Start with people
Understand the people, work and intended outcomes before selecting technology.
Gary McCourtOperations · Transformation · Technology
Better systems.
Better outcomes
for people.
I’m Gary McCourt—an operations and transformation leader who connects frontline reality, executive strategy and technology to make complex services work better.
Adelaide based · Open to employment, advisory work and defined projects
“
Transformation should make work more human—not simply more automated.
20+years across
people &
operations
people &
operations
$5moperating budget led
18,000+housing properties supported at Spotless
49→84%employee engagement
100+FM contracts supported
01 My story
An unconventional path into operational leadership.
I grew up outside London, left school at sixteen and returned to education later as a mature learner. That path taught me something I still carry: capability is not always revealed by a conventional route.
I stumbled into contact centres in the early 2000s and found the place where people, pace and problem-solving meet. From there, my career broadened into national helpdesks, facilities and housing maintenance, healthcare, shared services, community-sector transformation and technology implementation.
Across each chapter, the question has stayed remarkably consistent: how do we design better systems without losing sight of the people who depend on them?
02 People, work & technology
Technology is most powerful when it gives people greater agency.
My interest in technology has never been about novelty. It comes from years spent watching people work around fragmented systems, duplicated administration and decisions separated from their operational consequences.
Connect strategy with reality
Good strategy must survive contact with frontline operations.
Use AI to create capacity
Remove avoidable administration so people can focus on judgement, relationships and meaningful work.
Keep humans accountable
Technology can support decisions; responsibility cannot quietly be delegated to software.
Build governance into delivery
Preserve evidence, decisions and ownership without paralysing progress.
Measure more than efficiency
Dignity, trust, accessibility, fairness and community value matter too.
03 Capabilities
Broad experience.
One connected perspective.
I work comfortably between the boardroom, the frontline and the systems connecting them, with experience across retail and e-commerce, white-collar and blue-collar workplaces, clubs and pubs, restaurants and cafés, facilities, housing, healthcare and community services.
04 Career timeline
From frontline service to systems-level change.
A career built across operational environments where reliability, judgement and people leadership matter.
2026—Present
1
Independent AI, service & governance development
Exploring people-centred applications of AI through Life Pilot and developing Build Control as a practical governance environment.
2025—2026
2
Executive General Manager · The Brighter Group
Led operations, service improvement and digital transformation across a developing service and technology group.
2022—2025
3
Owner Operator / Consultant · EGM Trading
Delivered operational reviews, workflow design, technology implementation and service-improvement work.
2022—2023
4
Senior Manager, Transformation & Capability · Community Corporate
Scoped and led the selection of an ERP for a national social enterprise delivering inclusive recruitment, training and employment pathways. Progressed implementation planning before new programs took priority and the organisation paused the investment.
2021—2022
5
Change Manager · Vivid Property Services
Led a Client Services Centre transformation, from workflow review through technology requirements and change planning.
2019—2021
6
Head of Operations Services Centre · BGIS
Led helpdesk, accounts payable and vendor compliance teams; expanded service-centre coverage to 24/7, consolidated additional functions into a National Operations Centre and introduced automation within accounts payable.
2014—2018
7
Senior operations roles · Spotless (return engagements)
Returned to the Spotless National Contact Centre, began transitioning to Adelaide in 2015, then moved permanently in 2016 to lead helpdesk and logistics operations through the opening of the new Royal Adelaide Hospital PPP.
2012—2014
8
National Helpdesk Manager · TJS Services Group
Established a national helpdesk across six decentralised state operations.
2009—2011
9
Operations leadership · Spotless National Contact Centre
First Spotless engagement, supporting national facilities and housing operations through a high-volume service environment.
Learning & development
Advanced Diploma of Management · Diplomas in Management and Human Resources · UniSA Leadership Development Program · SmartSuite Consultant certification
05 Selected work
Ideas made practical.
Outcomes made visible.
Selected examples spanning people leadership, service transformation and responsible technology.
Operations & people
Rebuilding engagement while strengthening operational control
Led multidisciplinary shared-service teams across helpdesk, accounts payable and vendor compliance in a large facilities environment—improving engagement from 49% to 84% while reducing an identified payroll risk from approximately $100,000 to below $10,000.
35 ptsengagement uplift
Service transformation
Creating consistency across decentralised operations
Established a national helpdesk across six state operations, bringing greater consistency to workflow, reporting, financial control and service accountability.
6state operations connected
Healthcare & PPP
Leading helpdesk and logistics in a critical environment
Led service operations through the new Royal Adelaide Hospital PPP environment, where safety, audit performance, responsiveness and stakeholder confidence were essential.
24/7critical service environment
Independent product case study · 2026Purpose-led entrepreneurship
A clear signal when the way ahead feels uncertain.
Life Pilot is a developing budgeting and money-management platform designed for real life. It starts with money because financial pressure rarely stays in a spreadsheet: it affects housing, food, health, work, relationships and the choices people still have available.
Its purpose is not to tell someone they have no money—they usually know that already. It is to help them see what matters now, what may be at risk and which practical step could move their situation from red towards green.
“Life Pilot is not a silver bullet. It brings what matters into view and helps illuminate the next practical step.”
1core money-management proposition
3+early product builds and scaffolds
Freefor the end user is the design intent
Humanchoice remains at the centre
The problem
Money problems become life problems.
Financial insecurity can compound pressure involving rent, food, health, caring responsibilities, employment, addiction, personal safety and access to education. Yet budgeting tools and support services usually see only one part of the picture—and often respond after the situation has become urgent.
The response
Turn the signal into a pathway.
The Life Signal brings stability and emerging pressure into one clear, explainable view, connecting money with its real-world consequences. Rather than stopping at a warning, Life Pilot is intended to illuminate an achievable next step—protect the rent, stretch a food budget safely, find income, involve a trusted supporter or reach appropriate help.
01Simple onboardingUnderstand the person’s situation and priorities
02Suggested starting pointA base experience shaped around immediate needs
03Optional layersActivate relevant cultural, community or life support
04Life SignalSee pressure, consequences and the next practical step
05Practical pathwaysTake action through tools, income or human support
Designed around the person
One foundation. Different pathways through real life.
EarnJob Pilot and Gig Pilot explore practical routes into employment and variable-income work.
LiveOptional support layers can adapt language, guidance and pathways to the user’s chosen context, including First Nations and community-focused experiences.
Eat wellEarly NutriPilot work explores affordable meals that also respect dietary and health needs.
Reach helpThe wider vision includes relevant concessions, crisis assistance and trusted human support based on circumstances and consent.
From idea to early products
Strategy translated into working first drafts.
Life Pilot is in active development and early validation. Work to date spans problem discovery, service and product strategy, brand development, responsible-AI principles, go-to-market planning and several early builds.
Life Pilot · Dashboard
Your life, at a glance
Good morning
Today3 priorities
This weekOn track
Support2 connections
Next practical stepReview what matters today
Life Pilot dashboardBringing priorities, commitments and next actions into one view
Life Pilot•••
REAL LIFE SIGNALWhat matters
right now?
One clear next step
Bring the important things into view, then choose what to do next.
Design intentCalm over clutter.
Agency over automation.
Agency over automation.
AI supports understanding and action; people retain judgement, choice and accountability.
Life SignalHelping a person understand what matters now and choose the next practical step
Building Life Pilot
Entrepreneurship in service of community.
A free core experience for individuals is central to the vision. Long-term sustainability is being explored through government, not-for-profit and service-sector partnerships—without microtransactions that penalise the people the product is intended to support.
- Opportunity recognition grounded in lived and operational experience
- Inclusive, non-shaming design for people under pressure
- Product, brand and go-to-market development
- Responsible AI with consent and human accountability
- Potential use alongside financial counsellors and community services
Demonstration screens use fictional information. Life Pilot is an independent project in active development; the features described include both early implementations and the intended product direction.
06 Community & industry
Contribution is not separate from professional life.
Throughout my career, I have tried to connect operational experience, influence and technology with causes that improve participation, opportunity and social outcomes.
Auscontact Association
Longstanding committee contribution, including more than four years leading South Australia’s member community and events.
Top 100 APAC influencer
Recognised by the contact-centre industry in 2024 for contribution, leadership and advocacy.
Practical community support
Charity participation, technology support and a consistent commitment to purpose-led organisations.
What’s next
Let’s make something
work better.
I’m open to the right employment opportunity, advisory engagement or clearly defined project—particularly where operations, people and change meet.
01Join an organisationOperations · Service delivery · Transformation
02Advise & improveOperational · Technology · Service challenges
03Deliver a projectRequirements · Governance · Implementation