Brenden Carriker

Principal

Brenden Carriker headshot
Brenden is a leader in public sector innovation with extensive experience in strategy, engagement, human-centred design, transformation and change.
He has led numerous complex projects across multiple sectors with a proven track record of enabling the teams he leads to push boundaries and deliver tangible results. A skilled facilitator, Brenden is recognised for bringing optimistic and unique perspectives to co-create new strategies, services and ways of working. He’s passionate about cities and their unique role leading the world to more sustainable futures.

Influential work

  • Designed and implemented service concepts to improve planning outcomes for the Victorian business and community using co-design and agile methodologies, with the work winning a 2023 Good Design Award
  • Led co-design and engagement for a whole-of-community Suicide Prevention and Response Strategy, including in-depth co-design sessions with people with lived experience
  • Facilitated development of a whole-of-government reform strategy and action plans to transform regulatory policy and practice for a major state government
  • ​Taking a trauma-informed approach, engaged people with lived experience to co-design policy and service reforms to improve government support for affected persons following a serious workplace incident or fatality
  • Led an innovative deliberative engagement process to develop City of Melbourne’s 10-year vision and four-year plan, utilising multiple channels and methods to ensure all members of the community were empowered to shape the city’s direction.

Outside of Nous

While Director of CityLab, Brenden led its growth and evolution from a small design team into a high-performing and multidisciplinary team with capabilities in design, creative communications, agile, analytics and change management. He has nearly 15 years’ experience delivering complex projects in the public and private sectors.

Brenden holds a Master of Urban Habitat Management from University of Adelaide and a Bachelor of Science with a major in ecology, behaviour and evolution from University of California, San Diego.

In his spare time...

Brenden grew up in Arizona and loves being outdoors. He’s an avid gardener, hiker, scuba diver and birder. And, since you asked, his favourite bird is the Major Mitchell’s cockatoo.