Inner Chief Podcast

In this episode I cover a key point that all of the CEOs have made on the show, ‘How to Create and Seize Opportunities’. “You have to create opportunities, they are the lifeblood of your track record” The top of the business world is fiercely competitive. Getting the chance at new opportunities can be rare and when they do come you have to make the most of it. Often you’ll see other executives getting golden opportunities that you thought should go to you and not understand why. This is often because you’re too busy, caught up in daily operations that you miss the chance to stand out. Don’t be limited by your role description. (Ep 5 – Vivek Bhatia also talks about this) Work on the business with your boss (Ep 3 – Daniel Hunter refers to this) A mistake that many leaders make is that they don’t seize the current opportunity in front of them and transform their current business. They keep waiting for bigger opportunities to come without looking at what is right in front of them. If you don’t make a big impact i

“Be brave, because I think the world is changing quickly. What got us here won't get us there, and the best advice I would give to people is go after the dream, but perhaps also be prepared to take the path less trodden to get there, because I think it will hold you in good stead.”   In this episode I catch up with Nicky Sparshott, Global Chief Executive of T2 Tea - a global luxury retailer offering the broadest and most imaginative range of teas and teawares from around the world. Nicky also serves as Vice President on the Global Leadership Team for Unilever's Refreshment Category, playing a lead role in M&A & E-Commerce. She also has experience on the agency side as a Partner at Y&R George Patterson (WPP Group).   Key Points Nicky’s top messages include: On what Nicky learnt from a major setback from a failed product launch: A couple of really small choices that we thought were small choices, had not been clever and we did not deep dive. These proved to be those chinks in the armour that really

In this episode you’ll hear from Jim Soorley, Former Mayor of Brisbane and Chairman of CS energy and Unity Water. Jim has left an almost unrivalled legacy in Brisbane through his tireless work at Lord Mayor. He led the introduction of CityCats, A/C on buses, RiverFire, RiverWalk and brought a business and commercial approach to the running of the council. Key Points: Jim outlines the importance of energy, getting connected to the people on the ground and role modelling the behaviour you want to see.   Jim’s top messages include: Life is about sales. You’re always selling something. An idea, concept, product or service. For people who are working in management roles, they've got to see it is the system that determines outcomes. I guess the lessons out of that are that, if you're going to engage in training, restructure, reorganisation, you, A, must take a systems approach and B, let the people on the ground have a say. The worst thing in the world you can do is impose new structures, new disciplines, new idea

In this episode you’ll hear from Trevor Matthews former MD/CEO of Legal & General Australia, ManuLife, Friends Provident PLC, Aviva UK and Standard Life UK. He is currently a non-executive director of AMP, Tokio Marine, FNZ and BUPA. He is also Chair of the State Industry Regulatory Authority and 1stAvailable Ltd. Key Points: Trevor tells the story of his remarkable career from actuary to CEO and President of some of the world’s biggest insurance companies. He outlines that a leaders is a dealer in hope, you have to build a track record and importantly you need to be respectful about the past, realistic about the present and optimistic about the future. Trevor’s top messages include: Travel was great in that it gave me a global perspective It’s the execution of the strategy that makes the difference on a sustainable basis Compete aggressively on the outside and collaborate superbly on the inside You've got to line your people up shoulder to shoulder and get them out in the market aggressively going for b

In this episode you’ll hear from Jennifer Holland, Founder and CEO of Throat Scope.   Jennifer’s passion lies in inventing, designing and developing medical products that will revolutionise the healthcare industry. Her first invention was Throat Scope, which has had outstanding success across the globe and began as the foundation of Holland Healthcare. Throat Scope was the recipient of ‘What’s Your Big Idea Queensland?’ in 2011, which included a $50,000 prize money from the Queensland government. This allowed Jennifer to develop and patent Throat Scope and have several working prototypes made. In 2015, Jennifer and Throat Scope were featured on Shark Tank Australia. Jennifer secured investment from Steve Baxter and this exposure propelled the business. In October 2015, Throat Scope was launched into the Australian retail and healthcare markets. Throat Scope broke a retail record with a company, which saw the product signed in seven days. Jennifer has since negotiated several lucrative distribution deals with

The Inner Chief Podcast - Episode 7: Todd Hunter – CEO Turners Automotive Group In this episode you’ll hear from Todd Hunter, CEO Turners Automotive Group Key Points: Todd outlines that there will be times that you are scared about what you're being asked to do but - pressure is a privilege - and someone believes you can do this. Todd’s top messages include: When assessing an opportunity or role always ask yourself what can I learn from the people that I will be around? When you're faced with someone hostile - You listen more than you talk, you put yourself in their shoes, you try and understand where they're coming from. When you disagree with the direction of a business you have three options - you can win the person over, you can go around them or you can leave.  

