Elliot Parkinson - Director
About
Elliot is a Director of Beacon Strategies, which he co-founded in 2015 to help contribute towards a more impactful social purpose sector. Elliot works a diverse mix of client partners — using data, research and people's experiences to develop strategy, design programs, guide implementation and evaluate impact. Elliot is particularly keen on doing work that is genuinely helpful and impactful for the people and communities involved. Elliot’s role involves leading internal project teams, steering projects, fostering relationships with client partners and levelling up our practice.
Capabilities
Elliot brings strong knowledge and expertise across the disciplines of strategy, health planning, co-design, commissioning and evaluation. These capabilities are grounded in Elliot’s professional background in public health and its intersection with management consulting — applying skills in research, community engagement, quantitative analysis, qualitative analysis and reporting, alongside an expert ability to manage complex projects/programs, apply agile ways of working and meet our client expectations.
Approach to Work
Elliot is passionate about learning as an important component of our work. This means bringing people together ‘in’ the work to reflect along the way, documenting what we learn and sharing these insights transparently with those who might benefit (now and later), and striving to create environments that are safe and supportive for people to try and learn together.
Achievements at Beacon Strategies
Since co-founding Beacon Strategies back in 2015, Elliot has led a diverse range of projects of various scale, impact areas and client types. Some of the work projects that Elliot is most proud of includes:
Designing, testing and evaluating an innovative model of support for carers of loved ones experiencing a suicidal crisis, which has since been continued and scaled up into other regions
Evaluating a multi-year, multi-site program supporting the wellbeing and resilience of children and young people impacted by natural disasters
Designing and reviewing emerging models of social prescribing for Primary Health Networks in different regions across Australia
Developing a First 1,000 Days framework and supporting joint implementation plan that aims to lift maternal and child health outcomes in North Queensland through coordinated and collective action
Developing regional health needs assessments for several PHNs that draw on the experiences and insights of communities, professional expertise, research and population health data to guide future health service priorities
Leading a regional approach to Lived Experience workforce development in the context of suicide prevention that reflects co-design and co-production principles
Developing an outcomes and impact framework for a rapidly growing non-profit organisation, including ongoing support to build capability and embed impact measurement practice
Professional Experience
Director and Co-founder of Beacon Strategies since 2015
Principal Advisor, Queensland Government 2011-2016
Health Promotion Officer, Brisbane City Council, 2010-2011
Exercise Physiologist / Wellness Coordinator, Brisbane City Council, 2007-2010
Academic Qualifications
Master of Public Health, University of Queensland, 2011
Bachelor of Science (Human Movement Science), University of Queensland, 2007
Career Highlights
Adjunct Lecturer in the School of Public Health at the University of Queensland
Member, Public Health Association of Australia
Member, Australian Evaluation Society
Personal Interests
When not on the clock, you’ll find Elliot in the thick of parenting a 3-year old and spending any rare spare time cooking, eating, travelling, gardening and learning about how the world works.
