Leadership Team

Michael Holmes was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of OceanaGold in April 2020.   An accomplished mining engineer with more than 30 years’ experience working in Australia, New Zealand, The Philippines, and North and South America, he brings to the role extensive operational experience in underground and open pit gold, copper, lead, zinc and nickel mines.   Most recently, as Chief Operating Officer for OceanaGold, Mr Holmes was integral in leading responsible open pit and underground mining and processing of gold. Prior to this, he was General Manager of the Minera Alumbrera Operations in Argentina (Xstrata Copper), responsible for the large open pit, processing, transport, and port facilities and for the management of the feasibility study for the Agua Rica Project. Prior to this he held several senior mine management positions in Australia, including General Manager of the Mount Isa Copper Operations (Xstrata Copper) where he oversaw operations at the large-scale underground mine and concentrator.   He holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mining) Degree from the University of Queensland and is a fellow of the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Appointed in July 2017, Scott McQueen has more than 25 years’ multi-disciplinary finance experience covering public practice, before moving into the energy, gas, and mining sectors. Throughout his career he has held senior management roles in Australia, Asia, and Europe.   Prior to joining OceanaGold, Scott worked at Iluka Resources Limited for more than seven years as General Manager Commercial.   He holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree, a Masters in Taxation Law, and is a Certified Practising Accountant.

Craig Feebrey was appointed in November 2015 and is an experienced geologist with over 25 years of global exploration and commercial success. He has held several executive, senior technical, and management positions across major international mining organisations and junior exploration companies. Craig’s focus has been in gold and copper exploration, business development, and mining across Australia, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas.   Craig is a Chartered Professional Geologist and holds a Doctor of Philosophy (Geology) and Master of Science degree from Hokkaido University, Japan, and a Bachelor of Science and Graduate Diploma of Science from the University of New England, Australia.   Craig is a fellow of the Society of Economic Geologists, and a member of the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Appointed in September 2017, Sharon Flynn is an accomplished leader with more than 20 years’ experience designing and implementing sustainability strategies with global multinational companies in the mining, oil and gas, construction, and forestry sectors.   Sharon has also worked in the non-profit sector in community development, biodiversity conservation and peace building. Prior to joining OceanaGold, Sharon worked with the One Earth Future Foundation, Rio Tinto, Bechtel, GrupoNueva and Conservation International, among others.   She holds a Masters in International Relations and Management from the University of California, San Diego.

Appointed in January 2013, Liang is a practising lawyer with a broad range of legal and corporate experience in the gold mining sector, including capital markets, debt financing, and corporate and commercial law.   She joined OceanaGold’s legal and company secretariat team in April 2009 and is currently responsible for legal affairs, compliance, and corporate governance across the company. Prior to joining OceanaGold, Liang was a commercial lawyer in private practice.   She holds a Bachelor of Commerce, a Bachelor of Laws, and a Master of Laws from the University of Melbourne. She is fluent in Chinese Mandarin.

Graham has extensive experience in project development, exploration and mine operations with tier-one mine owners and contractors and has led a diverse range of departments with accountability at regional and global levels in the mining, construction, retail, airline and supply chain industries.   Prior to joining OceanaGold, Graham was employed as a Managing Director with Fedex. Graham’s global experience is spread across Africa, Middle East, Indian Subcontinent, APAC, Eastern Europe and Latin America. His experience spans divisional and executive leadership at a global level in People and Culture, HSEQC, Risk and Compliance, Project Management, Supply Chain Management, Maintenance/Asset Management, IT and Engineering Services. He has also served as a management representative on Board Risk Committees and currently is the management representative on the OceanaGold Remuneration, People and Culture Committee.   Graham is a Fellow with the Australian Human Resources Institute and a Chartered OHS Professional with the Australian Institute of Health and Safety. He holds an International Company Director Diploma from the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a Bachelor of Education / Business from the University of Melbourne, a Masters in Labour Law and Relations from the University of Sydney, a Graduate Diploma in OHS from Curtin University, and is an alumni of the Michigan University Ross School of Business Advanced Human Resources Program.

A Mining Engineer by profession with over 30 years’ experience, David has predominantly international mine operations experience spanning more than two decades in senior management roles and with leading mining companies such as De Beers, Rio Tinto, Oz Minerals and Newcrest Mining.   David is the holder of Mining Engineering degree from the University of Auckland, the city in which he was born, studied, and now lives with his family. He holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of South Australia, and First Class Mine Manager’s Certificates of Competency or the equivalent from South Africa, Western Australia and Indonesia. David is a member of AusIMM and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

James “Jim” Whittaker has nearly 30 years of mining experience managing operations in North and South America and is responsible for day to day operation and project development of the Haile Gold Mine. Mr. Whittaker joined OceanaGold in 2019 and has a strong track record of successfully developing high performance teams to increase business value. Mr. Whittaker has a Bachelor of Engineering qualification in Extractive Metallurgy and an Executive MBA.