Headquarters:
Level 21, 400 George Street, Brisbane, QLD 4000
Year founded:
1980
Number of employees:
200+
Phone:
+61 7 3231 2444
Email:
lawyers@cgw.com.au
Website:
cgw.com.au
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/company/cooper-grace-ward
“We drive an inclusive, diverse and collaborative culture that empowers our people to get things done and to deliver results”
Anjanette Murfet,
Accolade Wines
COOPER GRACE WARD LAWYERS
Charles Sweeney
Managing Partner
Erin Jakubans
Director of People and Culture
Sarah Chard
Business Unit Director, Critical Care
Leadership
As managing partner at Cooper Grace Ward, Charles Sweeney leads the firm’s strategy, management, and day-to-day operations. He demonstrates his commitment to inclusivity and positive workplace culture by actively supporting and promoting firm-wide inclusion initiatives and policies. In addition to organisational leadership, his expertise extends to corporate and commercial law, where he stands as a recognised market leader.
Managing Partner
Charles Sweeney
As director of people and culture at Cooper Grace Ward, Erin Jakubans leads the firm’s people strategy and works alongside business leaders to align talent initiatives with the firm’s strategic objectives and values. She has broad experience in delivering talent management and leadership development programs to cultivate high-performing teams and to foster a culture of excellence, collaboration and inclusion. Erin is passionate about empowering people to achieve their full career potential, while making a socially positive contribution in the workplace and in the community.
Director of People and Culture
Erin Jakubans
Sarah Chard has over 25 years of experience in healthcare encompassing clinical practice and commercial leadership. She has led senior roles across sales, marketing, operations and general management with iconic medtech multinationals. Chard has a depth of experience working with global executive teams, commercialising new and established technologies in competitive markets, With demonstrated experience in business transformation, she is a results-driven, passionate builder of high-performance teams. She is adept at creating accountability and driving profitable growth and is committed to developing people.
Chard is dedicated to improving patient outcomes and forming relationships based on mutual respect and trust, and she drives relevance for employees and customers through a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture. Her formal qualifications include a Bachelor of Nursing, Master of Nursing - Critical Care, an MBA and an Advanced Leadership Program.
Business Unit Director, Critical Car
Sarah Chard
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Rachael Todd
Director, Market Access
Rachael Todd has extensive experience across health economics, market access, regulatory affairs and government affairs in the medical devices’ arena. She has progressed her career through the sales with organisations including Stryker, J&J and Abbott Point of Care. Todd set up an organisation in Thailand to include regulatory, clinical, sales and marketing, market access departments, she has been instrumental in building up relationships with KOLs and setting up advisory boards and building high-performing teams.
Todd holds a Bachelor of Law from the University of Sydney, Cardiac and Respiratory Technologist (DIP ASCT) qualification from Auckland Greenlane Hospital, and Associate of Cardiopulmonary Technology from Greenlane Hospital/Massey University. She also has a Diploma in Personal Training from Les Mills Academy of Personal Trainers and a Diploma of Teaching from Otago University/Dunedin Teachers’ College.
Director, Market Access
Rachael Todd
Christy Thiel
Senior Director, Clinical Affairs
Christy Thiel has been managing clinical affairs for APAC and has completed both my Master’s Degree in Public Health and Master’s Degree in Health Law through the University of Sydney. She started her career as a diagnostic radiographer for nine years before moving into a clinical research coordinator role at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne. Thiel then joined corporate life with Stryker in their orthopaedic research department. After two years, she moved to Smith + Nephew, where she worked for over seven years, gradually moving into the role of regional clinical operations manager for the ANZ, JAPAC and emerging markets region. Thiel's medical background assisted her in better understanding the environment in which we conduct our clinical trials and interacting with medical staff and personnel.
Senior Director, Clinical Affairs
Christy Thiel
Cooper Grace Ward is a leading independent law firm based in Brisbane. As a full-service law firm, the team provides a range of legal services to clients nationally and internationally. The firm is recognised for having a vibrant, energetic and diverse team committed to supporting and developing its people to meet the changing needs of clients.
Cooper Grace Ward’s key practice groups are among the leading Brisbane-based teams in their respective areas. The workplace is inclusive of people from many different backgrounds, ethnicities, religions, sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions and abilities.
The firm embraces and celebrates its differences by fostering a safe and inclusive work environment where everyone can achieve their full potential.
