Blog No. 160 – Putting Broomsticks Up Some Backsides, Part 6: 28 January 2025

Although HCF had taken steps to prevent its Directors from receiving any communications from me, I successfully sent letters to HCF Chief Executive Sheena jack and HCF Chairman Mark Johnson.

To achieve anything, it is essential that you get the attention of relevant people.

Sheena Jack and Mark Johnson were worried because of what I was doing. 

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Margaret in Sydney on the 31st of March, 2019. The art was gifted to me by a good friend. 

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Photo of a kangaroo I took on the 23rd of February, 2019.

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HCF Bar on Communication With Directors

Email addresses for HCF Directors were publicly available, but HCF had taken steps to ensure that people like myself could not communicate with any Directors except Chairman Mark Johnson and Chief Executive Sheena Jack, who held the Managing Director title.  The bar to prevent access to the Directors must have been put in place before my 11 April 2022 letters.  HCF had taken steps to ensure that any attempts to communicate with the Directors of the company, had to be funnelled through the Chief Executive or (possibly) through the Chairman.  

Although all Directors were legally liable for the actions of the company, the company had taken steps to ensure any information received by its Directors was approved in advance by either the Chief Executive or (possibly) by the Chairman.

Preventing communication with Directors through the official company channels meant it was physically impossible for these seven Directors to be satisfied that they were carrying out their duties in the manner required by law. 

As a matter of law, Directors must act independently and ensure the companies they are Directors of, obey their legal obligations.  Independence is physically impossible if paid company employees are their only source of information.  I was attempting on the 11th of April 2022 to bring to the attention of HCF Board members, serious concerns about ways in which HCF was disobeying the law Directors.  Some weeks later, the HCF Chairman told me in writing that the issue in my letters had been discussed at a Board meeting.  I have no idea if the HCF Chairman told me the truth when he made this claim.  It is possible that the other HCF Directors were never told about the issues I raised in my letters.  

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First Email From HCF Chief Executive

My first ever communication from Chief Executive Sheena Jack arrived at 5:05 pm on the 11th of April 2022.  Although it said nothing, it was important.  The lack of spaces between paragraphs in this copy, reflects the layout of that very first email.

Dear Mr Hankin Firstly I am very sorry to hear of Margaret’s health issues.  Thank you for providing this detailed feedback and my sincere apologies for the issues you and your wife have experienced.   I will commence an investigation immediately and will provide a response as soon as possible. Best wishes Sheena Jack Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director

I knew no reliance could be placed on the Sheena Jack claim that she would “commence an investigation immediately and [would] provide a response as soon as possible.”  Sheena Jack certainly already knew about my complaints about the refusal of HCF to obey the law.  

The importance of the email was that I had received a response from Sheena Jack and that the response had been sent almost immediately after I emailed my letter to her.  The HCF Chief Executive was not happy that I had written personally to every HCF Board member.

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I was no longer another unhappy customer.  I had become an unhappy customer who was making trouble with the HCF Board and its Chairman.

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I thought I might be having an impact on HCF when I received my second Sheena Jack email later that same day.  I thought it increased the possibility that something might be done.

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I had sent this email to Sheena Jack at 5:08 pm on the 11th of April.

Dear Ms Jack, My attempts to email letters to the Directors of HCF failed except for you and Mark Johnson.  Fortunately, Mr Barrington sent an auto reply saying that queries should be addressed to you.  It is clear that the official published email addresses for all Directors except you and Mr Johnson have been disconnected. I am therefore attaching to this email, all of the letters that I was unable to send by email to your fellow Directors of HCF because of the disconnection of their officially published email addresses.  I am certain that (however reluctantly), you will forward this correspondence to the intended recipients of the letters.  The law requires this and in any event they will also be sent by express mail. John Hankin

The second Sheena Jack email arrived at 6:31 pm on that same day.  Sheena Jack was located in Sydney, so it had been 7:01 pm in Sydney when she sent it.  

Overwhelmingly, most of my HCF communications were routine.  I was astonished to get an answer to my 5.08 email just one hour and 23 minutes after sending it.  The second Sheena Jack email said this.

Dear John  Thanks for your email and yes I confirm that I will provide copies to all Directors. Kind regards  Sheena Jack Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director

1 hour and 23 minutes after receiving my very first email from Sheena Jack, I was no longer “Mr Hankin”.  I had become John.  I knew we would never be friends.

I received nothing else from Sheena Jack that April.