Michael Cameron
Chairman
BBus, FCA, FCPA, FAICD
Michael was the Chairman of the People’s Choice Board from 2019 until the merger with Heritage Bank in March 2023. His background is in the financial services and property sectors. He was a Non-Executive Director of the Suncorp Group before being appointed as Managing Director and CEO in October 2015.
Michael is also the former Chief Executive Officer of The GPT Group and was previously the Group Chief Financial Officer of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Michael is currently Chairman of Resolution Capital Ltd and Equip Super.
Michael is the Chairman of the Remuneration and Governance Committee.
Brendan P. Baulch
Independent Director
B.Com, LLB, CA, MAICDBrendan was a Director of the Heritage Bank Board from 2007 until the merger with People’s Choice in March 2023. He is a Chartered Accountant based in Toowoomba.
Brendan began his career with PriceWaterhouse in their corporate tax division in Melbourne, after which he spent a total of eight years in London, gaining international accounting experience in a range of business sectors including telecommunications (Cable & Wireless plc), investment banking (Société Générale) and insurance (Lloyd’s of London).
Brendan is currently the principal of Baulch & Associates, a Toowoomba-based accounting practice providing taxation, audit and management accounting services. He is a registered tax agent and a registered company auditor.
Brendan has been a director of a public offer superannuation fund, and Chairman of the Board of Toowoomba Grammar School.
Brendan is Chairman of the Audit Committee.
Dr Dennis P. Campbell
Independent Director
PhD, MBA, FCHSE, CHE, FAIM, GAICDDennis was the Deputy Chairman of the Heritage Bank Board from 2012 until the merger with People’s Choice in March 2023. He joined the Heritage Bank Board in 2000.
Dennis was previously a Chief Executive Officer in both the public and private health sectors. Dennis held the position of CEO at St Vincent’s Hospital, Toowoomba for ten years. He also served as a Corporate Director with Legal Aid, Queensland for ten years. He serves as a member of numerous Boards and Advisory Committees, representing both public and private health sectors and has legal and health qualifications.
Dennis also serves as a trustee of the Queensland Museum Foundation, is Chairperson of the Friends Executive Committee of the Cobb & Co Museum, Toowoomba and is Deputy Chairman of the Darling Downs Hospital and Health Board. In 2007, Dennis was awarded an Australia Day Medallion for his services to the Australian College of Health Service Executives. In 2008, he was awarded the Gold Medal for Leadership and Achievement in Health Services Management recognising his contribution and professional achievements in shaping health care policy at the institutional, state and national levels.
Dennis is a member of the Remuneration and Governance Committee and the Technology and Integration Committee.
Peter Clare
Independent Director
B.Com, MBA, FCPA, MAICDPeter was a Director of the Heritage Bank Board from 2020 until the merger with People’s Choice in March 2023. Peter has an exceptional banking resume and wide industry experience. He began his career as an Insolvency Practitioner with firms BO Smith and Son, Howarth and Howarth, and Ferrier Hodgson. After moving into banking, Peter held senior roles at Commonwealth Bank, and served on the senior executive leadership teams at both St George and Westpac. That included a two-and-a-half year period up to 2014 as the CEO of Westpac New Zealand.
In recent years, Peter has served on a variety of boards in the technology and finance industries in Australia. Peter holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of New South Wales and an MBA from Macquarie University.
Peter is Chairman of the Risk and Compliance Committee and a member of the Technology and Integration Committee.
Stephen Davis
Independent Director
AAPI, MAICDStephen was a Director of the Heritage Bank Board from 2011 until the merger with People’s Choice in March 2023. He is a registered valuer and previously a licensed auctioneer and real estate agent. He is also the Managing Director of Australian Strata Title Services Pty Ltd trading as Toowoomba Body Corporate Management.
Stephen has been involved in community organisations and is currently the Deputy Chairman and Treasurer of the Toowoomba Hospice Association. Stephen was appointed as an inaugural director of Heritage Bank Charitable Foundation from 2018.
Stephen is a member of the Audit Committee.
Amanda Heyworth
Independent Director
BA (Accounting), MBA (AGSM), FAICDAmanda was a Director of the People’s Choice Board from 2017 until the merger with Heritage Bank in March 2023.
