Bench to boardroom
DMTC Limited is pleased to announce Ms Priscilla Thwaites as the recipient of the DMTC Guest of the Chair Fellowship for 2025.
Following a career in forensic science, Ms Thwaites is now leveraging her expertise for the benefit of Australia’s national security as a Research Leader within Australia’s Defence Science & Technology Group (DSTG).
Her extensive leadership experience, which includes the management of large research teams and strategic coordination of complex operations, greatly impressed the DMTC selection panel.
Now in its third year, the Guest of the Chair Fellowship reflects DMTC’s commitment to preparing future industry leaders for the roles that they will need to take on to ensure enduring success and build both capacity and resilience in Australia’s innovation ecosystem.
During the Fellowship, Ms Thwaites will observe and gain practical insight into financial planning and corporate governance, providing a timely opportunity to translate the classroom perspective on governance provided by the Australian Institute of Company Directors’ coursework into practice.
Through the Guest of the Chair Fellowship, DMTC aims to empower emerging leaders with a deeper understanding of board operations and the strategic challenges they navigate.
DMTC Chair, Mr Tony Quick, described the Guest of the Chair Fellowship as a mutually fulfilling opportunity.
“Priscilla is an outstanding candidate who brings a deep understanding of the defence sector,” Mr Quick said.
“I am confident that this experience will help to broaden her professional experience by providing a lens on how boards operate, with specific regard to corporate and not-for-profit governance. In return, I expect DMTC’s Board will gain new perspectives from Priscilla.”
Ms Thwaites was selected from a high-quality field of candidates that included candidates from defence and adjacent sectors, in addition to leadership scholars from the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE) Elevate: Boosting diversity in STEM program.
As Guest of the Chair, Ms Thwaites will attend Board meetings as an observer over a full annual governance cycle, as well as having the opportunity to attend the DMTC Annual Conference in Canberra on 27-28 May 2025.
This event will give her an opportunity to gain a comprehensive overview of DMTC’s research and development activities and the company’s role within the broader defence science and technology ecosystem.
DMTC congratulates Ms Thwaites on this achievement and looks forward to her contributions as this year’s Guest of the Chair.
