our people

Our consulting staff are a cross-section of qualified engineers, accountants and project managers who have significant combined experience across the spectrum of local government services.

Malcolm Morrison

Director. Malcolm has developed a well recognised expertise in solving operational, strategic and governance issues within councils. He has worked extensively in this field in relation to most services provided by councils and consequently has access to a large database of performance measures and solutions. Malcolm has extensive experience in general and commercial management in large and small firms and has also owned and managed international contracting companies in private enterprise. This experience has developed his expertise in optimising business and governance issues by using the best available private enterprise solutions in a local government environment. Malcolm has provided and implemented innovative solutions for local government throughout New South Wales, Queensland and New Zealand.

Doug Low

Director. Doug is a founding director of Morrison Low and a civil engineer with significant experience in managing major infrastructure and development projects, procurement in a government/local government setting, strategic and general management and organisational change. He has held senior management positions in large public bodies and has a track record of getting results using practical solutions while retaining a strategic view. His experience in programme management of transport and wastewater services is extensive. Doug has undertaken many reviews of service delivery in infrastructure and regulatory services and worked closely with clients to implement innovative changes to governance and service delivery models to achieve improved performance. Doug has particular expertise in the areas of governance effectiveness, organisation performance, capability assessment, procurement and regulatory processes.

Ewen Skinner

Director. Ewen has extensive experience within the local government market in both New Zealand and Australia. He is a qualified civil engineer with post-graduate business qualifications and has been involved in a wide variety of projects for councils ranging from organisational and governance reviews through to infrastructure development and complex procurement and project management initiatives. Ewen leads the waste management and sustainability team and is recognised as a leader in this field. He has been instrumental in the development of a number of best practice documents for both central and local government in New Zealand. Ewen has been involved in a number of complex shared services projects involving multiple councils and stakeholders which have achieved significant benefits for our clients in terms of achieving cost efficiencies whilst minimising risk and optimising service delivery.

Julie Clausen

Director. Julie has considerable experience providing both strategic and operational financial advice to local government. As the manager of the financial team and business leader for a large regional council, Julie has developed an extensive knowledge of local government financial requirements. Julie was a member of the working party that developed the Local Government explanatory “Knowhow Guide” at the introduction of the NZ Local Government Rating Act (2002). As a consultant she has assisted councils, both in New Zealand and Australia, with financial strategy and funding policy development, and in particular the development of Long Term Financial Strategies. Julie has experience in working within the New Zealand integrated planning framework to facilitate the linkage of operational plans, asset management plans and long term financial plans. Julie has facilitated a number of efficiency and effectiveness corporate service review projects for Council to achieve improved internal service delivery and rationalisation of services. In previous roles that cover industry, service sector and central government, Julie has lead a number of key initiative projects including the design and implementation of corporate service functions, management of cross organisational teams established to promote and implement improved business processes and the evaluation and implementation of information systems.

Gary Kellar

Senior Consultant. Gary has extensive experience in Queensland local government serving some twenty-six years as Chief Executive Officer of the State’s third largest city. During that time he presided over budgets of up to $260 million on an asset base of $1.6 billion and secured the Council’s long term financial sustainability through highly effective resource strategies. With considerable experience in leading high performance teams in complex local government environments Gary brings the added bonus of the keen eye of a skilled local government executive to Morrison Low projects. Gary has amassed a wealth of knowledge in dealing with complex and often controversial local issues, and at the same time has been a strong contributor to the development of significant regional collaborative initiatives. With a long term high profile in the professional sphere of local government, Gary is well respected for his commitment to the local government industry in Queensland and has recently been assisting councils here implement organisational change resulting from amalgamations. Recent assignments with the firm have included assisting councils to recruit executive staff, facilitating strategic planning workshops, policy and local law framework reviews, risk management frameworks, information systems strategies, governance frameworks for business enterprises and organisational reviews.

David Taylor

Associate. David leads the commercial consulting practice of Morrison Low. He has wide ranging experience in leading strategic and operational change in the financial services industry and in public sector organisations. David has operated as advisor, change manager, innovator, and in senior managerial roles. He previously managed the formation of The Warehouse Financial Services, led strategy and change management at Countrywide Bank, was a business consulting partner at Ernst & Young for many years, and an executive in an international building supply company. David is a chartered accountant and certified management consultant.