In this episode you’ll hear from Jonathan Ling, CEO and MD of GUD Holdings Limited. Jonathan is also the former CEO of Fletcher Building and Visy Recycling. He is the Chairman of Melbourne Rebels Advisory Board and has previously held a number of other board roles including ASB bank and Pacific Brands. During his time as CEO of GUD the market capitalisation has grown from $360 million to $1.2 billion and the share price from around $5 to in excess of $13. And during his time as CEO at Fletcher Building market capitalisation grew from around NZ$2.5 billion to NZ$4.8 billion. Jonathan is a fantastic story of a little Chinese boy that rose from the frontline all the way through the ranks to becoming CEO. He has taken on some of the biggest challenges in business and succeeded both commercially and through the culture he has created. Key Points: Jonathan outlines that “to get ahead you must tell wow stories” and that you must have three key skills to be CEO; 1. The ability to innovate, 2. The ability to lead a g

In this episode you’ll hear from Vivek Bhatia. At age 26, Vivek was a Indian migrant watching the big businessmen in their expensive suits walk around Sydney. This inspiring story is how he rose above the pack to become a CEO in just 10 years.  Vivek is now CEO and MD of iCare which delivers insurance and care services to the people of New South Wales. Whether a person is severely injured in the workplace or on the road, iCare supports their long-term care needs to improve quality of life outcomes, including helping people return to work. In 2008, Vivek was appointed CEO of Wesfarmers Insurance in Australia, where he was responsible for leading the multi-brand, multi-channel insurer through a significant transformation journey. He was also co-lead of McKinsey & Company’s Asia Pacific Restructuring & Transformation practice and has been the Chair of the former NSW Dust Diseases Board and been the NSW representative on the Board of SafeWork Australia. Key Points: Vivek outlines that “the day you stop le

In this episode you'll hear from Paul Broad. Paul is one of the great reformers of modern Australian business. He has been a CEO for 28 years leading major reform in Hunter Water, Sydney Water, Powertel, AAPT, Infrastructure NSW and Snowy Hydro. He has led many of these companies through corporatization and user pays representing the biggest change in their organisational history. Key Points: Paul outlines how important it is to dream and believe in yourself, how as leader sometimes you have to break the rules to succeed and that success comes through personal power. 

“Relationships are like a bank account – you have to put credits in, and when you need something, you’re able to withdraw. So forming relationships is about doing the right thing by people, and when you need them, they often will do the right thing by you.”   In this episode, you’ll hear from Daniel Hunter, CEO of HealthShare, NSW, on staying the course, leveraging your networks and being grateful. HealthShare is the largest public sector shared services organisation in Australia. It is a statewide body of more than 6,500 employees who support the delivery of patient care in NSW Health. On any given business day, HealthShare NSW: Serves more than 65,000 meals to patients Supplies 110 tonnes of clean linen to hospitals Manages the pays of 146,000 NSW Health employees Processes for NSW public hospitals nearly 12,000 accounts payable invoices valued at $72 million We talk all about: How the ‘command and control’ CEO is being replaced by a humble, empathetic one Bringing a sense of purpose to the organisation

“He (Don Argus AO) said to me that if I was going to get to General Manager and beyond, CEO potentially, you have got to learn how to deal with people and I want you to have a good academic base and then we’ll overlay it with experience.”   In this episode, you’ll hear from Mike Pratt AM, Secretary of Treasury in the NSW Government, on being well prepared, disciplined, transparent and keeping integrity in everything you do. Mike is the NSW Customer Service Commissioner leading major service reform across the NSW Government. He is also Deputy Chancellor of Western Sydney University (WSU), Non-Executive Director of Credit Union Australia, Non-Executive Director of TAL and Deputy Chair of iCare. He is also the Former Chairman of Bennelong Funds Management (recently retired there after 5 years), former President of the Australian Institute of Banking & Finance and inaugural joint President of Finsia. His previous roles include CEO of NAB Australia, CEO of Consumer and SME Banking, North East Asia, with Standa

“I had this philosophy of life that in challenging times, you always have that view of new jobs where after 2 or 3 months you look yourself in the mirror and say, ‘I've got this' so I think backing yourself and taking risks is part of the game.”   In this episode, you’ll hear from Kevin Young, MD of Sydney Water on how to seize the future, be proactive and take risks and how this will help you be successful in the modern business world. Kevin has been a CEO for over 13 years and is also the former MD of Hunter Water and sits on the board of Wateraid International. He is the MD of Sydney Water, which is Australia’s biggest utility with turnover of over $2.6B and more than 2,500 employees. We talk all about: How a manager is someone who achieves things through others; Being humble but maintaining fierce resolve; Deciding who should be on the bus with you; and Having a reputation of being a team player who has a track record. Connecting with Kevin Young You can connect with Kevin via LinkedIn. Books and resour