Katie Walls

Positioned in District Mental Health Alcohol and Other Drugs, I service a large region from Grafton to Tweed Heads, incorporating Inpatient and Community Mental Health services. I travel and work with diverse internal and external clients, incorporating community clients, inpatients, clinicians, stakeholders, and service providers.

• Facilitating and actioning all aspects of the NDIS journey, including Access Request applications, compiling clinical evidence with clinicians, planning, plan implementation, plan utilisation, and service engagement with a primary focus on building the capacity of mental health clinicians across the district around NDIS.
• Developing and presenting in-service training and presentations to educate clinicians on access request processes; compiling required letters and reports containing the correct content and language to maximise client NDIS access; and obtaining the required financial packages to adequately meet care needs.
• Identifying clients and patients needing care support via community services and NDIS services. Identifying impacted capacity and required support needs.
• Working closely with clinicians, engaging and overseeing community service providers to implement participant support care, rehabilitation,and capacity/skill-building services whilst building clinicians’ capacity around NDIS and community-engaged supports.
• Working collaboratively with NDIA, NDIS and Local Area Coordinators. NDIS Support Coordinators, Psychosocial recovery coaches, Occupational Therapists, Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Social Workers, Nurses, Medical Specialists and GPs to identify impacted capacity support needs and complete access to NDIS services and engagement with appropriate services, supports and programs.
• Consistently achieving large NDIS funding packages to adequately meet clientele's care needs. Northern Rivers packages are consistently well above the average NDIS psychosocial disability support packages.
• Manage and oversee poor and inadequate service and care support delivery and instigate corrective action or changes in engaged service providers as required. Report instances of indicated fraudulent activity or any concern in participant care to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. Incorporating clinician capacity building in these activities and processes.
• Producing and delivering training workshops and educational resources to clinicians to improve their knowledge, skills, capacity and confidence in supporting patients and clients with NDIS access, NDIS processes and engagement of services.
• Change management initiatives: The NDIS recently changed all systems, various processes, and legislation, resulting in significant functional challenges and considerable delays. I proactively instigated change management strategies, incorporating analysis, planning, consultation, stakeholder engagement, process, and administrative changes and delivered clinician briefing sessions and training where required. This process receives ongoing monitoring and review to adapt to the changing NDIS landscape.
• Change management initiative: supporting the introduction and ongoing completion of the discharge assessment process in inpatient units throughout the region, identifying obstacles, implementing change management strategies, incorporating training to address skill-based barriers, and discreetly working to break down any staff behavioural reluctance. Discharge Assessment completion rates are consistently improving, and an ongoing evaluation of discharge assessment completion is conducted.
• Built strong collaboration with the region’s Social Futures leadership team (a key stakeholder in representing NDIS services locally) to strengthen working relationships between health and NDIS LAC representatives and improve service delivery time frames. Conducting monthly leadership team meetings and weekly discussions to identify and resolve emerging issues impacting the delivery of support to clients. With specific attention on progressing aftercare services for recently discharged or at risk of readmission clients. I facilitate these meetings, providing proactive recommendations to remedy issues, requesting service delivery time frames, and following up on accountability of agreed outcomes.
• Providing robust and consistent client advocacy and documentation in NDIS planning meetings, change of circumstance and SIL meetings. Achieving consistent above-average psychosocial financial support plans for clients and patients.
• Timely statistical data reporting and analysis to key management and the Ministry of Health. Maintaining accurate documentation and reporting outcomes adhering to policies and procedures.
• Attending and contributing to clinician MDT, Client stakeholder and Care planning meetings throughout the district hospitals and Community Health units. Identifying inpatients and at-risk community health clients requiring NDIS access or increased care supports and services to live well and supported in the community. Instigating required access processes.
• Working closely with the NDIS Hospital Liaison Officer and Disability Inclusion Manager to escalate inpatient referrals for NDIS services, compiling required documentation for referrals and service submissions. Monitoring progression and managing obstacles as needed.
• Activating and managing community escalation pathways to accelerate the delivery of support for critical care support needs for community-managed clients. Remedy any presenting obstacles.
• Identifying frequent presenters to Emergency Departments or mental health services and facilitating a support care evaluation and implementation or review of supports and services to reduce presentations to ED and inpatient admissions and to support people to live well in their home environments and communities.
• Mentoring and developing new employees in NDISMHO positions

Working with clients with various psychosocial and physical disabilities such as severe anxiety disorders and phobias, social conditions, autism, stroke, schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorders, mood, personality and anxiety disorders, chronic depression, bipolar, post-traumatic stress disorder, amputations, and dementia.

