Skilled Nation brings together experienced VET, tertiary education, regulatory compliance, training product development, workforce capability, stakeholder engagement and content specialists. Our team combines national reform experience with practical provider-side expertise, supporting clients across RTO compliance, qualification reform, curriculum and assessment, professional development, consultation, research and sector capability projects.
Our core strength is the ability to connect policy, regulation, industry needs and implementation. We help clients move from complex requirements to clear, practical and defensible solutions.
VET Strategy, Qualification Reform and Sector Leadership
Andrew Shea is the Managing Director of Skilled Nation and a nationally recognised vocational education and training leader with more than 23 years’ experience across the Australian VET sector. He specialises in VET strategy, national training package reform, qualification architecture, regulatory compliance, stakeholder consultation, training product development and provider capability uplift.
Andrew has led and contributed to major national reform activities across training package development, qualification consolidation, foundation skills, training and assessment, cyber security and cross-sector unit design. He currently chairs the Technical Reference Group for the TAE Training Package and Foundation Skills Training Package under DEWR, and also chairs the Cyber Security Technical Committee under the Future Skills Organisation. These roles give him deep insight into qualification architecture, packaging logic, training product governance, stakeholder validation and the practical application of the Training Package Organising Framework.
Through Skilled Nation, Andrew leads projects for Jobs and Skills Councils, industry bodies, education providers and sector organisations. His recent work includes complex TPOF-aligned qualification reform involving structural analysis, duplication mapping, qualification consolidation, technical writing, stakeholder consultation and defensible mapping documentation. He is particularly valued for translating policy intent into practical qualification structures that can be implemented by providers and understood by industry.
Andrew also brings deep provider-side leadership experience. He has led multi-state RTOs, overseen accredited training delivery across multiple sectors, and guided organisations through registration, audit, scope extension, compliance review, validation and continuous improvement processes. He has led more than 300 RTO audits and compliance reviews and has significant experience in assessment validation, governance, risk management and quality assurance.
Andrew’s previous executive roles include being a Managing Partner with Tesserent Cyber Services / Thales Cyber and Digita, CEO and Managing Director of House of Learning and Builders Academy Australia, Head of Learning and Development for Simonds Group, CEO of Complex Institute of Education, and senior leadership roles across training delivery and quality assurance. Under his leadership, RTOs have achieved major state and national training awards, including Australian Small Training Provider of the Year.
In addition to his consulting and reform work, Andrew founded the VET Quality and Innovation Summit, which brings together VET leaders, regulators, practitioners and sector experts to support professional learning, regulatory readiness and innovation. He is known for combining strategic sector insight with practical implementation advice, helping organisations strengthen self-assurance, improve training quality and respond confidently to reform.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Master of Education, Graduate Certificate in VET, Bachelor of Tourism and Hospitality, Diploma of Training Design and Development, Diploma of Quality Auditing, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, AICD Company Directors Course.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewjshea/
RTO Compliance, Quality Assurance and Provider Improvement
Casey Helman is a senior VET quality, compliance and implementation specialist with more than 20 years’ experience across vocational education, regulatory auditing, governance, assessment quality and VET Delivered to Secondary Students.
Casey supports RTOs, schools and education providers to strengthen compliance systems, improve assessment quality, prepare for audit, build self-assurance capability and translate regulatory expectations into practical operational systems. She has conducted more than 100 regulatory, compliance and quality assurance audits across ASQA and VRQA regulated providers, including audits involving governance systems, training and assessment practices, Child Safe Standards, quality assurance frameworks and organisational capability. Casey is also a currently approved VRQA auditor.
Casey has held senior leadership roles across the VET sector, including as General Manager Education and General Manager Innovation at IVET Institute, where she supported one of Australia’s largest VETDSS operations across more than 500 schools. She also founded and led VET Lab for Schools, a specialist VETDSS RTO, and continues to provide regulatory audit and quality assurance services through her specialist consulting work.
Her expertise includes governance, risk and compliance, assessment validation, VETDSS quality, strategic workforce and pathway research, accredited and non-accredited curriculum development, reasonable adjustment, Child Safe Standards and provider capability building. Casey is also an experienced presenter and facilitator, regularly delivering professional development and sector engagement activities for VET leaders, trainers, assessors and compliance professionals.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Master of Business, Graduate Diploma in VET, Diploma of Quality Auditing, Lead Quality Auditor, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. Currently completing Master of Education.
