Meet Catherine Harris: The Leadership Mind Behind Project Roar
Chris Oliveira • March 5, 2026
Meet Catherine Harris: The Leadership Mind Behind Project Roar
At Talent Quarter, we really do believe strong workforce outcomes are driven by strong leadership. As part of our commitment to delivering meaningful value beyond recruitment, we’re proud to partner with Catherine Harris, Founder of Project Roar, to deliver a quarterly Leadership Masterclass Series focused on strengthening leadership capability across the sectors we support. Exciting!
This initiative reinforces an important objective for us, which is to deepen our client relationships through high-impact learning opportunities, helping organisations build stronger leadership capability across the sectors we support.
With over 20 years’ experience in career and leadership development, Catherine brings practical, outcome-focused insights that help organisations build high-performing, engaged teams. Ahead of the upcoming series, we sat down with Catherine to learn more about her background, her approach to leadership, and what participants can expect.
Q&A with Catherine Harris
For those who may not know you, can you tell us a little about your background and what led you to found Project Roar?
I’ve spent my entire career at the intersection of talent and leadership. I built my early career in recruitment before moving into senior internal talent roles, including heading up the Talent Acquisition function at Singtel Optus.
I led a leadership team responsible for all national hiring, from call centre through to C-suite, and what that experience really gave me was a front-row seat to what great leadership looks like and, just as importantly, what happens when it’s missing. You see the impact every day - in who stays, who leaves, who thrives, and who disengages. It almost always comes back to the leader.
From there I moved into a Business Manager role supporting one of the senior executives at Optus, which sharpened my commercial thinking and gave me a deep understanding of how leadership plays out at the executive level - the pressures, the decision-making, and the ripple effect a leader has across an entire organisation.
When I made the decision to leave corporate and eventually start Project Roar, I knew I wanted to focus on leadership and career coaching. I’d seen too many talented people get promoted into leadership roles with no development, no support, and no toolkit - and I wanted to change that. I now work with individuals and organisations to build stronger, more confident leaders and help people forge successful careers.
What can participants expect to walk away with from this Masterclass Series with Talent Quarter?
Honestly, the thing I’m most excited about is that we’re giving people development they wouldn’t normally prioritise.
We all know how it goes - leadership development is important, but it keeps getting bumped for the “real work.” This series removes that barrier. It’s bite-sized, practical, and designed to fit into a busy schedule through a lunch-and-learn format.
Across the four sessions, participants will build real, usable skills: how to delegate with clarity and confidence, how to have courageous conversations around underperformance, how to lead with positivity and a growth mindset, and how to communicate strategically to keep teams aligned and engaged.
These are the everyday leadership moments that make-or-break team performance, and participants will leave each session with something they can apply straightaway.
What’s one practical insight or shift you’re excited to share with participants?
The shift I see time and again in my coaching work is when leaders realise that the things holding them back aren’t big, complex strategic problems.
They’re the everyday leadership moments they’re not getting right.
They’re hanging onto tasks instead of delegating with clarity. They’re avoiding the tough conversation because they’re hoping the problem will sort itself out. They’re communicating reactively instead of strategically. Or they’re so focused on putting out fires that they’ve lost sight of the kind of leader they actually want to be.
What I love about this series is that each session tackles one of those moments head-on.
What’s one common mistake organisations make when developing leaders?
Simply not doing it.
That’s the honest answer.
Organisations will invest heavily in hiring the right people. They’ll invest in systems and technology. But when it comes to actually developing the leaders who are responsible for driving performance and culture every single day, it falls off the priority list.
People get promoted into leadership roles because they were brilliant at their previous job, and then they’re just expected to figure it out.
There’s no structured development, no coaching, no investment in the skills that leadership actually requires - things like delegation, communication, giving feedback, and navigating change.
And then we wonder why engagement drops or performance stalls. If you want strong leaders, you have to build them. It doesn’t happen by accident.
What’s Coming Next?
As part of this partnership, Talent Quarter and Project Roar will be launching a quarterly four-part Leadership Masterclass Series designed to equip leaders with practical tools they can apply immediately in their roles.
