Staff of the Darwin office, Hannah Roe and Margetta Avlonitis, look after corporations in the Top End and Tiwi Islands, and Arnhem Land and Groote Eylandt. (Hannah also manages the Broome office, although this role was reversed during her extended leave this year, when Sid Michels from the Broome office managed the Darwin office.) This year, Darwin staff describe a new corporation for remote Indigenous families whose children attend boarding school, and a sole trader corporation.
Dayna Lister and George Donaldson look after corporations in the southern half of the Northern Territory and all of South Australia, working from the Alice Springs office. This year, they share two stand-out stories, of a quick turnaround special administration, and a unique transfer in registration.
Dayna Lister, regional manager and Arrernte/Luritja woman, and George Donaldson, regional officer and Wongatha man
Viaella Aldridge looks after the Southern Queensland region from the Brisbane office. Here, she shares some reflections on the value of training, as a facilitator and as a delegate to a conference.
Viaella Aldridge, regional officer and Northern Kaanju woman
In February 2017, Jennifer Reuben, the Cairns regional officer retired after more than three years supporting corporations across the north Queensland regions.
Ray Lennox, regional officer and Erub (Darnley Island) man
Roseanne Mirto operated the Cairns regional office during April and May, when the new Cairns regional officer started. Ray Lennox is a proud Torres Strait Islander man who has worked in Cape York and the Torres Strait for the past 10 years. Ray is excited about the opportunity to make a positive contribution to corporations in north Queensland.
Staff of the Coffs Harbour office, Christian Lugnan and Blanche Saunders, look after corporations in New South Wales. (Christian also manages ORIC’s Brisbane and Cairns offices.)
Christian Lugnan, regional manager and Gumbaynggirr man
One role that regional officers perform is delivering training tailored to individual corporations (‘corporation-specific training’). The corporation provides a venue and catering but otherwise receives the training free of charge.
The Registrar’s functions include supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations to succeed and promoting good governance.
ORIC delivers corporate governance training to corporations that are either registered under the CATSI Act or planning to be. The training supports good governance and works to:
We provide a process for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations to register, and maintain a register of information and documentation to ensure transparency of their operations.
The Registrar is responsible for administering the CATSI Act. This involves creating a sustainable regulatory framework to give effect to the legislation.
We set standards for good governance, identify and manage risks, and conduct research and analysis to understand where there are patterns of issues that need to be addressed. We provide information to government, corporations and the wider community about the performance of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sector.
In 2016–17 ORIC developed a formal performance measurement framework. It describes how we measure the value of the work we do and provides the backbone for this yearbook.
Currently, we measure our performance by output, which helps us to understand the efficiency of our operations. Over the next five years we want to build capability to measure our impact on good governance and trust in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sector—our outcomes.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations play an important role in the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their communities, as well as in the broader Australian society. Our vision is of well-governed corporations that inspire trust in the sector and provide high-value services and benefits to members and communities.
To achieve that vision, ORIC staff operate within a framework that covers:
