Leading the way on diversity and inclusion

Lisa Annese is a leading voice on diversity and inclusion in Australia. Throughout her long career in this space, spanning the corporate, government and not-for-profit sector, she has dedicated years of work to successful policy advocacy, led campaigns, presented ground-breaking research nationally and internationally and is a regular spokesperson and thought leader in the media, at conferences and large events.

As the CEO at Diversity Council Australia, a role she has held for nearly a decade now, Annese has led a broad array of cutting-edge, evidence-based research, including Australia’s first national index on workplace diversity and inclusion, seminal research on the economics of the gender pay-gap, leading research on racism at work, and original work on Counting Culture and building Asian Leadership Capability, as well as research supporting individuals being “Out at Work”, main-streaming flexible work and myth-busting workplace responses to sexual harassment and domestic and family violence.

Under Annese’s leadership DCA has grown significantly in its membership base, organisational size, scope of work and spheres of influence. She is passionate about DCA’s leadership on diversity and inclusion as well as its capacity to deliver information and resources that are great for business, for workers and for the community and economy.

In 2022 Annese was appointed to the Respect at Work Council, charged with supporting the work of the introduction of the Respect at Work Bill aiming to prevent sexual harassment in Australian workplaces.

Annese is on the Boards of Amnesty International Australia and the non-partisan organisation, Women for Election. In 2018, Annese was named one of the AFR’s 100 Women of Influence and is a member of Chief Executive Women. Read our interview with Lisa Annese below!

Briefly describe your career trajectory (including any study and board positions) and how you got to your current position.

• Started my career as a graduate banker before being inspired by Ann Sherry to join her team as an analyst to create the business case for what would become Australia’s first ever private sector paid ‘maternity’ leave scheme.
• Joined the WGEA (then EOWWA) in the late 1990’s and loved this role.  Worked to implement the legislative framework with business.  Developed the first ever census of Australian women in leadership (predecessor to the current WGEA dataset) and the first ever EOCFW citation.
• D&I was a new industry and spent time working in the private sector as a practitioner.
• Joined DCA.  Appointed CEO in 2014 by the Board.  My appointment was made by (late) Anna McPhee (Chair) and Sam Mostyn (Deputy Chair).
• Elected to the board of Amnesty International Australia in 2019, made a member of Chief Executive Women in 2020, appointed to the Board of Women for Election Australia in 2021 and to the Respect at Work Council in 2022.

What does this role mean to you?

It’s a brilliant role, leading a fabulous group of committed, smart and creative people who are passionate about DD&I.

Love the fact that I am able to make a difference in the labour market, either through improving inclusion in DCA member organisations or more broadly by advocating for policy reform and contributing to the public conversation.

Take us through a typical day of work for you.

• Usually start the day at 6am with yoga, followed by a walk while listening to RN Breakfast and/or a podcasts.
• Whether I am in the office or WFH, usually at my desk b/w 8-9.
• Every day is different.  I might be travelling or out with members but it is usually a combination of speaking to members, overseeing the DCA organisation, representing DCA in media, public forums, conferences etc…. and working with my team to come up with creative solutions to the complex problem of how do we make Australia more inclusive of its diverse talent.
• I take a break from work at the 5pm/6pm mark and back at my computer at about 8pm for emails and to finish off things I was unable to get to during the day.  (My three daughters are all adults now so I have the freedom to do this but I don’t recommend for people with small kids).
• I often have Board commitments at night for the two Boards (Women for Election Australia and Amnesty International Australia) I am on, especially for the work I do with Amnesty International.

What is the biggest lesson you’ve learnt about the not-for-profit sector over the past decade as CEO of DCA?

That you always have to stay true to your organisations charitable purpose. That you need to make your organisation sustainable.

Identify a key challenge facing diversity and inclusion in Australia’s workplaces. How can this be addressed?

People try to do too much on too little, and they underestimate the complexity. Slow down, be evidence led, use a theory of change approach and focus on building capability and accountability.

If you could go back in time, what piece of advice would you give yourself as you first embarked on your career? 

Everything leads to something else and all learning is valuable, even if you can’t quite place its relevance in the moment.

How do you stay motivated to work in this field?

I am passionate about it so it doesn’t feel like work.  But it can be wearing,  you have to focus on things that build your resistance, and keep you healthy, – eating and sleeping well and exercising, managing stress.

How do you unwind after work?

I either take my dogs to the park or go to the gym for a pilates or a boxing class.

Try to have dinner with one of my daughters if they are around and check in on my aging mother.

My real wind-down comes when I pull out the knitting or open a book.  I usually go to bed around 11pm.  If it’s a good book, I’m in trouble because I find it hard to close the cover and then go to sleep.

What was the last thing you:

• Watched? Last episode of Succession but I am by no means a big binge watcher of streaming shows.  Prefer reading and podcasts.
• Read? The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab, a wonderful novel in the fantasy genre (my favourite genre)
• Listened to? I’m always listening to music but the last podcast I listened to was on this morning’s walk: The Infinite Monkey Cage, a science podcast with Brian Cox.