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Sean Wilson has over two decades experience in supporting the community and not-for-profit sectors.
He's served in board-appointed CEO and senior leadership roles in the NFP sector, such as:
CEO of the Kolling Foundation (now North Foundation. The charity partner of the Northern Sydney Local Health District. Supporting medical research at Royal North Shore Hospital, Kolling Institute, etc) and
National General Manager Sales & Marketing at The Housing Industry Association (HIA) (The peak body for residential building in Australia. Supporting over 50,000 members, more than 600 apprentices and hundreds of partners. Leading hundreds of staff and national operations across 23 offices).
He's also served in CEO and senior leaderships roles in business, government and public/private partnerships, such as:
CEO of BetterHR (a national provider of HR and employment law services. Supporting over 60,000 users and 300+ partners)
CEO of a $20M+ multi-entity portfolio (spanning healthcare staffing, NDIS services, and multi-site retail).
Senior Advisor to a Member of Parliament
Commercial Director at Sharing Minds (supporting over 1000 professionals in community legal centres across Australia with innovative legaltech) and
Advisory Board Member for Close to Home Media (supporting over 100 community radio stations & thousands of community sporting groups with ground and jersey sponsorship).
He's also served extensively on boards and committees including in office-bearer roles for over a decade (Chair, Secretary, Public Officer).
He also has decades of volunteer leadership experience, backing causes spanning men’s health, suicide prevention, social justice, human rights, sports, etc (NSW Health, ACON, Australian Human Rights Commission Australian Soccer Federation, Kung Fu Wushu Australia, Mr Australasia, LGBT+ support groups and business associations, etc).
He brings deep experience setting strategic direction, partnering with boards, donors and stakeholders, and translating mission into resilient, well-governed operating models. He's led organisations through growth, stabilisation and transformation, balancing community outcomes with financial stewardship and long-term sustainability.
Across his roles, he's held full P&L accountability for portfolios up to $85M+, overseen diversified funding models spanning philanthropy, grants, membership and commercial income, and built executive teams capable of delivering both social impact and organisational resilience. He's scaled operations, strengthened governance, risk and compliance, and lifted execution quality in highly scrutinised environments.
His work includes donor and partner engagement, board and committee leadership, government and regulator interface, and stewardship of mission-critical assets. He aligns boards, executives, staff, volunteers and partners around clear priorities, shared purpose and measurable outcomes.
His qualifications span Business Management, Marketing, Legal Services, Human Resources, Information Technology and Company Director certification, supported by professional credentials including AICD, ICDA, GIA, AHRI, ITPA and The CEO Institute.
He operate with an owner’s mindset, bringing commercial discipline to purpose-led organisations without compromising values. His edge is combining judgement with pace . Making clear decisions, building momentum, and maintaining trust with all stakeholders.
If you’re seeking a community-focused CEO who can honour mission, manage risk and build a strong, sustainable organisation, contact Sean Wilson.
Proven Community and Not For Profit Success
As the CEO & Managing Director of Kolling Foundation at Royal North Shore Hospital (now North Foundation), he led the whole organisation, including many subsidiary companies. To support medical research across the Northern Sydney Local Health District including Royal North Shore Hospital (RNSH), North Shore Private Hospital, Ryde Hospital, Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital and the Kolling Institute. He served as a Member of the Board of Directors, Company Secretary & Public Officer, Member of the Finance, Investment & Audit Committee, Member of the Andrew Olle Memorial Trust Committee and more. He worked with the Board to attract high-net-worth individuals and corporate sponsors (Westfield, Ernst & Young, etc). He also led the successful set up a new team as part of the launch of the new $100m Kolling Building for Medical Research in partnership with NSW Health and the University of Sydney.
As National General Manager Sales & Marketing for The Housing Industry Association, he led commercial operations for one of Australia's largest not for profit organisations ($85m+ revenue, 300+ staff, 23 offices, 50,000+ members, 600+ apprentices, Home Ideas Centres, national events such as Australian Housing Awards, HomeShows across Australia, etc.
As Commercial Director at Sharing Minds, he helped community legal centers across Australia with AIIM Community Legal Software. Including developing innovative new legaltech that has helped improve access to social justice.
As an Advisory Board Member at Close to Home Media he supported 100+ local radio stations and 6,000+ local sporting clubs to secure government and corporate partners/sponsors.
He's also volunteered for community and not for profit organisations and served on boards and committees:
Member of community business groups (Rotary, SGLBA, Pride Business Network, etc).
Member of chambers of commerce in Canberra, Western Sydney, etc. Also, office bearer roles (President, Secretary, etc): 5+ years.
Co-Founder & Committee Member for Mr Australasia - Fundraising events to improve men's health and reduce suicide: 5+ years.
Facilitator for Men's Health Groups (NSW Community Health, ACON, etc).
Roving Marshall at Sydney Mardi Gras - The largest pride event in Oceania. Attended by hundreds of thousands of people: 3+ years.
Member of the Human Rights Commission Outlink Executive Committee (suicide prevention): 2+ years.
Member of the Board of Directors, North Foundation (health & medical): 2+ years.
Company Secretary, North Foundation (health & medical, not for profit): 2+ years.
Finance, Investments, and Audit Committees, North Foundation (not for profit): 2+ years.
Research Advisory Grants Committee, North Foundation (not for profit): 2+ years.
Fundraising Committee, North Foundation (not for profit): 2+ years.
Andrew Olle Memorial Trust for brain cancer research (not for profit): 2+ years.
Deputy Campaign Director for an MP who won the NSW Election. Ran multi-lingual community strategies. Achieved a record result.
Site Manager, Sydney Olympic Games – Parramatta Celebrations.
President & Secretary, Community Groups (suicide prevention, not for profit).
Regional Health Conference (community development).
Martial Arts Instructor: 10+ years.
Soccer Referee - Semi-Professional - Super League matches, etc.
Soccer Referee - Amateur.
Soccer Referee Inspector - Level 1.
And more.
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