The GSA team

Dylan AO

Founder

Growing up, Dylan never saw any role models like himself in the public domain. It means his driving force runs much deeper than success alone. His greatest ambition is to be that mainstream person who empowers Australians living with a disability. It’s what gives him such an inexhaustible work ethic.

Alongside his Paralympic gold medals and 12 tennis grand slams, Dylan made history in 2016. He became the first athlete with a disability to win Tennis Australia’s highest individual honour, the Newcombe Medal.

When he’s not working at GSA, Dylan runs his own foundation and Ability Fest, a charitable music festival that’s raised half a million dollars so far to support young Australians with a disability. He’s also a sports commentator and host on the Nine Network, a weekend breakfast presenter on the Hit Network, and a Logie winner for Best New Talent as host of ABCs ‘The Set’. The final frontier, according to Dylan, is a starring role in a wheelchair on Home and Away…

Nicole

Co-CEO

As an Occupational Therapist by background, Nicole has worked in mental health and community health services in Australia and the UK and owned and managed her own OT practice. 

Nicole worked for several years at PwC Australia with a focus on D&I, accessibility, and preventative health and wellbeing. Most recently Nicole worked for global law firm DLA Piper as the Diversity, Inclusion and Wellbeing Lead for the Asia Pacific region with responsibility for strategy development and implementation to facilitate a culture of inclusion and belonging.

Zack

Co-CEO

Before GSA, Zack worked for eight years executing marketing and sales strategies to grow some of the world’s largest FMCG brands, including Red Bull, Hendricks Gin and Glenfiddich. Now alongside GSA, he manages Australia’s first inclusive music festival, Ability Festival, which uses music as an inclusive platform to normalise disability.

Zack works at GSA with brother Dylan and father Martin to create generational social change. His innovative approach has seen him build understanding and confidence with government and corporations, as well as spearhead a national awareness campaign to address the unconscious bias and invisible barriers people with disability face. Alongside his impassioned commitment to football and basketball, he sits on the board for the Dylan Alcott Foundation and Australian Festivals Association.

Anjelin

Chief Financial Officer

Anjelin is an experienced finance professional with a demonstrated history of working in financial service industry, disability and health care sector, and has vast audit internal and external audit experience with Deloitte. In her previous role, she has worked with Vision Australia and has contributed as a Treasurer/ Director for peak body for disability radio stations.

She has huge passion to build teams to success by focussing on strengths and solutions. Over the past years, Anjelin has led strategic projects, remodelled finance teams to build capabilities and has implemented business improvement through streamlining processes with her positive attitude.

Her role requires her to analyse huge amount of data and simplify that so we all can work with clear goals. Financial checks and balances together with compliance keeps her day ticking. She is passionate about sharing her expertise to support organisations meet governance standards and to deliver strategy to enhance meaningful outcomes.

Ankit

Marketing Manager

Ankit is a highly accomplished individual with a remarkable passion for sports, marketing trends, entertainment, and pop culture. He has completed his Master’s degree in Sports Business from Deakin University and has successfully established himself as a dedicated promoter of inclusion and marketing.

Ankit’s extensive experience as the Team Manager for Australian Blind Football and soccer coach with South Melbourne Football Club’s blind football team for over four years is truly impressive. He led the Australian Blind Football national team to its first international tournament appearance in the 2022 IBSA Blind Football Asia-Oceania Championships, where his team, the Bilbies, was awarded the Fair Play Trophy.

Ankit’s expertise in marketing is equally impressive, having worked with various brands across different sectors such as North Melbourne FC, adidas, 212F, Soccer5s, and more. He has recently joined the GSA and Sport4All team as a Marketing Manager, where he is focused on showcasing the power of great storytelling to create a culture and community that is inclusive, equal, and equitable.

Melissa

Senior Consultant

Melissa specialises in accessible communication by design and inclusive language. Her experience spans digital and print publications, social media platforms, and audio/visual mediums. She’s worked across a broad range of industries, for clients such as Medibank, Hydro Group and the Australia Institute of Teaching and School Leadership.

Melissa’s background in Industrial and Product Design provides her with an expert perspective on accessible and inclusive communications and products. She has a passion for connecting people with varying disabilities with the information and communications platforms to suit their individual needs.

Stephanie

Senior Consultant

Stephanie is passionate about inclusion and changing dated misconceptions of Disability. She has a strong focus on increasing employment opportunities for people with disability. Diagnosed at 19 with a degenerative eye condition Stephanie gradually lost her vision over 10 years and is now completely blind.

