Chief Economists Forum 2024

Dr Angela Jackson is Lead Economist at Impact Economics and Policy and has authored a number of high profile reports on health, aged care, disability, housing and gender policy. Angela started her career as an economist at the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, working across tax, fiscal and social policy. As the then Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner's Deputy Chief of Staff, Angela was responsible for providing policy advice across fiscal policy and all areas of social policy, including National Health Reform.

Angela is also a part-time Commissioner at the Commonwealth Grants Commission, Chair of the Victorian National Heart Foundation Advisory Board, and National Chair of the Women in Economics Network. She was recently appointed to the interim Economic Inclusion Committee that is advising the Commonwealth Government on the adequacy of income support payments and measures to enhance economic inclusion.

Angela holds a Masters in International Health Policy (Health Economics) with Distinction from the London School of Economics and Political Science, a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) from the University of Melbourne and a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Tasmania. In 2021, Angela was awarded her PhD on the Economics of Disability in Australia from Monash University.

Angela has published articles in peer reviewed journals and major Australian newspapers, and regularly appears in the national media providing economic commentary.

Dr Don Stammer has had a distinguished career as one of Australia's pre-eminent economists and investment strategists. From his formative years in academia and at the Reserve Bank of Australia, he went on to be the Chief Economist at Deutsche Bank Australia for 21 years. He has chaired 9 ASX boards, 2 non-for-profit boards and was a foundation member and, later, Chairman of the board of the Australia-Korea Foundation.

Beyond his corporate career, Don is a well-respected journalist and commentator. From 1987 to 2006, Don contributed a fortnightly column on the economy and investments to the Business Review Weekly and from 2009 to 2022 a fortnightly column on investments for The Australian. Since 1981, Don has compiled an annual review of the X-Factor in investment markets, now published in Firstlinks. Until 2001, he made a weekly broadcast on the Australian economy and share market for the BBC World Service, and contributed a quarterly column to the Japanese financial newspaper, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun.

Don's vast experience has made him a sort-after speaker and panellist - he has given over 9,000 presentations on the economy and investment outlook and for 31 years he addressed ASFA on the federal government's budget; he was also a founder panellist and later chairman of the Chief Economist Forum.

Over the years, Don has emphasised the magic of compounding, the value of patience, and the need to for an optimistic lens particularly when the prevailing market view is too gloomy.

At the Chief Economist Forum in Sydney on 20 February and Melbourne on 22 February, Don will be sharing his unique perspectives and key lessons from his 60 years of investment experience.

Chris Paton BCom (Distinction), LLB (Hons),

Chris Paton is Senior Vice President, Chief Investment Officer at La Trobe Financial.  He oversees the Group's asset management operations, including the La Trobe Australian Credit Fund.

Chris has almost 15 years' experience in banking, asset management and financial services and has held a number of senior roles since joining the business in 2017.

Prior to joining La Trobe Financial, Chris worked in Law specialising in the banking and finance sector.

Chris holds both Bachelors in Commerce (Distinction) and Law (Hons) and resides in Melbourne.

Warren's focus is on the Australian economy, macroeconomic policy and global markets. He is regarded as one of Australia's top economic analysts and is a regular in Australian and international media.

Warren was awarded the Australian Financial Review's Top Economic Forecaster 2024.

He advises money managers, business and political leaders via his consultancy firm, EQ Economics.

Warren was appointed Judo Bank's Economic Advisor in 2021.

Warren's career started in banking and financial markets where he held various roles as an economist and financial market strategist. He has worked for the NSW Treasury Corporation, Westpac Banking Corporation, Credit Suisse and the ANZ bank where he held the position of Chief Economist from 2009-2016.

Warren was appointed a Principal Advisor to The Australian Government Treasury in 2016, supporting various Treasury functions including the Macroeconomic Group and the Foreign Investment Review Board.

Warren was an Industry Professor at UTS Business School from 2018-22020 supporting the University in its teaching, research and public engagement activities.

In 2022 Warren was awarded an honorary doctorate from the UTS Business School in recognition of his contribution to Australian economics and his work on the economic impacts of the pandemic.

With a strong focus on forecasting and prediction Warren values open-mindedness, critical thinking, and plain speaking. Theoretical foundations, historical precedent and statistical evidence are at the centre of Warren's approach to economic problem solving.

Warren lives in Sydney with his wife and two daughters.

Nicki Hutley is a highly experienced economist, with broad-based expertise in both macroeconomics and microeconomic policy, gained over more than three decades in financial and investment markets and in economic consulting.

After many years in the corporate world, including most recently as a partner with Deloitte Access Economics, Nicki is now an independent economist, advising governments, business and not-for-profits on a wide range of policy issues, but with a focus on social and environmental impact. She is also a Councillor on the Climate Council.

Nicki is passionate about gender equity issues and is an advisory board member for the Financy Women's Index, which reports on economic progress indicators for women, and the Financy Impacter™, which helps companies understand their impact and progress.

Other consulting roles include Chief Economic Adviser to the Customer-owned banking Association and a member of the JANA Investments Sustainability Advisory Committee.

Nicki holds an Honours degree in Economics. In 2021, she was elected President of the NSW Branch of the Economics Society of Australia. She is also a Committee member of the Australian Business Economists.

Nicki is a frequent commentator in the media and is a regular guest on The Drum and The Project.

Brigette Leckie has worked in financial markets since the early 1990s.

Previous roles have included Chief Strategist, Chief Economist and Head of Research at Australian, New Zealand and multinational firms including BNY Mellon, Alliance Bernstein, Perpetual and BNP. She has also worked in New Zealand Treasury and served on numerous public and private sector committees.

Brian joined Australian Retirement Trust in June 2015 as Chief Economist.  Prior to joining, Brian worked in a series of economics, asset allocation, and communications roles with a range of firms, including Rothschild, JP Morgan, Citigroup, MLC, and the Reserve Bank of Australia, in a career spanning more than 30 years.

Brian has an honours degree in economics from the University of Queensland, where he also taught macroeconomics, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst.

In addition to his investment day job, he presents on economic and investment matters to a wide range of audiences across Australia.