Headquarters:

Level 10/225 Pitt Street, Sydney, 2000

Year founded:

2004

Number of employees:

350

Phone:

0417010518

Email:

jodettecleary@hipagesgroup.com.au

Website:

hipagesgroup.com.au/about-us

LinkedIn:

linkedin.com/company/hipagesgroup

“Having four insurance designations, and the wealth of knowledge that comes with it, enables me to better counsel customers regarding the importance of having the appropriate insurance coverage”

Saray Uribe, CharSan Insurance & Consulting

Jodette Cleary

Chief People and Culture Officer

Roby Sharon-Zipser

Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder

Jaco Jonker

Chief Finance and Operations Officer

Leadership

Jodette Cleary is the chief people and culture officer at hipages, joining in 2015 after founding and managing the boutique HR consultancy We Know HR for eight years. Her consulting work includes companies like Red Balloon, Atlassian, BigCommerce, and Campaign Monitor. Previously, Cleary was the Asia-Pacific HR director at Honeywell Building Solutions, overseeing 2,000+ employees across 11 countries. She has also worked in IT&T, recruitment, and mining. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in industrial relations and psychology, a master’s degree in labour law, and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Chief People and Culture Officer

Jodette Cleary

Roby Sharon-Zipser is the CEO, co-founder, and executive director of hipages Group. An entrepreneur, he creates and invests in businesses that challenge the status quo. With a passion for developing technologies that free up time for higher-value activities, he drives hipages Group’s mission to transform the trade industry. He started the company in 2004, inspired by challenges he faced in renovating his own home. Today, he leads a data-driven powerhouse for the trade industry, creating the hipages Group tradie ecosystem, a unique industry map of opportunities. His strong background in numbers fuels continuous innovation and professional growth within the team.

Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder

Roby Sharon-Zipser

Jaco Jonker joined hipages in November 2022 as chief financial and operations officer (CFOO), bringing over 20 years of senior finance and executive experience across Australia, South Africa, USA, and the UK. Previously, he was CFO and COO at Open Colleges Australia, leading the successful sale of the business. Jonker also spent 10 years at bidorbuy in South Africa, where he was CEO and CFO, driving 250% revenue growth. He began his career in audit at Deloitte. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (honours) in accounting, is a CFA charter holder and a Chartered Accountant CA (SA).

Chief Finance and Operations Officer

Jaco Jonker

“Having four insurance designations, and the wealth of knowledge that comes with it, enables me to better counsel customers regarding the importance of having the appropriate insurance coverage”

Saray Uribe, CharSan Insurance & Consulting

Leadership

“A true leader can see potential in different employees, regardless of their position. Listening and recognizing the value of each individual not only inspires them but also makes them grow professionally”

Saray Uribe, CharSan Insurance & Consulting

Leadership

Marianne Passafaro

Vice President, People and Culture

Marianne Passafaro is the VP, people and culture at hipages, joining in 2016. With extensive P&C experience across the technology, internet, and online travel industries, and having worked across 10 APAC countries, she brings a global perspective to her leadership. Specialising in people strategy, talent acquisition, employer branding, performance, and development, Passafaro plays a pivotal role in attracting top talent, enhancing employee retention, and driving engagement initiatives. She is passionate about creating meaningful employee experiences and fostering high-performance cultures, empowering individuals and driving business success. Specialising in people strategy, talent acquisition, employer branding, performance, and development, Passafaro plays a pivotal role in attracting top talent, enhancing employee retention, and driving engagement initiatives. She is passionate about creating meaningful employee experiences and fostering high-performance cultures, empowering individuals and driving business success. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (HR and Marketing) from Macquarie University.

Vice President, People and Culture

Marianne Passafaro

Paul MacDonald

Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Paul MacDonald is responsible for developing and executing Symcor’s market-driven technology strategy and managing the technical support and core application teams. He began working with Symcor as a consultant in 2015 before being appointed to his current position in 2016. MacDonald has extensive experience as a business and information technology executive from his time as senior vice president and chief information officer at Farm Credit Canada, and vice president at Ipsos-Reid.

Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Paul MacDonald

hipages is Australia and New Zealand’s largest online tradie marketplace, connecting tradies with homeowners, simplifying property improvement and maintenance. The firm enables tradies to grow their business, providing job leads and an SAAS platform to optimise their businesses operations. For homeowners, hipages is a better way to connect with qualified tradies. hipages is inspired and driven by its purpose of transforming the trade industry, building better lives for everyone. Its vision is to be a trusted partner to its tradie customers and deliver exceptional service to homeowners. Over four million Australians have changed the way they hire trusted tradies with hipages, ultimately providing more work to 33,000+ trade businesses. With a team of 350 across four countries, hipages is composed of proudly diverse, creative and collaborative people who delight in working as one team to grow the business and continue to deliver great value. hipages’ impact is evident in the following:

Saba Shariff

Senior Vice President, Chief Strategy, Product and Innovation Officer

Elisabeth Demone

Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary

Dan Draper

Group Chief Underwriting Officer

Simon Williams

Chief Strategy & Distribution Officer, Arch Insurance International and Active Underwriter, Syndicate 1955

Saba Shariff oversees multiple teams responsible for designing and launching innovative products that address industry-wide challenges, along with a mandate for charting Symcor’s corporate strategy towards continued growth. Saba joined Symcor in 2002 and held progressive senior positions thereafter. Prior to joining Symcor, she had previous experience in both start-ups and telecommunications. Named as one of Canada’s Top 50 Women in Fintech in Canada, Shariff is a sought-after public speaker who shares insights on topics such as open banking, innovation, and women in technology in the Canadian financial industry.

Senior Vice President, Chief Strategy, Product and Innovation Officer

Saba Shariff

Elisabeth Demone oversees the company’s legal, contractual, and regulatory functions in addition to guiding governance matters as secretary to the board of directors. She joined Symcor in 2010, holding progressively senior positions. Prior to joining Symcor, Demone worked at John Deere Credit and Stikeman Elliott LLP. She earned her LLB from Osgoode Hall Law School at York University and holds a BA in Psychology from the University of Western Ontario. She previously served as a director on the board of the Canadian Technology Law Association.

Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary

Elisabeth Demone

Dan Draper was appointed group chief underwriting officer in September 2022. He had previously served for more than two years as group head of underwriting at AXIS. Prior to that, he had been group chief risk and actuarial officer at VIBE. Before joining VIBE, Draper spent eight years with AXIS, holding a number of leadership roles that included group chief actuary, chief risk analytics officer, and insurance segment chief risk officer. Before that, he held managerial positions at the Financial Services Authority, XL Capital, and EY.

Group Chief Underwriting Officer

Dan Draper

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

Partner

Kimi Shah

Partner

Kimi Shah

Sarah M Stewart

Associate Vice President, Leasing and Call Centre Operations

Karen Bannister, CM

Vice President, Marketing

Dave Longbottom

Chief Technology Officer

Alex Ventura

Head of Marketing

Damian Palovick

Senior Vice President of Underwriting AXA XL – Delegated Authority Programs, North America

Dr. Mary Lavoie

Head of Risk Management and Senior Vice President AXA XL – Delegated Authority Programs, North America

Mark Bernacki

Chief Underwriting Officer

Ryan Armijo

Chief Operating Officer, Underwriting Division

Bob Petrilli

President, Underwriting Division

Read on

IB Top Brokerages

Award Winner

HIPAGES

SPECIAL REPORT

Home

Bio

Read on

Award Winner

SPECIAL REPORT

Home

Bio

Read on

Award Winner

SPECIAL REPORT

Home

Bio

Medal

Small business

Brokers’ Pick – Professional liability

Broker's Pick – Personal Accident and Illness Insurance

Turnaround time – claims

BDM support

Broker communication, training and development

Overall service level

BDM support

Medal

Overall service level

Broker communication, training and development

BDM support

Turnaround time – claims

Broker's Pick – Personal Accident and Illness Insurance

Brokers’ Pick – Professional liability

Small business

Medal

Overall service level

Broker communication, training and development

BDM support

Turnaround time – claims

Broker's Pick – Personal Accident and Illness Insurance

Brokers’ Pick – Professional liability

Small business

Saray Uribe, CharSan Insurance & Consulting

“Having four insurance designations, and the wealth of knowledge that comes with it, enables me to better counsel customers regarding the importance of having the appropriate insurance coverage”

Saray Uribe, CharSan Insurance & Consulting

Over 12 million jobs have been posted on the platform since hipages started. An average of one job has been posted every 25 seconds. hipages has been consistently recognised as a great place to work and has won numerous awards in innovation, diversity and talent development.