Our Leadership

Mr Brunsdon was appointed as a director in November 2009, appointed Deputy Chairperson in September 2011 and appointed Chairperson of the Company on 1 March 2012. He is Chairperson of the Nomination/Governance Committee, and is a member of the Risk Committee, the Audit Committee and the People & Culture Committee. Until June 2009, Mr Brunsdon was Managing Director and Head of Investment Banking of Merrill Lynch International (Australia) Limited. He is Chairman of MetLife Insurance Limited (since April 2011) and PayPal Australia Pty Limited (June 2021). He was a member of the listing committee of the Australian Securities Exchange between 1993 and 1997, a member of the Takeovers Panel between 2007 and 2016 and was a director of Sims Group Limited between 1999 and 2007. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, a Fellow of the Financial Services Institute of Australia and a Fellow of the Institute of Company Directors. Mr Brunsdon is also a director of the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists and Purves Environmental Custodians and, in 2019, was awarded the rank of Member of the Order of Australia (AM).

Alistair Field was appointed chief executive officer and managing director of Sims Limited in 2017, two years after joining the company as the managing director of Sims Metal Australia & New Zealand. As a managing director on the Sims Limited Board of Directors, Alistair is a member of two director-level committees: the Safety, Health, Environment, Community & Sustainability Committee and the Risk Committee.

A seasoned and knowledgeable executive who possesses 30 years of global experience in the mining, manufacturing and recycling industries, Alistair held a number of senior leadership positions, including Director of Patrick Terminals & Logistics Division for Asciano Limited and chief operating officer for Rio Tinto Alcan’s Bauxite and Alumina Division, prior to joining the company.

Alistair is a mechanical engineer who holds an MBA from Henley Business School, and he is also a member of the Australian Climate Leaders Coalition, Champions for Change Coalition, Manufacturing Australia, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

Originally from South Africa, Alistair first moved to Australia in 1999 before spending a number of years working internationally across three continents. He returned to Australia in 2020 and currently leads Sims Limited from the company’s global headquarters in Sydney.

Ms O’Toole was appointed as a director in November 2014. She is Chairperson of the Audit Committee, and is a member of the Risk Committee and the People & Culture Committee. Ms O’Toole has extensive executive experience across a number of sectors including over 20 years in the mining industry and, more recently, in transport and logistics which included managerial, operational and financial roles. She has been Chief Financial Officer in three ASX listed companies, MIM Holdings Limited, Queensland Cotton Holdings Limited, and Aurizon Holdings Limited. Ms O’Toole currently serves as Chair of Transurban Queensland, and as an independent director of Pacific National Rail Group, Great Southern Bank (formerly Credit Union Australia), Alumina Limited and Sydney Airport Corporation Limited. Ms O’Toole serves as the Chair of the Audit Committee or Audit and Risk Committee of each of Pacific National Rail Group, Great Southern Bank and Alumina Limited. Ms O’Toole holds a law degree and is a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Ms Nelson was appointed as a director in November 2014. She is Chairperson of the Risk Committee, and is a member of the Audit Committee and the People & Culture Committee. Ms Nelson is an experienced director, having served as a board director of ten corporations over more than 25 years. Through her company, PTI Resources, LLC, Ms Nelson consulted on a variety of environmental and energy policy matters from 2005 to 2019. A global operations executive, Ms Nelson was the former founding president of Midwest Generation EME, LLC, an Edison International company, and senior vice president of worldwide operations for Edison Mission Energy. Ms Nelson serves as a director of three publicly traded U.S. corporations: Cummins Inc, a global engine and equipment manufacturer, Ball Corporation, a global metals container manufacturing company, and Custom Truck One Source, a leading provider of specialised truck and heavy equipment solutions to the utility, telecommunications, rail and infrastructure markets in North America. Ms Nelson received a Bachelor of Science from Pepperdine University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Southern California.

Ms Hirschfeld was appointed as a director on 1 September 2023.  She is a chemical engineer with 20 years’ experience with BP in oil refining, logistics and exploration in Australia, the United Kingdom and Turkey. She also served as a Logistics Officer in the Australian Army Reserve.

Ms Hirschfeld has extensive experience on ASX, NYSE, private company and government boards.  She is currently the Chair of Powerlink Queensland, an independent non-executive director of Central Petroleum, and a board member of Spark Infrastructure RE Limited, its subsidiaries and related entities (which includes the Boards of SA Power Networks and Victoria Power Networks (Powercor and CityPower)).  Ms Hirschfeld previously served as a Board Member and President of UN Women National Committee Australia and non-executive director of Energy Queensland, ToxFree Solutions, InterOil Corporation, Broadspectrum, Snowy Hydro and Queensland Urban Utilities. Additionally, she was a member of the Senate of the University of Queensland for 10 years.

