SafetyCulture appoints leading lawyer Peter Dunne

SafetyCulture today announces the appointment of Peter Dunne as VP Corporate Development and General Counsel. Dunne, who is also a part-time partner at Herbert Smith Freehills, is one of Australia’s leading venture capital and private equity lawyers and specialises in private capital raisings and M&A.

Dunne advises on multibillion-dollar transactions, including acquisitions, buy-outs, and joint ventures and has acted on behalf of Australia’s largest technology brands. His clients include Atlassian, Canva, Deputy, CultureAmp, Linktree, Campaign Monitor, Expert 360, ShoreTrade, Gamurs, Big Red Group, Metigy, Finder, Slocoach, Different Technologies, Reejig, Rosemary Health, Social Garden and others. Additionally, in 2018, Dunne led the negotiation of employee share scheme reforms for startup entities which were ultimately adopted by the Federal Government.

SafetyCulture, the global operations platform which empowers working teams to drive improvements in the workplace, is one of the fastest growing technology companies in Australia. Dunne recently supported SafetyCulture’s funding round which saw it reach an AU$2.2 billion valuation in May 2021.

Luke Anear said of the appointment, “No one knows the VC world like Peter does. He has been instrumental in some of the biggest tech deals and his contribution to the Australian technology industry is incalculable. This is a strategic move for SafetyCulture. Peter has been advising us for years from the outside, but as our growth has accelerated, so has our need to build out the capability of our in-house team to continue to capitalise on this success. We are excited for Peter to bring his deep experience to SafetyCulture as we continue to grow and expand globally.”

Dunne will be responsible for establishing a corporate development team and the acceleration of SafetyCulture’s growing partnership model.

Dunne said, “I have been fortunate to work closely with some amazing businesses, and some incredible founders. SafetyCulture was one of the early companies I started working for in the venture space. Luke and I hit it off from the start. I love his vision and sense of energy; roll the sleeves up, and get going. HSF taught me that. It is the same at SafetyCulture. I am excited about working with an exceptional senior leadership team. I’ve always respected SafetyCulture’s vision and the big problems the team is trying to solve. I can’t wait to be a part of that.”

Dunne will continue to be a partner in Herbert Smith Freehills’ market-leading venture capital team, working on a part-time basis.

Building a team for growth

SafetyCulture has grown its employee base to over 600 staff in recent years. It plans to continue on the same hiring trajectory for the foreseeable future as it rapidly expands its global product and engineering teams. 

SafetyCulture was named as one of the best tech companies to work for in Australia in the 2020 Best Places to Work survey. To explore current roles at SafetyCulture visit https://safetyculture.com/careers/. 

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