Our board

David Middleton

Chair

BEng, MEng, MBA, GAICD

Mr Middleton was appointed the inaugural GWW Board Chair as of 1 July 2021. Mr Middleton was City West Water Board Chair from October 2015 to June 2021 and Director and Deputy Chair at Yarra Valley Water from October 2011 to September 2015. Mr Middleton has more than 30 years of water industry operational and executive experience. He is Chair of the VicWater Board and a director on the board of Hydro Tasmania. Mr Middleton holds Bachelor and Masters degrees in engineering, an MBA from Deakin University and is a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD). Mr Middleton has held previous board roles as Managing Director of the CH2M Hill group of companies in Australia and Chair of CH2M Beca in New Zealand.

Committee membership: Resilience and Transformation Committee; Culture, Wellbeing and Community Committee

Nicola Burgess

Director

B.Bldg (Property), B.Planning & Design, Post Grad Dip. Property, MBA, GAICD

Ms Burgess was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from October 2023. Ms Burgess is an experienced non-executive Director, Chair, CEO, and member of board risk and audit committees. As an executive, Ms Burgess has worked across many sectors with mid-cap, large public, government, listed and private companies in Australia and internationally. Ms Burgess has diverse experience leading commercial innovation, digital transformation, M&A post-merger integration, and growth ventures at companies including Deloitte, British Telecom, and Australia Post.

Committee membership: Resilience and Transformation Committee

Matthew Burns

Director

AdvDip(FinServices)

Mr Burns was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from July 2021. As a Taungurung Traditional Owner and current Chief Executive Officer of Taungurung Land and Waters Council (TLaWC), he has deep knowledge of the water sector through his associations with catchment management authorities and other water corporation boards. Mr Burns is currently an Elected Member of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria and director on the board of the Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency.

Bruce Cohen

Director

BComm, LLB (Hons), MComm, PhD (Pub. Pol.)

Dr Cohen was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from July 2021 and was previously a Director of City West Water from October 2015 to June 2021. Dr Cohen has previously practised as a barrister and currently is a board member of Austin Health and principal at BKE Consulting, which provides high-level economic and public policy advice. Dr Cohen has substantial public sector governance experience, having previously served on the boards of VicTrack, Melbourne Water, Snowy Hydro and VENCorp, as well as with the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission and the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation.

Committee membership: Risk Management and Audit Committee; Resilience and Transformation Committee Organisation (Chair)

Claire Filson

Director

MBA, LLB, GradDip (Applied Corporate Governance)

Ms Filson was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from July 2021 and was previously a Director of Western Water from October 2017 to June 2021 and South East Water from 2000 to 2006. Ms Filson is an experienced non-executive director with an extensive background in financial services, superannuation, insurance, funds management, infrastructure and property including ports, roads, rail and utilities (water). Ms Filson is the Deputy Chair of the Portable Long Service Benefits Authority and the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation. She is also Chair of the City of Kingston Audit and Risk Committee and is an independent member on the board of Redundancy Payment Central Fund Limited (trading as Incolink).

Committee membership: Risk Management and Audit Committee (Chair); Culture, Wellbeing and Community Committee

Tien Kieu

Director

BSc (Hons) PhD GAICD MRSV FAIP

Professor Kieu was appointed a Director of the GWW Board in October 2023. Prof. Kieu has held various positions at Edinburgh University, Oxford University, Melbourne University and CSIRO. He also has extensive experience in industry and financial investment sectors, data analytics and artificial intelligence. His current interests include quantum computation and algorithms.

Prof. Kieu served as a Member of the Legislative Council of the Victorian Parliament from 2018 to 2022. During his tenure, he performed various roles including the inaugural Victorian Government STEM Education Ambassador and as Chair, Deputy Chair and member of several Legislative Council Committees. He has also been a non-executive director on the Board of the Traffic Accident Commission (TAC). Prof. Kieu is currently a member of In2Science Advisory Board, Fellow of St Hilda’s College (Melbourne University) and Adjunct Professor at Swinburne University of Technology. He is also a member of the Council of Swinburne University of Technology.