 

As a Senior Consultant at Get Skilled Access, Stephanie’s lived experience and the  skills she has acquired through her prior careers in real estate and hospitality greatly contribute to her work with clients, enabling her to  provide tangible and sustainable advice to improve the inclusion experience for people with disability. Stephanie played an integral role in the development of, and is currently managing the delivery of RecruitAble a national pilot program designed to remove existing barriers in the mainstream recruitment industry, making it accessible and inclusive for candidates with disability. 

Stephanie’s expertise and lived experience was recognised when she was invited to be a panellist on changing community attitudes and tackling discrimination at the 2022 National Jobs and skills summit. 

Stephanie brings an open approach to her work, speaking from the heart about her experiences to assist clients with their disability and inclusion goals.

Kate

Senior Consultant

Kate has experience working in the disability, health and education sector where her focus was aimed at increasing the inclusion of people with disability and health conditions. Kate has previously worked as a Registered Nurse and Midwife and for a not-for-profit creating meaningful employment opportunities for people with physical disability. 

She has also worked for several years as a Disability Advisor where she supported students to remove the barriers faced within the tertiary education setting. Kate is passionate about applying proactive measures to ensure accessibility and inclusion for all people across all aspects of life.

Bianca

Senior Consultant

Bianca has 20 year’s experience in corporate roles as an Executive Officer, Senior HR, major projects, social marketing campaigns, and event management. Bianca specialises in working for local government, community engagement and with First Nations communities.

Bianca was born with a rare blood disease, then in 2016 lost her leg following an illness and quickly realised the opportunity to use her lived experience to help others understand the value of inclusion for people with visible and non-visible disability.

In 2021 Bianca self published her story ‘Walking My Path’, candidly sharing her journey overcoming challengers of loss, grief and trauma to become stronger, resilient and joyful about her future. Bianca’s passion for increasing opportunities for people with disability, and sharing the benefits of greater access and inclusion, has led her to Get Skilled Access.

Mitch

National Manager

Mitch is best known for sliding down mountains and going around plastic poles in a spandex suit. But he also has over 15 years of experience in high-performance settings across sport, business, and government.

He is passionate about making an impact on the lives of athletes and supporting their wellbeing, helping them to achieve their full potential both on and off the field. His contributions to the field of sport inclusion and athlete well-being have made a significant impact on the lives of countless athletes and individuals with disabilities across Australia.

Prior to his current role, Mitch has consulted extensively to the Australian High-Performance and Participation sport system, contributing heavily to the development of the current national sector strategies across both areas. He has also worked directly with sports and athletes in community engagement, workforce planning and strategy, athlete well-being, and career development at the AIS and VIS. Additionally, he has experience in diversity and inclusion and employment strategy in the corporate sector.

Mitch joined the GSA as the National Manager of Sport4All, where he is focused on facilitating generational change in communities, building cultures that are welcoming, inclusive, and equitable through sport.

Blake

State Manager - QLD/NT

Blake is a dedicated team member with extensive experience, previously as a high-performance athlete. He competed as a Paralympic Swimmer, and his career spanned over 14 years. Prior to coming on board with Sport4All, Blake’s background includes being an Accredited Exercise Physiologist, teaching at the University of Sunshine Coast. He also has experience working on three Brisbane 2032 Legacy Committees and is a member of Paralympics Australia’s Athletes Commission.

Blake has always loved engaging in sport from a young age. He has worked through school and community programs (including central WA and regional QLD) since 2008. He is passionate about creating opportunities and seeing people succeed in their goals and aspirations. Blake believes that sport is a powerful platform for developing lifelong skills to thrive in life, which is ultimately what drives his passion for this space.

Elysha

State Manager - NSW/ACT

Elysha is an accomplished Australian water polo player who has achieved the pinnacle of success as a world champion. She has also showcased her talents on the international stage by playing in Barcelona. Beyond her sporting achievements, her passion for the sport extended to coaching, where she lent her expertise to athletes in Africa, fostering growth and skill development. She is also passionate about charity work and has organized and participated in two remarkable 24-hour swims to raise funds for the homeless.

Elysha’s professional journey has been marked by versatility. She has held roles in high-performance sports, from state to national bodies, and has also worked in caregiving roles for people with disabilities. She has extensive engagement across all education levels, with a particular focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) communities. She is committed to personal growth and has achieved a Cert IV in Leadership and Management.

Elysha is also a Healthy Schools Ambassador and promotes the importance of holistic wellness among students, emphasizing physical and mental health. She is also an Australia Day ambassador and embodies national values. She is a passionate advocate for inclusivity in sports. She believes that everyone should have the opportunity to participate in sport on their own terms.

Carina

State Manager - WA

With a career spanning 20 years’ across diverse industries, Carina fuses her boundless energy with her passion for the disability sector and commitment to building inclusive, vibrant, connected communities.

