Our Story
Founded in 2013, Yurra is the outcome of the successful collaboration between the Yindjibarndi People and ALM Landscaping a successful construction business established in Port Hedland in 2010.
Formed with the shared goal to deliver sustainable procurement benefits to the community, Yurra provides employment and training for the people of Roebourne, while driving business, social and economic benefits for the wider community. As testament to the success of the partnership, all former ALM Landscaping staff and contracts transitioned to become part of the Yurra story.
Yurra is majority owned by all Yindjibarndi people via Yindjibarndi Wealth Pty Ltd a wholly owned investment entity established for the Yindjibarndi people post the signing of the Land Use Agreement with Rio Tinto Iron Ore (RTIO) in July 2013. Yurra’s balance ownership is by Right Foot Forward Pty Ltd (Liam Wilson), one of the founding Directors and current Group Managing Director.
We are proudly committed to driving long-term, economically sustainable businesses to achieve our goal of delivering positive economic, cultural and community benefits to the people and communities whose lands we operate.
“Innovation and good people are key to our success”
michael woodley | FOUNDER
Mission and Vision
Mission
Our mission is to improve the communities in which we operate by offering opportunities, training and career pathways.
We are committed to engaging with Aboriginal Communities and Stakeholders to identify opportunities, respond to concerns, facilitate employment and training and deliver long-term social, cultural and economic benefits to the West Pilbara region. The successful operation of Yurra correlates directly to this ongoing engagement, resulting in the strategic formulation and execution of efficient, community-driven projects.
Vision
To develop and deliver projects that inspire First Nations people to work together, contribute to the broader community and continue to work towards a unified and sustainable future.
Our Team
Yurra’s Management Team passionately drives the development of our team’s confidence and capability, with the objective of delivering strong, independently successful, sustainable businesses units that benefits both the Yindjibarndi People and the broader community.
Michael Woodley
Founder
Michael is a founder of Yurra and CEO of the Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation. Michael’s vision is to grow culture, community and commerce for the Yindjibarndi People in order to build long term sustainability for the Yindjibarndi Nation. Michael is a passionate advocate for Yurra and our ability to continue to build a business that can create positive long-lasting legacy’s for the communities in which we operate.
Henry Thong
Independent Director
Henry joined the Yurra board as an independent director in 2023 and is also the audit committee chair. He brings over 25 years of financial management and governance experience to the team at Yurra. In prior years, he has held Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretarial roles for large utilities and ASX companies. Henry has FCPA. MBA and GAICD qualifications.
Scott Mitchell
HSEQ Manager
Scott’s career includes HSEQ auditing, major emergency management on oil rigs, operational roles in rigging and cranes, and even major motion pictures. The HSEQ Department is committed to a holistic philosophy of safety maturity that views health, culture, quality, and safety through a unified lens.
Josh Boord
Engineering, Scaffold & Marine Team Manager
Josh has been with the group since 2014 and has led the development of what was formally known as DB Yurra. Although our relationship with DB remains strong the management and operations of our Engineering business unit is now completely run by the Pilbara team on the ground. Josh is a strong operational leader within the Yurra group with a commitment to innovation and safety that has been developed through exposure to numerous industries including the military, mining and oil and gas.
Mike Hollett
Chairman
Mike Hollett is one of the Founding Directors and current Chairman of Yurra having initially introduced Liam Wilson to Michael Woodley in late 2012 to discuss the establishment of a contracting business for the Yindjibarndi Nation. As a Hydrographer, Mike has almost 40 years of experience in both public and private capacities in the water industry together with extensive property/senior living development experience and is the co-founding Director of The Right Water Company and a Director of the Kimberley Marine Support Base and consults in both strategic business, indigenous agreement negotiations and as a water expert. Mike’s board and senior management experience includes being a former Chairman of the Western Australian Water Corporation and Ocean Gardens Inc, and having also previously served as the Chairperson on the Pilbara Development Commission and Director of Property Operations at the Satterley Property Group, one of Western Australia’s largest privately-owned property development companies.
Prior to this, Mike was the Chief Executive Officer of the National Lifestyle Villages Group and expanded its delivery of affordable new housing estates and senior and resource sector accommodation communities across Western Australia and Victoria. Mike is a GAICD.
Daksh Kakkar
Corporate Services
Daksh started with Yurra in 2018 and has taken a lead role within the corporate services team. Daksh is an accountant by trade and wants to ensure Yurra continues to develop it’s internal Governance, reporting and systems to support each business units plan, operations and growth.
Brendan Charlton
Director
Brendan is a proud Yindjibarndi Person, with a career in construction and operations in the oil & gas industry. Brendan joined Yurra in 2022 to support the growth of Yurra, with a strong focus on HSEQ and the safety of our people. He is passionate about continuing the development of Yurra and the positive impact it has on Yindjibarndi community and culture.
Taryn Milroy
Project Manager - Culture and Community
Taryn, joined Yurra in 2021 as a project manager, assisting several of our business units and managing the Yindjibarndi Ranger Program. Taryn, is a proud Yindjibarndi person and is passionate about local employment, community engagement, sustainable project practises, and increasing cultural awareness and understanding in all industries.
Justin Bryne
Landscape Construction Team Manager
Justin has been with Yurra since day one and has over 30yrs Commercial Landscape and Irrigation experience. Justin has been involved in the management and delivery of every Yurra Landscape Construction project from Broome to Onslow. Justin’s goal is to continue to promote our ability to have input into smart North West design solutions and build quality projects that engage with communities.
David Sheppard
Grounds Maintenance Team Manager
David (Dave) has significant Landscape experience and started with Yurra as a leading hand working within our Landscape Construction team. In recent years Dave has been exposed to more Maintenance work and is currently the acting Facilities Maintenance Manager for the business.
Liam Wilson
Group Managing Director
Liam is a founding Director of Yurra. Liam brings an entrepreneurial and community focused spirit to the role striving to build upon and create new partnerships for Yurra and supporting the team to deliver their goals.
Aden Parker
Systems Projects
Aden is responsible for the growth of Yurra’s systems. Aden is primarily focused on the upfront works in developing both core modules and identified project modules that add value to Yurra’s operational management and client delivery.
Ben Carless
Systems Maintenance
Ben is responsible for ensuring Yurra systems are integrated. Ben also supports the ongoing maintenance and troubleshooting of these systems.