ABOUT
WHO & WHY
Built for honest thinking.
The Thinkery is an executive advisory built on the belief that the most consequential work leaders do happens in conversation through thinking together and that most organisations dramatically underinvest in the quality of those conversations. We sit beside you, challenge your thinking, widen your perspective and bring practical experience of people who’ve done the job. And if we aren’t the absolute experts in your problem, we find the right ones for you, through our network of collaborators.
01
WHY WE EXIST
The
conversations
that shaped this.
Senior leadership is, in many ways, more solitary than people imagine.
The bigger the seat, the fewer the people who can be trusted with the unvarnished version of a problem. Not because of any failing simply because of where they sit. Boards have governance to protect. Teams have their own ambitions. Advisors have a product to sell.
We built The Thinkery for the conversation that doesn’t have a natural home anywhere else: the one a leader needs to have before the board paper is written, before the announcement is made, before the call is taken.
A space to think clearly, with someone who has held the role, carried the weight. and has nothing to sell but their honest perspective.
OUR PHILOSOPHY
The Thinking
behind our work.
Leadership is thinking work. Good decisions and judgement requires space, honest challenge and the perspective of people who understand your world.
We slow thinking down to speed outcomes up.
01
Leadership is a system.
Most organisations invest in capability, and are now investing in how these leaders think, operate and act better together.
03
Most problems are thinking problems.
Clarity, judgement and alignment are usually the constraint.
02
Better conversations change outcomes.
The work happens in the room, in how decisions are explored, challenged and made. That’s where we focus.
04
The conditions matter as much as the people.
Even strong leaders often must navigate ineffectively designed environments. Structure, rhythm and trust shape how well leadership works.
A NOTE FROM US
" We started The Thinkery because we believe the best decisions get made when leaders have somewhere honest to think."
MARIANNE WALKER & SHAWN BLACKMORE – CO-FOUNDERS
Partner
Marianne
Walker.
- Former Deputy CEO & Chief Member Officier $105B superannuation fund
- Board Director, Royal Women's Hospital
- 25+ years senior executive across superannuation. government, logistics, utilities, energy, health & operations
- Led large scale transformations under regulatory scrutiny
More than twenty-five years leading through transformation, regulatory expectation, and the decisions that shape organisations over time.
Most of Marianne’s career has been spent at the senior end of large, complex, regulated organisations across superannuation, government, health, logistics, energy and utilities. Most recently, as Deputy CEO of a $100B super fund, she led strategy, operations and member experience through one of the most demanding periods the industry has faced.
The work has never been theoretical. It’s been about making decisions when the stakes are high resetting direction, aligning operating models, stabilising under pressure, and delivering outcomes that hold up.
She is known for bringing clarity into complex environments, aligning teams, and moving organisations forward when things aren’t straightforward.
Alongside this, Marianne serves as Deputy Chair of the Royal Women’s Hospital, where the focus is equally on judgement, governance and responsibility — just in a different context.
What she brings to this work is a clear head, a direct view, and a willingness to say what needs to be said.
“The leaders I most respected were the ones who could be told the truth, and could tell it back. That’s the company I want to keep.”
More than twenty-five years working across financial services, retirement and transformation at the scale where decisions move billions and shape how millions of people experience the system.
Shawn has held senior roles across some of Australia’s largest superannuation environments, most recently as Chief Officer Retirement at a $350B fund, leading the response to major policy and member shifts across the system.
His career has spanned large institutions, fintech disruptors, startups and private wealth building and leading businesses through very different stages, but always close to the decisions that matter.
Today, he is working with fintech and startup’s who are looking at the retirement and financial services space. The Thinkery sits alongside that work a deliberate practice for the conversations that don’t sit neatly within any one organisation.
Across that time, he has been the person other executives turn to for perspective, for challenge, and for a clear view when things aren’t straightforward.
What he brings is a steady, considered view, and the ability to get to the heart of an issue quickly.
“Most of the best conversations I’ve been part of started with someone saying, ‘I don’t have anyone else I can ask this.’ That’s the kind of space I try to create.”
PARTNER
Shawn
Blackmore.
- Former Chief Officer Retirement $350B Australian super fund
- Advisory work to fintechs and startup's.
- 25+ years accross superanuation, fintech, startups & private wealth
- Senior executive in financial services, strategy, transformation & retirement
WHY TOGETHER
Two founders, one
practice.
Marianne and Shawn have spent two decades in overlapping orbits – same industries, same rooms, often the same conversations from different seats. The Thinkery is the practice they wish had existed when they were the executives doing the asking.
We work as a pair, or independently, depending on what the engagement needs. Some clients want one steady voice. Others want two perpectives in the room. Both are by design.
About The Thinkery
Clarity for leaders who carry the weight of decisions.
The Thinkery was created for leaders who need a place to think—free from internal agenda, performance politics or the pressure to have every answer. We provide a confidential space where experienced leadership peers help you make sense of complexity, sharpen your judgement and move forward with confidence.
We sit beside you, challenge your thinking, widen your perspective and bring the practical experience of people who’ve done the job.
Our Philosophy
Leadership is thinking work.
The higher you go, the more your value comes from clarity—clarity of judgement, direction, priorities and decisions.
But clarity requires space. Most leaders don’t have it.
We help create that space by cutting through noise, simplifying problems and getting to the heart of what matters most.
Our Approach
Experience over theory
We’ve lived the pressure of senior leadership and bring that reality to every conversation.
Honest conversations Direct, respectful challenge that helps you see blind spots and unlock new options.
Practicality first
If it can’t be applied on Monday, it’s not worth much.
Forward and backward
We help you prepare for what’s coming (ThinkAhead) and learn from what didn’t work (ThinkThrough).
A trusted, confidential partnership
A safe place for leaders to think aloud, explore, disagree and reflect.
Founders
Shawn Blackmore
Shawn has spent over two decades in senior leadership roles across financial services. Known for his clarity, calmness and ability to steer complex organisational challenges, he brings deep experience in strategy, culture, transformation and high-stakes decision making.
Marianne Walker
Marianne is an executive leader with broad experience across customer strategy, people leadership, operations and organisational clarity. She is known for her ability to simplify complexity, develop leaders and guide teams through significant change.
Why We Exist
Because leadership can be isolating.
Because perspective matters.
Because even the strongest leaders need a place to think.
The Thinkery is that place.
START A CONVERSATION
If something here resonates, the next step is a conversation.
No proposal, no pitch just a half hour to understand what you’re
navigating and whether we’re the right fit.