In December 2022, the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) received approval to initiate the establishment of the new Jobs and Skills Council for the Arts, Personal Services, Retail, Hospitality, and Tourism sectors.
This federally funded program was administered by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR), which funds were allocated to support ARA in the facilitation and implementation of the initial Stage 1 development phase.
In August 2023, the ARA marked a major milestone with regard to the successful launch of SkillsEQuipped and the completion of Stage 1 phase commitments, culminating the appointment of inaugural CEO, Natalie Turmine, GAICD.
ARA CEO and former interim CEO of SkillsEQuipped Paul Zahra expressed his confidence in Natalie Turmine’s leadership, affirming, “Natalie is a passionate advocate for workforce development, possessing a wealth of experience in delivering government-funded employment and education initiatives nationwide. Her appointment ensures that SkillsEQuipped is exceptionally positioned for success.”
In response to her newly appointed position, Natalie Turmine articulated the ambitious vision to propel SkillsEQuipped to new heights of success:
“Our mission at SkillsEQuipped is to confront the workforce challenges facing our representative industries and forge innovative solutions that yield positive results for both learners and employers. Furthermore, we aspire to empower our industries with a more influential, strategic voice in shaping the future of skills development.” – Natalie Turmine.
Natalie’s appointment as CEO and her leadership will guarantee that SkillsEQuipped is firmly positioned for success as they tackle the workforce and training development challenges across the Arts, Personal Services, Retail, Tourism and Hospitality sectors.
Professional Background of Natalie Turmine, GAICD
Natalie Turmine, GAICD is a passionate leader who is dedicated to workforce development. She started her career as a Hospitality Trainer at an RTO in the mid 90’s. Since then, she has had over 27 years of experience leading both commercial and not-for-profit organisations in the delivery of government funded employment, education, and workforce development programs across Australia.
Natalie has experience in various CEO, Chair, Non-Executive Director, Advisory Board Member, Councillor, and Government Policy Advisory roles and advocates and advises on future-focused productivity and workforce development needs across a range of industries.
Natalie’s most recent roles were as Chief Executive Officer of Campbell Page, delivering employment, education, community, Indigenous, family, and youth labour hire services, and an Environmental Social Enterprise from up to 80 locations across Australia. She also served as a Board Member of the National Employment Services Association.
She is currently Chair of The Australian Racing Drivers Club, powering Sydney Motorsport Park, Board member of Hydrogen House Australia, State Councillor for Business NSW, and Global Advisory Panel Member for the Institute on Science for Global Policy (ISGP) – Hydrogen workforce development planning.
