Shanny is an experienced Director and Senior Executive, having held roles across industry, government and universities. She has expertise in public administration and policy development with strong corporate governance skills. Shanny sits on various government panels (ARC and NHMRC) and boards that draw on her deep experience in technology commercialisation, regulatory affairs and clinical research. Her research expertise has focused on genomics and molecular genetics, achieving a PhD understanding the evolution of cytokine function.

Robert is responsible for building site capabilities and the rapid expansion of the centres Phase I unit as part of the NSW NECTA collaboration. He currently manages a large portfolio Phase I – III Industry trials, as well as developing and managing multi-centred national & international Investigator led research. Robert has been an active volunteer for ARCS since 2005 and a Human Research Ethics Committee member since 2015. Robert was elected to the ARCS board and brings a focus on site and regulatory issues to add to the representation of ARCS diverse membership.

Sarah Lukeman is a cancer survivor, clinical trial participant and experienced health consumer advocate and representative. She is on the board of Cancer Council NSW, on the Executive Committee of Cancer Voices NSW 2017-2024 and a team member of the Clinical Trials: Impact and Quality (CT:IQ) InFORMed and Beyond the Form projects and a Steering Committee member. Sarah was the Community Engagement Coordinator for the Hunter Cancer Research Alliance (HCRA) for 2 years, where she supported consumers and researchers to work together through training, mentoring and administrative support. She is a consumer buddy for a number of discovery science cancer researchers in NSW and Victoria and has been on the organising committee of the Hunter Cancer Research Symposium in 2020 and 2021 and the 2023 NSW Cancer Conference. Sarah is regularly invited to speak on Consumer Involvement in Research (CIR) and has presented at ARCS and SCRS events. She has co-designed and co-presented training on CIR for Health Consumers NSW and NSW Regional Health Partners (NSWRHP). Sarah lives in regional NSW and advocates for equitable access to healthcare and a just transition for mining communities. Sarah feels privileged to have grey hair and wrinkles and to have seen her daughters grow up.

With 15 years of experience across the academic, translational research and CRO spaces, Sam is focused on working closely with emerging global pharma and biotech companies at the critical early stages of trial development. Based in Sydney, Australia with a keen interest in the Asia-Pacific, Sam holds a PhD in retinal vascular biology, and extensive experience in early phase drug and device studies in Australia & New Zealand. Having worked in clinical operations, medical writing, medical affairs and now in clinical and business development – Sam has a broad understanding of the research landscape and industry pathways across the CRO space in the region.