Cathy Hunt (BA Hons M. Phil)
Cathy is one of the founding directors of Positive Solutions with over 20 years experience of working in the arts and creative industries both in Australia and the UK. Her previous professional experience was in the management of art centres, touring performing companies and festivals, including as Founding Director of the UK Liverpool Festival of Comedy and Artistic Programmer of Battersea Arts Centre, London.
In Australia, Cathy has worked extensively on cultural policy development including cultural plans for local governments, strategy reviews and planning for State government, cultural facility developments and organisational and business planning for arts organisations. This has included the preparation of a regional and district cultural facilities strategy for the Government of Hong Kong, with GHK Consulting (HK).
Cathy has a first degree in English and Theatre Studies and a Master of Philosophy (through the School of Architecture, University of Liverpool UK), on the design and development process of buildings for the performing arts.
David Fishel (MA, M.Litt)
Prior to co-founding Positive Solutions in 1990, David managed arts organisations ranging from small scale touring theatre companies to arts centre and theatre venues. David has led business and strategic planning processes for sports, cultural, educational and Indigenous organisations. He has delivered training in board development, management and leadership skills, arts-business partnerships and strategic planning.
David is author of The Book of the Board, now in its second edition, a handbook for board members of non-profit organisations, published by Federation Press in Australia, and as Boards That Work by the Directory of Social Change in the UK.
David is a graduate of Liverpool, Newcastle and Oxford Universities. He has been a board member of several cultural organisations in Australia and the UK and is currently Chair of the Creative Industries Precinct (CIP) Board at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT).
Pauline Doyle (B.Commerce)
Pauline was the Finance and Business Services Manager at Merrigong Theatre Company for a period of seven years. In this role Pauline managed all financial aspects at Merrigong as it grew from a business with an annual turnover of $1.5m to a turnover of $3.06m and from a season of 11 entrepreneurial shows to a season of 32 entrepreneurial shows.
Her responsibilities included preparation of the annual budget for the venue and hirer sectors of the company, producing monthly reports analysing the company’s performance against the budget, reporting on each completed artistic project against their individual budgets and preparing ongoing forecasts as the year progressed. She also undertook extensive financial modelling for the hirer sector of the business based on the different types of hirer events that came to the venue – commercial and community; comedy, musical, variety and drama; large and small scale; long and short seasons.
Pauline holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Wollongong and is Positive Solutions' Financial Analyst and Manager
Liz Bissell (B.Arts Hons)
Liz completed an Honours Degree in Writing and Literary Studies with the University of Queensland in 2006. She also has a Diploma of Editing and Publishing and a Certificate III in Business Administration. Her professional experience includes researching, writing, and editing for a number of trade and technical publications in education and the arts for clients such as the Queensland Artworkers Alliance, the Queensland Writers Centre and Education Queensland. Liz has also taught Australian Literature at various Queensland universities, and has recently submitted a PhD in Arts with the University of Queensland.
Liz is the Research and Project Coordinator at Positive Solutions.
Sara Bannon (B.Mus)
Sara completed her Bachelor of Music
(bassoon) at the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University, receiving an
Academic Award for Excellence, before pursuing her passion for arts administration. Sara was the Manager of Southern Cross
Soloists for three years and Operations Coordinator for a further two years.
During this time she coordinated the ensemble’s performance and touring season
and the Bangalow Music Festival (of which she is now a Life Member). Since its
inception in 2006, she has also coordinated and provided support for the
SunWater and Stanwell Winter Music School (SSWMS), an award-winning music camp
for secondary students in Rockhampton. She was the Event Coordinator for the Bonyi
International Youth Music Festival in Brisbane
in 2007, and worked with Queensland Arts Council for two years as Executive
Assistant and Administration Coordinator.
Sara provides administration and research
support in her role as Company Administrator of Positive Solutions and
BoardConnect and is the Artistic Coordinator for tutti world youth music beijing, an
international music camp being presented in China in July 2011.
For more information please contact us.