Leadership

Mark Newton has been in executive leadership and consulting roles for 25 years. From Hospital Administrator, Business Manager, Director of Operations, Vice President and Chief Executive Officer. From his study at the world famous and highly regarded Harvard Business School through to leading the huge infrastructure of St John Ambulance Australia in NSW.

August 2014 – Present, Self Employed Business Leadership Consultant

icare NSW (March 2015 – March 2017)

icare NSW is the entity delivering health services to injured workers and other recipients of benefits under statutory insurance schemes of NSW; it replaced WorkCover NSW and came into being on 1^st Sept 2015.

Engaged on a rolling contract, he undertook a review of the annual $500M health services expenditure, he recommended reforms that will lead to better outcomes for injured workers and greater sustainability of the scheme. He then led key strategic elements of the transformation agenda, and undertook the specialist role of Subject Matter Expert (SME) for strategic focus areas.

Significant advances in patient outcomes through earlier return to work of injured workers whilst simultaneously driving “step change” in the cost profile of the business will be delivered. This is a once in a generation reform opportunity to bring about improvements in the economic landscape of NSW, embracing best international practice so that the organisation becomes truly world class.

October 2011 – August 2014, ST JOHN AMBULANCE AUSTRALIA (NSW)

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

St John Ambulance Australia (NSW) is a corporation within the national federation of St John Ambulance Australia, part of the worldwide St John organisation. This is the corporate manifestation and expression of the work of the Order of St John, a Christian Royal Order of Chivalry of the British Crown, since 1888. However the origins and history of the Order of St John go way back before this time, some 900 years!

The organisation today has its focus on saving lives through first aid and is the dominant provider of first aid services at public events, first aid training and sale of first aid related equipment. It is a state-wide provider of services through its 4,900 specialised volunteers, some 120 paid staff, located at 8 regional branches with its headquarters in Burwood, Sydney.

With an annual turnover of just $22 million, its brand and community recognition is very high and has been described as the sleeping giant of the charitable sector!

Mark’s period of time with St John (NSW) was characterised by efforts to reorient the organisation from one dominated by its history and traditions along with its volunteer focus to that of a contemporary best practice service provider meeting the needs of the community, now and into the future, in its specialist field. This journey progressed through governance reform, executive restructure and the building up of a culture of performance and accountability.

January 2010 – June 2011, Nth SYDNEY, CENTRAL COAST AREA HEALTH SERVICE

Director: Population Health, Planning and Performance.

In this role Mark was responsible for leading and directing the development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of targeted health and clinical services plans and monitoring and improving performance across the Area Health Service to build the capacity of the service to  effectively meet the needs of its residents within budget parameters. The position reported to the Area Chief Executive, it is part of the Area Executive Team, and was designated from time to time to act in the capacity of Chief Executive.

Key dimensions of the role were: 

The Area Health Service provided care for over 1.15 million people covering an area of 2,800 square kilometres, spanning 13 local government areas. It included 32 public health facilities, including 11 public hospitals (2,791 beds) and 21 community health centres.

• 11,500 FTE staff  (96 direct reports)
• $1.7 billion annual budget ($10M direct management)

Following the implementation of the national health and hospital reforms in 2011, the Area Health Services were disbanded and all first tier executive positions were abolished.

 

June 2006 – July 2009, HOPE HEALTHCARE LIMITED

Chief Executive Officer

Hope Healthcare was an Affiliated Health Organisation within the NSW Health system, it is a sub-acute provider of health and community services in the fields of palliative care, aged care, psychiatry, and rehabilitation.

Mark was appointed as CEO in June 2006 during a period of financial difficulty and uncertainty as to the strategic future of the organisation. The then parent company, ADISL, were considering a range of options including divestiture, foreclosure, or sale of the business and associated assets. In June 2008 agreement was reached for the sale of Hope Healthcare to Hammond Care and he oversaw the process of integration to achieve the synergies apparent between the two businesses and to leverage the potential operating efficiencies.

The final round of restructuring included the deletion of the position of CEO of Hope Healthcare as the merger process advanced and he left the company in July 2009.

Key dimensions of the role were:

• 630 staff
• $47 Million PA operating budget

During Mark’s leadership of Hope Healthcare he turned around a million dollar deficit and recorded surpluses in excess of $1million for the subsequent two financial years; he achieved five year accreditation through the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards; He restructured at senior level for improvements in efficiency and effectiveness; and improved morale as demonstrated through staff and stakeholder surveys.

Mark improved relations with the Area Health Services in which they operated through enhanced clinical services. He undertook physical refurbishments, improved IT infrastructure and brought about a culture of accountability and dealt with some difficult staffing issues through improved people management practices. This has been recognised as a complete “turn around” of Hope Healthcare.