Ms Hirschfeld is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Academy of Engineering and Technology.  In 2019, she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to engineering, women, and business.

Mr Kato was appointed as a director in November 2018 and is Mitsui & Co, Ltd’s nominated non-independent director. He is a member of the Risk Committee and the Safety, Health, Environment, Community & Sustainability Committee. Mr Kato started his business career in the iron ore division of Mitsui, where he gained considerable experience relating to the mining industry, which became the backbone of his long career at Mitsui. After completing two assignments in New York and attending MIT Sloan School of Management, Mr. Kato held various positions in Mitsui’s oil and gas divisions. In June 2020, Mr Kato retired from his position as a Counsellor to Mitsui. He is a director of Obayashi Corporation, a leading global construction company.

Mr Bainbridge was appointed as a director on 1 September 2022. He is a member of the Risk Committee and the People & Culture Committee.  Mr Bainbridge has extensive senior executive experience, primarily in the oil and gas sector across exploration, development and production. He has worked in a variety of jurisdictions, including North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. His most recent executive role was as Executive General Manager LNG for Oil Search Limited. Prior to that, he served in senior executive roles at Pacific National and BP Group. Mr Bainbridge is currently a Non-Executive Director of Beach Energy Limited and Newcrest Mining Limited. He is also Chairman of the Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute, and Sino Gas and Energy. He was previously Chair of the Papua New Guinea Sustainable Development Program.

Mr Gorman was appointed as a director in June 2020. He is the Chair of the Safety, Health, Environment, Community & Sustainability Committee. Mr Gorman served as the Global Chief Executive Officer of Brambles Ltd for seven years, retiring in February 2017. Prior to Brambles, Mr Gorman held a number of senior executive positions over a 21 year career at Ford Motor Company, culminating in President and Chief Executive Officer of Ford Australia from 2004 to 2008. He is a director of Worley Ltd, a global provider of professional project and asset services, Orora Ltd, a packaging solutions specialist, and Alcoa Corporation, a global leader in the production of bauxite, alumina and aluminium products. Mr Gorman holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Tufts University, a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School and a Global Master of Arts in International Relations and Affairs from Tufts University. He serves as a trustee of the Maine Chapter of The Nature Conservancy.

Ms Binns was appointed as a director in October 2021. She is a member of the People & Culture Committee and the Safety, Health, Environment, Community & Sustainability (SHECS) Committee. Ms Binns has more than 35 years of experience in the global resources and financial services sectors, including 10 years in executive leadership roles at BHP in Asia and 15 years in financial services with Merrill Lynch Australia and Macquarie Equities. During her career at BHP, Ms Binns’ roles included Vice President Minerals Marketing, leadership positions in the metals and coal marketing business, and Vice President of Market Analysis and Economics. She was also co-Founder and Chair of Women in Mining and Resources Sg (WIMAR Sg). Prior to joining BHP, Ms Binns held a number of Board and senior management roles at Merrill Lynch Australia, including Managing Director and Head of Australian Research, Head of Global Mining, Metals and Steel, and Head of Australian Mining Research. Ms Binns is a Non-Executive Director of two other ASX-listed companies, Evolution Mining and Cooper Energy. She is also a Non-Executive Director for the NFP Carbon Market Institute (CMI), and a member of the Advisory Council for JP Morgan, Australia & New Zealand.

Alistair Field was appointed chief executive officer and managing director of Sims Limited in 2017, two years after joining the company as the managing director of Sims Metal Australia & New Zealand. As a managing director on the Sims Limited Board of Directors, Alistair is a member of two director-level committees: the Safety, Health, Environment, Community & Sustainability Committee and the Risk Committee.

A seasoned and knowledgeable executive who possesses 30 years of global experience in the mining, manufacturing and recycling industries, Alistair held a number of senior leadership positions, including Director of Patrick Terminals & Logistics Division for Asciano Limited and chief operating officer for Rio Tinto Alcan’s Bauxite and Alumina Division, prior to joining the company.

Alistair is a mechanical engineer who holds an MBA from Henley Business School, and he is also a member of the Australian Climate Leaders Coalition, Champions for Change Coalition, Manufacturing Australia, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

Originally from South Africa, Alistair first moved to Australia in 1999 before spending a number of years working internationally across three continents. He returned to Australia in 2020 and currently leads Sims Limited from the company’s global headquarters in Sydney.

Stephen Mikkelsen joined the Company in January 2018 as Group Chief Financial Officer. Stephen has over 30 years’ experience in finance and executive management roles. Prior to joining the Company, Stephen held senior leadership positions at AGL Energy, including Chief Financial Officer from 2006 to 2012, which was followed by Group General Manager Retail Energy and Executive General Manager Energy Markets. Previous to AGL, he was the Chief Financial Officer of Snowy Hydro from 2001 to 2006, and Chief Financial Officer of Contact Energy from 1999 to 2000. Stephen is a Chartered Accountant and a member of Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand.

