Meet the Team at
Animal Industries Resource Centre

Mark Hardwick General Manager | CCG Consultant

Mark has spent the last 15 years in the veterinary industry as a trainer and consultant. A founding Director of AIRC/CCG, his passion is to work with practice owners to build business. Mark specialises in veterinary practice auditing and coaching, in particular, operational efficiencies, strategic planning and financial management. Mark's no-nonsense approach to creating practice profitability sees him in demand as a coach and mentor. Mark is also the General Manager of AIRC/CCG.

Sue Crampton Business Manager | Lead CCG Consultant

Sue Crampton is acknowledged as a leading speaker, trainer and consultant across Australasia in the areas of practice and organisational development, strategic planning, communication excellence, staff development and management. Sue has a Bachelor of Business, majoring in Human Resources and Marketing, as well as her Diploma in Company Directorship (GAICD) and a Masters in Neuro Linguistic Programming. Sue invests time working as the Director of Education, Learning, Development and Consulting with Provet / Crampton Consulting Group and Animal Industries Resource Centre, while maintaining a weekend role as a veterinary nurse at a quality mixed practice in Brisbane.

Sue has a practical hands-on approach and brings with her a wealth of both corporate and small business skills, having been the founder of the much respected AIRC and CCG. Sue commenced her career in the UK as a veterinary nurse in 1982 and has gained invaluable global veterinary knowledge having also worked in the USA, Hong Kong and frequently visits countries such as NZ, UAE and Taiwan to lecture, coach, train educate and consult.

Tania Small International Operations Manager | Consultant

Tania, our International Operations Manager, spent the past three years based in Hong Kong overseeing the company’s Asian portfolio. Continuing in this role, Tania’s responsibilities include project management, business development, client relations and international student co-ordination. In addition, Tania is also the coordinator for the Certificate IV in Frontline Management course provided by AIRC.

Tania has worked for AIRC/CCG for the last ten years and was employed as a qualified veterinary nurse in various sectors of the animal care industry for the eight years prior. Being passionate about not only the animal care industry, but also the people working in it, Tania also holds a Bachelor of Business majoring in human resources and organisational psychology. She is also an accredited DISC consultant and qualified workplace trainer and assessor.

Mik O’Leary Technical Online Development

Mik graduated from University of Queensland in 1980 and spent 25 years in small animal veterinary practice. Most of this was spent at a major small animal hospital in Hobart though he has practiced in most states of Australia as well as a year working in the UK. He has a keen interest in surgery and particularly enjoys the challenges of orthopaedics.

After many years in full-time practice and part-time mentor to veterinary nurses, Mik crossed over to work as a full-time veterinary nurse trainer and part-time veterinarian. Mik now designs and delivers all AIRC/CCG online programs including ProSkills, website management and educational webinars and videos. Mik loves to travel at any opportunity and is an avid photographer.

Tracy Woodland RTO Operations and Training Supervisor

Tracy has been working for the AIRC for over 10 years, having come from a strong training and education background in the UK. As the  RTO Operations and Training Supervisor, Tracy manages a team of administration coordinators, student support coordinators, external assessors and contractors to deliver exceptional veterinary nursing and management qualifications across Australasia. Tracy also oversees maintainence of the RTO’s compliance requirements to a high and practical level across the business and co-ordinates with internal and external stakeholders.

In her private life Tracy has a poodle x bichon Oscar who accompanies her to work on a Tuesday and Thursday and a British Shorthair called Poppy.

Esther Boon Student Support Team Leader

Esther joined the AIRC team in March 2012, after working as a Veterinary Nurse for 10 years. Esther spent 9 years working in Brisbane as a Veterinary Nurse, but started out her nursing career in a Bird and Cat Hospital in Oregon, USA. Esther is a past student of the AIRC, graduating with her Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing in 2007. Esther has since completed her Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. Esther would love to see all Veterinary Nurses meeting their absolute full potential and aims to instil a passion for developing their nursing skills and upholding the highest of standards of care.

Esther is the resident 'bird lady' and owns two Alexandrine Parrots - Chai and Leo. She enjoys baking, motorsport, painting and dancing.

