For more than 45 years, WorkVentures has helped close Australia’s digital divide, create pathways into employment, and deliver technology solutions that strengthen communities.
Hundreds of thousands of people have benefited from its programs. Its most recent chapter, under the leadership of CEO Caroline McDaid, has been marked by expansion into cyber security, the creation of a national device bank, and ground breaking work to address technology‑enabled domestic abuse.
Bloom has been proud to support WorkVentures as its HR partner for more than a decade, working closely with Caroline and her team through a period of growth, innovation and deep community impact.
Caroline’s career story is a fascinating one, and we’re excited to share it.
A career of unexpected turns
Caroline describes her journey as “decidedly non‑linear,” beginning in external audit soon after graduating with a degree in Accounting & Finance. Looking back, she says she would reassure her 21‑year‑old self that a non‑linear career is a strength, not a weakness.
“Careers are journeys with intersections, bridges and unexpected turns,” she reflects. “Nothing is finite. Every experience helps shape your next step. Even the roles that don’t energise you help clarify the direction you do want to go, and reveal your real strengths.”
Her first role was with Ernst & Young in Glasgow. Two years in, she accepted a sponsored move to EY Sydney, a temporary relocation that has now been home for 22 years.
Caroline then joined Foxtel, where the culture felt a world away from a ‘Big Four’ accountancy firm. .
“I’ll never forget having a TV on my desk, and a giant slide between floors,” she laughs. “It was a far cry from professional services!”
At Foxtel she worked across major national projects, including the Olympic and Commonwealth Games, new sport channel launches, broadband service launches and digital partnerships with some of Australia’s largest telcos. It was a rewarding commercial career, but a growing interest in purpose‑driven work began to shape her next steps.
A climate wake-up call
In 2018, the release of the IPCC climate report, combined with Australia’s escalating environmental challenges, prompted Caroline to make a bold change. She left Foxtel after 13 years to join Greenpeace Australia Pacific.
Moving from commercial media to a global environmental organisation was a significant shift. Shortly after she arrived, the Black Summer bushfires blanketed Sydney in smoke for weeks, providing a vivid and confronting reminder of the urgency of climate change.
“My time at Greenpeace fundamentally changed my perspective,” she says. “It made the issues impossible to ignore and showed me how purpose‑driven organisations can scale impact in powerful ways.”
Finding the bridge between purpose and commerciality
Caroline joined WorkVentures after an introduction through a professional connection — an opportunity that perfectly aligned her commercial experience with her desire for social impact.
“At WorkVentures, we combine social purpose with a commercial, client‑centred model,” she explains. “It allows us to be sustainable, scalable and focused on quality.”
Her arrival coincided with the onset of the COVID‑19 pandemic. While home‑schooling her two daughters, she witnessed firsthand how deeply the digital divide affected families. “Children without devices or digital skills were falling behind. The digital divide widened overnight.
Programs close to Caroline’s heart
Almost five years into her journey as WorkVentures’ CEO, two initiatives stand out among Caroline’s proudest achievements: the Technology Facilitated Abuse (TFA) Playbook and WorkVentures’ support of The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program.
The Technology Facilitated Abuse (TFA) Playbook addressed a real gap in support available to domestic abuse survivors and caseworkers. Sadly, this form of abuse is rapidly on the rise, where perpetrators use digital devices, spyware, & social media to control, monitor, or harass victim-survivors; it’s complex, fast-evolving and increasingly common. The Playbook provides practical tools, safety checklists and step-by-step guidance for caseworkers supporting victim-survivors. The impact was immediate, the Playbook helped frontline workers support more than 1,000 victim-survivors in a single region in its initial rollout.
Equally meaningful for Caroline is the organisation’s work with The Smith Family on their Learning for Life program, an initiative supporting over 70,000 young people experiencing poverty to stay engaged throughout their education. These children often start school already behind their peers, through no fault of their own, simply because they lack access to the tools and opportunities many others take for granted.
Working alongside community partners and program specialists, Caroline’s team helped shape a model that delivers not only the digital devices children need for learning, but also the essential digital skills that empower entire families to use technology confidently. For Caroline, the project demonstrated how thoughtful design and technology can improve real-life outcomes for children and their families.
For Caroline, both projects reflect the best of social enterprise. “This is technology expertise being used for profound human benefit,” she says.
Looking ahead
Caroline’s career shows what can happen when commercial leadership and social purpose work together.
From negotiating Olympic broadcast rights to tackling digital poverty, her journey has been defined by adaptability and a commitment to meaningful change.
Looking ahead, she is focused on scaling Work Ventures’ impact, including the continued growth of the National Device Bank, an initiative aiming to secure one million donated devices to help reduce digital poverty across Australia.
As WorkVentures enters its next chapter, Caroline remains committed to ensuring technology becomes a pathway to opportunity, not a barrier.
Bloom is proud to support WorkVentures and grateful to Caroline for sharing her story and leadership.
Pictured above left, is Caroline attending The King’s Trust Australia Awards and above right, presenting on the National Device Bank to the Women in Tech Fest 2026.