MANAGING DIRECTOR / FOUNDER SUMMARY
As an Aboriginal man who has been involved in the education, training and employment arenas for all of my working life, I have a commitment to supporting my People to achieve equality in the workplace.
At the heart of moving forward and achieving employment equality is meaningful and respectful engagement. Partnerships are critical to realising these aspirations.
The key to the success in building stronger Aboriginal workforce participation is an ongoing focus on addressing all dimensions that impact on a person’s working life, that is, a holistic approach that understands the complex inter-relatedness of broader life issues and their resulting impact on an individual’s workforce development. This approach underpins all work undertaken by my company.
Ultimately, to address Aboriginal workforce development challenges, workforce development approaches need to be focussed on developing complementary supply side measures that aim to connect the Aboriginal workforce to industry demand, using methodologies that include:
driving shifts about the qualitative perception of the Aboriginal workforce. In short, it means working with employers to see the value of ‘employing Aboriginals’. This must not be done in isolation but in partnership with industry, enterprise and government.
Fundamentally by addressing the workforce development challenges facing Aboriginal Australians, we go a long way towards creating an environment for industry and employers to work with a responsive and competitive workforce where Aboriginal people participating in the workplace becomes the norm rather than the exception.
Allan Jones
EXECUTIVE GENERAL MANAGER
John has over 25 years of industry experience, both within Australia and overseas, with highly regarded expertise in strategic business development, operations management and an outcome driven approach.
Most recently he has undertaken Project Director and Business Management roles at Johns Lyng Group, McMahon Services and Fulton Hogan, and throughout this time has led initiatives within industry, and communities, to provide opportunities for Aboriginal people in the construction industry.
John provides leadership support across each of the entities in the RAW Group of companies.
John Herbert
GROUP CFO
René is a qualified accountant with some 30 years of experience in both the public and private sectors as well as having run his own consulting firm.
Within the public sector his roles included Treasury & Management accounting within the portfolio’s of Education, Further Education, Employment and Premier & Cabinet. His private sector experience includes the Construction, Meat Processing, Retail and Employment industries.
He holds a bachelor of commerce from Flinders University with a major in Accounting and minors in Business Law and Finance. He is a member of CPA Australia and currently undertaking his MBA.
He also sits on the board of a number of not-for-profit community organisation and is heavily involved in the ice sports community
Rene Vodegel
COMMERCIAL MANAGER
Chath is a committed commercial manager with over 7 years of experience in contract administration and quantity surveying. His expertise spans medium to large-scale civil and building construction projects, with budgets ranging from $1M to $500M.
Having honed his skills in Melbourne’s construction sector, Chath relocated to Adelaide in March 2022, bringing with him valuable international experience.
Chath holds a Bachelor’s degree in Quantity Surveying and a Diploma in Commercial Arbitration, along with CQS, MAIQS, and MCIOB accreditations.
His comprehensive understanding of the project and construction lifecycle includes proficiency in cost analysis, estimating, forecasting, scheduling, procurement, cost-tracking, and tender and contract review.
Chath Rupasinghe
SENIOR FINANCE OFFICER
Jess is a proud Narungga woman.
Jess has been working with Allan Jones (Managing Director) for 10+ years and is currently operating in a Senior Accountant capacity.
Jess works closely with the CFO and the wider RAW Group team, and is responsible for maintaining the Group’s financial systems and preparing financial reports + analysis across all entities/divisions.
Jess has previously worked across all areas of finance including payroll, accounts receivable and accounts payable.
Jess Wanganeen