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Accounting, Economics and Finance Advisory Board

Chair

David Sharpe

Mr David Sharpe

Founder
Globe Financial Planning

External Members

Paul Bloxham

Mr Paul Bloxham

Chief Economist for Australia, New Zealand and Global Commodities
HSBC

Ian Campbell

Mr Ian Campbell

Partner
PwC

Catherine Fenwick

Ms Catherine Fenwick

Director
Milestone Consultancy

Erica Haddon

Ms Erica Haddon

Principal
Navigating Innovation

Brent Simonis - General Manager, Group Accounting and Assurance, Wesfarmers

Mr Brent Simonis

General Manager
Executive General Manager – Group Accounting, Risk & Assurance

Martin Tang

Mr Martin Tang

Co-Founder and Partner
Genesis Alternative Ventures

Internal Members

Vanessa Chang

Professor Vanessa Chang

Pro Vice-Chancellor
Faculty of Business and Law

Sonia Dickenson

Professor Sonia Dickinson

Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor
Faculty of Business and Law

Felix Chan

Professor Felix Chan

Head of School, School of Accounting, Economics and Finance
Faculty of Business and Law

Sherry Bawa

Associate Professor Sherry Bawa

Deputy Head of School, School of Accounting, Economics and Finance
Faculty of Business and Law

Professor Sonia Dickinson

Sonia Dickinson is an accomplished academic leader, researcher, and educator, currently serving as the Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor, Faculty of Business and Law, Curtin University. With over two decades of experience in higher education, Sonia has made a significant contribution to the field of education, particularly in the area of online and blended learning, with her impact recognised though University and National awards.

Previously, Sonia held the position of Dean Learning and Teaching, where she played a critical role in driving innovation and best practices in teaching and learning across the institution. In this role, she led a team of faculty and staff to develop and implement strategies to enhance student experience and improve learning outcomes.

As Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor, Sonia currently provides strategic leadership in relation to teaching, research and international portfolios, together with faculty development. Sonia is a champion of sustainability and serves as the Chair of the Faculty of Business and Law Sustainability Council, leading the Faculty’s intentional approach to ‘making a difference’ though initiatives that contribute to people and planet.

Throughout her career, Sonia has been dedicated to creating a culture of kindness, respect, and inclusivity. She is a change agent, an equity champion, and continues to lead educational initiatives that support access, participation, and success in higher education.

Professor Vanessa Chang

Professor Vanessa Chang commenced as Pro Vice-Chancellor of the Faculty of Business and Law in September 2022 following a nine-month period in the role as Interim PVC. From May 2019 to December 2021, Vanessa was the Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor.

Professor Chang joined Curtin in 1989 as a Tutor in the School of Information Systems. Her previous leadership roles in the University include Director of Learning Innovations where she led innovation and project teams to develop Massive Open Online Courses as well as leading transformational IT projects at Curtin, Dean of Learning and Teaching, and Head of School of Information Systems.

Professor Chang is a Fellow of the Australian Computer Society and an experienced leader in higher education. Her information systems research are focused in leadership, governance, and the use of data and systems in organisations. As an educator, she conducts research in learning pedagogies, in immersive and online learning.

Mr David Sharpe

A graduate of Curtin’s Business School in 2022, David is Director and Founder of Globe Financial Plannings and has been advising private clients for 20 years.

David is Chair of the Financial Advice Association of Australia (FAAA), the largest professional association for financial advisers in Australia, representing approximately 12,000 members. The FAAA was established in April 2023 as a result of merger of the two previously largest adviser associations, one of whom David was also Chair, to help create one united voice for the profession.

The role sees him work with various stakeholders within the profession, including Federal Ministers, Treasury and ASIC. He was elected to the Board in 2016, having previously been Chair of the Western Australian Chapter.

David is sought regularly by media for his expert opinion on all matters relating to personal finance.

David holds a Bachelor of Commerce (with Distinction), a Diploma in Financial Planning and is a Certified Financial Planner® which is the peak designation for Financial Advisers globally. He is also a member of the Australian institute of Company Directors.

Mr Paul Bloxham

Paul Bloxham is HSBC’s Chief Economist for Australia, New Zealand and Global Commodities. He is chief spokesperson for HSBC on forecasts and trends for the Australian and New Zealand economies and their interaction with global financial markets and international economies. Paul is also a key spokesperson on HSBC’s unique view on global commodity markets and works closely with HSBC’s global equities team in this regard.

Paul has published a number of papers, including on housing and household finances, asset prices and monetary policy and global commodity market trends. Paul is a regular commentator on local and international business television and a frequent contributor of opinion editorials to the Australian newspapers.

In 2017, Paul’s team won two Focus Economics awards: for best overall forecaster for each of Australia and New Zealand. Paul is also a recent past member of the Australian National University’s Shadow Reserve Bank Board and is an Adjunct Professor at Curtin University.

Prior to joining HSBC in 2010, Paul Bloxham spent 12 years as an economist within the Reserve Bank of Australia’s Economic Analysis Department where he headed up the overseas economies and financial conditions sections, as well as working on domestic forecasting and prices. He holds an undergraduate degree in Economics, with first class honours, from Curtin University and a Master’s degree in public financial policy from the London School of Economics.

Mr Ian Campbell

Ian is a qualified accountant with 17 years experience across accounting and capital markets advisory and audit, working with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in both the UK and Australia.