Steve McGrath

NSW Manager. Steve has substantial experience in the NSW local government sector, including nearly 18 years as a general manager (CEO) at Singleton and Young. Steve’s career in local government is characterised by a strong emphasis on change management and the implementation of an outcome focus for organisations. He has developed a well rounded understanding of local government systems and governance and is now able to apply these skills in the form of evaluation and guidance for the councils he assists in his consulting role. In recent times Steve has led several projects that focus on the corporate performance and sustainability of organisations; projects that demonstrate the ability of organisations to deliver on behalf of their communities and also identify further areas for improvement. He has also led, and been involved in, projects that focus on service improvements for organisations and benchmarking development across a range of service areas (e.g. Fleet and Depot Operations, Planning and Development Services, Neighbourhood Facilities Management etc). All of these projects focus on identifying efficiencies and robustness in service delivery to the community. Governance and strategy development projects have also been delivered by Steve in recent times, ensuring strong business frameworks and governance protocols. Steve is well regarded in the local government sector generally, having achieved the NSW State Presidency and National Presidency of Local Government Managers Australia (LGMA).

Stephen Bunting

Director. Stephen brings 28 years of local government experience to Morrison Low, almost all of which has been in senior or executive management positions. During this time he has developed a considerable knowledge in the management of community assets, services and operations. Stephen also has experience in cross organisational projects, in particular the development of community plans, community engagement strategies and associated implementation processes. He has been instrumental in establishing a framework to integrate these plans with other resourcing and operational strategies. Linked with this integration, Stephen has helped councils develop corporate and operational plans including the establishment of clear service levels for the delivery of services. In Queensland and New South Wales, Stephen has assisted a number of councils with operational reviews for a variety of council activities. He is involved in industry sector groups in both local government management and the recreation sector and has presented at a number of conferences in Queensland and New South Wales on integrated planning.

Alison Dalziel

Senior Consultant. Alison is an economist with over 20 years experience in central and local government. Her background includes policy and strategy, finance, corporate planning, economic development, urban development, and sector and regional development. She also has experience in applying sustainable development frameworks and a strong background in public sector management with a particular focus on collaboration among agencies within and across different levels of government. Recent projects have included the review of a regional council in New Zealand, a regional economic report, review of international literature and approaches to rates capping, post-restructuring review of a regulatory function, the development of best practice guidelines for regional labour market development, and a strategic plan review. Alison has worked in several central government departments and councils in a variety of senior management roles.

Anastasia Hildred

Senior Consultant. Anastasia has considerable experience in the analysis of organisation structure, roles, processes and systems to optimise performance within local government and the commercial sector. She has managed many consulting projects in both New Zealand and Australia. Anastasia has been instrumental in the review of a number of local government units, including working through strategic options, structure redesign and divestment processes. She has a demonstrated track record in designing and delivering projects with appropriate stakeholder management, consultation, employee leadership, facilitation and communication interventions to ensure initiatives are positioned and executed to promote successful outcomes. Anastasia has a keen interest in how to manage change while maintaining productivity and engagement.

Peter Johnson

Director. Peter has more than 30 years experience in the delivery of project, operations and asset management and engineering/design services to local government and commercial clients in the water, wastewater and solid waste sectors in the UK and in New Zealand. His experience extends from providing high level strategic reviews to resolving detailed operational and design issues. Peter is an expert in the preparation and management of procurement/contract strategies and contract documentation and in the management and resolution of contract claims and disputes and in the development of risk based capital programmes and asset management strategies and systems for solid waste, water and wastewater assets.

Ritz Van Hall

Senior Consultant. Ritz is an experienced consultant with exceptional people skills who specialises in organisational change, business process improvement and quality management. Ritz has a strong background in project management, staff training and getting staff to successfully endorse and implement change programmes for effectiveness and efficiency.

Tim McCarthy

Director. Tim is an experienced council engineer with over twenty years experience working in a number of NSW councils. He has significant expertise in asset management, project delivery processes, maintenance operations and contract management. Throughout Tim’s career he has been focused on sustainable asset management practices in councils. Tim has undertaken a wide range of asset management work. His hands on knowledge of how a wide range of councils go about asset management and the link between assets, operations and financial management are invaluable. He has been responsible for a significant number of projects including asset management, gap analysis, improvement plans, strategic asset management and service level reviews. In other roles Tim has implemented asset management systems and ensured that sustainable asset management practices are embedded in organisations. In recent times Tim has undertaken a number of operational and service reviews for councils. Drawing on his extensive experience in operational management a number of service reviews have been carried out which provide immediate efficiencies and cost savings to organisations. Some of these reviews have included depot services, fleet management, waste services and street cleansing operations. For a number of years Tim has been responsible for the management of large numbers of employees. He has been trained as a return to work coordinator and is fully aware of responsibilities of both the employer and employee in work place issues. Tim has completed units of study in human resource management and has tertiary qualifications in engineering, management and law. Tim is NAMS accredited to assist councils in the delivery of the NAMS product.

