Our board

Members of the board

The Hon. Lisa Neville

Chair

The Hon. Lisa Neville was appointed Chair of the GWW Board on 24 April 2025. Ms Neville brings decades of experience in the water sector and government to this role. She is currently the Chair of Barwon Health’s board, Chair of the Community Advisory Committee for Port of Geelong and is Non-Executive Director of organisations including The Torch and Employers Mutual Limited. She also served as Minister for Water from 2014 to 2022 and held other senior positions during her 20 years in the Victorian Parliament.

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.

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.

Craig Dixon

A/Managing Director

B.Eng (Hons)

Mr Dixon was appointed as Acting Managing Director of GWW as of 28 July 2025. Mr Dixon joins Greater Western Water from Melbourne Water and brings extensive executive-level experience across the utilities, industrials and fast-moving consumer goods sectors. Mr Dixon has led major transformations, complex projects, and operational improvement initiatives across both public and private sectors.
Mr Dixon is highly focused on customer outcomes and brings significant expertise in managing complex stakeholder environments. A natural leader with a highly engaging style, Mr Dixon is known for building high-performing teams and driving positive change through a culture of continuous improvement.

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.

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.

Cathy Whelan

Director

Ms Whelan was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from October 2025. Cathy was born and raised in Melbourne’s west on Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country and has lived there for most of her life. She has held executive roles in local government and has been a member and chair of boards across the public and community sectors. She is currently on the Council of Victoria University, a Board Director at Windana and a member of the Mitchell Institute Advisory Board. Cathy works as an organisational consultant to governments, public entities, peak bodies, NGOs and the community sector. She is interested in good service delivery, accountable governance and ever improving outcomes for people, businesses, communities and environments in greater western Melbourne.

Deirdre Blythe

Director

BSc (Hons) FCA FAICD

Ms Blythe was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from October 2025. Deirdre is an experienced non- executive director and audit and risk committee chair and currently serves on the boards of Breakthrough Victoria, where she is also Chair of the Risk, Audit and finance committee, and of biotech Cell Therapies. As an Executive, Ms Blythe worked as CEO, COO and CFO across health, financial services and the arts in the public, private, and not for profit sectors in Australia and overseas.

Paul Younis

Director

B. Eng (Civil). Grad Dip Bus. Grad Dip Law.

Mr Younis was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from October 2025. Paul brings extensive Senior leadership experience across State and Local Government. As CEO in both regional and large metropolitan councils to most recently the Secretary of the Department of Transport and Planning in Victoria, Paul has been committed to delivering outcomes for stakeholders and the community.

Mr Younis has led major governance transformations in a range of public sector bodies from the transport sector, building and planning as well as managing large infrastructure projects as part of Victorias Big Build. He also brings Board experience, most recently as a Director for Infrastructure Victoria.

Tony Peake OAM

Director

Mr Peake was appointed a Director of the GWW Board from October 2025. Tony has more than 30 years of board-level experience spanning public, private, and not-for-profit sectors. A former Senior Partner at PwC, Tony held key leadership roles including Audit and Consulting Partner, Chief Operating Officer, and Executive Director. At various times at PwC he was the Global, National and Victorian Leader of the Government & Public Sector practice. He is a Fellow of Chartered Accountants ANZ (FCA), and a Graduate and Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (FAICD). Tony currently serves as a Non-Executive Director of Domino's Pizza Enterprises (ASX:DMP), PeopleIN (ASX: PPE), Bakers Delight, The Australian Ballet, Country Fire Authority, Scanlon Capital, Brencorp Properties, and is Chair of Museum of Australian Photography.

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.

Danielle Walker

Independent Risk Management and Audit Committee Member

B.Comm, CPA, GAICD

Ms Walker was appointed as an Independent Member of the Risk Management and Audit Committee in March 2025. Ms Walker has held a number of Board and Committee positions across a range of sectors most recently in Local Council and Health. Ms Walker is currently the Chief Operating Officer for Ballarat Community Health and has extensive experience in a range of commercial areas including finance, risk management, ICT and project management. Ms Walker is passionate about supporting public health initiatives to support vibrant and thriving communities.