Shannon Bakker
Consultant

As part of the Socom team for the past two and a half years, Shannon brings a fresh and bright approach to her role.  Working primarily with local government groups such as the Interface Councils and Regional Cities Victoria, Shannon uses research and strategy to articulate their issues to stakeholders, particularly other levels of government.

Shannon has also assisted with community consultation, working with clients such as the Royal Children’s Hospital and the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability.  For the past two years, Shannon has run the media relations campaigns for the Pedestrian Council of Australia’s national Walk to Work and Walk Safely to School Days.

Shannon graduated from Monash University with a Bachelor of Business and Commerce/Bachelor of Communications majoring in public relations.

Tricia Tjondropuro
Consultant

Tricia Tjondropuro joined Socom in 2002 in our finance and administration area. In 2006, she joined the consulting team, bringing an expertise in business management in addition to her academic qualifications in communications.  

Tricia’s work involves assisting with project management of community consultation, local government secretariat, media relations and research projects. Tricia is currently working with a number of clients including local government group South East Metro Councils, developer R.Corporation, and peak industry body AUSVEG.

Tricia has a Bachelor of Business and a Master of Arts in Communication from RMIT University.

Rachael Sweeney
Consultant

Rachael joined Socom in 2007 as part of Socom’s graduate program.  Rachael’s work involves campaign and event management, media relations and a range of research tasks.  Rachael has worked with a number of clients including Pedestrian Council of Australia’s national Walk Safely to School Day, Stockland Trust Group and the City of Boroondara.

Prior to joining Socom Rachael was employed in Event Management and Office Management roles within the construction and education fields.  She is a graduate of Deakin University with a Bachelor of Arts – Public Relations, majoring in Public Policy.

Kate McMillan
Consultant

Joining Socom in 2007, Kate’s focus includes local government relations, community consultation, advocacy and training.

In her previous employment, Kate worked as part of the internal communications team at the Federal Court of Australia and brings to Socom valuable experience in designing and presenting training seminars.  She also provided media liaison advice and assistance during times of high public scrutiny and crisis.

Kate holds a Bachelor of Science (Monash) with majors in anatomy and pharmacology and a Graduate Diploma in Public Relations (RMIT).  She is also a member of the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA).

Sarah Nash
Consultant

Sarah joined Socom in 2007 after relocating from Sydney to Melbourne, bringing with her broad based communications expertise gained in both consultancy and in-house roles.

With a focus on government relations and issues management, Sarah has delivered positive outcomes to a large range of clients including Water Services Association of Australia, NRMA Motoring & Services, MS Research and the Australian Nursing Homes and Extended Care Association. She has consulted more broadly with clients from the education, financial services and property sectors.

In addition to providing clients with specialist skills in issues analysis and writing, Sarah also brings to projects significant experience in event management and marketing communications.

Sarah holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in German from the University of Sydney and a Graduate Certificate in Public Relations.

Philip Smith
Consultant

Phil is Socom's 2008 graduate consultant. Prior to joining Socom, Phil worked in a number of roles in the not-for-profit, corporate and government sectors. A one-and-a-half year stint at the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games was the highlight of his previous experience.

In 2006 he graduated from RMIT's Bachelor of Communication (Public Relations) program, majoring in Business. Phil is a member of the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA).