The Demeter Institute Team

Diverse Collaborators

The Demeter Institute team is a collaborative team with a collaborative approach. We are diverse and we have different professional approaches, but we each are committed to the values of The Demeter Institute. You can contact anyone of us knowing that we trust each other to work with you. We will work with each other in supporting you to achieve your aspirations. With your permission will we consult with each other if we need to strengthen your service options. Now, meet the team!

Dr Sue Hanley

Leadership Coach, Ethics Counsellor, Adult Educator

Sue’s working life has been an adventure – from bus conductor to junior officer on cruise liners, teacher of aspiring secretaries, senior executive in a large, complex organisation for over two decades, retailer, executive coach and now Founder of The Demeter Institute. In her leadership roles Sue has had direct responsibility for over three thousand people and multimillion-dollar budgets, providing a range of services across different locations.

Sue has held many board level appointments in corporate, government and community sectors, from boards of directors to hospital boards, community youth support, conservation organisations, and most recently, the local Chamber of Commerce in Potts Point, Sydney.

As a Program Review Director in the New South Wales (NSW) Premier’s Department, Sue was responsible for assessing the efficiency, effectiveness and legislative appropriateness for the delivery of services in a number of Government Departments, reporting to a Cabinet Committee to provide advice and recommendations to the Premier on changes needed.

For four years she was an elected Councillor in the local government region of the Shoalhaven, NSW.

In her role as a leadership coach for the past 17 years, Sue has adopted the solutions focussed methodology which underpinned the Masters Degree in Coaching she completed at Sydney University. Authorised as a developmental coach using the Leadership Maturity Framework, Sue was trained by Dr Susanne Cook Greuter. The methodology was developed by Susanne and based on her extensive research, initially under the supervision of renowned pioneer in the field, Robert Kegan.

Having first joined the Sydney Ethics Centre in 1995, Sue has a particular interest in the development of ethical and wise leaders. She has been trained by The Ethics Centre as an ethics counsellor.

Sue has post graduate qualifications in adult learning, business management, and organisational coaching. Her doctorate in leadership coaching was undertaken in the Learning and Work Centre of the University of Technology, Sydney.

You can contact Sue at sue@thedemeterinstitute.com or telephone 0401435523. You can also submit an enquiry through this website.

Aunty Iris Walker White

Elder, Indigenous Educator, Organisational Consultant on Indigenous Policy, Adult Educator

Aunty Iris Walker White is a proud and respected Indigenous elder who is a Monaro Ngarigo woman living on the South Coast of NSW, Australia. Iris has worked tirelessly since 1985 on developing educational programs for indigenous people in order to facilitate learning and pathways into work.

Iris was responsible for developing the first vocational education pathways for her people at Nowra TAFE College. Iris holds a Bachelor of Adult Education degree.

Iris developed many innovative programs and established the college as a place where her people would feel welcome. She built strong relationships with teachers which ensured her students were welcome in TAFE classrooms and workshops. Her influence widened as her work took her to Sydney, and then back to the South Coast where she became the TAFE Aboriginal Education Manager for the whole region, stretching from Wollongong to Bega.

Iris has served on many community boards and committees, such as Chairperson of the NSW Aboriginal Legal Services Board and of the ATSIC Regional Council for the ACT and Queanbeyan. She is a gifted public speaker and storyteller, and the word that is consistently associated with Aunty Iris is ‘wise’.

Aunty Iris Walker White is a consultant with The Demeter Institute and is available for advice and guidance on working with, communicating with, and supporting Indigenous people. To contact her, you will need to contact Dr Sue Hanley who will discuss your requirements and arrange a consultation with Iris. Email Sue at sue@thedemeterinstitute.com or telephone 0401435523. You can also submit an enquiry through this website.

Judith Leeson AM

Career Development Coach and Consultant

Judith is the recipient of an Order of Australia medal for her pioneering work on establishing Career Coaching in this country. Judith has great depth and breadth of experience in empowering people to live self-directed lives. That experience has been accumulated over six decades in leadership roles in early childhood education, disability support, and as a career development counsellor and coaching professional.

Judith and her husband Brian founded Vector Consultants Pty Ltd in 1991 with a particular focus on supporting the marginalised and disadvantaged to explore and plan how to achieve their career aspirations.

Judith has played a prominent role in actively influencing public policy in career development at the highest levels of Government and organisations in her five terms as National President of the Career Development Association of Australia. Judith is a life member and the unique recipient of its Lifetime Achievement Award.

Judith’s mission is to contribute to the consolidation of a career development culture in Australia. She remains committed to the ethical application of Professional Standards and evidence-based practices in the career development industry.

