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Introducing the team
Our Managing Director and the rest of our Executive team are responsible for the day-to-day management of Sydney Water under the authority delegated to them by the Board of Directors. They do this according to the specific directions of the Board and Sydney Water's general policies.
Roch Cheroux – Managing Director
Roch is a key influencer in the water industry, with experience shaping and leading public and private corporations across Asia-Pacific region and Europe. Before joining Sydney Water, Roch was Chief Executive of South Australian Water Corporation (SA Water) where he led the transformation of South Australia’s largest water utility, embedding changes to technology, culture and systems to improve the experience for its 1.6 million customers.
Before joining SA Water, Roch was Chief Executive Officer of SUEZ for South East Asia and SUEZ-Degrémont Australia and New Zealand, Managing Director of United Utilities Asia and Pacific (TRILITY), and Chief Executive and Chair of Tallinn Water in Estonia. Roch holds formal qualifications in engineering and business management, and seeks to champion innovation, diversity and reconciliation in the workplace.
Member of the Safety and Wellbeing, Planning and Infrastructure, and People, Culture and Remuneration, and Economic Regulation committees. Roch is active across the water industry and is currently Chair of Water Services Association of Australia and was previously a member of the Advisory Committee of the Australian Water Partnership. He is also a member of the French-Australian Chamber of Commerce Advisory Council. A dual French and Australian citizen, Roch holds formal qualifications in Engineering and Business Management, and seeks to champion innovation and workplace diversity in the organisations he leads.
Paul Plowman – Executive General Manager, Water & Environment Services
BE (Civil), MBA
Before joining Sydney Water, Paul held the position of General Manager Program and Portfolio Management at Northern Territory's Power and Water Corporation. From 2011 to 2013, he held several senior management and major project roles with Melbourne Water.
Paul has more than 18 years' experience in the water industry with particular focus on the development and delivery of investment programs. He has successfully led large, complex infrastructure projects that have involved significant interaction with the community and stakeholders.
Paul has a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) from Victoria University of Technology, a Master of Business Administration from AGSM, and has completed executive education at INSEAD (France) with a focus on strategic partnering.
Denisha Anbu – Executive General Manager, Customer Experience
Denisha joined Sydney Water in 2012 and has held several senior leadership and Executive roles across a range of portfolios, including Governance & Assurance, People & Culture and Legal & Corporate Secretariat. In April 2024, Denisha was appointed as Executive General Manager, Customer Experience.
Denisha is accountable for the entire customer value chain at Sydney Water – from creating customer accounts and billing through to the resolution of network faults and complaints. Denisha leads teams who seek to delight stakeholders – including Sydney Water’s most important stakeholder, our customers. This includes exceeding our customer expectations, creating seamless interactions, driving customer focused innovation and building lasting relationships.
With more than two decades of experience across Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney in professional services, telecommunications, higher education and the water sector, Denisha specialises in leading teams in complex regulatory environments to achieve great outcomes for organisations and customers. Denisha is trained as a corporate lawyer, with broad experience in governance, strategy, innovation, people and culture, and transformation.
Denisha is passionate about the water industry and water’s role in improving the lives of the customers and communities it serves. Denisha has extended this commitment to improving access to water, sanitation and hygiene for everyone everywhere around the world, through her non-Executive Director role at WaterAid Australia.
Denisha holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the University of Queensland, a Master of Laws from the University of Melbourne, is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company of Directors and a fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia. Denisha has also completed the Executive Leaders Program through Chief Executive Women Australia.
Dean Page – Executive General Manager, Finance, Commercial & Digital
With a wealth of finance experience in water utilities across Australia, Dean has an expanded remit at Sydney Water. He leads a coordinated group that is key to ensuring Sydney Water builds on its track record as a successful and innovative business. This group will help drive Sydney Water’s long-term infrastructure investment program as we balance the program’s financial requirements with affordable prices for customers.
Prior to joining Sydney Water, Dean was the Chief Financial Officer at Water Corporation in Western Australia and, before that, the CFO at TasWater. He has extensive experience in senior finance and accounting roles in Australia and the UK across a range of industries, including water, energy, investment banking and mining.
Dean is a Certified Public Accountant with a Bachelor of Commerce degree. He has a graduate diploma in applied finance and investment from the Securities Institute of Australia and has completed INSEAD’s advanced management program.
Nicholle Sparks – Executive General Manager, Infrastructure Delivery
As the Executive General Manager, Infrastructure Delivery, Nicholle is at the forefront of Sydney Water’s transformational infrastructure program, driving the investment that will support and shape the city.
Prior to joining Sydney Water, Nicholle held Executive and senior management roles at Frasers Property Australia, Laing O’Rourke and Lendlease.
With over 25 years of experience spanning construction, property development and social infrastructure, Nicholle’s approach to the delivery of our most strategically and commercially important infrastructure investments is underpinned by a commitment to sustainability, driving quality outcomes for customers, and building a culture of achievement within the team.
Through her leadership of our infrastructure development, procurement and delivery, Nicholle supports the resilience of Sydney's water supply as the city grows, while safeguarding the health and vibrancy of our waterways.
Debbie Schroeder – Executive General Manager, People & Governance
Debbie is an experienced corporate executive who brings significant capability to Sydney Water, having previously worked in executive roles at Ventia Services Group Limited and CSR Limited. Debbie has over 20 years’ experience, working across a broad range of cross functional areas including legal, corporate governance, workplace relations, safety, audit and risk management.
In her latest role, Debbie is responsible for Sydney Water’s most important asset – its people. Debbie’s remit includes culture and performance, health and safety, business connect, legal, risk and audit activities. Importantly, she ensures that appropriate governance processes are implemented to improve the quality of risk setting and decision making at Sydney Water.
In addition to her role as Executive General Manager, Debbie also serves as Corporate Secretary.
Stuart Wallace – General Manager, Customer and Stakeholder Engagement
Stuart is a communications professional with more than 25 years’ experience in media, government and the public sector, delivering outcomes to meet the expectations of customers and the community.
He has extensive experience in providing strategic advice and communications leadership as part of the record investment in NSW transport and road infrastructure, including Sydney Metro.
Stuart has more than 20 years’ experience at some of Australia’s biggest radio and television networks, with the majority of his time at Seven News, including 11 years as Deputy News Director in Sydney.
Since joining Sydney Water, Stuart was the Head of Strategic Communications and CSR before being appointed the General Manager, Customer and Stakeholder Engagement.
As General Manager he now oversees Customer and Strategic Insights, Government, Stakeholder and Community Engagement, as well as Brand, Media and Marketing, and Strategic Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility.