How Charlotte Valeur went from investment banking to build a global portfolio: The naked truth about diversity
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Release Date: 03/01/2021
Women of a Certain Age - Ready for lift off: How Amanda Mark nailed her elevator pitch
Women on Boards I Making it Real
From avoiding fisticuffs on the trading floor to conquering Wall Street and running her own financial market regulation consultancy, Sydneysider Amanda Mark is known for her fearless determination and big picture thinking. It was always Amanda’s dream to work in financial services overseas, so after landing a job in Sydney for a money market broker as a chalky in the early 90s - one of four women on a trading floor of more than 250 men - Amanda secured a role in Morgan Stanley’s Sydney office before getting a transfer to the New York head office. It was in Manhattan that Amanda was to make...
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Cultural Diversity and Inclusion - Panel discussion with Shirley Chowdhary, Claire Beattie and Claire Braund
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Women on Boards marks UN World Day for Cultural Diversity with a panel discussion about cultural diversity and inclusion in board and leadership roles, with guests Shirley Chowdhary, AAP Board Member; and Women on Boards' Cultural Diversity Committee member and proud Yorta Yorta woman, Claire Beattie. Tune in to listen to this insightful and real conversation, as the panel discusses: The backgrounds and lived experiences of our guest Why cultural diversity in board and leadership roles matters What is cultural inclusion and psychological and cultural safety - How we can support culture &...
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Women of a Certain Age - Claire Braund in Conversation with Anita Kumar
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Turning diversity into a superpower Born in Tamil-speaking southern India, Anita Kumar was the first girl in her family to leave home at 17 to go to university. Today Anita lives in Sydney and is an experienced CEO, social entrepreneur and passionate advocate for the rights of children and families, especially those dealing with complex life issues or living in vulnerable circumstances. But her decision in 1990 to study engineering eight hours from home was less about following in the footsteps of her father - an early adopter of technology who worked at the University of Madras- and more...
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Women of a Certain Age - with Dr Marguerite Evans-Galea AM MAICD
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Growing up in Tropical North Queensland, clarinet-playing, science-loving Marguerite Evans-Galea felt like a “square peg in a round hole”. But thanks to her supportive family and a lifelong mentor - who also happened to be a university professor - Marguerite was inspired to pursue a career in STEM. As she tells Claire in this podcast: “He really did inspire me to thrive. He said, ‘think outside the box, go have a future, believe in yourself’. Those words stuck like glue and were a real inspiration.” Today Dr Evans-Galea is a leading research scientist, neurogenetic disease...
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Women on a Certain Age - with Sara Pantaleo
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Building a franchising empire, family business and cultural diversity Sara Pantaleo is a businesswoman who has always loved working and mentoring people. Migrating to Melbourne from Italy with her family as a teenager, Sara went on to work with mainframe systems in IT operations at NAB. In 1996 she joined La Porchetta as Distribution and Administration Manager – taking a major shift from the corporate environment into family business. Appointed as CEO in 2005 and to the board in 2010, after her brother was tragically killed in a road accident, Sara was instrumental in driving La...
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Women of A Certain Age - with Sarah Fairhurst
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Growing up in 1980s Britain, it's no surprise Sarah Fairhurst’s biggest role model was Margaret Thatcher. “I was at school when she was in power and she made me realise women could do anything,” says Sarah, a WOB member with significant expertise in the energy sector, including advising governments and industry on commercialization and issues relating to the power and energy sector. Like Britain’s first female Prime Minister, Sarah grew up in a modest, hardworking family in a small English town before heading down the Oxbridge route and graduating from Cambridge with an MA in Natural...
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Diversity is half the circle. Culture, equity and inclusion are the other half
Women on Boards I Making it Real
As a special episode we have reproduced a webinar that Women on Boards co-hosted with the Governance Institute of Australia titled Diversity is half the circle. Culture, equity and inclusion are the other half. Moderated by Catherine Fox, Journalist and Author Panel Members: Megan Motto FGIA, Chief Executive, Governance Institute of Australia Dr Marlene Kanga AM, Non-executive director, Sydney Water Corporation Claire Braund, Executive Director, Women on Boards Introduced by: Catherine Maxwell FGIA FCG, General Manager, Policy & Advocacy, Governance Institute of Australia
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On target: From banks to guns, Cheryl Dixon takes aim at Boards.
Women on Boards I Making it Real
When Cheryl Dixon is asked what Board she is on, her answer is met with raised eyebrows. With almost three decades with NAB, Cheryl’s first Board role with the Queensland Rifle Association came as a surprise to her and those around her. But six years ago she became the Board’s first woman and independent NED in the organisations’ 160-year history.
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Fiona David: Why we need a humane response to migration
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Fiona David has worked at the intersection of crime, law reform and human rights and in 2018 was appointed inaugural Research Chair of Minderoo Foundation. Fiona's career has seen her travel to some of the most dangerous corners of the globe while listening to the personal stories of human trafficking. As she says: “I am an adventurer deep in my heart. I feel compelled to do what I can to help others and to try and understand why people would put themselves in these incredibly risky situations.
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Building a Portfolio Career, Mustering Cattle and Surviving the witness box in the Banking Royal Commission
Women on Boards I Making it Real
In this episode Claire talks to highly accomplished board director Victoria Weekes about her board journey to an enviable portfolio career. She talks openly to Claire about her period of renewal, surviving the witness box in the Banking Role Commission, the importance of establishing and consistently following your values, humility and how we really haven’t come as far as we think with the gender pay gap.
info_outlineFormer Danish investment banker, Charlotte Valeur, is an internationally renowned and highly experienced Non-Executive Director and Chair who is committed to increasing levels of good governance globally through value-based leadership. Always destined to live and work abroad she admits, at the age of 22, Charlotte transferred from Denmark, her home, to London with the bank she was employed with at the time and has remained there ever since. Raised by an adoring father who encouraged and supported all of her choices, his words of advice have been key to her every success: “Jump life before life jumps you.” In this episode, Charlotte reminds that everything that happens to us in life is based on our personal decisions and no one else’s.
Intrigued by the behaviour of people, Charlotte studied psychology when she took some time off work when she had her children. It is these soft skills, paired with her innate knowledge of investment banking, that have set her apart in the Boardroom. Charlotte has extensive Board level experience with IPOs, mergers and acquisitions, and restructuring, and her portfolio of sectors range from construction, infrastructure, renewable energy, private equity, property, finance/investments/debt, higher education and the third sector. When she entered the world of Board governance, she had a feeling that the overriding principles of best practice were the same, no matter the country or the organisation. From Board composition, to risk management and oversight, to stakeholder engagement, she found from her lived experience that the principles were in fact the same.
When Charlotte first stepped into the Boardroom, she was alarmed that she was the only woman most of the time. Male Board members would justify the polarisation by saying there were no women with Board experience. This motivated Charlotte to establish Board Apprentice Ltd, a not for profit organisation that collaborates with Boards, governments, academia, the third sector and businesses in many different countries to achieve greater equality, diversity and inclusion for women and minority groups.
Today Charlotte is Non-Executive Director for Liang O’Rourke and NTR plc, Chair for Blackstone Loan Financing Ltd and FSN Capital GP and Advisory Board Member for multiple organisations.
When she first began chairing 15 years ago, the appalling slow pace of governance shocked Charlotte. Following the 2007, 2008 and 2009 financial crises, and now COVID, she confidently says we are witnessing a push for better governance and leadership.
Hear about Charlotte’s upcoming book, why her Autism diagnosis has in many ways made her a better Board member, and the benefits of her many transferable skills.
LinkedIn Charlotte Valeur | Claire Braund (host)