Maria Smith

Qualifications / Professional Associations:

• Diploma in Law

• Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice

• Admitted Solicitor (Law Society of New South Wales)

Summary Professional Experience:

Maria is driven by a deep commitment to making a meaningful, lasting contribution to human services delivery. She believes that strong compliance and operational frameworks should always serve a clear purpose: creating practical, positive outcomes that protect the dignity and rights of the people at the centre of the system. For Maria, back-of-house operations should run seamlessly, managing regulatory complexity so frontline clinicians can focus their time and energy on specialised clinical work.

Maria brings extensive experience to the leadership team, with a long career in the public sector spanning disability services, human services, corrective services, and healthcare. Later in her professional journey, she returned to study, completing legal qualifications and gaining admission to practise as a solicitor. Since then, she has combined her legal expertise with deep sector knowledge, working across employment law, change management, and systemic oversight investigations. Her commitment to governance and innovation is further reflected in her multi-year tenure on the board of an NDIS-funded non-government organisation, where she championed progressive models of care.

Known for her strong attention to detail and analytical approach, Maria specialises in quality assurance, regulatory compliance, and continuous improvement. She leads teams with a focus on collaboration, innovation, and the development of diverse, multidisciplinary capability. Maria believes teams perform at their best when they reflect the communities they serve, and when each person’s unique perspective is recognised as a strength in achieving a shared, meaningful goal.