• Reduced patient anxiety through active listening, problem-solving, and crisis intervention techniques.
• Recognised and responded to signs of potential self-harm or suicide risk, utilising appropriate intervention strategies and resources to ensure patient safety.
• Worked with several complex community case-managed clients. While working with these clients and implementing developed programs to address behavioural obstacles impacting their day-to-day living, they had no further hospital admissions following a pattern of admissions.
• Developed and implemented programs to support clients in overcoming obstacles and achieving their goals. This included attending medical consultations, setting targets, skill and developmental building, and teaching and implementing strategies to deal with and address anxiety. Adjusting programs to meet changing requirements.
• Medicine administration.
• Supporting clients’ personal and health care needs.
• Assisted clients with tasks of daily living, including training to cook, managing finances, supporting exercise, and developing consistency with day-to-day supportive living routines.
• Provided emotional support and counselling for individuals and their families.
• Worked in collaboration with healthcare providers to coordinate and implement clients’ care plans.
• Supported client engagement with NSW Health clinicians and private practice health services.
• Support with engagement with a diverse range of social activities.
• Understanding of National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) services and processes.

Provided Federal government Vocational Education and Training (VET) loans to students was a new initiative for the college. I was responsible for setting up systems and processes to support strict government policies for implementation, monitoring and compliance requirements. Maximised financial accessibility for people to engage in professional studies.

• Supported business financial requirements to enhance service delivery.
• compiled documentation required for government audits
• Management of complex government and organisational reporting, financial reconciling and service delivery systems. The many various platforms were not linked and required astute analytical and system management abilities.
• Managed all aspects of VET loans, ensuring student prerequisites were strictly met. Initiated all loans and managed all related documents and complex systems. Provided strong client service and the ability to manage and resolve various situations.
• Supporting students with service enquiries regarding their studies, course enrolment, classes, and study material.
• Financial management processing for the company’s monthly VET payments for all VET students on the various government reporting platforms.
• Financial reconciliation of VET payments, identifying anomalies and following up requirements with students, the enrolment team and the Government VET reporting department.
• Setting up each VET student’s financials on three different software reporting platforms. High detail and accuracy are required. All anomalies must be identified and recorded, as this information determines the company's monthly VET payments.
• Conducting all aspects of monthly and annual reporting on various government systems and reporting platforms.
• Conducting and overseeing all aspects of compliance regarding student VET enrolments.
• Managing Visa compliance checks and enrolment documentation checks
• Supporting students with course deferrals and withdrawals, including all aspects of processing and implementation.

Managed all aspects of recruitment throughout the company, including workflow analysis and evaluating staffing needs and job specifications, compiling employment ads, candidate selection, interviewing, reference checking processes, and staff appointment.

• Management and delivery of company employee orientation and organisational training.
• Strategic commissioning management: consistently meeting organisational short and long-term objectives via analysis, design, implementation and review. Sourcing proficient suppliers, analysing comparative pricing structures, scheduling and monitoring service delivery ongoing review and quality assessment. Engaging organisations, including educational providers for specialist training, contractors and services specialists for projects, manufacturing of specialist parts, local, interstate and international freight transportation specialists, service specialists, and legal and contract specialists.
• developed and implemented strategies in collaboration with with senior and department managers to assess organisational and department staffing needs, designing and implementing strategies to address short and long-term needs.
• Developed and implemented change management strategies to support staff and service delivery through the various stages of business expansion, changing markets, and financial environments.
• Maintained strickt compliance with all local, state and federal laws and established organisational standards. Meeting all OHS requirements, creating policies and procedures, and ensuring staff adherence.
• Developed strong relationships with key suppliers, service providers, and clients.
• Achieved desired work environment and performance by proactively advising and guiding employees and contractors on best practices and implementing training and tailored staff development programmes.
• Extensive professional counselling, mediation, mentoring and problem resolution.
• Developed and implemented a workplace safety curriculum for training and education.
• Established wellbeing and professional development incentives to support staff job satisfaction, wellbeing and retention.
• Liaising with and supporting accounts regarding payroll and staff entitlements. Compiled and delivered annual compensation and benefit comparison reports to the senior management team, provided recommendations to improve the company's remuneration and employee offerings.
• Developed and managed performance review process throughout the company. Identifying staff training needs analysis, structuring training programs, and outsourcing training where required to optimise further skills, job satisfaction, profitability, and retention.
• Fostered a great working environment and conditions for staff.
• Managed employee relations and supporting staff morale.
• Facilitated monthly meeting with management to discuss staffing or organisational aspects and proposing best practice solutions.
• Advising senior management on appropriate employee corrective actions when required.
• Liasion between the company and outside legal and professional resources to ensure that all employment policies, entitlements, and other aspects of the business follow current laws and regulations.
• Co-managing and overseeing the service department, service coordinator and Operations Coordinator / Marketing Manager.
• Identifyed and coordinating the sales team initiates to enhance team work and relationship building to further to position the company more competitively nationally.
• Identifying and coordinating marketing initiatives to further enhance the company's positioning in the industry and to gain a broader audience on the web and social media platforms.
• Developed solid collaborative working relationships with clients, service, and product providers. Consistently identifying aspects to improve service delivery and further strengthen collaborative relationships.
• Organised the sales team’s ongoing training and development requirements and annual conference.
• Organised events for staff and annual staff conference development day.

