Blackmores heir takes over as CEO of the company

The son of the late founder of Blackmores (ASX:BKL) will take over the health company as interim CEO. Executive director Marcus Blackmore (pictured) will step in as interim CEO from 1 April. The appointment of Marcus comes following the shock resignation of Richard Henfry in late February after just 18 months in the role. Henfry s...

Merino Country woollen undies strike the right baa-lance

For many small businesses a high-profile defence contract would be like hitting the jackpot, but for woollen apparel manufacturer Merino Country it was a stepping stone to greater things.  With 20,000 customers worldwide, the Brisbane-based company celebrated 25 years in business last year and has come a long way from its o...

Village Roadshow legacy CEO Graham Burke to retire amid feud reports

Graham Burke has announced that he will retire from the top job at Village Roadshow (ASX: VRL) after having spent more than 30 years as its inaugural CEO. Burke first joined Village Roadshow at age 14 as a ticket collector and floor sweeper before becoming managing director of Village Drive-In Limited at 23. When Village Roadshow list...

Virgin Australia names Paul Scurrah as John Borghetti's successor

The replacement for long-time Virgin Australia CEO and MD John Borghetti has been found to lead Australia's second largest carrier. Paul Scurrah will replace John Borghetti who announced his intention to step down in June 2018 after a decade of working for the airline. Borghetti joined the airline in 2010, when it was called ...

Female board representation hits an all-time high

Gender diversity on ASX 200 boards has hit an all-time high at the end of 2018, with nearly 30 per cent of board positions filled by women. This is a huge milestone for Australian companies who have hit this target without any regulatory intervention or quotas. The Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) says the 29.7 per cen...

Super Retail Group draws from within to appoint new chief

Super Retail Group Limited (ASX: SUP) has appointed its current outdoor retailing managing director Anthony Heraghty to replace the long-serving Peter Birtles as chief executive and managing director of the company. Heraghty, who joined the retail giant's leadership team in 2015, was responsible for initiating and directing the acquis...

Staying ahead of the competition as a CFO

The role of the CFO in modern business is facing more pressure thanks to the increased importance of data collection, fierce competition from rivals and the need to modernise workplaces, according to a leading Australian analytics consultancy. Brisbane-based Bistech has released a report which shows there may be no position under more pre...

Ex-Macquarie exec takes top job at Yellow Brick Road

Yellow Brick Road (ASX: YBR) has appointed an ex-Macquarie board member to its helm, just weeks after a wild ride which included an unsolicited takeover offer of the company and a collapsed $300 million credit facility. Frank Ganis, former executive director at Macquarie Group, has joined the mortgage broker as CEO and is expected to help...

Crucial lessons from the C-suite: Grow yourself to grow your company

It took three years of building a successful medical device startup company before Nina Quinn was headhunted to become the CEO of Neurosensory. Quinn's transition in taking Neurosensory from a South East Queensland business turning over $5 million, to a multi-clinic enterprise now spanning three states wasn't an easy one. Had ...

How you can harness 'instability' to advance your career

Although it may have been a touch dramatic, Albert Einstein hit the nail on the head when he said, "once you stop learning, you start dying". In a fast-paced business landscape defined almost entirely by uncertainty and emerging technologies, learning new skills is virtually inseparable from success. According to innovation ...

Confidence in crisis: Overcoming collateral damage after strawberry needle disaster

The Scurr family and their company Piñata Farms have invested substantial sums to develop some of Australia's most advanced strawberry operations, including high-tech hydroponic substrate farming, new varieties and even metal detectors in the packhouse. But the latter was done to avoid stray rocks or jewellery, not needles like...

Why emotions are the secret weapon for successful leadership

In business there is a saying- 'it's more important to think with your head than your heart'.

But, as modern research shows, this statement couldn't be further from the truth.

Professor Neal Ashkanasy of The University of Queensland Business School has built an academic career in the field of organisational beha...

Saturated market? Opportunities abound, just ask former Swisse boss Radek Sali

It has now been almost three years since vitamins company Swisse Wellness was sold for $1.67 billion to a Hong Kong company, giving entrepreneur Radek Sali a healthy supplement of around $250 million from the sale. It's enough money to make time the Australian businessman's most precious asset as he looks for new opportunities thr...

Serial entrepreneur aims to build one million square metres of tolerant reef

A telecommunications entrepreneur who has founded companies with enterprise values of more than $5 billion has his sights on an audacious and likely controversial project to build new reefs to combat the effects of coral bleaching. Bevan Slattery is no stranger to large-scale developments. He made a name for himself in 2009, along with Sh...

Telco entrepreneur claims proxy advisors "toxic" to the ASX

The "golden handcuffs" of stock market listing have tightened for Australia's entrepreneurs, with executive pay limitations making it harder to attract talent in a competitive global market. This was a key concern raised yesterday by telecommunications and data cloud pioneer Bevan Slattery while speaking at a breakfast organ...

Qld fishers launch class action at federal government over White Spot outbreak

More than 100 commercial fishers in Queensland are preparing for a lawsuit against the federal government over the White Spot outbreak. The suit, which will be prepared by Chris Thompson from Law Essentials, a Harvey Bay based law firm, is in relation to the White Spot disease that has infected Queensland prawns and cost the industry mill...

What it takes to be a great leader in the era of Gen Z and technology

What does it take to be a great leader? Successfully leading a team means adapting to different environments, different working styles and accounting for cultural differences. Increased globalisation in today's business landscape means leaders are facing new challenges in leading and managing teams in complex business environments. ...

James Packer steps down from family business

Gambling mogul and head of the Packer fortune, James Packer, has announced his withdrawal from the private family business to focus on his health. Citing mental health issues, a spokesperson from Consolidated Press Holdings says Packer has departed from the board of his family business in order to "continue his recovery". No...

How to take risks and be a brilliant CEO

In August 1987, my father, a small business entrepreneur, arrived home after work, and announced that we were moving to Australia. This announcement served as my first exposure to risk management from an entrepreneur's perspective. My father was regarded as crazy for uprooting the family and leaving apartheid South Africa Why put ...

CEOs rake in a record haul by sleeping rough

Australia's business leaders did what they do best overnight by making big bucks, although this time it was for a worthy cause in the annual Vinnies CEO Sleepout. Funds raised nationally from the charity event have reached a record $6.3 million, edging closer to the $6.42 million target set for 2018. However, the funds raised are ...