Danielle Wood

Danielle Wood

Danielle Wood commenced a 5-year term as Chair of the Productivity Commission on 13 November 2023.

Prior to joining the Commission, she was CEO of the Grattan Institute and Head of its Budgets and Government Program. During her time at Grattan, Danielle also held roles as member of the Australian Government’s Women’s Economic Equality Taskforce, the Parliamentary Budget Office Expert Advisory Committee, the Jobs and Skills Australia Consultative Forum and the Australia and New Zealand School of Government Research Committee.

Danielle previously worked in senior roles at the ACCC and at NERA Economic Consulting. She started her career as a graduate at the Productivity Commission.

Danielle holds an Honours degree in Economics from the University of Adelaide and two Masters degrees, one in Economics and one in Competition Law, from the University of Melbourne.

Danielle is an Honorary Fellow and former President of the Economic Society of Australia and a Research Fellow of the Women’s Leadership Institute. She was the co-founder and first Chair of the Women in Economics Network.

She is currently an ex-officio member of the Australian Government’s Competition Review Expert Advisory Panel.

11:15 am - 12:15 pm

Arresting our Skills and Productivity Decline

In the midst of a housing crisis gripping the nation, efficient delivery of much needed accommodation is being hamstrung by a skills shortage. Hear from Brett Schimming, CEO of BuildSkills Australia, he shares insights and data on the reality of the situation of the skills shortage, and Buildskills’ outlook on when we are likely to see improvement for the industry. Brett will be joined by industry leaders, Danielle Wood, Cameron Leggatt and Vanessa Riley who will provide their perspective on the impact of the current challenges on the residential property market and the critical steps that must be taken now to safeguard the construction industry’s ability to deliver.