Maree Coldrey Clinical Coach | Workplace Assessor and Trainer, VIC & TAS

Maree has a wealth of practical knowledge derived during her 20 years of veterinary nursing, having held the positions of Head Nurse and Practice Manager for many of her years. She gets great satisfaction from providing quality patient care and excellent customer service, and continues to work weekends at a busy 24 hour clinic.

Outside of work Maree enjoys bushwalking, reading and spending time with her family which includes a very cheeky Cavalier King Charles, and a dwarf lop eared bunny who just hopped into her family’s yard one day.

Jasmine Feeney Personal Training Consultant, ACT and Sth. NSW

Jasmine began working as a Junior Veterinary Nurse in a mixed practice on the mid north coast of NSW which resulted in a passion for veterinary nursing. In January 2000 she moved to Sydney to begin studying for her Certificate in veterinary nursing and worked in a cat only practice for 1 year. She then had the opportunity to join the referral medicine team at the Sydney University Teaching Hospital at the end of 2000, completing her Certificate IV in veterinary nursing in 2002 and an advanced certificate IV in critical care and emergency nursing in 2003. Jasmine was the head of nursing at Sydney University Teaching Hospital for 5 years and has recently moved to Canberra where she is the nursing manager in a small animal practice.

Jasmine is a personal training consultant for the Animal Industries Resource Centre for students in the ACT and Southern NSW areas. She obtained accreditation through the VNCA in January 2006, a Diploma in Critical Care and Emergency Nursing in 2007 and has a special interest in intensive care nursing and oncology.

Carole Harvey-Stevenson Technical Advisor and Special Projects

Carole has worked with the AIRC since 2001 as the resident technical advisor. Carole’s role involves developing on-line course materials, presenting workshops, webinars and in-practice training. Carole also lectures on a variety of in-depth topics throughout Australia and overseas. Carole has her UK nursing qualification as well as an Australian Diploma in Emergency and Critical Care. Her greatest achievement was obtaining the Veterinary Technician Specialist qualification in Emergency and Critical Care from the United States (the first person in Australia).

Carole still remains hands-on in the industry working at the Brisbane Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Centre. Any spare time is taken up by her two cats; Kitt-the-Kat and Filbert the Hoon!

Jo Hatcher Personal Training Consultant, SA & TAS

Jo started her career as a veterinary nurse in 1999, qualifying as a Certificate IV Veterinary Nurse in 2002. She then went on to study the Diploma of Veterinary Nursing Management and the Veterinary Technician Certificate. She worked as the Nursing Manager of a large four clinic practice in the northern suburbs of Adelaide before stepping out of the management role and back into general nursing as a senior nurse in a practice closer to home. Jo gained accreditation in 2008 and has a special interest in medical nursing, emergency and critical care and is very passionate about helping train veterinary nurses to realize their true potential and to be the best that they can be!

She has two very demanding domestic cats at home and a beautiful Labrador X called Simba. Jo is an executive committee member of The Veterinary Nurses Council of Australia and is a personal training consultant for Animal Industries Resource Centre for students in South Australia.

Karen Holman Student Support Coordinator

Karen started at the AIRC in February 2013 and has 10 years experience as a veterinary nurse in general practice. She is a Certificate IV Veterinary Nurse and is currently studying Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. Her main interests are small animal medicine and surgical nursing.

In her spare time, Karen is currently is renovating her house with her husband. She also enjoys movies, rock climbing, hiking and backpacking. Here favourite countries visited so far are Cuba & Mexico. Recently she returned from the USA, in the future she would love to travel to Africa and South America. Karen also owns Malachi a 10 year old Border Collie.

Jodi Macdonald Student Support Coordinator

Jodi is a Student Support Coordinator with the AIRC. She is a Certificate IV qualified Veterinary Nurse who has been nursing since 1999. Jodi also has her qualifications in Training and Assessing and is an AVN (Accredited Veterinary Nurse) through the VNCA. She started her nursing career in a small animal clinic on Brisbane’s south-side then crossed the river to spend the next 9 years in a small animal clinic that also specialised in birds and exotics. Here she worked her way up to head nurse before moving to country NSW and working in a mixed animal practice for 3 years.

