Our facilitators

Ihtisham is a Lecturer in Finance at the University of Queensland (UQ), also having earned his PhD in finance from UQ in 2020. With over a decade of teaching experience, both within and outside Australia, he has taught various undergraduate and postgraduate finance courses, both in traditional and online formats, covering topics such as Portfolio Management and Public Financial Management.

Besides teaching students within university, Ihtisham also plays an active role in industry engagement and Executive Education and has a vast experience in facilitating capacity building courses, specially for Queensland’s public sector. He currently serves as the Academic Director for UQ’s joint public sector finance program with the Queensland Treasury Corporation. This role allows him to bridge academic knowledge with practical industry insights, enriching the learning experience for both students and professionals alike. Notably, Ihtisham has been recognised for his excellence in teaching and learning, receiving the Student Engagement Award for his commitment to fostering a dynamic and engaging learning environment.

Ihtisham not only has a long teaching experience but is also actively involved in finance research. He has published scholarly work, in the fields of Climate Change, Asset Pricing, and Corporate Finance in a number of highly ranked academic journals and has also been cited by different media outlets.

Annissa is an experienced management professional, who specialises in People and Culture. With over 20 years’ experience in management consulting with a global professional services firm and her own consulting business, Annissa has worked with clients in Australia, the Asia Pacific region, the UK and Europe to drive transformational change through people strategies. She has worked across many industries, but dedicates most of her time to the government, health, and aged care sectors. Annissa has also held senior leader roles for two of Queensland’s premier organisations, being UnitingCare Queensland where she was the Head of HR Strategic Development and TAFE Queensland where she was the Director, People and Culture.

Annissa has recently commenced her PhD studies with the University of Queensland, with the objective of transforming primary healthcare service delivery through the use of digital technologies. She has recently completed her Masters where she researched the impact of technology on the aged care workplace. Annissa is also a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Queensland.

Annissa is a facilitator for the UQ Business School Executive Education programs, including Governing for Excellence, Project and Change Management, Understanding Financial Statements, Ratio and Comparative Analysis and Financial Management in Practice.

Michael Shave is an experienced executive level government senior consultant with experience across a range of organisational service functions. Michael has over 23 years combined experience in financial operations and strategy, and in providing strategic advice and guidance particularly for the local government industry.

Michael’s core strengths relate to managing organisational and project performance, and he also has considerable experience in the financial modelling and analysis of the performance of government business activities, as well as broader financial sustainability evaluations and reviewing and developing policies, guidelines and service structures focusing on business process improvement.

Besides his experience as a consultant, Michael has also been coordinating and facilitating a range of capacity building activities including webinars, training, masterclasses, and finance related forums across Queensland. He has the ability to clearly articulate complex financial and other issues in terms easily understood by executives, board members and elected representatives regardless of their financial literacy level. Michael is currently the president and member of the Local Government Finance Professionals Queensland which provides support and guidance to local government finance professionals in Queensland.

Chris has over 20 years industry experience as a banking and financial risk professional. His experience includes positions held in local Australian banks and global investment banks abroad, and risk consulting at an accounting Big Four. Chris is a Senior Fellow of the Financial Services Institute of Australasia and a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Banker Institute in the United Kingdom.

Chris is a lecturer in finance and has a research interest in capital markets and banking. He completed his PhD on the topic “Systemically Important Bank bond funding and implications for financial stability.”