Amanda is a professional company director with board experience spanning the property, technology, finance and government sectors, ranging from startups through to ASX200. Amanda currently chairs the boards of UniSA Ventures and the Centennial Park Cemetery Authority and serves as a Commissioner of the Essential Services Commission of South Australia and on the Advisory Council of the National Archives of Australia.
Originally trained as an accountant, Amanda worked in the US technology sector, as an investment banker and as an economist in the Federal Treasury. She later became a pioneer in the Australian venture capital industry working for a decade as CEO of an early-stage fund specialising in technology start-ups. She has advised numerous governments on technology and innovation.
Amanda holds a BA (Accounting) from the University of South Australia, an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management and is a Fellow of the Institute of Company Directors.
Amanda is a member of the Audit Committee and the Technology and Integration Committee.
Virginia Hickey
Independent Director
BA, LLB, FAICDVirginia was a Director of the People’s Choice Board from 2014 until the merger with Heritage Bank in March 2023. She is a corporate governance specialist and company director with extensive experience in commercial, government and not-for-profit sectors.
Virginia sits on the boards of the Southern Adelaide Local Health Network, Energy Consumers Australia, sportsmed, Anglicare SA, and Agency Projects. She is Chair of the Public Trustee’s Audit and Risk Committee and of Department of Premier & Cabinet’s Risk and Performance Committee. She is also a facilitator in the Australian Institute of Company Directors’ national and international company director courses.
Virginia is a member of the Remuneration and Governance Committee.
Wendy Machin
Independent Director
B.A. (Communication), M.Com, GAICDWendy was a Director of the Heritage Bank Board from 2019 until the merger with People’s Choice in March 2023. She has extensive experience in the financial services sector, the member-owned sector and in the political and regulatory realm.
Wendy spent four years as Chair of the Customer Owned Banking Association (COBA), the peak body for customer-owned financial institutions. She is currently Chair of Reflections Holiday Parks and the NSW Government Road Reclassification and Transfer Review. She is a Director of Golf Australia and Vice Chairman of the NSW Nationals.
Wendy has previously been the President and Chair of the NRMA; a Director of Destination NSW, Chair of ANCAP, Director of the NSW Forestry Corporation, a Director of the Australian Automobile Association and the National Occupation Licensing Authority; as well as spending 11 years as a Member of the NSW Legislative Assembly, including a period as Minister for Consumer Affairs. She owns and operates a cattle property on the mid north coast of NSW.
Wendy is a member of the Risk and Compliance Committee.
John Patton
Independent Director
FCA, MAICDJohn was a Director of the People’s Choice Board from 2016 until the merger with Heritage Bank in March 2023. He has extensive retail banking and risk experience in the mutual sector, and a background as a chartered accountant.
John was an independent non-executive director of Rural Bank from 2004 to 2016 and a director of Lifeplan Friendly Society from 2005 to 2013. For 14 years prior to these directorships, John was Chief Financial Officer of the Co-operative Building Society of South Australia and then Adelaide Bank Limited.
John is a member of the Audit Committee and the Risk and Compliance Committee.
Wendy Thorpe
Independent Director
BA, BBus, GradDip AppFin & Inv, AMP (Harvard), GAICD, FFinWendy was a Director of the People’s Choice Board from 2019 until the merger with Heritage Bank in March 2023. She has an extensive executive background in Banking and Financial Services, including roles as Chief Information Officer and Chief Operations Officer for AXA, General Manager of Institutional Technology for ANZ and Group Executive, Operations for AMP.
Wendy is Chair of both Epworth Healthcare and Online Education Services and is a Director of Tower, Data Action and auDA. Wendy was previously a Director of Ausgrid, AMP Bank and Very Special Kids and a member of Council at Swinburne University.
Wendy is Chairman of the Technology and Integration Committee.
Our Board of Directors is committed to the members of Heritage and People's Choice, as per the Board Charter
Just as fulfilling the needs of our members is the top priority for all staff, each of our Board members understands the importance of their role and that their responsibility lies with providing a service to our members and the community.
