Our board

Our Board

The DVSM Board of Directors govern the strategic direction of the organisation. Working with the Senior Leadership Team to enable and support implementation of our constitutional commitments and strategic objectives. Our Board are a strong and dynamic team with varying backgrounds and experience who bring a range of skills and expertise to the organisation, in addition to unwavering commitment to the DVSM vision.

Anna Ross

(Chair)
She/Her

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Joined DVSM Board 2013.

Anna is a Partner of law firm Corrs Chambers Westgarth and a Member of the Law Society of New South Wales.

Anna is an inquiry and public law specialist with deep expertise in complex and sensitive policy areas and compliance. She specialises in working with private and public sector clients operating in high profile sectors that receive considerable public interest and attention. Anna's practice involves helping clients involved in inquiries, prosecutions, Royal Commissions, FOI, class actions and investigations by regulators. She has extensive experience in dealing with international human rights complaints made against Australian entities, including governments.

Anna also regularly works with clients facing a broad range of commercial disputes and risks including in relation to contractual compliance, real property and consumer claims regarding medical technology.

As well as her commercial work, Anna is a passionate supporter of pro bono legal services and was Pro Bono Partner of Corrs Sydney office for many years. She has served as the Chair of DVSM since 2016.

Suzanne Evans

(Director, Treasurer)
She/Her

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Joined DVSM Board 2013.

Suzanne holds a Masters in Applied Finance from Macquarie University and is a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Suzanne is the Chief Financial and Strategy Officer for First Sentier Investors, a global asset manager. Suzanne services on the Boards of a number of entities within the First Sentier Group, in Australia and United Kingdom and is responsible for the Finance, Strategy and Corporate Sustainability functions, which includes accounting, tax, treasury and corporate strategy.

She has more than 25 years of experience across all aspects of capital markets including banking, life insurance, financial services and property sectors. Prior to First Sentier Investors, Suzanne held roles in investor relations, treasury, strategy and mergers and acquisitions for a number of publicly-listed entities including Westpac Banking Corporation, Challenger Limited, and Lendlease.

DR LEIGH GASSNER

(Director)
He/Him

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Joined DVSM Board 2018.

Leigh is an experienced Director and has been a Member of the Prime Ministers Commonwealth Government Violence against Women Advisory Group, Victorian Ministerial Advisory Committee on Mental Health Reform and Chair of the Victoria Coroners Family Violence Death Review Panels.

Dr Leigh Gassner was in Victoria Police for 35 years leaving as an Assistant Commissioner. His senior executive and leadership experience has included leading and managing two of the largest police regions in Victoria and being responsible for the wide range of services to the community that each region delivered. He has chaired Cabinet endorsed committees involving system reform including the State-wide Steering Committee to Reduce Family Violence and the State-wide Steering Committee to Reduce Sexual Assault involving both the community and government sectors.

Since leaving the public-sector Leigh has provided executive coaching and leadership development programs in the finance, manufacturing and retail sectors. Leigh has also worked numerous times in China with the Australian Human Rights Commission and the Supreme People’s Court of China on family violence legislative and system reform and in South Africa on system reform to violence against women

LIZETTE TWISLETON

(Director)
She/Her

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Joined DVSM Board 2018.

Lizette Twisleton has worked in the human and community services sector for 30 years for NGO’s and in local government. Lizette has experience in domestic and family violence having worked with victim-survivors, and men who use family violence.

She has a background in nursing, youth work, health promotion and community development. Lizette has specialised in men’s behaviour change work over the past twenty years, twelve years as a men’s behaviour change practitioner, three years delivering partner contact and six years leading sector development projects and strategies at No to Violence, Australia’s largest peak body leading the change to end men’s family violence in Australia.

Lizette has previously served on the Board of Youth Action, the NSW peak body for young people and youth services and as Chair on the Board of a regional youth service in Northern NSW.

FABI FUGAZZA

(Director)
She/Her

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Joined December 2023

Fabi is a lawyer and organisational management expert with extensive experience in human and civil rights. She is currently Chief Operating Officer & Legal Expert at the Italian Coalition for Civil Liberties and Rights (CILD), and is a Lawyer and Director of Development at Equity Generation Lawyers. She also teaches law, public policy and human rights at Western Sydney
University .

Fabi is a member of the Global Strategic Litigation Council and has worked within non-profit organisations for over 15 years, including within the National Justice Project and New York Lawyers for the Public Interest. Fabi holds undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications across law, marketing and management and when in Australia, works on the land of the Gadigal
people of the Eora nation.

LINDALL WEST

(Director)
She/Her

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Lindall’s successful leadership roles in HR have been built on her authenticity, empathy, pragmatism and decisiveness, allowing her to build highly productive, commercially focused and inclusive teams.

It has given her a deep understanding and appreciation of the challenges organisations face when workplace conflict is left unattended – affecting their culture, productivity and bottom line. When coupled with her 20 plus years of experience in crisis management and organisational change, Lindall has the experience to help organisations improve their workplaces cultures.

This varied HR background, spread across different countries, the property and financial services industries, and the private and not-for-profit sectors, is why she firmly believes Ombpoint can be a critical element to the overall employee value proposition of organisations building and sustaining constructive workplace cultures.

To remain firmly grounded, Lindall contributes as a Raise youth mentor and volunteers at Lou’s Place, a women’s refuge, providing career support to these women, experiences that give her a deeper understanding of broader community challenges.

Our board

Our Board

Anna Ross

Suzanne Evans

DR LEIGH GASSNER

LIZETTE TWISLETON

FABI FUGAZZA

LINDALL WEST

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