ADVISORY BOARD
Our Advisory Board brings together an impressive and experienced lineup of defence, business and industry leaders to help guide Outcome Group’s clients.
Mark Purcell
Rear Admiral (Ret'd)
Mark Purcell joined the Royal Australian Naval College as a Midshipman in January 1985 from his hometown of Canberra. He graduated from the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) with a double degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in 1989.
In 1996 he completed a Master of Science in Military Electronic Systems Engineering from the Royal Military College of Science in the UK.
In 2001 he graduated from the inaugural Australian Command and Staff Course at Weston Creek and University of Canberra with a Master of Management in Defence Studies, which, with further study, was subsequently upgraded to a Master of Business Administration.
After commissioning, sea postings included tours with HMA Ships Canberra, Adelaide, Perth and Melbourne. He also served as the Weapons Electrical Engineering Officer in HMAS Sydney from 1999-2000, during which time the ship served in East Timor as part of the International Force East Timor (INTERFET).
Shore postings have included roles in the Combat Data Systems Centre, Naval Materiel Division and Maritime Headquarters where he led the Fleet Information Systems Support Organisation. During 2005-2007 he served on exchange in the United Kingdom (Royal Navy) as the Command Battlespace Management Program Manager, leading the Joint Command and Control Support Program.
In the wider Defence organisation, Rear Admiral Purcell has served as a Project Director in the Defence Materiel Organisation (Project SEA 1442 – Maritime Communications and Information Management Architecture Modernisation). In 2009 he was appointed to the role of Chief Architect and Director-General Sourcing Reform in the Chief Information Officer Group.
In March 2011, Rear Admiral Purcell was appointed as Head Navy Engineering. He held this position until July 2011, where he was appointed as Head of the Rizzo Reform Program. While in this role he was responsible for implementing the Plan to Reform Support Ship Repair and Management Practices, which had arisen from the Rizzo Review. The Reform Program aims to change the culture, practices and processes in ship repair and management within Defence.
On 3 December 2012 he was promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral, and appointed as Head Maritime Systems within the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO)/Capability Acquisition & Sustainment Group (CASG). He was the first ADFA graduate to be promoted to Rear Admiral and in the Queens Birthday Honours List 2016 he was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for exceptional service as Head of the Rizzo Reform Program and Head of Defence Maritime Systems. Mark Purcell retired from the RAN in 2016 and later became the Senior Vice President of Fincantieri Australia.
Gus McLachlan
Major General (Ret'd)
Major General (Ret’d) Gus McLachlan is a senior executive with experience leading large, complex organisations to achieve outstanding results in the public and private sectors.
Leadership roles have included Land Forces Command in the Army, one of the largest and most complex teams in Australia, and campaign planning in the international nation building coalition in Afghanistan.
Respected for his curiosity and innovation having led Army investigation into cyber, robotics and data analytic tools, Gus has more recently made a successful transition to the commercial & university sectors where he has held senior executive positions, directorships and strategic advisory roles.
A graduate of the Advanced Management Program at the Harvard Business School & Cranlana Centre for Ethical Leadership.
Gus has recently transitioned from the role as Major General in the Australian Army after 38 years of service.
Gus has commanded at all levels including commanding the first brigade and has completed several overseas deployments to Afghanistan, East Timor, and the Solomon Islands. He’s also been seconded to the Pentagon and has filled the role of Chief of Staff to the then Chief of the Australian Defence Force, Sir Angus Houston.
His last role was as head of Forces Command managing 35,000 women and men across a couple of functional areas including the individual training of skills as diverse as tank drivers to carpenters, helicopter pilots, and cyber defenders.
Major General Gus McLachlan, Commander Forces Command has helped to shape the ever-evolving nature of the Army, the doctrine and technology now transforming Australia’s Army and its role as part of the ‘joint force’ concept of the ADF.
Following a diverse career of 36 years with the Army and rotations through the 1st Armoured Regiment, the US Marine Corps prestigious Warfighting Laboratory and Australia’s contribution to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) supporting the reconstruction of Afghanistan, MAJGEN McLachlan has overseen the evolution of the Army from a traditional analogue force into the rapidly evolving, combined arms, hardened, digital and network-driven fighting force for the 21st century.
In the latest edition of On Point, MAJGEN McLachlan discusses the implications of the digital transformation of the Army, the transition from Plan Beersheba to Accelerated Warfare and the implications for the Army’s culture, doctrine and ability to fight and win on the battlefields of the future.
Gus McLachlan – LinkedIn
Matt Kay
FAICD, FCPA
Matt is a seasoned energy industry executive with more than 30 years of experience across 14 countries. Recently he was the managing director and chief executive of Beach Energy.
Before that, he was the executive general manager of strategy and commercial at Oil Search, where he led the strategy, commercial, supply chain, economics, marketing, M&A and legal functions, working across South East Asia and the South Pacific .
Before Oil Search, he worked at Woodside Energy in various leadership roles including vice president of corporate development, general manager of production planning leading over 80 operations professionals, and general manager of commercial for Middle East and Africa.