Our leadership

Before I entered government, I started my career as a journalist in rural Queensland and with Melbourne’s Herald and Weekly Times. Throughout this time, my curiosity laid the foundation for my future – a curiosity in how people shape, and are shaped, by the world around them.

This kept with me through various senior executive roles in the private sector and across government – including as a Deputy Director-General with the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Finance, and as the Secretary of the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations.

It is a curiosity that continues to shape the leader I strive to be.

Today, I have the privilege of serving as the Director-General of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service – an honour few have known in our more than 73-year history, and a torch I am humbled to carry as the Service’s first female Director-General.

Around the globe, I lead people who are likewise curious about the world today and committed to confronting its challenges. And whilst they come from different backgrounds and upbringings – they work tirelessly, together with trusted partners, for a common call:

To secure peace, prosperity and the future for Australia and our region.

It is a call I echo for the next generation of officers to come, and for all those curious in a better future.

Kerri

From a very young age, I wanted to be somebody who could make a difference and who was there for others. This desire led me to a career with New South Wales Police, spanning 34 years leading teams across homicide, major crimes, counterterrorism and other specialist areas.

As a leader, your people are the most critical part of everything that you do. And as leaders, we have a responsibility to look after our people – whether it be their health and safety, learning and development, work life balance, or by equipping them with the best technology to enable their best work.

When we commit to our people, we empower their commitment to our mission.

At ASIS, our people are from different backgrounds, speak different languages, come from different disciplines, and think and solve problems in very different ways. That’s our strength: working together and looking out for one another in the process.

And none of us are expected to deliver on our mission alone.

That’s the encouragement I’d give to those thinking about working with ASIS. We’re a community of diverse, passionate people.

There for one another and all Australians. 

Catherine

Appointed as Deputy Director-General Operations in April 2024, Ewan Macmillan brings four decades of experience in Australia's national security community.

Joining the Australian Army in 1985, Ewan served 15 years, including roles in logistics and Army Intelligence. Ewan is a proud veteran having served operationally with the Army in Papua New Guinea and Iraq.

In mid-1999, Ewan transitioned to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, where he worked as a policy officer focused on the Asia-Pacific region.

Ewan joined ASIS in February 2002, marking the beginning of a 20-year career including numerous postings and operational deployments. Across his ASIS career, Ewan has served overseas in the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia, and has held various senior operational and corporate roles in Canberra and overseas.

In 2022, Ewan moved to ASIO as Deputy Director-General Vetting Service Delivery, leading reforms of Australia's highest level of security clearance vetting capability.