Sue Hamilton

Consultant. Sue is experienced in project management, in particular working with a number of local government services. She has strong technical expertise in solid waste management. Her skill base also covers service procurement, contract management, policy development, negotiation, administrative processes, environmental education, customer service resolution and public consultation.

Andrew Walters

Consultant. Andrew is a qualified environmental scientist with additional post-graduate qualifications in both waste management and education. Andrew has worked in a variety of waste management policy and planning roles in both local and central government, NGO and private waste sector including senior roles working on complex waste management policy issues for the Auckland City Council and Ministry for the Environment. Most recently Andrew has been leading the central government waste management policy approaches to the Auckland Governance transition for MfE, working on waste management legislation and policy. In addition, Andrew has expert knowledge of sustainability and environmental management systems applications and strategic improvement approaches relevant to local government and private sector.

Angela McDonald

Consultant. Angela is a chartered accountant with a wide range of accounting and consulting experience in both private and public sectors. Angela has a varied background which includes management accounting, financial modelling, audit, consulting, payroll and business services. As a consultant for Morrison Low, Angela has specialised in assisting councils in both New Zealand and Australia with long term financial strategies as well as providing project management and accounting assistance through the annual planning, annual reporting process and other general financial work. Angela has also participated in business analysis and improvement projects.

Dan Bonifant

Consultant. Dan is an experienced public sector lawyer who has spent seven years working in central and local government organisations in both NZ and the UK. During his two and half years working as a senior lawyer at the London Borough of Brent Dan was particularly focussed on corporate governance and constitutional matters while also advising the Council on the implications of climate change and sustainability based policy initiatives and legislation. When working for central government bodies, the Ministry of Fisheries and the Department for Work and Pensions, he was responsible for the legal input into the development of policy, drafting and implementation of a number of key pieces of legislation. Dan’s work at Morrison Low now includes a broad spectrum of advice based on his areas of expertise in governance, sustainability, project management and local government law. Dan has advised on a number of projects involving the creation or use of CCO/CCTOs to deliver services to the community including appropriate governance and control mechanisms. He is currently heavily involved in projects relating to reorganisation of local government in multiple regions across New Zealand and has a good understanding of the processes required for reorganisation by the Local Government Act 2002.

Helen Davies

Consultant. Helen is a qualified civil engineer with six years experience in the water, stormwater and wastewater sectors in the UK and in New Zealand. Helen has had roles within local government and private engineering consultancies providing design, operations and maintenance, and asset management services. She also has experience in preparing contract documentation for the operation and maintenance of wastewater reticulation systems. Helen has recently worked with a variety of councils within the geotechnical and environmental engineering sectors.

William Auton

Consultant. Will provides research and analysis support in a wide variety of projects. Hailing from a background in human geography, public economics and politics, Will has a broad skill base, readily transferable in his varying roles with Morrison Low. Will exhibits strengths in research, analysis, problem solving, documentation, team leadership and process management, often utilised as project manager or as project support in one of his specialist areas. He has also gained significant experience in waste management, being involved in several waste operations and analysis projects since joining Morrison Low in 2008. Will has a keen interest in politics and public economics and brings these interests with him to ensure a robust and successful outcome for both the client and community.

John Devine

Consultant. With over twenty years experience John is well positioned to provide expertise from his long association with projects involving organisational review and structural change in a local government context. He has held executive positions in local government, state government, and commercial organisations, and designed and lead major organisational change programs across Australia. John is a civil engineer with an MBA and understands the operational, community and business dimensions of council services. His approach, centred on process to change and review, is driven by an understanding of customer requirements and organisational strategy.

Sue Davidson

Consultant. Sue has had considerable experience in local government having been the chief executive of the former Banks Peninsula District Council. She has worked in policy development, strategic planning and operational implementation of plans. Sue is a chartered accountant and has both led and assisted councils in their long term financial planning, other financial strategy and policy. She has extensive knowledge of the process and analysis necessary where Councils are considering sharing resources or merging. She has led a range of change management initiatives and organisational restructures in both her roles with the Council and her previous role with Trust Bank.

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