Keynote Speakers

Ainslie van Onselen

Chief Executive Officer – Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand

Ainslie has been the Chief Executive Officer of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand since May 2020 (CAANZ). For more than 20 years Ainslie enjoyed a parallel career as a law partner and non-executive director, before progressing into senior executive roles including Managing Director and CEO of RAMS Home Loans and running Australia’s second largest bank, Westpac’s $200 billion retail deposits and credit card portfolio.

Ainslie is passionate about social justice, inclusion and diversity. She is the former Global Director of Women’s Markets, Inclusion and Diversity for Westpac and currently serves as a Commissioner of Legal Aid New South Wales, Chair of Kambala Girls School, Chair of Chartered Accountants Worldwide and is a member of Chief Executive Women, Australia. She also sits on the boards of the Global Accounting Alliance and share registry, Automic Group Ltd.

An Australian Financial Review Women of Influence winner and a former 40 under 40 WA Business News and University of Western Australia Award winner, Ainslie was invited to represent CAANZ and the accounting and auditing professions at the Australian Government’s 2022 Jobs Summit.

As well as steering CAANZ’s strategy and digital and data transformation, Ainslie drives CAANZ’s inclusion and diversity agenda and is a prominent advocate for global sustainability and ESG standards.

Ruth Owen CBE GAICD

University of Manchester

Ruth was appointed to the role of Inspector-General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman for a term of 5 years commencing on 15 July 2024.

Ruth brings a wealth of experience in tax, public administration, complaints management and dispute resolution, having spent more than 30 years in various senior leadership positions across the public sector in Australia and the United Kingdom (UK).

Ruth was previously a Director General and Tax Commissioner of His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs in the UK, Head of Profession for operational delivery in the UK Civil Service and Deputy CEO of Jobcentre Plus, the UK employment service and welfare service delivery agency.

In moving to Australia, Ruth joined EY Advisory as the lead partner in Human Resources Services, providing professional services to Government and community sector clients, including publishing guidance on complaints management and supporting the National Redress Scheme for survivors of institutional child sexual abuse.

Most recently, Ruth spent over three years in NSW Government, as a Deputy Secretary at Education and then leading the delivery of public sector reform in the NSW Premier’s Department.

Ruth was awarded the CBE in the UK for her public service in reducing unemployment during the GFC.

Professor Wai-Fong Chua

The University of Sydney Business School

Professor Wai Fong Chua AM re-joined Sydney University in 2016. Prior to this she held several senior administrative positions in Australian higher education while continuing to pursue an active research career. Professor Chua holds a first class honours degree and a PhD from Sheffield University.

Professor Chua is internationally known for her research on management accounting as a social and organizational practice and the use of qualitative fieldwork as an investigative method. She has received substantial competitive research grants and published widely in prestigious, international accounting journals such asAccounting, Organizations and Society, The Accounting Review and Contemporary Accounting Research. In addition to serving as a reviewer on the boards of numerous well-known accounting journals, Professor Chua is an Editor ofAccounting, Organizations and Society. She has also been involved with research training through professional accounting associations such as CIMA (Chartered Institute of Management Accountants) and the EIASM (European Institute for Advanced Studies in Management). Further, through Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, Professor Chua has published several research monographs on social and environmental reporting. She has also been involved with executive education and consulted with both private and public sector organisations.

In 2012, Professor Chua was recognised for her contributions to research, university administration and mentoring while she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia. In 2009, she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Jyvaskyla, Finland and received the Outstanding Contribution to the Accounting and Finance Literature Award from the Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand. Professor Chua was elected a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia in 2008.

Chris Freeland AM

CEO, CPA Australia

Chris Freeland joined CPA Australia as Chief Executive Officer in March 2024, Chris is an experienced CEO and professional services leader, having also worked as a corporate lawyer and strategy consultant. He has lived and worked in Asia, the US and Australia.

Chris has held executive leadership roles at major law and consulting firms in Australia and internationally, including Baker McKenzie, The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Gilbert + Tobin and King & Wood (now King & Wood Mallesons).

Prior to joining CPA Australia, Chris was with Baker McKenzie where he began as Managing Partner (CEO) of Australia and was subsequently appointed Asia Pacific Managing Director. Chris started his career as a corporate lawyer with Freehills (now Herbert Smith Freehills), before becoming a strategy consultant with BCG in New York and then Melbourne.

Chris is actively involved in the non-profit sector and was appointed as a Member of the Order for Australia (AM) for ‘significant service to the arts in New South Wales particularly to the film industry, to business education, and to the community.’

Professor Rahat Munir (FCA, FCPA, PhD)

Head Department of Accounting and Corporate Governance, Macquarie University

Professor Rahat Munir is the Head of Department of Accounting and Corporate Governance, Macquarie University Sydney. Prior to his academic journey he held several senior positions in the banking sector..

He is internationally known for his expertise in curriculum development and accreditation. He has served on the panel for Faculty/Course Reviews of various Universities in Australia, New Zealand, Europe and the USA. With his strong engagement with industry, he leads Australia-wide most prestigious CFO Forum, Women Thought Leadership, Business Leaders Roundtables and Thinktanks. He has written over 100 peer reviewed articles in top journals globally, books, book chapters, monographs, conference papers and commissioned reports, and over 50 publications for professional and lay audiences. Although the bulk of his research focuses on management accounting and controls, he has also published in important areas such as education, CSR, corporate governance, corporate culture and research expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Professor Munir has delivered scores of invited/keynote presentations, and his expert opinions has been featured in radio, television, newspapers, newsletters, and web outlets worldwide.

Professor Munir’s sustained excellence in teaching and research has been recognised through international awards, including Business/Higher Education Roundtable Award for excellence in accounting teaching collaborations and CPA Australia’s awards for achievement in academia. His contribution has also been acknowledged for his projects in 2015, 2021 and 2024 for the QS Stars Reimagine Education Awards in the Nurturing Employability Award category for the most innovative pedagogical approach to learning and teaching.

Main campus

Wallumattagal Campus
Balaclava Road
Macquarie University NSW 2109

City campus

Angel Place
Level 24, 123 Pitt Street
Sydney NSW 2000

Event Contact

events@mq.edu.au

Acknowledgement of Country

We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which Macquarie University stands - the Wallumattagal Clan of the Dharug Nation - whose cultures and customs have nurtured, and continue to nurture, this land since time immemorial. We pay our respects to the Elders, past and present.