Malini has over 20 years of experience working across several domestic and international Financial Services organisations. Her experience spans across several disciplines, namely Investment Banking, Corporate Advisory, Accounting, Property, Equity Capital Markets, Merger Implementation, Project Management, Human Resources, Business Strategy, Change Management, Community Engagement and Customer Advocacy in both Retail and Institutional Banking.
She is a Senior Fellow of Financial Services Institute of Australasia (Finsia) and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD), with a Masters of Applied Finance and Investment (Finsia), Bachelor of Finance and Accounting University of Technology Sydney (UTS), and graduated with Distinction in the INSEAD Gender Diversity Program and completed short course “Community Consultation and Engagement” at UTS.
She is currently Head of Community Engagement at the Commonwealth Bank. She leads the team responsible for building and enhancing the Bank’s relationship with the community sector and providing a community voice back to the business to improve customer outcomes in line with community expectations with particular focus on those customers who have limited English proficiency, older customers, people with disabilities and First Nations customers including those in remote locations.
Previously she was Head of Strategy for Multicultural Community Banking at the Bank, a role focussed on promoting cultural diversity and financial and social cohesion through authentic/meaningful engagement with multicultural communities. The role involved in engaging at a strategic and government level, with business communities and at a local grass roots level through programs focussing on financial inclusion.
She consistently advocates for a more diverse workforce/diverse representation in the community and is seen as a strong ambassador/thought-leader for diversity and inclusion at the Commonwealth Bank and was profiled as part of International Women’s Day and Harmony Day external diversity campaigns and has been mentor to over 300 women informally and through formal programs.
She is also Chair of CommBank’s Cultural Diversity employee network Mosaic which is responsible for promoting culturally diversity and inclusion across the Group. She was also responsible for introducing the Corporate Hijab into the CBA Corporate Wardrobe for Muslim Women Employees.
She has a strong interest in making a social impact, reflected her roles as Board Director of the Settlement Council of Australia, The Parenthood, Entertainment for Change and the Good Giving Fund, member of Women’s on Boards Cultural Diversity Advisory Group, and NSW Government Office of Sport – Multicultural Advisory Committee and is currently volunteer at the Starlight Foundation which she has been involved in for the last 11 years.
She has also been a Board Director of PIEX Education, member of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet’s Advisory Group on Preventing Financial Abuse of Women, Board Member and Treasurer of the World Advisory Board Member of FlexCareers and Mental Health Foundation Australia Multicultural Ambassador and Finsia Diversity Advisory Council (previous Non-Executive Director) SheQU Advisory Board and Federation of Ethnic Communities Councils of Australia (FECCA) Women’s Advisory Group member.
She has received several awards including 2014 Morgan Mckinley Women in Leadership Award, 2012 AFR/BOSS Australia’s Top Emerging Leader Finalist, 2012 and 2013 CPA Top 40 Young Business Leaders and 2011 Finsia Most Outstanding Young Professional, 2019 Women’s Agenda Leadership Award in the Changemaker category, 2019 Women in Banking and Finance/Turks Legal Scholarship Finalist, 2021 Women of Colour #ColourFuLL Leadership Award Finalist and 2021 India Australia Business and Community Awards (IABCA) Finalist in the Business Leader or Professional of the Year Award category (awarded a Highly Commended) and participated in the Vivid Sydney festival facilitating a panel on the Future of Work.
She is a strong patient advocate for Cushing’s disease being a patient herself, diagnosed in 2013 after a 20 year journey to diagnosis. She is a Non-Executive Director of the Australian Pituitary Foundation (and Co-Chair). Board Advisor for the World Alliance of Pituitary Organisations (previous Non-Executive Director and Treasurer) and is on the Paraxel Patient Advisory Group and Paraxel Indian Patient Advisory Group to provide advice on how to increase diversity in clinical trials and in particular ethnic minority groups who are often under-represented. She is passionate about sharing her personal story and experience to create awareness, provide support and drive change domestically and globally, having spoken at conferences in London, Amsterdam, Sydney, Singapore and Venice.
Malini represented Settlement Council of Australia at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68) in New York in March 2024 and presented at a workshop titled “Shattered Hopes – A multi-country perspective on drivers.