Ian leads PwC’s accounting advisory practice in Perth. This role sees him work with clients across Oil & Gas and Mining industries and their supporting services as well as State Government, providing specialist advice on complex accounting issues. He has spent considerable time recently helping clients with the implementation issues associated with new accounting standards, including leasing, financial instruments and revenue.

Prior to this role, he has held a number of roles with PwC, including managing a large transformation project within the Assurance division and working on audits of large Australian listed companies in both Perth and Melbourne.

Ian holds a Masters degree in Physics from the University of Leicester and is a Chartered Accountant with membership of both the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland and Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand.

Ms Erica Haddon

Erica is Chair of Uniting WA, MNG Survey and AusVet, is a member of the SMTAFE Governing Council and the Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee, member and 2023 President of the CPA Australia WA Divisional Council, a member of Curtin University School of Accounting, Economics and Finance Advisory Board.

Erica has particular skills in in strategy, innovation, transformational change,  has worked for RAC WA, Wesfarmers and Argyle Diamonds and completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

Ms Catherine Fenwick

Catherine is a director at Milestone Consultancy. Catherine has almost 30 years’ experience in corporate real estate in both Australia and the UK, providing project management and building consultancy services to a wide range of occupiers, owners and investors. Catherine is a fellow with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and has held active roles within Property Council WA committees as well as serving on two Curtin University advisory boards.

Professor Felix Chan

Felix Chan B.C.M. PG.Dip. (Applied Mathematics), B.Ec. (Hons. I), Ph.D. (WA), FMSSANZ

Felix Chan is a Professor at Curtin University and an elected Fellow of the Modelling and Simulation Society of Australia and New Zealand (MSSANZ). He serves as the Head of School of Accounting, Economics and Finance and was the Director of Centre for Research in Applied Economics (CRAE) between 2017 and 2022.

Professor Chan had also provided external consultation to the Commonwealth Grant Commission (CGC), Department of Treasury Western Australia and Chamber of Commerce and Industry (WA) on issues surrounding forecasting, data analytics and mathematical modelling.

He received a bachelor degree in Computing and Mathematical Science (B.C.M) in 1996, a first-class honours degree in Economics (B.Ec.) in 2000 and received his PhD in Econometrics in 2005.

His research interests include theoretical and applied econometrics, applied statistics, data science, risk management and information theory. He published in prestigious international journals including Journal of Econometrics, Econometric Theory, Journal of Applied Econometrics, Econometric Reviews, Scientometrics and International Journal of Forecasting.

Mr Brent Simonis

Brent is a currently the Wesfarmers Executive General Manager – Group Accounting, Risk & Assurance.

He has recently relocated to Perth and has had several senior Finance leadership roles across the Wesfarmers Group which include Finance Director of Coles and General Manager Finance at Target.

Prior to joining the Group, Brent was a Partner at EY where he spent 15 years providing accounting, assurance and advisory support to some of Australia’s leading corporations.

Brent has a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting & Finance) from Monash University and is a qualified Chartered Accountant. He is an alumni of the Committee for Melbourne’s Future Focus Group and has served as audit committee chair and non-executive director on a number of not for profit boards.

Associate Professor Alina Lee

Alina joined the School in 2000, having previously taught at Monash University (Melbourne, Australia) and Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration (Bergen, Norway).

She holds a PhD from the University of Melbourne and an MCom from Curtin University. Her current research interests are in the areas of the design of management control systems and its impact on business performance, behavioural aspects of accounting and intellectual capital disclosures.

She has published in a number of academic journals including Journal of Business Ethics, Financial Accountability and Management, and Journal of Intellectual Capital.

Mr Martin Tang

Martin is the Co-Founder and Partner of Genesis Alternative Ventures, where he leads the firm’s strategic finance. He is also a key deal originator.

Before co-founding Genesis in 2018, Martin played a key role in establishing venture debt in Southeast Asia, helping launch DBS Venture Growth Partners. His leadership contributed to landmark deals that expanded funding options for VC-backed startups in the region.

Martin’s Investment Banking career began at Lazard, where he worked on M&A, asset disposals, and restructuring transactions across Southeast Asia. He later joined Standard Chartered as a FIG banker, providing coverage for M&A, equity, and debt transactions to top financial institutions in Asia Pacific.

He holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree with Distinction, majoring in Economics and Finance from Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Western Australia.

Associate Professor Sherry Bawa

Associate Professor Sherry Bawa is the Deputy Head of School for the School of Accounting, Economics and Finance at Curtin University. Prior to this, Sherry was the Discipline Lead, Economics and the Director, Learning and Teaching. Sherry has done PhD in Economics, MBA, M.Sc. (Hons.) in Economics, and a B.Sc. (Hons.) in Economics.

She has more than 20 years of teaching experience in higher education across Australia and India. Sherry is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK) and co-Chair of Curtin Academy. She is the Gender and Equity Champion and serves on various committees and boards at Curtin University.

Her research interests include supporting equity and diversity in higher education, gender issues, STEM and women, labour economics and well-being. Her recent publications are in Australian Educational Researcher, Economic Record, and Higher Education Research and Development.

She is an award-winning educator who has recently won the 2024 Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning, Curtin Excellence and Innovation in Teaching (CEIT) Award and the 2023 Curtin Faculty of Business and Law, Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning Award. She has also delivered multiple Category 1 and other funded research projects in higher education.