The Hatchery

Ian Yates is Chief Executive of COTA Australia, the national peak body for COTAs (Councils on the Ageing) in each State and Territory of Australia. Ian was appointed CE of COTA SA in June 1989 and has played national leadership roles in COTA since 2002.

Ian serves on a wide variety of federal government and aged care sector national bodies. He is a member of the Federal Government’s Aged Care Financing Authority; the Aged Care Sector Committee and the Aged Care Quality Advisory Council.

Beyond aged care Ian is a member of the Consumer Advisory Panel to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), a Director of Livable Housing Australia, and a member of the Advisory Board of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (CEPAR).

Ian holds a BA from Flinders University; is a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors; is an Honorary Doctor and Emeritus Deputy Chancellor of Flinders University; and was awarded Membership in the Order of Australia (AM) in June 2005

Patricia Sparrow is a social policy leader and innovator with expertise in stakeholder engagement and management. She has specific and detailed expertise in ageing policy and aged care, having worked as, and with, a diverse range of stakeholders including consumers, service providers, workforce, health professionals, corporate organisations and Government. This unique ‘360 degree’ perspective ensures that Pat’s leadership approach is strategic and nuanced, inclusive and collaborative.

Pat is currently leading Aged & Community Services Australia (ACSA) toward a new era, as a recently-transitioned national organisation and with the challenges it faces in an increasingly competitive, consumer-driven environment. She is focused on ensuring the organisation has genuine respect and influence among key stakeholders through the establishment of a strong national voice. Pat’s breadth of knowledge, depth of experience and constructive approach enable her to achieve results that benefit ACSA members and contribute to the best possible outcomes for older.

Liesel is an experienced CEO and non-executive Director and is Chair and of Director of Goodwin Aged Care Services in the ACT, the largest not for profit employer and leading aged care provider in Canberra. In 2015, Liesel was appointed to the national Board of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).

Liesel also holds non-executive directorships with Doctors’ Health Services and Pathology Awareness Australia. As an experienced CEO and health strategist, Liesel is the CEO of Australian Pathology, the peak industry body for private pathology practice in Australia and represents more than 95% of private pathology services.

Previously, Liesel held the position of CEO of the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia, the professional membership organisation for 18,000 pharmacists in Australia.

Liesel holds qualifications in science (BSc.) a Masters by Research (MPH) and an MBA (with Distinction).

Professor Alan Lilly is an Adjunct Professor with Australian Catholic University. He is a Registered Psychiatric Nurse and Registered General Nurse by background, with a Graduate Diploma in Health Services Management and Master of Business in Health Administration. With extensive experience in residential care, he has worked across the health, disability and aged care sectors and was Chief Executive for almost ten years in public and private sector organisations. He is currently a Board Director of the Royal Women’s Hospital and the Royal Victorian Eye & Ear Hospital in Melbourne and chairs their respective Board Quality & Safety Committees. A former Accreditation Surveyor with the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards, his professional interests are in leadership, quality & safety and the consumer experience. Nowadays, Alan is Principal of his own consulting firm, Acumenity, providing consulting services in Health and Aged Care. Professor Lilly is a member of the newly established Aged Care Advisory Group which provides advice to the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee.