The Caring CEO podcast is brought you by WeCARE365.
We created this podcast as just like social impact expert Cindy Gallop, we believe: The single largest pool of untapped resource in this world is people’s willingness to help.
We believe that it’s every leader’s #1 priority to build a more caring and resilient team, who enjoys growing together. Results follow, along with more mentally healthy workplaces, as our caring CEOs attest to.
Join us to learn to take action through our discussions with many leading CEOs and senior leaders who care. People who value building a culture of care AND a culture of high performance. They’ve been there, done that, learnt a lot along the way and are continuing to do it. Join the conversation as they share what they’ve learnt with Graeme Cowan.
Graeme Cowan is the co-founder of WeCARE365, a company with a mission to build caring cultures at every level of work. He’s the best-selling author of BACK FROM THE BRINK book series and is a Board Director of R U OK? Over many years he’s helped thousands of leaders and teams to be more caring, mentally healthy, and growth oriented. He’s a regular media commentator on workplace resilience in volatile times. And he’s sharing many stories with you through this podcast series with caring CEOs who are building mental health in the workplace.
Make sure you subscribe, leave a comment and rate us on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast platform. When you rate us it helps other people to find us.
If you’re interested in seeing details about our scalable WeCARE mental health training programs, please visit us at wecare365.com.au
Is your CEO a Caring CEO? You can nominate them to be a guest on our podcast HERE.
#58 A Broader Role for Finance – Stephen Moir, Founder and CEO, The Moir Group
Stephen Moir, Founder and CEO of The Moir Group, a recruitment organisation specialising in senior leaders in finance, emphasises that beyond technical finance skills, the ability to exert influence across the company is crucial.
Passionate about the environment, Stephen and his wife Carolyn founded the ‘Professionals Advocating for Climate Action’ network dedicated to practical actions. Stephen believes that work significantly shapes our lives, and a satisfying job is essential for a good life.
#57 Keeping up with the Kardashians – Olivia Carr, Founder and CEO, Shhh Silk
Olivia Carr, Founder and CEO of Shhh Silk, a global brand that sells silk pillow cases in 50+ countries, shares her remarkable journey, including a marketing coup involving Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner.
Despite a very challenging childhood and lacking tertiary qualifications, she built a successful multi-million-dollar business. In her new book "Self-made", Olivia has now created a blueprint that has helped hundreds of women to develop and build their own businesses. Olivia's resilience and innovative approach have transformed her life, making her a true self-made entrepreneur.
#56 We said yes to everything – Lucas Patchett, CEO, Orange Sky
Lucas Patchett, the CEO of Orange Sky, co-founded this charity that is dedicated to a simple service, which provides an opportunity for Australians doing it tough to connect through regular laundry and shower services.
Although still in his 20’s, Lucas has achieved more in life than many 60 year olds.
As you will hear – it hasn’t always been easy – and they have needed lots of resilience to try – fail – learn and grow. Lucas also outlines a simple thing we can all do when we encounter a homeless person on the street. He has achieved a huge amount after being in the workforce for less than 10 years.
#55 Improving workplace wellbeing – Darren Black, CEO, SuperFriend (s03ep11)
Darren Black, the CEO of SuperFriend, is an innovative and pragmatic leader who strives every day to create a culture of care.
As a former Army Officer, UN Peacekeeper, and now sitting on the Board of Suicide Prevention Australia and The Australian Men’s Health Forum, he has worked with a number of NFP that have focused on improving the wellbeing of Australians, as he is passionate about improving mental health and suicide prevention.
#54 A diversity and inclusion champion – Victoria Butt Founder, Parity Consulting and Recruitment (s03ep10)
Victoria Butt, established the recruitment company Parity Consulting, in 2012 when she was just 29. She is passionate about hiring the best employees who also share Parity’s values.
As an authentic leader who is prepared to be vulnerable and admit mistakes, she has championed rapidly growing work issues such as mental health and how the workplace can be moreunderstanding and helpful to women going through menopause.
#53 A life of service – Jon Owen, CEO and Pastor, Wayside Chapel (s03ep9)
Jon Owen, the CEO and Pastor of the Wayside Chapel in Sydney, is proud of their continuing mission of creating a community of no ‘us and them’. In his role as CEO, he leads a team of 110 employees and 800 volunteers.
Jon is passionate about how the community can play a role in everyone having a better life. He cares deeply about the people he serves and is a passionate communicator. He is not afraid to take on big challenges.
Jon has a great sense of humour and has a real spirit for service. His story is inspiring, however he is very humble.
#52 Global expert on the 4 Day Work Week – Charlotte Lockhart, Founder, Acting CEO, and Oxford University Board Member (s03ep8)
Charlotte Lockhart, is the Co-founder and MD of 4 Day Week Global, advocating for a productivity-focused, reduced-hour workplace. Charlotte is also a Board member of Oxford University's Wellbeing Research Centre and co-founder of the World Wellbeing Movement. Her company has helped oversee 4 Day Week trials in UK, US, Canada, South Africa, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. Charlotte gives us some fascinating insight into the findings of the trials.
#51 PsychSafety – world’s #1 expert – Amy Edmondson, Harvard Novartis Professor (s03ep7)
Amy Edmondson, is a Professor of Leadership and Management at the Harvard Business school, a chair established to support the study of human interactions that lead to the creation of successful enterprises that contribute to the betterment of society.
Her area of expertise is showing leaders how to increase team psychological safety which is a critical foundation of great teams.
#50 Lessons from indigenous leaders – Andrew O’Keeffe, Author and Leadership Consultant (s03ep6)
Our guest this week on The Caring CEO podcast, Andrew O'Keeffe has a fascinating background which has taken him from his origins in Broken Hill to studying indigenous groups in Australia, New Zealand, Africa, the Amazon and North America. This was via a career in mining, manufacturing, in industrial relations and senior HR roles.
#49 Founder of The Women’s Resilience Centre – Simone Allan, Founder & Director, Mondo Search (s03ep5)
Simone Allan and Graeme worked together at Morgan and Banks (now Hudson). After leaving Morgan and Banks, Simone went on to establish her own company Mondo Search. She grew that company into one of the top 40 search firms worldwide. Having experienced the benefits of mentoring herself, she then went on to establish Mondo Mentoring.
#48 The future of working – Olivier Dubuisson, Co-Founder & Chairman @ Rythmik, Head of Future of Working, Novartis (s03ep4)
Olivier Dubuisson has the intriguing title of – Head of Future of Working for the global pharmaceutical company Novartis. He is also the Chairman and Co-Founder of Rythmik, a global consulting firm, based in Switzerland, specialising in the future of working and employee experience.
#47 The Ultimate Entrepreneur – Richard Turner – Entrepreneur & Business Strategist (s03ep3)
Richard Turner is the ultimate entrepreneur. He is a specialist in market disruption, having founded four successful companies in Australia across four completely different industries. He has multiple awards including EY’s South Australian Entrepreneur of the year and 4th fastest growing company by BRW magazine and is also the entrepreneur in residence for the University of South Australia.
#46 Meeting and learning from Nelson Mandela – Bruce Watson, CEO WorkCover QLD (s03ep2)
Bruce Watson, CEO of WorkCover QLD, has always been inspired by the life of Nelson Mandela. He admired his unwavering belief in a better South Africa, fierce focus and determination - coupled with huge empathy and humility - he has been a powerful guide in Bruce’s life.
#45 World’s top 30 ‘Thinkers to Watch’ – Dr Kirstin Ferguson AM, Author, Columnist and Company Director (s03ep01)
Dr Kirstin Ferguson AM has just been nominated as one of world’s top 30 Thinkers to Watch by the UK based Thinkers50. She has had a remarkable and varied career including stints as the Deputy Chair of the ABC – and a number of Non-Executive Director roles over the last 10 years.
#44 A leadership story you wouldn’t believe – Suzanne Steele, Vice President & Managing Director United Kingdom and Ireland, Adobe (s02ep20)
Suzanne (Suz) Steele, was the VP and MD for Adobe's ANZ operations before moving back to the UK to take up the same role for the UK and Ireland operations, which is one of Adobe's largest markets globally.
#43 The Health and Beauty CEO’s wing woman – Olivia Jenkins, Business & Marketing Consultant (s02ep19)
Olivia Jenkins is an absolute dynamo. She has three children under six years of age, her husband is both a farmer and a builder, and she runs her own business empowering female entrepreneurs in the health, beauty, fashion and lifestyle industries to become household names. In just 3 years, she’s served over 100+ clients, and boasts $33 million in revenue generated between them.
#42 Powered by Human Connection – Joel Ramirez, Founder, Wiise / Financials for Office 365 (s02ep18)
Joel Ramirez has always been an entrepreneur. As a very young boy, he found himself needing to contribute financially to the family after they immigrated to Australia from the Philippines and couldn't find work. At the age of 21 he stated his first IT business, then went on to co-found Wiise, a tech company which he sold to KPMG in 2018. He was also awarded the Young Entrepreneur of Year Award for his region.
#41 Helping women living with domestic violence – Annabelle Daniel OAM, CEO Women’s Community Shelters (s02ep17)
Women's Community Shelters, works with local communities to establish crisis accommodation shelters for women and children who are homeless or leaving domestic and family violence. As the CEO of this organisation, Annabelle Daniel OAM, faces tough challenges daily.
#40 Creating a better world of work – Didier Elzinga, CEO, Culture Amp (s02ep16)
Didier Elzinga is the Founder and CEO of Culture Amp, the world's leading workplace culture analytics platform. Culture Amp's mission is to create a better world of work, and they believe that putting culture first is crucial to that mission.
#39 Transformed through crisis – Jo Skipper, Managing Director, The Next Step (s02ep15)
Jo Skipper is the Managing Director of The Next Step, one of Australia's leading HR recruitment companies. Her career in recruitment spans over 20 years across the UK, Singapore and Australia.
We discuss many things in this episode, including the benefit of identifying your team members' strengths, leading in this modern work environment and tips on the best way to reject someone.
#38 Building Australia’s first unicorn – David Shein, Partner OIF Ventures (s02ep14)
David Shein has the amazing achievement of starting and building what is known as Australia's first tech unicorn. David started Com Tech when he first arrived in Australia from South Africa in 1987. Over the next 14 years he grew the company with offices Australia wide and 1400 employees before selling to Dimension Data. Not only was Com Tech profitable since its inception, but it was done without using external debt.
#37 The 4 day work week champion – Nikki Beaumont, CEO, Beaumont People (s02ep13)
Nikki Beaumont is is the Founder and CEO of Beaumont People, which has been operating for 21 years. Prior to this Nikki took on the role as GM recruitment for the Sydney Olympics and in this frantic environment she learnt about the importance of creating a culture of peer recognition.
#36 Simplicity Wins – Derick Borean, CEO, Altius Group (s02ep12)
Derick Borean, co-founded Altius Group 21 years ago, providing rehabilitation services to injured workers. They are a leading integrated HR, and workplace rehabilitation and health organisation with a clear purpose of elevating the physical and psychological well-being of individuals and organisations.
#35 A pragmatic approach to people leadership – Natasha Hawker, Managing Director, Employee Matters (s02ep11)
As the Founder and Managing Director of Employee Matters, Natasha Hawker knows all about the issues that keep the CEOs of SMEs up at night. Having worked in HR roles in corporations, and now running her own business, she offers an interesting perspective in this week's episode of The Caring CEO.
#34 Serving Employees, Suppliers and Customers – Lina Calabria and Andy Fallshaw, COO & CEO, Bellroy (s02ep10)
Bellroy are an accredited B Corp, were awarded #1 in the small business category in 2021’s Australia’s 50 Best Workplaces 2021, and are committed to using environmentally sustainable fabrics including recycled and plant based materials.
#33 The learning zone quest – Rich Hirst, CEO & Founder, Tenfold Australia (s02ep9)
Rich Hirst, CEO & Founder of Tenfold spends his days talking with local CEOs and Leadership teams of global companies including Nestle, DHL and Amazon Web Services. Tenfold provide a trusted environment for these leaders to share their biggest challenges. This puts Rich in a good position to know what works and what doesn't when it comes to leadership.
#32 High performance secrets from 30 years of research – Samantha Huddle, GM, AU/NZ, Great Place To Work (s02ep08)
Great Place to Work certify companies by surveying their employees and is the global authority on workplace culture. So, as GM for Australia and New Zealand, Samantha Huddle, know's a thing or two about building psychologically safe and caring cultures.
