Leaders driving innovation and change

They are driving innovation, breaking down barriers and reshaping Australia’s future. These inspiring leaders share the challenges that have propelled them to drive meaningful change.

Presented by Diabetes Australia, McCabes & Life Street

Justine Cain MAICD - Group CEO Diabetes Australia (pictured above)

How do you describe your leadership style?

I’ve been involved in the building, leading and evolution of large-scale, high-performance organisations in the health and human services sector for much of my career. One of my strengths is I lead with a commercial mind and a social heart. I try to couple the ability to transform sectors with equal measures of speed, agility and a people focus.

What’s an example of how you’ve successfully managed change?

I commenced in the role of the inaugural Group CEO of Diabetes Australia in late 2021. Several diabetes organisations had legally unified, but there had been no financial, operational or organisational integration. Five boards still operated.

We had to deliver critical innovations in one of our largest service delivery contracts, which had implications for revenue, operational models and subcontractor arrangements. At the same time, we experienced staffing turnover in senior positions. Failure to execute in a timely and effective manner was a potential risk. But by being highly visible, engaging an expert change lead and creating open communication, we faced it head-on.

By consistently reinforcing our organisational purpose, priorities and unwavering focus on people living with and at risk of diabetes, we ended up with a really positive outcome. What enabled that success was prioritisation based on risk mitigation, community centricity, realism, short, medium and long-term financial impacts, and the clear mantra that service delivery to people living with diabetes must not be compromised.

Describe a change you facilitated that impacted people’s lives.

As a leader in the health sector, I make decisions that impact people’s lives, business results and organisations. One of my most important decisions was to introduce a free membership offering at Diabetes Australia. Nobody’s bank balance or post-code should be a barrier to good health. Diabetes YOUnited is a free national membership program supporting Australians living with diabetes, and those who are at risk and want support to manage their health. It has increased equity and access to diabetes support at a time when cost-of-living pressures are forcing people to make difficult choices about how to manage their health.

What goal would you like to achieve at Diabetes Australia?

The ultimate goal, of course, is to eliminate the impact of diabetes on Australians. It’s an ambitious one, but we are 100 per cent focused on doing everything we can to achieve it. Around two million Australians live with diabetes, which includes around 500,000 who live with silent, undiagnosed type 2 diabetes. We must reduce the impact of this condition on individuals and our health system. By raising awareness about diabetes prevention, helping people to manage their condition well after a diagnosis, and supporting diabetes researchers and health professionals, we can make a real impact in people’s lives and improve the health of Australians for generations to come.

Andrew Lacey MAICD - Managing Principal McCabes

What changes have you seen in the legal environment during the past few years?

One of the key changes in the legal environment has been the adjustment to a post-COVID world, particularly around workplace expectations. We’ve seen a significant shift as staff express a desire to vary remote working arrangements, and businesses have had to respond accordingly.

How have you adapted your leadership to engage with change in the industry?

Traditionally, law firms are slow to change and have a top-down leadership style. There has historically been an emphasis on billable hours.But building a business for tomorrow’s leaders has meant investing heavily in the firm’s culture and devoting time and resources to collaboration.

Culture is fast-moving, but the leadership of the firm sets the pace. Younger professionals value autonomy and inclusivity, and respond to leaders who listen and invest in their growth. They also place value on collaboration and a sense of team.

What benefits have you gained from continuous learning in your working environment?

The first program I championed was to invest in a specialist “knowledge group” for the firm. Our knowledge team is now vital to all areas of the firm and a large part of its role is to ensure an accessible and relevant continuous learning program, which covers important areas of technology and learning, including AI. By actively engaging in learning, I’ve been able to foster innovation, drive operational improvements and model a growth mindset across the firm. It has also strengthened my ability to mentor others and create a culture where development and curiosity are not just encouraged, but expected.

What challenges have you overcome leading your team?

Every day brings challenges, but growth isn’t possible without them. Learning how to move forward and have the right people around you who share your values puts you in a great position to get through the tougher times.

The pandemic lockdowns were an opportunity to identify what matters most when every aspect of life is thrown into uncertainty. Finding the way forward is about having the right structures in place to be a mentor when required, and supportive always. No one can stay engaged and energised in a high-performance environment without support and constructive two-way feedback, so trust and personal connection is a must-have for building a resilient organisation.

What is your firm’s most pressing issue?

There are rising costs for doing business across professional services. Clients now rightly demand high standards when it comes to cybersecurity and data sovereignty, which requires heavy investment in IT infrastructure. We’re also planning for increased spending in AI in order to remain competitive and deliver the best outcomes for our clients.

“The first program I championed was to invest in a specialist knowledge group. This team is now vital to all areas of the firm.”

Paul Flanagan MAICD - BA (Hons I -Psych), M Psychol, MAPSFounder + CEO Life Street

What major change have you led and what was the main challenge?

Our company makes it simple for organisations to positively impact the mental health and wellbeing of all their employees. Our mission is an industry-wide change. We focused on engagement and prevention of mental health issues, rather than awareness or crisis services. The internal challenge was to build a leadership team that was very experienced, yet innovative, adaptable and flexible. Externally, the challenge was to question the prevailing model to better address employees’ mental health and wellbeing needs.

What types of barriers did you face?

Mainly external. You can control internal barriers by getting the team and day-to-day leadership right. Externally, many people were attached to old approaches — they were solution-focused without a strong understanding of the problem itself.

We addressed this by helping people better understand the nature and development of mental health issues and what is needed. For the most part, this shift in focus is embraced by more experienced boards and HR/WHS executives.

Psychosocial hazard reduction is now a must. What are the challenges with this?

This is an important issue, and a complex one for larger organisations. It’s about, firstly, ensuring a fair, supportive, congenial (psychologically safe) and inclusive environment. And secondly, actively managing individual employee psychosocial and wellbeing risk.

The regulations are focused on work-related psychosocial issues such as supportive management practices, communication and fairness. In practice, the role of such issues can’t be separated from psychosocial issues in employees’ personal lives, such as life stressors and relationship issues. Work factors also interact with individual vulnerability, due to personal make-up and prior experiences. So, while it’s useful to gather information on employee experiences and views regarding psychosocial work factors, the solution needs to be more holistic, including supporting vulnerable individuals.

What is the most pressing board issue in relation to their organisation’s people?

People retention and true engagement. The younger generation are moving the goalposts on what matters. Fair pay and benefits are now the basics. These days, that just gets people to work. Boards are looking at what their organisation can do better to build an environment where people are truly engaged — where their people feel seen, heard, appreciated and supported.

How do you approach your own mental health so your leadership is best practice?

I’m passionate about what we do at work, but it isn’t my life, nor our team members’ lives. We put in extra time when needed, but make sure doing so doesn’t become excessive or regular. Each person takes extra time off when it is of best use for them.

“The change we made was to focus on engagement and prevention of mental health issues, rather than awareness or crisis services.”

This article first appeared under the headline 'Meet the leadership change makers' in the July 2025 issue of Company Director magazine.

Presented by McCabes

Andrew Lacey MAICD - Managing Principal McCabes

What changes have you seen in the legal environment during the past few years?

One of the key changes in the legal environment has been the adjustment to a post-COVID world, particularly around workplace expectations. We’ve seen a significant shift as staff express a desire to vary remote working arrangements, and businesses have had to respond accordingly.

How have you adapted your leadership to engage with change in the industry?

Traditionally, law firms are slow to change and have a top-down leadership style. There has historically been an emphasis on billable hours.But building a business for tomorrow’s leaders has meant investing heavily in the firm’s culture and devoting time and resources to collaboration.

Culture is fast-moving, but the leadership of the firm sets the pace. Younger professionals value autonomy and inclusivity, and respond to leaders who listen and invest in their growth. They also place value on collaboration and a sense of team.

What benefits have you gained from continuous learning in your working environment?

The first program I championed was to invest in a specialist “knowledge group” for the firm. Our knowledge team is now vital to all areas of the firm and a large part of its role is to ensure an accessible and relevant continuous learning program, which covers important areas of technology and learning, including AI. By actively engaging in learning, I’ve been able to foster innovation, drive operational improvements and model a growth mindset across the firm. It has also strengthened my ability to mentor others and create a culture where development and curiosity are not just encouraged, but expected.

What challenges have you overcome leading your team?

Every day brings challenges, but growth isn’t possible without them. Learning how to move forward and have the right people around you who share your values puts you in a great position to get through the tougher times.

The pandemic lockdowns were an opportunity to identify what matters most when every aspect of life is thrown into uncertainty. Finding the way forward is about having the right structures in place to be a mentor when required, and supportive always. No one can stay engaged and energised in a high-performance environment without support and constructive two-way feedback, so trust and personal connection is a must-have for building a resilient organisation.

What is your firm’s most pressing issue?

There are rising costs for doing business across professional services. Clients now rightly demand high standards when it comes to cybersecurity and data sovereignty, which requires heavy investment in IT infrastructure. We’re also planning for increased spending in AI in order to remain competitive and deliver the best outcomes for our clients.

Presented by Life Street

Paul Flanagan MAICD - BA (Hons I -Psych), M Psychol, MAPSFounder + CEO Life Street

What major change have you led and what was the main challenge?

Our company makes it simple for organisations to positively impact the mental health and wellbeing of all their employees. Our mission is an industry-wide change. We focused on engagement and prevention of mental health issues, rather than awareness or crisis services. The internal challenge was to build a leadership team that was very experienced, yet innovative, adaptable and flexible. Externally, the challenge was to question the prevailing model to better address employees’ mental health and wellbeing needs.

What types of barriers did you face?

Mainly external. You can control internal barriers by getting the team and day-to-day leadership right. Externally, many people were attached to old approaches — they were solution-focused without a strong understanding of the problem itself.

We addressed this by helping people better understand the nature and development of mental health issues and what is needed. For the most part, this shift in focus is embraced by more experienced boards and HR/WHS executives.

Psychosocial hazard reduction is now a must. What are the challenges with this?

This is an important issue, and a complex one for larger organisations. It’s about, firstly, ensuring a fair, supportive, congenial (psychologically safe) and inclusive environment. And secondly, actively managing individual employee psychosocial and wellbeing risk.

The regulations are focused on work-related psychosocial issues such as supportive management practices, communication and fairness. In practice, the role of such issues can’t be separated from psychosocial issues in employees’ personal lives, such as life stressors and relationship issues. Work factors also interact with individual vulnerability, due to personal make-up and prior experiences. So, while it’s useful to gather information on employee experiences and views regarding psychosocial work factors, the solution needs to be more holistic, including supporting vulnerable individuals.

What is the most pressing board issue in relation to their organisation’s people?

People retention and true engagement. The younger generation are moving the goalposts on what matters. Fair pay and benefits are now the basics. These days, that just gets people to work. Boards are looking at what their organisation can do better to build an environment where people are truly engaged — where their people feel seen, heard, appreciated and supported.

How do you approach your own mental health so your leadership is best practice?

I’m passionate about what we do at work, but it isn’t my life, nor our team members’ lives. We put in extra time when needed, but make sure doing so doesn’t become excessive or regular. Each person takes extra time off when it is of best use for them.