Supporting the business with several varied projects and business requirements as needed

Projects included:

• Successfully applied for various government grants to support business development. Researched appropriate available grants, researched, provided required statistical and analytical information to completed the application process.
• Implimented Graduate and Traineeship programs to support succession planning for specialist roles
• Exhibition planning (national and international)
• Change management design for a new business location. This project incoporated a full organisational relocation, including workflow analysis for production and office sites, managing office refurbishment and company physical relocation. Supporting minimal impact on loss of production and disturbance to staff.
• Maintained accurate HR records in compliance with applicable laws, ensuring efficient data retrieval when required.

Ernst and Young is one of the four largest professional services networks in the world. For my first year working with the company, I worked in the audit division, coordinating and allocating staffing requirements for audits. I was then promoted to work in the Human Resources division, and after four months, I was promoted to Human Resources Manager.

Responsible for recruitment and delivery of all Human Resource Management aspects to six business divisions throughout the company.

Reporting to the Director of Human Resources,

I worked directly with company partners, heads of divisions, senior management, and management.

• Ran and coordinated the graduate and trainee recruitment and orientation programs.
• Responsible for commissioning for employment projects such as senior specialist positions. Responsible for all aspects of project commissioning, sourcing proficient service providers, project briefing, contract negotiation, agreement, planning, scheduling, monitoring deadline delivery, and quality assessment.
• Change management of recruitment practices to adapt strategies and processes to attract and retain specialist staff and maintain consistency in the number of employed graduates and trainees.
• Initiated employee evaluation process and recommended policy changes to ensure staff progressed toward desired goals.
• Responsible for developing company policies, procedures and strategies to meet best practice and legislative requirements.
• Responsible for designing, upgrading and implementing policies and strategies in the Sydney, Paramatta and Melbourne offices. This process incorporated research, staff consultation and policy strategic implementation briefing sessions for staff.
• Delivered consistent and reliable service through overall administration, planning, coordination and evaluation of HR functions.
• Change management project: Closing and relocation of the Paramatta office—I was an active manager in the advisory and implementation team appointed to coordinate the closure and relocation. I advised operational aspects of integrating the roles and personnel to the city office and supported redundancies. I also mentored and counselled staff.
• Served as the HR liaison between various business divisions, instigating and managing stakeholder meetings to address workflow or staffing issues to ensure consistency in service delivery.
• Worked with department managers and senior management to assess staffing requirements, problem resolution and delivery of all HR needs.
• Provided recruitment assessment, creating position descriptions, compiling recruitment ads, interviewing, reference checking, selecting and appointing new staff across all business divisions.
• Compiled employment contracts.
• Implementing New staff orientation and continually improving orientation materials.
• Implemented and managed the Performance Review process, including training for management and staff, mentoring, creating roadmaps to meet career objectives, and creating strategies to address gaps in performance delivery.
• Salary remuneration process and annual salary reviews, incorporating market salary analysis.
• Staff mediation and conflict resolution support to management and staff.
• Provided mentoring and professional counselling.
• Organisational change management to best meet business objectives whilst maximising staff job satisfaction and retention, ensuring that practice changes meet organisational policies.
• Organised and conducted career exhibitions within universities and large schools. Promoting all career opportunities at Ernst and Young.
• Organised and delivered all graduate and trainee programs. The company recruited 50 to 60 new graduates and 25 trainee positions annually. Responsibilities included pre-interview selection, briefing management, interviewing, reference checking, making employment offers, issuing employment contracts and organising and instigating the trainee and graduate orientation programs.

• Delivered exceptional customer service by listening to their needs and concerns and attending to what was needed.
• Booking reservations, both individual and group bookings, allocation of specific requirements to attend to tour group specifications – room allocations, meal requirements, disability considerations,
• Computer data entry.
• Meeting and greeting guests and attending to all Front of House guest liaison aspects.
• Booking in guests and group tours on arrival.
• All sales banking processing and reconciliation aspects of front-of-house reception.

• Supporting all aspects of Front of House and the foreign exchange department.
• Meeting and greeting clients and service providers and attending to all aspects of client liaison.
• Organising of client meetings and social events
• Stock inventory and ordering required supplies
• Computer data entry and reporting.Handled sensitive information discreetly, maintaining strict confidentiality at all times as required by company policy or legal regulations.
• Managed office inventory levels, ensuring adequate supplies were available while minimising waste and unnecessary spending.

• Provided nurturing and companionate care and supported a sense of security whilst attending to patient comfort at all times.
• Delivered all aspects of personal hygiene care, such as toileting, showering, shaving, dressing, and oral hygiene.
• Assisted feeding support.
• Monitored emotional and physical well-being.
• Monitored fluid and food intake.
• Supporting nurses and doctors with medication administration and rounds.
• Support with and organisation of daily living aspects.
• Liaison with families