Senator Barbara Pocock is an Australian Senator, researcher, and academic who has written numerous books and academic journal articles on the labour market, work-life conflict, unionism, low pay, inequality, and vocational education. She was recognised by ICMA(ANZ) for championing sustainable business practices and corporate accountability, especially on the Committee of the Parliamentary inquiry into PwC’s abuse of Australian Government secrets to enrich itself and its corporate clients.
Senator Pocock gives a detailed account of her and the Senate’s role in bringing PwC, a multinational network of member companies, to account for financial mismanagement. She recounts the importance of the whistleblower protections, the tenacity of investigative journalists, and the danger of vested interests and misuse of power and knowledge. Through her role in the Senate, she has tabled a number of propositions around limiting the number of partnerships and has pushed back against the ‘land and expand’ methods of snowballing Government contracts into more and more projects. Senator shares that she is driven by a desire to leave this world in better shape for her grandchildren and the generations to come.
The talk was given when Senator Pocock was inducted to the Global Management Accounting Hall of Fame for her services to the profession and the community in Australia, especially in terms of corporate accountability.