Sandra’s career focus has been in defence, law enforcement and intelligence, in particular delivering policy, education and enabling technology to support national security. Sandra’s career commenced in 1990 as an Australian Federal Police officer before moving into intelligence management positions in the former National Crime Authority and the New South Wales (NSW) State Police Force. In 2004, Sandra established the first NSW Police Project Management Office where a highlight project was the establishment of the State Crime Command. This led to broader program management and consulting experience across the private sector, focusing on technology, education and training. This included operational management of the Centre for Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism at Macquarie University. In 2015, Sandra transferred to Defence in the Australian Capital Territory with the Executive Development program and is now with Home Affairs portfolio on secondment to the ANU NSC.

Sandra’s academic qualifications include a Bachelor of Arts (Education and Government) from the University of Sydney and a Master of Social Science (Criminology) from Charles Sturt University. She is also accredited as a Portfolio, Programme and Projects (P3O) Manager and as an Agile Scrum Master. Sandra is currently completing a Master of National Security Policy (Research) at the ANU NSC.