#31 Growing through the setbacks – Shayne Elliott, CEO ANZ (s02ep7)
Shayne Elliott had only been in the role of CEO of ANZ for a year when the Royal Commission into banking was announced, and he was called to respond to complaints from many years before. Looking back now, he can recognise that although it was a very stressful time, he decided to turn it into a brilliant learning opportunity.
#30 A thought leader that can’t be ignored – Jane Caro, Senate Candidate and Social Activist (s02ep6)
Never one to be a passive observer, Jane Caro is known for speaking what's on her mind, and is bound to shake up the Federal Government should she be successful next month.
#29 The workplace leadership needed in a volatile and uncertain world – Bob Chapman, CEO Barry-Wehmiller (s02ep5)
Bob Chapman is the CEO of Barry-Wehmiller, which, under his leadership, has grown from a turnover of $20 million to $3 billion. His shareholders have had a return of 15% p.a. for 25 years, and the company now employs 12000 employees.
#28 Getting the right people on the bus – Vicki Doyle, CEO Rest Super (s02ep4)
Vicki Doyle is the CEO of Rest Super, which is one of the largest membership bases in Australia. Before she worked in this role, she worked in other senior positions with AMP, PT, Suncorp and CBA.
#27 Operating like a family – Mark Fazio, Co-Founder, MATE Telecommunications (s02ep3)
As the Co-Founder and GM of MATE Telecommunications, Mark Fazio sits side by side with his identical twin brother David who is also a co-founder and CEO.
#26 You will never regret being kind – Leslie Chong , CEO, Imugene (s02ep02)
Leslie Chong is the MD & CEO of Imugene, an ASX listed immune-oncology company. Since she joined the company in 2015 its valuation has increased from $12 million to $1.8 billion.
#25 Changing military culture after PTSD – Stephane Grenier Founder & Leader Innovator, MHIC Canada (s02ep01)
Stephane Grenier is is one of the world’s leading authorities on mental health peer support programs. Stephane started his career in the Canadian Defence Force where he spent 29 years which included deployments to Rwanda and Afghanistan. Returning with PTSD, he then spent 10 years changing the military mental health system from within.
#24 Producing healthy food and culture – Emma Welsh, CEO & Co-Founder Emma & Toms (s01 ep24)
Emma Welsh is the CEO and Co-founder of Emma & Toms. She is also the Country Director - Australia for THINK EQUAL; a NFP global educational program designed to explicitly teach social and emotional intelligence to young children starting in kindergarten.
#23 The CEO Whisperer – Dr Anthony Howard, CEO, The Confidere Group (s01ep23)
Dr Anthony Howard literally wrote the book on Human-Centred Leadership, after travelling the world to interview leaders to determine what is needed to become an influential and empathetic leader.
Anthony shares his views on human-centred leadership and talks about how if leadership is done well, the whole organisation, and community profits. He also lets us in on some of the tools that he uses with his own clients.
#22 From bombing the HSC to becoming CEO of The Y NSW – Susannah Le Bron (S01ep22)
Susannah Le Bron, CEO of The Y NSW is living proof that our HSC results do not define us. Susannah started her career with Qantas, working in customer experience and process transformation roles, and she still carried the strong belief that customers should be at the heart of everything we do in the workplace.
#21 Designing work to be family friendly- Erica Westbury, CEO, Norwest Recruitment and Southwest Recruitment (s01ep21)
Erica Westbury is the Managing Director of Norwest Recruitment, a multi-award-winning business, which has also ranked 47th in the BRW Fast 100. Erica herself has previously won CEO of the Year with The Executive Connection.
#20- Driven by purpose – Steven Worrall , Managing Director, Microsoft Australia & New Zealand (s01ep20)
Steven Worral is Managing Director of Microsoft Australia and New Zealand, a corporation which was rated as a great place to work by 93% of its employees (via an independent agency). We discuss Steve’s insights into why this is the case. He also talks about why he took on a leading role in setting up Corporate Mental Health Alliance Australia.
