2026 David Hawkes Oration Event
12th August 2026
8:00am to 9:45am
Hilton Hotel | 32 Mitchell Street, Darwin NT 0800
Member: $40
Non-Member: $80
Breakfast is included
This event has sold out.
You may register up to 10 people online. If you would like to register a group of more than 10, or if you have any general questions, please contact IPAA WA on 08 9360 1400 or email eao@ipaawa.org.au.
2026 Oration Topic
Where Trust Lives: The Everyday Work of Public Servants
Trust is what enables government to work.
But trust is not determined by what politicians say and do, as much as by people’s everyday experiences. Whether a service actually helps them, a decision feels fair, someone takes the time to explain – these are the moments in which trust in government is strengthened or eroded. And they arise in thousands of ordinary encounters between the public service and the people it serves.
Join ANZSOG Dean & CEO Caron Beaton-Wells, as she draws on ANZSOG research into how governments build a social licence for reform and her unique view of public sectors across the country, to make a simple case with important implications. Trust doesn’t trickle down. It builds from the ground up. It’s affected by work at the backline not just the frontline, and it’s what makes every person, at every level, in every corner of the service count.
Professor Caron Beaton-Wells
Professor Beaton-Wells is an internationally distinguished academic leader, committed to the role of education and research for a sustainable future and with a track record in leading major organisational change through innovation and high performing, collaborative and inclusive culture.
Prior to joining ANZSOG, Caron led Melbourne Business School as internal Dean through a period in which the School transformed its educational portfolio to offer greater accessibility, established an innovation agenda to address pressing learning and development challenges, strengthened its impact in sustainability, business analytics, Indigenous business leadership and social purpose, and forged new partnerships with industry and government.
Previously, as a member of the Melbourne Law School executive team, Caron established one of the world’s most highly regarded hubs in competition and consumer law. She led the development of Australia’s first online masters suite in this field, while researching, teaching and advocating at the intersection of law, economics and business disciplines as they relate to competition in markets and the digital economy and regulation of concentrated markets. She was awarded substantial research funding and published extensively, contributing to policy and legal reform and intellectual and public discourse around the world.
About the David Hawkes Oration
Named in honour of David Hawkes, a long-serving President of IPAA NT, the Hawkes Oration pays tribute to his exceptional contributions to the field of public administration. David played a vital role in creating innovative practices that put the Northern Territory at the forefront of the public sector during the 1990s.
With an illustrious career, David served as the Commissioner for Public Employment for thirteen years, becoming the longest-serving Commissioner in Australia upon his retirement. His influence extended beyond his tenure, as he played a significant role in developing redeployment and voluntary redundancy arrangements within the Australian Public Service. These arrangements were later used to good effect in the territory over many years to manage structural change.
Find out more about the David Hawkes Oration and view past Orators here.