Project Coordination, Stakeholder Engagement and Training Product Reform Support
Johanna McDonald is an experienced project coordination and stakeholder engagement professional who supports national vocational education projects through structured planning, milestone tracking, document control, stakeholder communication and disciplined project delivery.
At Skilled Nation, Johanna coordinates multiple concurrent education and training projects, supporting technical consultants to maintain progress across drafting, consultation, review, reporting and quality assurance activities. Her work includes coordinating stakeholder logistics, managing briefing materials, tracking actions, consolidating feedback and supporting version control across complex reform projects.
Johanna also brings direct travel and service industry experience. She holds Certificate III and Certificate IV qualifications in Travel and has worked in capability development and operational leadership roles with FC Business School and Flight Centre. This gives her practical insight into customer service, itinerary management, booking systems, supplier engagement, destination knowledge and the capability needs of customer-facing service industries.
She also coordinates major VET sector professional development events, including VETQI Summits, where strong logistical control, stakeholder communication and delivery discipline are essential.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Diploma of Leadership and Management, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, Certificate III and Certificate IV in Travel, and Certificate III in Hairdressing.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanna-mcdonald-5534b265/
Foundation Skills, LLND, TAE, Validation and Technical Writing
Kylie Heere is a senior specialist in adult education, vocational training design, foundation skills and TAE delivery. She brings deep expertise in language, literacy, numeracy and digital capability, assessment validation, training product development, technical writing and VET practitioner capability uplift.
Kylie has more than 15 years’ consecutive experience delivering TAE qualifications and skill sets across Australia, including TAE04, TAE10, TAE16 and TAE22. She has developed training and assessment resources for TAE qualifications and supported thousands of trainers and assessors through full qualifications, upgrades, skill sets and professional development.
Her work spans TAFEs, RTOs, unions, corporate employers, community organisations and not-for-profit settings. She has contributed to validation and moderation across multiple training packages, including TAE, FSK, SIT, BSB, CPC, CHC and PUA, and has supported organisations to strengthen learner support, assessment quality, trainer capability and post-validation improvement.
At Skilled Nation, Kylie delivers TAE and Train the Trainer programs and contributes to TPOF-aligned training package review and redevelopment, foundation skills analysis, consultation support, technical writing and validation logic. Her strength is combining compliance requirements with realistic learner capability, practical training design and implementation feasibility.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Graduate Diploma of Adult Language, Literacy and Numeracy Practice, Diploma of Training Design and Development, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kylie-heere/
Academic Governance, Quality Assurance and Public Provider Strategy
Julie Healy is a senior vocational education leader with more than 28 years’ experience in academic governance, regulatory compliance, quality assurance, qualification portfolio strategy and education leadership.
Julie has held executive responsibility across one of Australia’s largest public RTOs, including as Executive Director, Vocational Education and RTO Manager at TAFE Queensland and Acting Chief Academic Officer. In these roles, she provided executive oversight of regulatory compliance, qualification portfolio governance, curriculum strategy, quality assurance systems, product planning and academic integrity across a large, multi-sector provider.
Julie brings deep insight into how qualification design, assessment systems, training and assessment strategies, scope management and quality assurance operate in complex delivery environments. She has contributed to national reform and regulatory discussions through ASQA stakeholder engagement, TAFE Directors Australia networks, TAE reform activities and provider-focused consultation.
Her expertise is particularly valuable in projects requiring governance-level review, qualification portfolio strategy, provider implementation insight, risk-based quality management and defensible academic decision-making. Julie helps ensure that reform proposals and quality systems are not only technically sound, but practical for implementation by providers.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Bachelor of Human Movement Studies (Education), Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, extensive professional development in VET compliance, academic leadership and educator development.
Tourism, Sustainability, Workforce Pathways and Industry Engagement
Jules McMurtrie is an experienced tourism, industry engagement and workforce development specialist with a strong background in building partnerships between education, industry, government and community.