Judith joined The Demeter Institute team because she remains a passionate advocate for the rights of marginalised and vulnerable people and has been recently involved in drawing attention to the culture and practices affecting older people receiving aged care services, the challenges of living with disability, and the particular difficulties encountered by unemployed and underemployed job seekers. Judith’s values of kindness, respect, and empathy have sustained her throughout her life time.

To work with Judith, your initial contact should be through Sue at sue@thedemeterinstitute.com or submit an enquiry through this website.

John Eastman

Narrative Consultant, Teacher, Actor

You can be the hero or heroine of your own story, write a job application Shakespeare would be proud of or even be the Hamlet or Cleopatra of your next job interview or presentation. Sometimes just knowing your stuff is not enough and you need to act as though you are in full control, especially in tough roles.

You can emulate the mellifluous voice of a Richard Burton or Cate Blanchett in your podcasts, videos or webinars so that you are able to speak clearly and with conviction. This applies also to any speaking engagements or presentations.

Narrative consultant, actor, VoiceOver and performance coach, John Eastman has the skills and experience to support you to be your impressive best self.

John is an experienced actor who has turned his acting career and VoiceOver talents to that of consultant, tutor and coach. He trained in Drama in Australia, and completed a Master of Arts in Education from the Central School of Speech and Drama in the UK. For twelve years he has been working as a part-time teacher at leading London-based adult education provider City Lit, teaching Storytelling for Business and Pleasure, complementing his other roles in gigs as diverse as the Royal National Theatre, the Primary Shakespeare Company and Clod Ensemble (Health Sector Support).

John has designed an innovative program on Personal Storytelling – an art form that enables you to construct your own personal story in a variety of ways, honouring your own lived experience with a clear narrative that, on one level, can be therapeutic, and on another, invokes the ancient inscription on the steps of the Shrine to Apollo at Delphi – know thyself.

When you work with John, you can be sure you are not just in great hands, but good hands as John is committed to The Demeter Institute’s values of integrity and ethical purpose. This is not about ‘faking it until you make it’. It is about investing in making sure that what you stand for is expressed with conviction so that you can genuinely make a difference in the world.

John is also available for acting or VoiceOver narrating for your podcasts, webinars or YouTube videos, as well as acting roles in the theatre.

You can contact John at john@thedemeterinstitute.com or phone +44 7957 206 936 or you can submit an enquiry through this website.

Kidest Nadew

Health Care Professional, Personal development Coaching, Health Literacy and Health Coach

Kidest Nadew is a highly qualified healthcare professional with extensive work experience in clinical care, program management, and global health. She has a strong history of leading initiatives and delivering results in large complex systems on a national and international scale, including in Rwanda, Ireland, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Australia.

Kidest led the Yale University Global Health Leadership Initiative for Ethiopia. Currently she is the Program Manager for Global Health, working for Regional Vaccine Initiatives, at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance in Australia.

Kidest has played a strong leadership role in many sensitive health care initiatives and programs during which she has contributed to strengthening large and complex systems, developing strategy, engaging stakeholders and resolving difficult problems.

Kidest has led high-performing teams, transformed team culture and shown herself to be a skilful negotiator. She has a long record of success as a team leader who is both coach and mentor. Kidest holds a Master of Health Science degree from the University of Sydney and is a doctoral candidate with Glasgow Caledonian University, UK in Health and Life Sciences. She also holds certificates in leadership and change management, and coaching.

To work with Kidest, your initial contact should be through Sue at sue@thedemeterinstitute.com or submit an enquiry through this website.

Jie Zhang

Accountant, Cultural Adviser and Coach for Young Finance Professionals

Jie (Jeb) Zhang is a fully qualified member of the Certified Practising Accountants (CPA) Australia and holds a Master of Accounting degree from Macquarie University. He currently works as a Financial Planning and Analyist (FP&A) Manager at a U.S. listed medical device company. Jie has over 10 years experience in various roles in the Finance and Accounting field.

Jie takes pride in his upbringing in mainland China and his immigration to Australia more than 10 years ago. He will bring his own personal experience of making the transition to life and work in Australia to provide a bridge between Western and Eastern cultures for new arrivals.

Jie also offers a service for those in Australia who would like to gain a greater understanding of Chinese culture in particular, including the development of business relationships.

Jie will bring these insights into leadership coaching for Finance professionals, and as a trusted advisor to young professionals who are building a new life in Australia. In his spare time, he has also invested serious effort into a data science course to embrace disruptive technologies and would like to bring finance transformation and the change journey to the Demeter team.

Jie has recently completed an introduction to coaching skills with the highly regarded Neuroleadership Institute. The strengths he brings to his role with The Demeter Institute include his commitment to a high level of personal integrity, a passion for learning and the mastering of new skills, and working effectively as trusted member of the teams and groups he is involved with. Jie places a particular emphasis on diversity.

You can contact Jie at jie@thedemeterinstitute.com or you can submit an enquiry through this website.

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