The first webinar, The Art of Delegation, will focus on helping leaders delegate with clarity and confidence by setting clear outcomes, defining ownership, and empowering their teams to take responsibility.
In the lead-up to the webinar and masterclass series, we’ll also be sharing a series of leadership insights and perspectives from Catherine, giving our community a preview of the thinking and practical strategies that will be explored further during the sessions.
Strengthening Leadership Across Health and Care
Through this Masterclass Series, Talent Quarter aims to equip leaders with practical tools that can be applied immediately, strengthening performance, communication and team effectiveness across health and care organisations.
We’re excited to partner with Catherine Harris and look forward to supporting our clients and partners through this initiative - continuing to invest in leadership capability across the sectors we serve. Stay tuned for the next instalment in this series!
Share this post
Here at Talent Quarter, providing quality support to both healthcare professionals and clients has always been a core part of how we work. Achieving ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems (QMS) certification with Certex is an important milestone that reflects the care, consistency and accountability we aim to bring to everything we do. As a healthcare recruitment and workforce solutions partner operating across Australia, Talent Quarter works closely with nurses, midwives, doctors, allied health professionals and social care workers across metro, regional and remote communities. What is ISO 9001 — and Why Does It Matter? ISO 9001 is an internationally recognised quality management standard designed to help organisations improve the way they operate, deliver services consistently and continually review how they can do things better. Rather than being a simple “tick-box” exercise, it requires businesses to build clear processes, strengthen accountability and create structured systems around risk management, documentation, communication and continuous improvement. Pursuing ISO 9001 certification gave the team an opportunity to strengthen and formalise many of the quality processes already in place across the business. As our organisation continues to grow and support more government and healthcare partners, having a recognised framework helps ensure services remain consistent, compliant and people-focused. The certification journey involved reviewing internal systems, refining documentation and improving visibility across processes and responsibilities. While it required time and collaboration across teams, it also created valuable opportunities to improve the way Talent Quarter works internally and supports its clients and candidates externally. Shannon O’Fionnagain, Executive Head of Operational Strategy & Governance at Talent Quarter, shared: “It strengthens customer confidence, supports improved customer satisfaction, and reinforces our culture of continuous improvement.” Certex’s collaborative and industry-informed approach played a key role throughout the process, helping ensure the certification journey remained both practical and aligned with Talent Quarter’s operational environment. For us, this certification is not just about achieving a standard - it’s about continuing to build trust, improve experiences and support healthcare communities with care and consistency.
In healthcare, aged care and community services, compliance is often treated like a checklist. Documents collected. Boxes ticked. Systems updated. But in reality, compliance isn’t a process. It’s a risk strategy. And right now, too many organisations are still managing it like an admin task. Across the sector, the same patterns show up: Credentials checked once, then assumed to stay valid Visa and work rights confirmed at onboarding, but not monitored Manual systems used to track expiry dates Last-minute scrambles when gaps are uncovered Mounting pressure during audits and reviews None of this is actually intentional. But it creates exposure and in our sector, that exposure directly impacts care quality, safety, and trust. Moving beyond “point-in-time” compliance A worker who was compliant three months ago… isn’t necessarily compliant today. Registrations change, documents expire and visa conditions evolve. If compliance isn’t actively monitored, gaps will appear. It’s not a question of if, it’s when. The cost of getting it wrong This isn’t just theoretical. It shows up in very real ways: Failed audits and costly remediation Regulatory penalties Service disruption and cancelled shifts Increased admin burden Reputational damage across clients and communities And most importantly, it introduces risk into environments where there is no room for error. What we’re seeing Through our work across Australia, one thing is clear: Most providers don’t lack intent, they lack systems designed to eliminate gaps. Because managing compliance… isn’t the same as controlling it. A different approach: Zero-Gap Compliance At Talent Quarter, we’ve shifted away from “point-in-time” compliance to a model of continuous compliance . We call it Zero-Gap Compliance - a system designed to remove the opportunity for gaps to exist in the first place. It’s built on a few simple principles: No clearance, no placement Continuous, real-time monitoring (not one-off checks) Verified visa status and work rights Automated alerts before issues become risks Full audit visibility across every worker If something isn’t current, verified, and compliant, it simply doesn’t go. What this delivers Reduced organisational risk Stronger governance More reliable workforce coverage Protection of care quality And ultimately, confidence that the workforce you rely on is exactly what it should be. There’s a simple rule we apply: If there’s a gap, we don’t place. No exceptions. No workarounds. No risk passed on.