Brad Baker joined the Company in January 2018 as Group Chief Human Resources Officer.

Brad has more than 25 years of HR management experience in plastics, metal processing and mining services industries and he brings extensive global operations HR management and board level experience with US and Australian publicly listed companies, most recently as Senior Vice President of Human Resources for Boart Longyear.

Elise Gautier was appointed Chief Risk and Compliance Officer in October 2018. She joined Sims Limited in February 2014 as the Group Vice President Internal Audit. Ms. Gautier has over 20 years of global work experience in both industry and consultative services. Prior to joining Sims Limited, she was a Principal with Deloitte & Touche LLP focusing on internal audit and risk management consulting services. She held various leadership positions while working in India to develop Deloitte’s offshore risk practice. She also served as a Controller at Strafor Facom, a French multi-national diversified manufacturing company and as an Internal Auditor at Steelcase Inc., an American multi-national office furniture manufacturing company. She is a graduate of the French Business School – Institut Européen d’études Commerciales Supérieures de Strasbourg (IECS).

Gretchen Johanns joined the Company in November 2018 as Group General Counsel and Company Secretary.  Gretchen has more than 20 years of experience as a senior legal advisor with U.S. publicly listed companies in the information technology, service and media industries.  Prior to joining the Company, Gretchen served as Deputy General Counsel and Corporate Secretary at Xerox Corporation.  Previously, she served in various legal roles at Time Warner Cable Inc.

Gretchen received her law degree from Cornell University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Grinnell College.

Ian Basset joined Sims Limited in February 2021 as the Global Head of Business Transformation, the company’s internal organisational initiative to align all business divisions globally by function. In this role, Ian leverages the insight gained as a management consultant to strategically implement the company’s new organisational business model, as well as assign talent to the newly created roles across the company, and integrate processes, IT, and innovation to establish more efficient ways of working.

A key member of the executive leadership team, Ian applies lessons learned and implements best practices from his more than 30-year career in leadership roles at large, complex business environments. Throughout that time, he worked as an information technology executive in the banking industry, an operations director, and an Exco member in a market leading print communications company, amassing a rare combination of skills. Ian’s experience spans several corporate functions, including human resources, information and communications technology/information systems, and organisational leadership.

Ingrid Sinclair was appointed Global President, Sims Lifecycle Services in February 2019. Prior to that, she was the Vice President of Recycling for Sims Recycling Solutions U.S. Ingrid has been in the electronics recycling industry for more than 20 years, and she spearheaded innovation in electronics recycling operations for 10 years.

Prior to joining Sims in 2007, Ingrid began her career as a Chemical Process Engineer at Glencore Canada (formerly Noranda) where she spent 10 years in various international commercial and operational roles. In addition to being trained as a Six Sigma Black Belt, Ingrid has a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Ottawa and a Master of Business Administration from Concordia University.

John Glyde was appointed Managing Director of Australia & New Zealand Metal in August 2017. John has been with Sims Metal for over 30 years, holding progressively senior leadership roles across the business in both Australia and the US. Prior to his taking his current role John was Chief Operating Officer for Australia & New Zealand Metals from 2015 to 2017, and previous to that position was the General Manager, Queensland Metals.

Rob Thompson joined Sims Limited as the Global Chief Commercial Officer for Sims Metal in 2022, with worldwide responsibility for both ferrous and non-ferrous buying and sales.

Prior to joining the company, Rob was the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Gerdau North America. He has more than 30 years of global metal recycling and steel industry experience. Previously, Rob served as the Vice President of Raw Materials, as well as leading other areas, such as Logistics, Sales and Operations Planning (SOP), and Rebar Fabrication. Earlier in his career, Rob was the Global Process Owner of Metallics for Gerdau Corporation in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and the Director of Ferrous Trading for Triple M Metals, Canada. He graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in Economics.

Steve Skurnac was appointed to the newly created position of Sims Limited Group Chief Development Officer effective 1 July, 2017. Prior to that, Steve was President, Sims Recycling Solutions, a business at the forefront of the nation’s electronics recycling industry. He has served on the board of numerous industry associations; participated as a stakeholder in all major cooperative e-scrap policy groups, including the EPA Common Sense initiative, the National Product Stewardship Initiative (NEPSI), and UN Basel Workgroup standards development; and spoken on the topic of e-scrap recycling at conferences worldwide.

Prior to joining the Sims Group in May 2007, Steve was the President of Noranda Recycling (now Xstrata Recycling) where he had spent 24 years in various international metals and recycling capacities. He graduated from the University of Toronto with an engineering degree in mining and metallurgy.