Focused on empowering organisations and individuals, Carina has collaborated with state and local government, not-for-profits and private enterprise over the past 10 years to deliver change at a grass-roots level in metropolitan and regional Western Australia. Her efforts have earned her awards and peer recognition, including a national ‘Serving Your Success’ award for demonstrating the values of excellence and humility in enhancing sporting participation across the state.

Having a personal connection to mental health and disability has fuelled Carina’s unyielding drive to advocate for people of all abilities and catalyse positive change, impact and a sense of belonging in communities across Australia.

 

Jeremy

State Manager - VIC/TAS/SA
Jeremy came to GSA as an inclusion coach with the Sport4All program. Jeremy has always been passionate about sport, growing up in the Australian Alps he competed for Australia as an alpine ski racer. Jeremy’s connection to disability is professional forming 7 years working with high performance athletes in disability sport. Jeremy’s sporting experience includes five years with Paralympics Australia as a sighted guide for skiers with low vision. Some of the daily tasks he performed in this role included skiing in front of his teammate Shaun at speeds of 110km/h and navigating the racecourse giving him the nickname of skiing eye dog. He has also been involved in the development of snowsports for people with disabilities, as a coach and instructor trainer at Mt Hotham. Jeremy’s work is now focused on creating inclusive opportunities in sport for people with disability by working with mainstream clubs to break down misconceptions and stereotypes of disability through the delivery of GSA’s inclusive sports program, Sport4All.

Michael

Consultant

Michael has a background working in Disability Employment Services, helping people overcome barriers to find suitable and meaningful employment. He has also worked for over 10 years speaking to high school students promoting spinal cord injury awareness and has a BA in Music, which has provided him with opportunities to work and study in this field internationally. 

He is a paraplegic and has been a wheelchair user for 17 years – as a result of a car accident in which he was a passenger in 2006 and has a passion for helping people realise their potential and pursue their goals and dreams, no matter how big or difficult they may seem.

Joel

Inclusive Design Consultant

Joel has graduated with a Bachelor of Communication Design. With Joel’s lived experience of being short statured along with his passion for design. He found a great opportunity at GSA as a Junior Graphic Designer where he could combine both his lived experience and design work to improve how people with disabilities can interact with digital and printed content.

Outside of work, Joel enjoys being active wherever he can. He enjoys playing sports and running, and has run the Great Ocean Road Marathon back in 2019. Joel has also represented Australia at the 2017 World Dwarf games held in Canada, competing in Basketball and Badminton.

Kurt

Consultant

Kurt has a background in Adult Education, having worked as a teacher overseas in Japan, South Korea, China, and The United Arab Emirates. He also has a background working with people who are CALD, having worked with refugees and migrants in Australia for five years in employment preparation programs. Kurt has Cerebral Palsy and is also completely blind in one eye. He lives on the North Coast of NSW and is an avid lover of all things sport, film and music.

Kurt has two university degrees he barely uses and more metal in him than Robocop. Kurt is extremely passionate about improving the professional, personal, and social lives of people living with a disability, including himself.

Shanais

Consultant

Shanais was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition called Spinal Muscular Atrophy at 18 months old and has been a power wheelchair user since a young age. Thanks to her supportive family, Shanais has always believed that she can achieve whatever she sets her mind to, even if it takes a bit longer and requires out of the box thinking to reach the goal.Shanais moved from a regional town in New South Wales to Melbourne in 2017, and whilst it was exciting to achieve a goal of hers to live in the city, she realised just how difficult it can be to access funding and supports that are needed for someone with a disability to live the life that they desire. For the past two years, because of these challenges, Shanais has worked with an organisation that focuses on accessible housing, allowing Shanais to share her experience and knowledge with other people with disability that are wanting to live independently.Shanais has recently joined the GSA team as she wants to share her experiences around access and inclusion with more people in the hopes of helping to create a more inclusive world.


Shanais really resonated with the GSA Way – “We call you into conversations; we don’t call you out”. Shanais has always believed that inclusion and accessibility will happen when we all work together to have the difficult conversations and learn from each other to implement cultural change.Shanais has a passion for facilitating events and public speaking.”

Bridie

Consultant

Bridie is an actor, advocate, and consultant. She graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in 2018 with a degree in Acting. Since then, she has worked across stage and screen. Bridie became the first actor with disability to have a lead role on Australian television when she played Sabine in two seasons of The Heights, which aired on the ABC and BBC1. Bridie has since made appearances in the Stan original series Bump and the Stan original movie Christmas Ransom. She also appeared in Dive Club and Irreverent for Netflix and Hulu’s Joe Vs. Carole.

Bridie has cerebral palsy and uses her lived experience to advocate for people with disability within the arts and in the wider community and workplaces. Bridie is committed to having open conversations around accessibility and inclusion, mixed with a bit of empathy and humour.

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