Kerryn Dillon

Griffith University MBA graduate Kerryn Dillon has dedicated her career to putting people first. As a thought leader in the aged care industry, Kerryn has used the skills she acquired during her studies for the betterment of others, rolling out initiatives that put patient care, staff wellbeing and sustainability front and centre.

Currently Director of Health and Wellbeing at PwC Australia, Kerryn was brought on specifically to lead the national Aged Care account, as an area that has been identified as needing extra support to drive change during a period of disruption for the sector. In her role, she influences the direction of the industry through leadership of proposal development and project management. Her work in strategic planning and support for the future of the aged care sector will help shape the industry.

“I'm really passionate about health and aged care, I've been in health care a very long time,” Kerryn says. “And I think creating a baseline of healthy living for people, regardless of what age or stage they're at, will enable them to think outside the box more, and be able to contribute to broader societal issues that really need our collective attention. I love that I am having an impact on a sector that needs it.”

Even though she’s only been in her current role for six months, Kerryn has already had the opportunity to have an impact contributing to thought leadership on how the aged care sector can progress past the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and the effects of COVID-19. Moreover, her team has partnered with the Federal Department of Health to deliver a Business Advisory Service and Workforce Advisory Service. Funded by the Department of Health, these services provide support to aged care providers nationally to help them improve their operation in terms of quality of care and wellbeing of their workforce.

She further demonstrated her innovation, integrity and leadership qualities while at TLC Healthcare as their Chief People and Culture Officer. Drawing upon skills she learnt in her MBA, Kerryn was able to transform best practice within the organisation build an exceptional workplace culture that ultimately lead to increased revenue, job satisfaction, significant reduction in absenteeism   and most importantly  patient care.

Under Kerryn’s leadership, TLC Healthcare was named an Australian Business Award Employer of Choice for five consecutive years and earned Global Healthy Workplaces accreditation, while also maintaining industry leading metrics.

Kerryn's MBA skills have played a huge role in her transforming her workplace and the sector for the better. An example of this can be seen in her use of co-design principles to really “bring people along for the ride” when creating and implementing change and looking at continuous improvement and innovative opportunities.

“I chose to do an MBA because I wanted to broaden out my skill set,” she explains. “I had had great exposure in legal having been a legal practitioner in the early years of my career, human resources and operations, but I wanted to get a greater understanding of finance and marketing and strategy - important components of being a well-rounded executive.”

One of her major innovations at TLC Healthcare saw her adapt this principle to design TLC On Call, an initiative to reduce the number of expensive agency staff needed to fill shifts while increasing job satisfaction and quality of care. Coupled with an overhaul of rostering to ensure a person-first care model, these measures ensured staff were rostered on to the same residents and units in regular predictable patterns, allowing staff to form relationships with those in their care and more clearly understand their needs, preferences and any long-term care requirements. This had the immediate impact of improving the quality of care, building trust between staff, residents and families, and reducing the rate of absenteeism. Under her direction, the workplace reduced their agency spend to zero while having the additional impact of attracting new residents and increasing profits, work satisfaction and care outcomes. The initiative also materially contributed to positive word of mouth referrals for recruitment of new staff as well as exceptional accreditation and compliance outcomes for the organisation.

“It was a huge benefit for attracting new residents and their families considering TLC for their care, because they knew that they would have the same staff caring for them,” she explains.

“Our residents and their families were able to build a trusting and respectful relationship with our staff. So we were leading in terms of financial outcomes, but aged care is more than the financial outcomes. You have you have an influence on the outcomes of care, reputation, compliance and staff satisfaction, too.”

Kerryn says Griffith’s focus on sustainability and responsible leadership in business has also played a part in the way she goes about her work. While at TLC Healthcare she helped create a framework for diversity and inclusion and lead discussions about the importance of Environmental Social Governance initiatives to improve the sustainability and environmental footprint of the workplace. The program included various initiatives from the installation of solar panels, to looking at food waste reduction, local sourcing and planting vegetable gardens for residents. She has also joined an internal working group at PwC examining how PwC can support ESG initiatives across the health sector for the future.

“I'm really committed to ESG and sustainability particularly in healthcare as an essential service, and I think that's a really important component of driving responsible leadership in the sector into the future,” she says.

“It’s time to look beyond compliance to best practice."

Kerryn acknowledges that the health and aged care sector can be unpredictable but has repeatedly shown that she can pivot with agility if needed to ensure her staff feel supported and satisfied. She understands that the experience of healthcare professionals has a direct influence on the quality of care received by patients and residents. Her voice as a thought leader in the industry has changed the way people view health and aged care and will continue to impact the sector for years to come. Her people-first attitude is a display of true leadership and integrity.

Her advice to students wanting to follow in her footsteps is simple.

“The healthcare sector needs all the all the talent that it can get, so anybody who is passionate about changing the world through health, do it because you can have an impact on the experience of others, be it staff, patient, resident or the broader community, every single day. It will challenge you and it will push your boundaries. But the personal satisfaction and rewards are worth it.”