Dennis Richardson AO is one of Australia’s most respected and experienced public servants. For the last five years, Richardson served as Secretary of the Department of Defence, stepping down from that role in May 2017. Prior to this, he served as Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and as the Australian Ambassador to the United States from 2005 to 2010. He was also the Director General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation between 1996 and 2005.

In 2003, Richardson was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for his service to the community in a range of public policy areas including foreign policy, immigration and security. Currently, Richardson is a Director of Linfox, Vault, the National Capital Authority, the Australian Wildlife Conservancy and the Canberra Raiders.