Samira (Sam) Richards is a Partner at SHK and leads the firm’s Chief People Officer practice. She brings more than 25 years’ executive leadership experience across emergency services, higher education, health and aged care. Sam has held enterprise-wide accountability for People and Culture in complex, high-profile organisations, partnering closely with CEOs, Executive teams and Boards to align workforce strategy with organisational performance, risk management and long-term sustainability. Sam has led large teams spanning the full suite of human resources functions, including workforce strategy & planning, people partnering, industrial & employee relations, organisational development & capability and talent acquisition plus health, safety & wellbeing. She has consistently built high-performing teams and strengthened leadership and executive capability in operationally intensive, highly scrutinised environments. Sam believes contemporary people leadership must directly enable strategy execution and measurable performance outcomes. She is passionate about engaged leadership, inclusion and is a strong advocate for leveraging technology and meaningful workforce data to inform decision-making, strengthen governance and create more capable, future-ready workplaces. Her executive credibility, enterprise perspective and deep understanding of risk and governance position her as a trusted adviser to Boards and CEOs in appointing Chief People Officers and senior leaders who can drive performance, lead transformation and build enduring organisational capability and culture. Sam holds a Science degree from the University of Sheffield, United Kingdom, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Human Resource Management from La Trobe University, Melbourne.