She lives with her husband, two boys, and fur kids – one particularly needy cat and another very aloof as well as a very well -behaved Border Collie and one very ‘bouncy’ Labrador! Jodi’s passions are patient advocacy, animal behaviour and teaching nurses to be the best they can be!

Audrey Martin Enrolments Officer

Audrey is the AIRC's Enrolment Officer. Audrey has a strong background in education, having worked in administration in schools and a university with a focus on traineeships and compliance. Audrey holds a Cert IV in Business Administration and is currently studying a Bachelor of Business. She is a keen knitter and has two Great Danes, Conan and Pepper.

Andrew Thompson Enrolments Officer

Andrew joined the AIRC team in February 2015 after spending the 13 years prior as a Veterinary Nurse in a number of clinics in Brisbane. He has worked both in General Practice and an Emergency and Critical Care Hospital and Bird and Exotics Specialist with a stint in a Pet Crematorium as well. He spent a number of years on both the QLD and National VNCA committees with 2 years spent as VNCA QLD President. He holds a Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing, Diploma in Counselling and is currently completing a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment.

Andrew shares his life with his partner, 2 cats Marshall and Sirius, Chihuahua Deja, Bearded Dragon Charlie and White Ringneck Dove Turtle. He has an interest in mental health and volunteers as a telephone counsellor outside of work hours and is currently exploring Yoga and Mindfulness.

Helen Power Personal Training Consultant, NSW, NT & WA

Helen has been involved in veterinary nursing since 1982 and gained her first qualification in 1984. She has been continually employed in small animal practice and currently works in a small animal practice with owner/vet/husband on the mid north coast of NSW. Helen has worked for Crampton Consulting Group/ AIRC since 2001. Her main roles are as a Workplace Trainer & Assessor with responsibility for approximately 40 Veterinary Nurse students and presenter for CCG practice training. Helen is the current chair of NSW Industry Advisory Committee and chair of National Industry Advisory Group for Veterinary Nursing.

Great interests include red wine and good food. She has a gorgeous Boxer dog and enjoys travelling around Australia by small plane with her husband.

Alice Rae Workplace Assessor and Trainer, WA

Alice is a NZ- trained Veterinary Nurse who has worked as a specialist orthopaedic surgical nurse, specialist imaging nurse and general practice nurse. Alice also spent a large part of 2011 in China working as a Veterinary Nurse at the Moon Bear Rescue Centre.

Throughout her time in her veterinary nursing career she has been involved with training and guiding veterinary nurse students on the job as well as managing volunteers nurses in China. Prior to her career in Veterinary Nursing she was a dairy farmer for many years in NZ and was highly involved with education, training and promoting the dairy industry, as well as the hands on daily running of the dairy farm and business management. Currently Alice works as a Business Account Manager for Provet WA as well as doing work place assessments for Animal Industries Resource Centre students when needed throughout WA. Alice is very passionate about the Veterinary Industry, Animal Welfare and the continuing education of Veterinary Nurses.

Jane Roberts Student Support Coordinator

Jane has worked for the AIRC for 8 years as a work place trainer, assessor and student coordinator. Jane hopes to pass on her knowledge and experience to up and coming nurses whilst following another path in her veterinary nursing career. Jane qualified as a veterinary nurse in the UK and came to Australia in September 1999 to further her career. Since arriving in Australia she has completed her Diploma in Surgical Nursing and has extensive experience in Emergency and Critical Care nursing.

Jane also keeps her finger on the pulse and still has shifts in one of Brisbane's busy Emergency and Critical Care Clinics. Needless to say working in clinic Jane has acquired an extensive family as all veterinary nurses have a tendency to do! Pimple, Squamous and Mole are stray cat's rescued from work and she also has 4 crazy chickens. Jane likes to spend time with her husband and 2 gorgeous little boys enjoying the outdoors and experiencing all that life has to offer.

Rocky Sham Personal Training Consultant, Hong Kong

Rocky is a Personal Training Consultant at the AIRC and Business Account Manager for Provet. He is based in Hong Kong and looks after the Asian region for AIRC/CCG.

Being a veterinary nurse himself (who still actively nurses in practice), Rocky brings to his role a wealth of experience and a comprehensive understanding of the needs of veterinary practice. Prior to becoming a veterinary nurse over ten years ago, Rocky also worked in the pet shop and pet merchandise field. Rocky has a very good knowledge of sales and distribution and has exceptional experience in customer care.

Rocky is a Certificate IV qualified Veterinary Nurse, has his Certificate IV in Training and Assessment and is a UK Registered Veterinary Nurse. He has 3 dogs (a Corgi ,Dachshund and Pomeranian) and 3 cats. In his spare time he can generally be found enjoying outdoor activities with his dogs and is a keen watersport enthusiast.

Jodie Stuart Student Support Team Leader

Jodie joined the AIRC team in 2011 as a Regional Training Coordinator after ten years experience in the companion animal industry. She has a background in pet store management. Jodie holds a Certificate IV in Companion Animal Services in which she achieved through the AIRC in 2010 and later went on to get her Certificate IV in Training and assessment. Jodie's passion is with pocket pets and reptiles such as rats, guinea pigs, ferrets, snakes and lizards.

Jodie has a white cat called Shinji- a very spoilt indoor boy whose name means new beginning. She also has 2 chickens called Lady McNugget and Princess Maryland who happily reside in "Cluckingham Palace". In her spare time Jodie has a keen interest in studying wildlife, stand up paddle boarding and bush walking.

Barbara Tasker Student Support Coordinator

Barbara has been working in the industry since 1992, starting her career as a kennel hand before becoming a veterinary nurse. Barbara has undertaken conservation research in Borneo, rehabilitated baby and adult seals in Wales and guest lectured at various colleges. Since migrating to Australia, Barbara has also spent time working in small animal hospitals in far north Queensland, the Gold Coast and Brisbane.

Barbara completed her study in veterinary nursing with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in England before completing a Higher National Diploma in Veterinary Nursing and Business Management and a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science Behavior and Welfare. Barbara also holds her Certificate IV in Training and Assessing. Barbara has been working for BVECCS Emergency Hospital since 2010 and has a special interest in nutrition, nurse training & mentoring.

Cherry Lui Personal Training Consultant, Hong Kong

Cherry has had more than 10 years experience as a veterinary nurse, hospital ward supervisor and practice manager before she joined AIRC in 2012. She is currently undertaking her Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing and still works in-practice 1-2 days per week.

In her spare time, she enjoys looking after her little baby girl – Charlotte, who was born 1 day before Cherry’s birthday. Cherry also loves to play with her 4 cats – Kinder, Milka, Pocky and Tiger.

Lee Baker Workplace Assessor, VIC

Lee Baker has been working in the veterinary industry for over 18 years. Lee has a Diploma in Veterinary Nursing, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment and is currently studying her Diploma of Management. For 10 years Lee was Nursing Manager for a group of 8 Veterinary Practices. Lee has also been a trainer for Animal Industries Resource Centre for over 10 years and last year began assessing nursing students. Lee’s passions lie in team efficiencies and enthusiasm, customer service training, team consulting, general nurse education and quality pet care. Accredited in Team Management Systems (TMS), Lee enjoys being able to profile teams by establishing individual work preferences. This allows teams to work in a more harmonious environment, with a higher passion and drive for their work.

Nichola Spooner Student Support Coordinator

Nic graduated from the University of Queensland in 2001 and spent nine years working as a veterinarian in mixed, small animal and emergency/specialist practices. This included a small animal internship at Queensland Veterinary Specialists and Pet Emergency and the attainment of her Membership in Small Animal Emergency Medicine and Critical Care. Having grown up on a cattle property in Central Queensland, Nic now lives on acreage on the beautiful Capricorn Coast with her husband, three children and a large assortment of animals. Nic has mentored veterinary nurses for many years and now enjoys training and assessing and is passionate about conservation education.