Flying by an alternate path - Insights into board recruitment and governance trends with Kerryn Newton
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Release Date: 09/18/2020
Women on Boards I Making it Real
Once upon a time, this full-time NED for various ASX listed companies, worked one week a month in Mongolia in minus 40 degrees when she was the General Manager for Rio Tinto’s Global Copper Concentrate. Today she is often battling 40 degrees heat from her 1600-acre farm in Western NSW. Leanne latched onto the mining industry at a time when it wasn’t common for women and discrimination was overt. Leanne launched her portfolio career through hard work and preparation, and by not taking feedback personall
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Crushed by a 600kg horse in 2017 when training to qualify for the World Equestrian Games, doctors told Hacia Atherton she’d never walk again. Four years and 14 operations later, Hacia tells us how she has transformed her trauma into triumph. A CPA, CCO for her family’s manufacturing business, Committee Member for the CPA Australia Emerging Leaders Network and Advisory Board Member for Real Time Learning Australia, Hacia is passionate about increasing female tradies and smashing assumptions
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Ros Kelly, the former MP and OAM, joins Claire this week and shares the intimate story of her upbringing and professional life. Ros was elected the first woman member of the Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly, later became the first Labor woman federal minister in the House of Representatives and the first to give birth while holding office. Hear why it’s important to take opportunities, to know who you are and to choose the right partner, because we all need someone who has our back.
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Have you heard of the Governance Evaluator? If you’re on a Board or a Committee, it’s time you had. In this episode, Claire speaks with Maryanne Puli Vogels, Chair of Timboon and District Healthcare Services, about the Governance Evaluator — an intelligent technology solution with expert governance consultants. By baptism of fire, Maryanne became Chair and without GE, she and her Board would not be able to predict risks, identify gaps, create reports and generate insights for the future of their commu
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Julie is one of those women who knows, deeply, what she is here to do. In this podcast, Julie shares her story of advising chartered firms in the UK and Australia for 10 years, including Ernst & Young, before changing career paths. She realised her core purpose was to use her financial acumen to promote healthier communities and today serves as NED for RAVC, Greening Australia and Loddon Mallee Waste & Resource Recovery Group Board, among other significant roles.
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It’s podcast time! In this episode, Claire Braund speaks with Fiona McLean, CEO and Managing Director of The Social Index, about the impact of our digital footprint and the challenges and opportunities that exist for people in positions of governance. It’s a brand new world and your reputation as a leader is your most valuable and critical career asset. Learn why WOB has partnered with this unique platform to help its members optimise their online presence. Don’t miss this one.
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Claire speaks with a very special friend of WOB, Charlotte Valeur from Jersey in the United Kingdom. The internationally renowned and highly experienced Non-Executive Director and Chair has a reputation for leveraging good governance globally through her style of value-based leadership. The former Danish investment banker has extensive Board level experience with IPOs, mergers and acquisitions, and restructuring, but it is her ability to foster true diversity in the Boardroom that sets her apart.
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She’s kicked goals, smashed glass ceilings and debunked gender stereotypes at every turn during her substantive career. This week Claire Braund in conversation with Rebecca Frizelle, pioneer for Australia sports and passionate ambassador for the motor industry. She’s the Chief Operating Officer of Frizelle Prestige, was first female Chair in the NRL code and just last year, was awarded an Order of Australia for her contributions to the Motor Industry and Rugby League.
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Zita Peach discovered early in her career the importance of both actively seeking Board opportunities, actively networking and becoming known in the Board community. That’s how she transitioned from CSL Limited to Fresenius Kabi, while accepting two Board positions with ASX listed companies. Her story starts in Eastern Europe, takes her to studying BioMed at university and sees her today successfully heading multiple ASX listed companies.
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You can’t assume roles will fly at you because you have had a successful executive career, shares Kerry, ASX Director, Senior Executive and Board Advisor for the past two decades. In this podcast, Claire speaks with Kerry who has successfully led over $10 billion of complex multi-regional transactions, but regardless, networks like a boss to get seen in the non-executive sphere. Passionate about building strong corporate cultures, rigorous governance standards and unifying diverse operations.
info_outlineKerryn is the Managing Director of Directors Australia, a national board consulting and non-executive director recruitment firm.
In this podcast Kerryn shares her diverse background, what she’s seeing in the recruitment space and offers advice for candidates.
With her early career aspirations to fly jets not possible, Kerryn wanted to work in the control tower, but on the guidance of her father ended up studying law, albeit unenthusiastically. She tempered this by joining the Army Reserves in her first year of university to fulfil her desire to serve.
Kerryn ‘served’ for many years in various capacities while studying and working, where she excelled, winning the Sword of Honour as top student of her training regimen. She credits her time in the army as the foundation of her deep leadership and management experience.
After graduating from university Kerryn worked as a lawyer for only a short time, before literally stumbling across a job in parliament. Her initial contract was for two months on the Fitzgerald Inquiry and she ended up staying for 10 years, ascending to senior management and working at the cutting edge across 25 parliamentary enquiries.
After 10 years in parliament and separating from her husband, Kerryn moved into consulting to help her balance family and work. She purchased the name ‘Directors Australia’ knowing it was what she wanted to do and has grown the business consistently ever since.
Kerryn discusses how she joined her first board by accident and the key things she is seeing from her clients in the board recruitment space. She provides advice for candidates on the things they need to clarify when applying for a board role, including 'what value will you bring to a board?' and 'how will you brand yourself?' - which she says candidates typically don’t do well.
Kerryn Newton
LLM, MBA, MA, Grad Dip (Applied Finance and Investment), FAICD, FGIA, FIML
- Chief Executive Officer, Directors Australia
- Board of Trustees, Brisbane Grammar
- NED, Energy Queensland
- Kerryn Newton
- Claire Braund (host)
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