Excellence: Executed a technology support model for APA’s largest transformation, transitioning from Oracle to Workday. Achieved zero redundancies and approximately $600k in cost avoidance
• Digital Chief: Oversaw creation of the enterprise architectural framework, organisational guidelines, successful transformation of the ServiceNow platform
• Business Partnerships: Forged strong partnerships with business areas, prioritising IT initiatives and product strategies to align with strategic goals. Enhanced collaboration with executive leadership, aligning business and technology.
• Clear Reporting, Analysis and System Requirements: logical and fit for purpose. Managed up and out, internal and external comms
• Lead the advancement of data management and governance to enhance the utility and integrity of data
• Impactful Leadership: Earned commendations for support, empathy, and prioritising psychological safety. Demonstrated servant leadership, fostering an inclusive, open, and trusting team culture

Company Overview: IPL is an ASX listed global manufacturing and resources company, including the key mining markets in North America, Asia Pacific, South Africa and South America

In this role I developed and implemented strategic plans and committed to continual business performance and profitability improvements across Service Delivery, Pricing and Risk, Learning, Security, Reporting, Strategy and Change departments. I was responsible for driving compliance, governance, and operational excellence. A global organisation with regional accountability.

• Enterprise SAP Customer Transformation and Digital Program Implementation: Implemented a Board-visible, enterprise-wide SAP customer solution to remediate a non-compliance finding, significantly reducing data-related risk, and supporting future growth
• Data and Risk Governance: Instituted principled data governance and ownership across the enterprise, ensuring robust controls were implemented and monitored
• Growth: Cultivated and collaborated on $38M investment in Australian Bio Fert Company. Part of the working group negotiating the sale of the fertiliser business for cash consideration
• Marketing integration: Developed and led sign-off of the three-year strategy and the consequent omni-channel rebrand refresh
• Solution Delivery: Orchestrated data development efforts for seamless SAP cutover and acquired business data migration, aligned with the strategic identity access management roadmap
• ISO 14001 Audit Readiness: Passed audit to become ISO 14001 certified. Achieved readiness by swiftly remediating over 30 long-standing security audit items and implementing iAuditor to help simplify and standardise the inspection process, providing much needed transparency to key stakeholders in order to better understand performance
• Business Continuity Planning: Orchestrated the implementation of a Business Continuity Plan ensuring operational resilience

Cassowary Coast Regional Council area comprises over 4000km2 of town, rural and coastal communities situated in the far north of Tropical Queensland.

Seconded from the role of GM Customer my role as Director involved strategic departmental management, senior stakeholder engagement, and the delivery of complex technology projects, demonstrating my ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage substantial budgets effectively.

• Sponsored $17M Genesys Contact Centre and Digital Transformation project; creating new teams and functionality, harmonising business processes and services across key departments
• Delivered independent review partnerships: partnering with various agencies to understand local needs and priorities, defining our focus and goals
• Introduced a comprehensive budget process: including briefings and development workshops, defining Guiding Principles and the delivery program, ensuring financial accountability and strategic allocation of resources
• Led a high-profile program for regulatory, compliance, and product-driven continuous improvement and configuration change following the digital transformation
• Workforce and services planning for over 200 team members and 11 services of council, ensuring optimal resource allocation and strategic direction to ensure best value for the community
• Established a technology front door to manage a change pipeline of over 30 initiatives, including a governance and prioritisation framework
• Established Council’s risk tolerances and risk appetite, and worked with the Local Government Association of Queensland to establish state-wide Strategic Risk Management policy and framework.

Bank of Ireland is historically the premier banking organisation in Ireland and one of the traditional Big Four Irish banks.

• Strategic leadership of the banks’ CX Transformation Programme, including 20 staff
• Drive simplification and automation programmes. Led the design of the Finance CX Transformation Project
• Drive an enterprise mindset: cultivating a way of thinking to prioritise overall success, by collaborating across silos, thinking long-term, and making decisions that benefit the whole company.