Jules has led major school-to-industry and workforce pathway initiatives across tourism, food, wine, hospitality, advanced manufacturing, hydrogen and renewable energy. As Gateway to Industry Schools Program Manager for Food, Wine and Tourism Queensland, she led a Queensland Government-supported initiative connecting schools, teachers and students with industry, expanding school participation and developing practical employer and teacher resources.
Her earlier tourism experience includes regional tourism development and operational roles across hotels, resorts, regional tourism organisations and visitor information services. This gives her practical insight into visitor experience, destination development, customer service, regional workforce needs and tourism industry expectations.
Jules also brings strong capability in sustainability, ESG, social value, community engagement, Indigenous education initiatives, digital literacy and future-focused workforce development. She is particularly suited to projects requiring industry consultation, resource development, pathway design, regional engagement and translation of workforce needs into practical tools and frameworks.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Graduate Certificate in Professional Studies, Graduate Certificate in Gastronomic Tourism, Bachelor of Marketing.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jumpingfish/
Workshop Facilitation, Resource Development and VET Compliance Strategy
Nicholas Stevens is an experienced VET facilitator, quality assurance lead, training manager and stakeholder engagement specialist with more than 15 years’ experience across vocational education and training.
Nicholas has delivered hundreds of face-to-face and online workshops across first aid, construction, compliance and training provider settings. He is known for his engaging facilitation style and ability to use storytelling, humour and practical examples to make complex training, compliance and stakeholder topics accessible.
His experience includes managing trainer and assessor teams, supporting onboarding and capability uplift, leading validation and moderation sessions, reviewing learning resources and assessment tools, and supporting RTOs with compliance and audit readiness. He has led more than 100 validation and moderation sessions across training packages including HLTAID, BSB and CPC, with a focus on compliance, learner-centred design and industry relevance.
Nicholas brings strong value to projects involving stakeholder workshops, consultation forums, trainer upskilling, assessment validation, learning resource review and translation of complex requirements into practical delivery guidance.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Diploma of Leadership and Management, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, Diploma of Security Risk Management, Bachelor of Arts.
Media Production, Stakeholder Content and Engagement Assets
Martine McMahon is an award-winning media producer with extensive experience across podcasting, radio, video, digital content, branded campaigns and stakeholder-facing communications.
Martine’s background spans end-to-end production management, scripting, interviewing, recording, editing, sound design, talent liaison, social content strategy and audience growth. She has produced top-rating national radio shows, narrative and interview-led podcasts, video content and digital campaigns for major organisations and media brands.
Her experience includes producing content for clients and organisations including Ernst & Young, MECCA, Gold FM, Broad Radio and Pemba Capital Partners, as well as working with major Australian media personalities and programs reaching large national audiences.
For Skilled Nation projects, Martine adds specialist capability in producing high-quality stakeholder-facing content, podcasts, webinars, video assets, interview content, explanatory materials and engagement resources. Her work supports clients who need to communicate complex reform, education, training or workforce messages in a professional and accessible way.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Diploma of Music Industry, Certificate IV in Small Business Management.
Higher Education, Health Education and Clinical Workforce Capability
Hermione Shea is a clinical health education specialist, wound care educator and academic with more than 15 years’ experience across tertiary health education, hospital-based clinical practice, curriculum development and clinical research.
Hermione is a Lecturer in the Master of Wound Care at Monash University, where she contributes to postgraduate health education across wound assessment, pressure injury management, burns care and evidence-based clinical practice. She has also held unit coordination responsibilities within Monash University’s postgraduate wound care programs.
Alongside her academic work, Hermione is a Wound Clinical Nurse Consultant at Alfred Health, where she delivers advanced wound care across acute and ambulatory settings, supports hospital-wide wound care education, contributes to clinical guidelines and chairs the Wound Product Evaluation Committee. Her work connects clinical governance, therapeutic product review, medication safety, patient education and multidisciplinary care planning.
Hermione brings valuable expertise to health, nursing, aged care, higher education and clinical workforce capability projects. Her strengths include curriculum design, health education, clinical guideline development, staff training, research translation, academic quality and the integration of evidence-based practice into education and workforce development.
Core expertise
Selected qualifications and credentials: Master of Wound Care, Bachelor of Science (Nursing), Registered Nurse, AHPRA registration, ORCID profile.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hermione-shea-664434360/
Our broader specialist network includes capability across:
