IPAA National Fellowship awarded to two of IPAA Victoria’s finest: Dr Gillian Sparkes and Dean Yates

IPAA Victoria Fellows Dr Gillian Sparkes and Dean Yates have been honoured at the IPAA National Conference with IPAA National Fellowship. The fellowships were presented by outgoing IPAA National President, Professor Peter Shergold AC, and recognise the recipients’ immense public administration contributions and service to their respective IPAA division.

Dr Gillian Sparkes is the Victorian Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability, and has contributed to public administration for two decades. Respected across the political spectrum, Dr Sparkes has been appointed commissioner by successive state governments. Dean Yates is Partner of Financial Accounting Advisory Services at EY. Mr Yates has worked within the Victorian, Tasmanian and Commonwealth public purpose sectors for over 30 years including as Secretary of a Victorian Government department. He joined EY in 2015 as a Partner in Advisory and was appointed the Leader of EY’s Victorian Government and Public Sector practice in 2016.

“We congratulate Gillian Sparkes and Dean Yates and thank them for their outstanding service to the sector, the community and to IPAA Victoria,” said IPAA Victoria Chief Executive Officer David Ali.

As commissioner, Dr Sparkes’ State of the Environment report made a particularly profound impact, speaking to the role of governance in public environmental administration and facilitating a shift to more effective policy delivery. The report also inaugurated the UN Sustainable Development Goals and UN System of Environmental-Economic Accounting as reporting frameworks for Victoria.

Dr Sparkes has held several public sector positions and non-executive directorships with the Country Fire Authority, Industry Capability Network Victoria, the Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation, Sustainability Victoria and others.

Dr Sparkes has been a Victorian Fellow of IPAA Victoria since 2014, and has served on the Awards Committee for the IPAA Victoria Leadership in the Public Sector Awards and the judging panel of the IPAA Victoria Top 50 Public Sector Women (Victoria) Awards.

Before joining EY, Mr Yates was the first Secretary of the Victorian Department of Transport, Planning & Local Infrastructure, which delivered a number of significant achievements that have a remaining impact today. Under the leadership of Mr Yates, the department helped launch some of the largest urban development projects in the state’s history.

Mr Yates also served as Deputy Secretary of the Financial Reform Division at the Victorian Department of Treasury and Finance, where he was responsible for leading and coordinating reforms to financial management systems and delivering the State Budget and Annual Financial Report.

Mr Yates has also been an active supporter of IPAA Victoria for 15 years, providing his time and expertise at events, networking activities and through governance. He has been an IPAA Victoria Fellow since 2010 and an IPAA Victoria Board Member since 2016.

IPAA Victoria congratulates both Dr Gillian Sparkes and Dean Yates and all other 2019 recipients of IPAA National Fellowship.

Written by Judy Kuo, Programs Coordinator, IPAA Victoria