Our People

Michael McGoogan, Co-owner/Director

Michael founded one of Australia’s largest cloud service providers, UberGlobal, in his Rivett bedroom when he was just 14. By the time Michael was 27, UberGlobal’s customer base had reached 130,000+. Melbourne IT acquired the business for $15.5 million in April 2015.

Michael was also the Chairman of Crucial Cloud Hosting, which was acquired by Digital Pacific for $6.5 million in June 2015.

Michael is a business builder and investor who helps online companies manage growth, drive revenue and stay profitable.

There is much more to Michael’s story, check it out here.

Tim White, Co-owner/Director

Canberra-born tech entrepreneur Tim White was one of the driving forces behind real estate platform Allhomes.

Tim was CEO of Allhomes from 2007-2016. While Tim was at the helm, the number of listings on the site grew from 5,000 to 430,000. Page views rose from 10,000 per day to 2 million per day, and revenue grew at an annual rate of 35 per cent. Allhomes became one of the most trusted and iconic brands in the Canberra region.

Allhomes was acquired by Fairfax Media in 2014 for $50 million.

Inspired by his young family, Tim is a passionate advocate for life in the capital. Read more of his story here.

Genevieve Jacobs, Group Editor

Genevieve Jacobs has been a journalist for 30 years, working in print and radio. Her career began with rural newspapers on the South West Slopes, she has freelanced for national magazines and spent a decade with ABC Radio Canberra. She works with a wide range of Canberra organisations including the Tara Costigan Foundation, and Gift of Life ACT, sits on the ACT’s advisory committee for Historic Places and the boards of the National Folk Festival, Canberra International Music Festival, M16 artspace and the Conflict Resolution Service. Genevieve has an enduring interest in building community, and creating discussions that include us all. And she still loves nothing better than a good yarn.

Ian Bushnell, News Director

Ian “Bushy” Bushnell is a career journalist and a former News Editor and Chief of Reporting staff at The Canberra Times, where he was at the centre of some of the capital’s biggest stories.

A Canberra resident since 1995, he and his partner have raised three children here and takes a keen interest in politics, urban development, health, education and sustainability issues.

He enjoys the ACT’s bush environment and its rich cultural offerings including music, theatre and sport, and a good bottle of red.

Ian Campbell, Regional Director

Ian comes from a long background in radio, starting in community radio at high school in Wollongong.

Until March 2016 Ian was Regional Content Manager and Breakfast Presenter for ABC South East NSW – covering towns like Bega, Merimbula, Batemans Bay, Narooma, Cooma, Jindabyne, and Bombala.

Each town in Ian’s patch has a colour, feel, and set of skills of its own. It’s a place he knows well and brings to you via Region Group.

Tim Gavel, Contributing Editor

Sports commentator with ABC Grandstand since 1988, calling a range of sports including NRL, Super Rugby, Wallabies, Rowing World Cups, Rugby World Cups, Socceroos, Matildas, Opals, Boomers, WNBL, NBL, International Netball, Men’s and Women’s one day international cricket, Big Bash, World Volleyball League for Fox Sports, Rowing World Cup and National Championships for Fox Sports and the 2000 Paralympics. Tim is an icon in the ACT region's sporting community and brings an unrivalled insight to the games we play, big and small.

Ian Oswald, Chief Technical Officer

Ian has played a senior role in a series of successful high-growth technology businesses including Senior Platform Engineer at UberGlobal and Platform Developer at MelbourneIT.

Leading the development of Region Group’s technical platform, Ian is responsible for platform development, hosting, maintenance, and operations.

Tim Benson, Business Development Manager

Tim is a Canberra boy and has thrived in the capital’s government, corporate and not-for-profit sectors.

Prior to joining the Region Group, Tim was the founder and publisher of B2B Magazine, Canberra’s premier business magazine.

At Region Group he drives our coverage of and relationships with the business community, looking for opportunities that build strong resilient futures for all.

Lachlan Roberts, Journalist

Lachlan’s flair for sports coverage in and around Canberra adds terrific depth to the communities we serve and the Region Group team.

This Canberra born and bred journalist sits on a big variety of sidelines, keen to reflect the depth of local and regional sport in our coverage area.

When he isn’t cheering on the Raiders, Liverpool, or Essendon, Lachlan loves to investigate, write, listen and analyse.

Ruwendi “Wendy” Wakwella, Sub-Editor

A native of Sri Lanka, Wendy brings a big world view to the Region Group team.

She has worked in Sri Lanka as a freelance journalist in the field, writing with passion about the plight of women in post-conflict zones.

Wendy is a current postgraduate student at the Australian National University, studying Diplomacy, which builds on her three years in the not-for-profit sector specialising in policy research and advocacy.

Daniella Jukic, Account Executive

Daniella is a motivated senior communications professional with ten years experience working across social media, media and public relations.

She possesses extensive experience in developing highly-engaging social media communication plans, including the supporting marketing collateral such as photography and videos.

Contributors

Our full-time team is supported by an increasing diversity of regular contributors.

This depth of talent adds a dynamic to our coverage of Canberra and the surrounding region that is unique and insightful.

Meet our contributors here.