“From our wineries and operational sites to our corporate offices and beyond, we want everyone at Accolade, regardless of their gender, to have equal opportunity to realise their potential”
Anjanette Murfet,
Accolade Wines
James Barrett
Director, Transcatheter Mitral and Tricuspid Therapies
Maneesha Pillay
Director, Regulatory Affairs
Polo Guilbert-Wright
Director, Government Affairs
Simon Williams
Chief Strategy & Distribution Officer, Arch Insurance International
and Active Underwriter, Syndicate 1955
James Barrett started his career in sales in the pharmaceutical industry and progressed to hold positions in finance and marketing, before moving to medical devices, which he has been in for the past 16 years across large multinationals and local distributors in a range of roles, including sales and marketing management, business and therapy development, country director and finally business unit director across both Australia and New Zealand. Barrett holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Lincoln University.
Director, Transcatheter Mitral and Tricuspid Therapies
James Barrett
Maneesha Pillay brings over 16 years of extensive experience in regulatory and quality, dedicated to ensuring compliance, and contributing towards making innovative technologies available to patients in a dynamic and evolving industry.
After completing her studies in public relations, she embarked on a marketing career with a decade-long tenure in broadcasting. Following this, she shifted her career trajectory towards regulatory affairs in the medical device industry, obtaining qualifications in Regulatory Affairs, Quality Management System Requirements (ISO 9001), Certified Lead Auditor (ISO 13485), Health Science – Nutrition, and an Executive MBA.
Maneesha is driven by commitment and passion in advancing healthcare and improving patient outcomes through regulatory excellence, with a demonstrated history of regulatory success.
Director, Regulatory Affairs
Maneesha Pillay
Polo Guilbert-Wright has over 17 years of experience working in government relations, public policy and communications in Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. He has worked for and with state and federal governments throughout his career across a range of sectors, including within the medical technology sector, which has been involved in some of the most challenging reforms in the past decade.
Prior to Edwards Lifesciences, Guilbert-Wright worked for MTAA, and the UK government and Home Office. He holds a Master’s in Public Policy and Administration from the London School of Economics and degrees in Arts/Law from the University of New South Wales.
Director, Government Affairs
Polo Guilbert-Wright
Kimi leads the Estate Planning and Wealth Protection team and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. She understands the complex and delicate nature of family estate planning, the technical requirements around probate and estate administration, and the importance of preserving wealth for future generations. Her advice is accurate, commercial, strategic and tailored to each situation.
Partner
Kimi Shah
Kimi leads the Estate Planning and Wealth Protection team and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. She understands the complex and delicate nature of family estate planning, the technical requirements around probate and estate administration, and the importance of preserving wealth for future generations. Her advice is accurate, commercial, strategic and tailored to each situation.
Partner
Kimi Shah
Kimi leads the Estate Planning and Wealth Protection team and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. She understands the complex and delicate nature of family estate planning, the technical requirements around probate and estate administration, and the importance of preserving wealth for future generations. Her advice is accurate, commercial, strategic and tailored to each situation.
Partner
Kimi Shah
Straying away from traditional approaches to performance management, Accolade Wines seeks to enable employee performance through continuous, meaningful conversations and clear sprint objectives.
“These help to keep our people focused on the work that matters most in a fast-paced, ever-changing industry. Accolade Wines offers continuous development projects so our people can continue to grow,” says Murfet.
In a standout feat, Accolade has drastically reduced its gender pay gap to just 0.9 per cent. Through rigorous benchmarking and data-backed decision-making, the firm has plans of hitting zero.
Murfet explains, “From our wineries and operational sites to our corporate offices and beyond, we want everyone at Accolade, regardless of their gender, to have equal opportunity to realise their potential.”
To promote employee engagement, Accolade’s leadership team recognides the hard work its people put in through peer-to-peer recognition programs, wellbeing subsidies, exclusive discounts and savings, bonus incentives for high performance and monetary rewards.
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ACCOLADE WINES
Through maintaining an employee engagement score of 80 per cent, Accolade strives to create a welcoming and diverse environment where talent is excited to come to work every day.
“At Accolade Wines, we create an organisation where employees will realise their potential, helping us to realise ours. We are a global company that thinks, acts and moves at the speed of a start-up. Our focus is on fostering a dynamic, performance-driven, celebratory culture,” says Murfet.
· Global Office – work up to two weeks from anywhere in the world
· Loyalty Leave – earn an additional leave day for every year of employment
· Go Beyond Day – a day for employees to donate time to a charity of their choice
· Enhanced Parental Leave – updated parental leave policy including six weeks of secondary carers’ leave
· Accolade Birthday – a day off to celebrate each year an employee spends with Accolade
· Day-to-day shout-outs – to award outstanding work, employees can exchange earned points for gift vouchers of up to $150
· Quarterly Stars Award – employees demonstrating core values have the chance to win $500
· Annual Hero’s Celebration – manager-nominated and peer-voted awards where outstanding employees earn a $5,000 bonus
COOPER GRACE WARD LAWYERS