HELEN WILLIAMS AC

Helen Williams AC made history as the first female Secretary of a Commonwealth department when she was appointed Secretary of the Department of Education in 1985, aged 39. Helen joined the public service 15 years prior in 1970.She went on to be the Secretary of several other portfolio departments: the Department of Tourism, Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, and the Department of Human Services, before her retirement in 2009. She was also the Australian Public Service Commissioner from 1998 to 2002. For 17 years she was the only female departmental Secretary.

Helen was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia in January 2019 for eminent service to public administration through senior advisory roles, and to policy reform and innovative program delivery. This follows her appointment as an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1993.

The inaugural oration was delivered by Ann Sherry AO, Executive Chairman of Carnival Australia on 23 August 2018. The event was held at the launch of the ‘Women in Leadership Series‘, a collection of four events delivered in 2018, discussing the opportunities that exist and the challenges that are faced by women in public sector leadership roles. It celebrated the Australian Government achieving gender parity at the most senior level of the public service in April 2018, with nine of the 18 departmental secretary roles occupied by women.