Prof. Kieu was a refugee from Vietnam and is actively involved with multicultural communities in Victoria.

Committee membership: Risk Management and Audit Committee

Maree Lang

Managing Director

MBA (Prof), B.Eng (Hons) (Chem), B.Comm

Ms Lang was appointed the inaugural Managing Director of GWW as of 1 July 2021. Ms Lang was previously Managing Director of City West Water from April 2020 to June 2021, following being appointed Acting Managing Director in November 2019. Prior to this Ms Lang was an executive with City West Water, leading the delivery of water services to more than one million Melburnians across the CBD, inner suburbs and the growing western region, as well as the delivery of major new assets vital for growth, urban renewal and government infrastructure. Ms Lang brings a passion to lead culture, safety and business transformation to deliver trusted water services for the customers and communities we serve, and for future generations. Ms Lang combines her water sector experience with a diverse and commercial driven background. Her leadership was recognised by her inclusion as Institute of Public Administration Australia Top 50 Public Sector Women (Victoria) 2018.

Committee membership: Resilience and Transformation Committee; Culture, Wellbeing and Community Committee. Attends all committee meetings

Liza McDonald

Director

GAICD

Ms McDonald was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from July 2021 and was previously a Director of Western Water from October 2019 to June 2021. As Managing Director of a consultancy company, Ms McDonald provides comprehensive strategic, business and community engagement strategies to top-tier Australian and international businesses. Ms McDonald has many years of executive experience in the coordination of high-level communications and performance evaluation within the Victorian Government. Ms McDonald was a member of the Lower Murray Water Board from 2015 – 2019, holds various qualifications in communication and negotiation, and has completed the Australian Institute of Company Directors course.

Committee membership: Resilience and Transformation Committee; Culture, Wellbeing and Community Committee

Aisha Nicolay

Director

BBus (Acc) with Distinction, MAICD

Ms Nicolay was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from October 2023. As a non-executive director, she is experienced in customer-centric culture transformation and strategic growth in corporate, not-for-profit and social enterprise sectors and organisational risk management. She brings expertise in evidence-led economic development and is focused on inclusion, diversity, equity and community wellbeing. Ms Nicolay is currently a director at the Western Bulldogs Community Foundation where she is also chair of the Strategic Advisory Committee and executive director of the West of Melbourne Economic Development Alliance Incorporated.

Committee membership: Culture, Wellbeing and Community Committee

Llewellyn Prain

Director, Deputy Chair

BA (Hons), LLB (Hons), FAICD

Ms Prain was appointed a Director and made Deputy Chair of the GWW Board from July 2021. Ms Prain was previously a Director of Western Water from October 2015 to June 2021. She is an experienced company director with a background in law and public policy. Her directorships have spanned the health, disability and alternative dispute resolution industries.  In 2017 she completed the Williamson Community Leadership program. She is Founder and national Coordinator, WaterAble, a network for people with disability in the water industry.

Committee membership: Risk Management and Audit Committee; Culture, Wellbeing and Community Committee (Chair)

Joshua Smith

Independent First Nations Board Delegate

EMPA, LLB, GradCert LegalPrac

Mr Smith was appointed Independent First Nations Board Delegate from late August 2024. Joshua Smith, a proud Dunghutti man and former Deputy Secretary at the Department of Justice and Community Safety. Mr Smith has over 18 years’ experience as a lawyer and a senior public servant that has played key leadership roles in putting Victoria as a progressive and innovative leader nationally. He played a leading role in Victoria’s treaty process, Aboriginal Justice Agreement, law reform and Youth Justice system. Mr Smith is regarded as a thought leader, systems thinker and attune to cultivating partnerships and strategic relationships.