I was tasked with the provision of policy and political advice for the Chief Minister and Cabinet. I researched political policy trends across each portfolio and contributed to the formation of new policies. I was the lead stakeholder engagement manager for government and also monitored trends in other jurisdictions nationally and globally and commentated on their impact on the Northern Territory.Day-to-day, I prepared policy specific briefing notes, ministerial speeches and Parliamentary submissions.I briefed the Chief Minister daily on portfolio matters and emerging issues, including any portfolio-specific crisis management matters, operational issues and also assisted the Chief Minister, when required, with portfolio-related public appearances.

A Senior Executive within the governing body of the AFL in the NT, I reported directly to the CEO and was accountable for the commercialisation of all content, and maximisation of all revenues in the development of the AFL in the Northern Territory. In my 7 years with the AFL, I demonstrated relentless drive in business development and sponsorship sales, posting 10 consecutive surplus results in the multi-millions. I increased FTE headcount from 20 to 53 in 6 years, a direct result of increasing revenue from two pivotal, 3-year strategic plans. I adopted and embraced the AFL shared services model that facilitated AFL growth. A core part of my impact included a major restructuring of the senior leadership team to adopt new best-practice human resources policy, and created uniformity across the jurisdiction under one governance structure. I led the identification of funding opportunities, including the draft and submission of business cases. Pivotally, I collaborated with the Federal and State Governments and corporate partners to secure in excess of $20m in new revenue streams over a 5 year period and negotiated the stadium naming rights deal with Allianz Insurance.From a media perspective, I demonstrated prowess in negotiating favourable broadcast deals with national broadcasters and radio stations and developed a superb network of media contacts that raised the profile of AFL NT across jurisdictions. I also managed multiple, complex and crisis media issues to protect the AFL brand and employees from reputational damage. My work touched on various facets of operations. From serving as an SME to the CEO to overseeing Government relations, I moved the AFL to be an important part of the political landscape for the Northern Territory. I also managed many indigenous programmes/projects that incorporated policy and funding development to enhance the AFL’s connection with diversity programmes, working with 10 indigenous communities across the Territory.

Challenged to create an Australian Football League (AFL) in the Middle East, I put together from the ground up; a brand-new international AFL accredited league that comprised 6 teams in 3 countries. I oversaw all commercial and operational elements and hosted meetings between club presidents to keep all teams onboard through the league's growth. I managed all official affiliation agreements with AFL Middle East and AFL HQ, and subsequently negotiated major sponsorship deals with Victoria Bitter and Le Meridien Hotel. I also negotiated and managed media partnerships with Days Newspaper, Dubai City 7 TV and Dubai Eye Radio. Day-to-day, I managed club commitment to develop the game in the region and embraced the multicultural policy created by the AFL ME that encouraged participation from all ages and nationalities – a key win in the region. I also served as a media contact and conducted live interviews on local TV and radio networks, and authored all league-related articles for local and international press.