Sally Capp

A special instance from this challenging period was when the City of Melbourne partnered with charities and housing agencies to offer safe sleeping arrangements, support services, and three meals a day for those experiencing homelessness in the city.

Another achievement was the $300 million Melbourne Recovery Fund, later renamed the Melbourne Revitalisation Fund. This initiative with the State Government aimed to support events and public infrastructure improvements to encourage people back to the city again.

Earlier roles

After graduating from the University of Melbourne with Law and Commerce degrees, Capp worked as a solicitor and later as a Senior Associate.

She then made the pivot into business.

“There have been moves that I've made in my career where other people have said, ‘Why did you go backwards? Why have you made that decision? You're worse off than you were,”’ Capp said in a 2020 interview with Faculty of Business and Economics staff.

“But in my mind, for my own reasons, I was always better off. I think it's really important to be able to, even in the face of other people's opinions, make career moves that might otherwise be seen as sideways or backwards, but you know that you're making them for reasons that are great for you.”

Capp went on to become a Senior Executive at ANZ Bank, and in 2013, she served as the Head of Markets in Victoria at KPMG. Additionally, she was the Chief Operating Officer for the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the leading organisation for businesses in Victoria.

Sally served as the CEO of the Committee for Melbourne, the Executive Director of the Property Council of Australia, and the Managing Director of the Australian Heritage Group.

Lord Mayor of Melbourne

When Capp was sworn in as Lord Mayor of Melbourne in 2018, she became the first woman to be directly elected to the position.

It was her desire to make a difference that led her to government.

“For many years now, I've worked in roles where there's a commercial element, because I absolutely love the hardness and edginess of the commercial, but there always has to be an agenda or an outcome that delivers value to society and the broader community,” she said.

The opportunity to run for mayor came up at the perfect time for Capp – just after her youngest son finished school.

Capp recalled the high expectations she placed on herself as a younger woman, when she "used to try and have everything done in the house before I left in the morning, and then go to work and try to be perfect at work as well."

She admits she was "putting a lot of pressure on herself" at the time.

By 2018, with a wealth of professional experience, Capp was able to dedicate a great deal of time and energy to the role of Lord Mayor, without sacrificing enjoyment.

“It's an incredibly busy but fulfilling role, but very full on, because we live in the city as well, I rarely leave the demands of the job. But I absolutely love working in local government. I live and breathe this job,” she said in 2020.