Neil Thelander
Forty-six years helping organisations use information technology for business benefit, across government, health, higher education and the private sector.
Neil has worked across the public sector, in health at federal and state level, and in higher education. He has also had three substantial periods in the private sector: with Oracle, managing professional services at Asia-Pacific regional level; as an independent project remediation consultant; and now as a management consultant.
Federal government
Over thirteen years in the federal government, Neil was one of the youngest senior executives appointed, working across Tax, Customs, Community Services, Health, and Prime Minister and Cabinet. When he left Canberra he was acting First Assistant Secretary, responsible for more than 500 IT and information management staff in Health.
Health
After two years helping Oracle grow in Australia and the region, Neil became a senior project consultant in the Queensland hospital system. He led the successful implementation of numerous IT systems and was ultimately appointed Director of Information Management for Queensland Health, reporting to the Director-General and two deputies on the administrative and clinical use of IT.
He led a rapid expansion of the Queensland Health network, extending communication and telehealth services to more than 400 health facilities across the state.
Higher education
From early 1999 until March 2010, Neil directed Information Technology Services at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Brisbane. He led a department of 150 staff with an annual budget of $20–30 million, turning a disenfranchised IT group into one highly regarded both inside and outside QUT. He also helped lead QUT's development of advanced IT governance, which was recognised internationally as best practice.
Boards and the sector
- Elected member of the Board of Directors, Australian Academic Research Network (AARNet), for four years
- Pro bono member of the Queensland board of the National Heart Foundation, where he established and chaired its national IT advisory committee
- Teaching faculty of the CAUDIT Leadership Institute for five years, then elected Chair of CAUDIT
- Instrumental in establishing the Australian Access Federation (AAF)
- Certified Professional member of the Australian Computer Society (CMACS), specialising in project management
Cloud Juice IT Consulting
Since April 2010, Neil has provided digital strategy consulting and leadership support for its execution to more than 30 Australian organisations in higher education, research and health. He works at executive level to help ensure digital investment delivers its benefits, and engages with boards and councils to enable ideation and facilitate reinvention.
He brings agile strategic process expertise that helps organisations develop and execute their strategy, and is currently exploring the potential of AI in strategic planning.
Beyond work
Neil's focus today is family, fitness, and cloud services research and consulting. He and his wife Vivian have three children, Andrew, James and Katherine, and he dotes on his two granddaughters, Charlotte and Penelope.
