Johanna Macneil

Johanna Macneil is Academic Director, Engagement for Social Impact, an Executive position in the College of Business and Law. This role was created in 2023 to identify, encourage, accelerate and promote the outstanding potential of the College’s people to make a substantial and positive social impact through their work. Johanna is also Professor of People, Organisation and Work. Johanna’s research over more than 25 years has been on understanding and improving genuine cooperation at work to achieve gains for workers and employers.

Professor Johanna Macneil leads the College’s efforts to integrate and accelerate positive social impact. She is a formidable academic leader with an international reputation in her field of expertise, industrial relations. Johanna joined RMIT University in 2020 as Dean of the School of Management in the College of Business & Law. Prior to this appointment, Johanna worked at The University of Newcastle for 15 years, most recently as Assistant Dean, Learning and Teaching, in the Faculty of Business and Law and Professor of HRM and Employment Relations. Johanna’s research over more than 25 years has been on understanding and improving genuine cooperation at work to achieve gains for workers and employers, more recently focused on a) how to effectively and equitably address psychosocial hazards at work; and b) the role of government tribunals and agencies in ensuring fair, just, equitable work. Through this agenda, Johanna has been highly engaged with industry, government, unions and other stakeholders in applied and externally funded projects. Johanna’s teaching and program design in HRM and industrial relations and her expertise in the management of learning and teaching have been recognised by significant national awards and senior university appointments.

Professional activities:
- Member, RMIT Executive Leadership Team
- Chair, College of Business and Law Ngulu Indigenous Advisory Committee
- College of Business and Law Indigenous Reconciliation Champion
- PRME Academic leader
- Professor of People, Organisation and Work

Industry experience

Johanna has conducted collaborative applied research with unions, managers and stakeholders in a range of organisations. Some significant projects include:
- working with the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) Victoria, industry partners and the WorkSafe Victoria Workwell Program to evaluate a collaborative project to reduce psychosocial hazards in manufacturing workplaces (2020-2023);
- ongoing collaboration with an international team of researchers (US, UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia and NZ), and their industrial tribunals or agencies (including Australia’s Fair Work Commission (FWC)) to compare and learn from their different approaches to dispute resolution (2019-);
an annual review on unions and collective bargaining for the Australian Labour and Employment Relations Association (ALERA) journal (2018-2020)
- an exploration of the role that industrial relations tribunals can play in supporting cooperation at work, supported by the FWC, the NSW IR Tribunal and members of the Industrial Relations Society; awarded an ARC Linkage grant and resulting in significant practical and academic outputs (2015-2020);
- working with a steel manufacturer, using annual WGEA reports to explain organisational learning to improve workplace gender equality (2015-16);
- conducting labour relations training for the Botswana Directorate of Public Service Management, following a change in law introducing public sector bargaining (2010-2012); and
- a qualitative organisational assessment for management/unions on employment relations climate at the Hydro aluminium smelter, NSW (2008-09).

From 1998 to 2006, Johanna was a Senior Consultant in industrial relations and workplace change for Corrs Schneider (a joint venture between Corrs Chambers Westgarth and US-based consulting firm, Restructuring Associates Inc.). Clients were primarily from unionised sectors, including mining, retail distribution, defence, public sector, and communications. Projects covered socio-technical systems work design, enterprise bargaining, labour-management partnership development, and interest-based problem solving on a range of people, organisation and work issues.