If you’ve been considering a move to Australia as a Speech Pathologist, (we call them Speechies!) you’re not alone. It’s one of the most common conversations happening right now, and for good reason! The demand across the country is not just strong - it’s immediate and ongoing. Australia currently has over 1,000 vacancies for Speech Pathologists, with only around 11,000 clinicians actively practising. When you combine that with rising diagnoses of autism and ADHD, alongside increasing pressure on healthcare and community services, it becomes clear why employers are actively looking overseas. This isn’t a “testing the market” moment - your skills are genuinely needed. Where the Demand Is The majority of opportunities sit within paediatrics and community-based roles , particularly those funded under the NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme). Early intervention is a major focus across Australia, meaning many roles involve working with younger children and their families to support development as early as possible. It’s also worth considering regional locations . These roles often have: Greater demand Faster access to sponsorship Stronger pathways to permanent residency (PR) For many clinicians, regional roles can be the fastest way to establish themselves in Australia. What the Work Actually Looks Like In paediatric and community settings, your caseload will be varied — but with consistent themes. You’ll commonly work with: Autism spectrum disorder Speech sound disorders Developmental language delays Social communication difficulties ADHD-related challenges Global developmental delay Feeding (depending on the role) What stands out in Australia is the functional, family-centred approach . This isn’t just clinic-based therapy. You’ll often: Work closely with parents and carers Collaborate with schools and other professionals Focus on real-world, everyday outcomes It’s hands-on, practical, and highly impactful work. Visas and Sponsorship Most overseas Speech Pathologists relocate to Australia on a 482 sponsored visa , which can lead to permanent residency. The key thing to understand right now is this: Sponsorship is highly achievable. Employers aren’t just open to international candidates — they are actively relying on them to meet demand. Registration: Start Sooner Than You Think To work as a Speech Pathologist in Australia, you’ll need to meet the requirements of Speech Pathology Australia (SPA) . For clinicians from the UK, Ireland, USA, Canada, and New Zealand , there may be a mutual recognition pathway. For others, this typically involves: Meeting qualification requirements Demonstrating English proficiency (usually IELTS 8.0) Important Update From 30 June 2026 , the SPA framework is expected to become more structured and detailed. In practical terms, this may mean: A more thorough assessment process Longer processing times If Australia is on your radar, starting your registration early is one of the smartest steps you can take . What Employers Are Really Looking For Beyond qualifications, employers are looking for clinicians who can: Communicate effectively Build strong relationships with families Manage a caseload independently While paediatric and early intervention experience is highly valued, there’s one area that’s often underestimated: KPI and Caseload Management Experience Many roles - particularly in NDIS and community settings - involve: Billable targets Productivity expectations Managing a full and structured diary If you’ve worked in an environment where you balance workload, track output, and manage competing priorities, this will put you at a significant advantage. The Reality of the Role It’s important to be honest - community-based roles can be busy. You can expect: Travel between clients Administrative responsibilities Full and structured days However, these roles are also where many clinicians find: Greater variety in their work Increased flexibility High levels of job satisfaction You’ll often see the impact of your work quickly, while building a broad and valuable skillset. Final Thoughts Relocating internationally is a massive decision. But for Speechies, Australia offers a unique combination of: High demand Career stability Long-term visa and residency pathways Meaningful, impactful work If you’re considering making the move and aren’t sure where to start, having the right guidance can make all the difference. Maya Dwyer works closely with Speech Pathologists relocating to Australia every day, so if you’d like to explore your options or understand what this could look like for you, feel free to reach out. You can also email her: maya.dwyer@talentquarter.com
