OPV executive leadership team

Cressida Wall, Chief Executive Officer

Appointed the Office of Projects Victoria CEO in November 2020, Cressida has a deep understanding of infrastructure and property development from working across both public and private sector roles for two decades.

In previous roles as a senior adviser to premiers, government ministers and as a chief of staff, Cressida specialised in infrastructure policy, strategy and major projects.

To drive innovation and efficient project development, Cressida advocates for strong collaboration between the private and public sectors.

A commercial litigator by trade, Cressida has worked at Minter Ellison and Corrs, Chambers Westgarth and was a Director on the Board of State Trustees Victoria and an OPV Advisory Board Member.

She established a private equity company and was the CEO of its property division. Immediately prior to joining OPV, Cressida was the Victorian Executive Director of the Property Council of Australia.

Robert Abboud, Executive Director of Project Advisory

Robert manages OPV’s advisory functions assisting major infrastructure projects.

A trained engineer, Robert has held project management, transport planning, engineering and technical advisory roles across Victorian projects during his 25-year career. His project experience includes asset management, professional support services, capital works programs, stakeholder engagement and leadership roles.

Before joining OPV in 2017, Robert was Deputy Secretary of Asset and Network Development for the Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources, leading the direction of asset management strategy for the transport network whilst developing and driving organisational capability and integrated transport outcomes.

He has held executive roles at Public Transport Victoria, VicRoads, the Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure, local government and the Melbourne Port Lessor Pty Ltd.

Luke Belfield, Victorian Chief Engineer

Appointed as the Victorian Chief Engineer in December 2021, Luke champions engineering and project delivery excellence.

He works collaboratively with industry, academic experts, and delivery agencies on technical, design and engineering aspects of government service and project delivery.

Luke leads OPV’s Engineering and Innovation team, responsible for advancing engineering in Victoria and leading technical infrastructure innovation.

An experienced infrastructure professional, Luke has over 15 years of experience in policy, technology, business strategy and project management. Luke’s expertise is drawn from diverse roles at the Department of Premier and Cabinet, as a management consultant for PwC and EY, as a project manager for a metropolitan-based water utility and as an engineer for a large global engineering consultancy in the oil and gas and petrochemical industry.

Michelle Campbell, Executive Director of Capability and Systems

Michelle is a project expert with over 25 years of experience building capability in complex organisations, including defence, finance, health, and infrastructure.

As the Executive Director of Project System, Michelle focuses on project system-wide improvements, championing the state-wide, whole-of-government approach to understanding the relevant issues and facilitating the sharing of best practice advice between infrastructure delivery agencies.

Previously Michelle worked with KPMG in their Defence and National Security portfolio. As a veteran of Afghanistan, Michelle is an advocate of veteran welfare and connection.

Michelle is a member of several boards, including the Returned and Services League – Victoria State Executive. Michelle is an active Reservist and serves as the Colonel Commandant of the Royal Australian Army Ordnance Corps – Victoria.

Fiona Macrae, Executive Director of Strategy and Productivity

Fiona manages the development and implementation of productivity reforms across Victoria’s public infrastructure delivery.

Before being appointed the Executive Director, Strategy and Productivity in August 2022, Fiona worked with stakeholders at the highest level across government, international development organisations and corporate roles.

Fiona led the media and corporate affairs teams at Westpac and NAB and was the policy and media adviser for multiple Ministers and Premiers in the Victorian government since 2006.

As a strategic adviser to the Government of Timor-Leste, Fiona resolved boundary conflicts on a United Nations maritime boundary agreement between Timor-Leste and Australia.

Tom Tolfree, Executive Director of Data and Analytics

Tom’s team provides oversight of the performance of the Victorian Government’s portfolio of major projects.

He has a sharp focus on data integrity, developing meaningful analytical products and ensuring cross-government relationships are managed effectively.

Before joining OPV in January 2020, Tom was the Chief Economist and a Senior Civil Servant in Britain’s Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) in the British Treasury and Cabinet Office.

Tom headed the IPA’s analyst team that oversaw the Government’s Major Projects Portfolio, comprising the largest and most complex projects being delivered, with a combined whole-life cost value of approximately £450 billion. His team provided highly detailed reporting on the performance of the UK’s major projects in terms of their costs, benefits, timeframe, critical milestones and key delivery risks.

Tom joined the British Government Economic Service after working as an economist in the private sector with DTZ Economic Consulting, where he was an Associate Director.

He is a Policy Fellow of Cambridge University, a Fellow of the Westminster Abbey Institute and holds a first-class degree in Business Economics.