#19 A workplace trends thought leader – Prof Gary Martin, CEO, Australian Institute of Management, WA (s01ep19)
Professor Gary Martin started his career as a primary school teacher, before moving onto senior leadership roles at Murdoch University and is now CEO of the Australian Institute of Management, WA.
#18 Building the influence of women – Susan Metcalf, CEO Chief Executive Women (s01ep18)
Susan Metcalf has had a career that expands both commercial and not-for-profit enterprises. She is now crossing both sectors as the CEO for Chief Executive Women which is a not for profit that works with Australia’s big businesses to address gender imbalance in senior roles in their organisations. Susan shares her experiences across both sectors and discusses the females that she feels have shown great leadership during the pandemic.
#17 Creating a sense of family at work – Rear Admiral Stephen Hughes, Royal Australian Navy (s01ep17)
Rear Admiral Stephen Hughes has been in the Navy for 35 years, both on ships and on land. He is now the head of the Defense Intelligence Group. Stephen shares insights into how to keep the paths of communication open and what the building blocks of a high performing team are.
#16 Are they REALLY OK? Ask today – Katherine Newton, CEO R U OK? (s01ep16)
Katherine Newton started her career in insurance until a volunteer position with Lifeline showed her that her skills would be put to good use in the NFP sector. Katherine shares insights into how a small team can make a big difference and the core skills needed for a great team.
#15 It starts and finishes with care – Marcus Blackmore, ex CEO and Chairman, Blackmores (s01ep15)
Marcus Blackmore is a legend in the complementary medicines sector. He also loves to tell a story and shares many with us here, including his lightbulb moments and valuable lessons that he has learned from his father and from his time in the army. Marcus also offers a surprising list of the people that he considers to be star entrepreneurs.
#14 To shine is Starlight’s only value – Louise Baxter, CEO Starlight Children’s Foundation Australia (s01ep14)
The Starlight Children's Foundation Australia has grown dramatically under Louise Baxter's leadership. She refers to the organisation as a 'profit for purpose' rather than 'not for profit'. It's also the only charity to win the Aon Hewitt Employer of the Year award. Louise is absolutely committed to making sure that her staff are mindful of their mood and know how to look after themselves.
#13 Spurred by tragedy to build a culture of care – Chris Murray, Managing Director, Energy Power Systems Australia (s01ep13)
Chris Murray, Managing Director of Energy Power Systems Australia has over 30 years of experience in the energy, renewables, and resources sectors. These are all very male-dominated workforces and often have a culture in which it can be hard for men to open up about mental health struggles.
#12 With a finger on the culture pulse – Suzy Nicoletti, Managing Director, Twitter Australia (s01ep12)
Suzy Nicoletti has spent almost her entire career in the digital world, starting out with Google in the early 2000's and then moving to Twitter in 2014. Suzy puts a lot of effort into creating a fun, inclusive and safe culture. She shares a really novel way of how to keep a finger on the culture pulse.
#11 Staying ahead of the curve – Danny Gilbert, Managing Partner Gilbert and Tobin (s01ep11)
Danny Gilbert is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of law firm Gilbert and Tobin. Danny is on a constant quest for continual improvement, including a deep commitment to improving the lives of our first nation people, is inspiring. Danny has created a caring and very high performing culture whilst simultaneously reinventing the business to take it to new levels and continuing to win industry awards.
#10 A change agent on a mission – Lucy Brogden, Chair, Mental Health Commission (s01ep10)
Lucy is the Chair of the National Mental Health Commission. In this episode, Lucy talks about how a family crisis led her to pursue a purpose to improve Australia's mental health. She strives for a life of service and purpose, and reveals two people who were largely influential in that quest. Lucy also shares what she considers to be the building blocks of a caring culture.
#9 Ex Richmond Football Club CEO at 24 years old – Cameron Schwab, CEO DesignCEO
Cameron Schwab is a CEO, leadership coach and strategist, however, AFL fans may know him best as the ex CEO of Richmond, Melbourne and Fremantle Football Clubs. Cameron shares honestly about his failures in life, and the lessons that he has learned from those setbacks.
#8 Building a growth mindset culture – Ellen Derick, Managing Partner, Consulting, Deloitte Australia (s01ep8)
Ellen Derrick is the Managing Partner of Consulting, Deloitte Australia and a board member of the Corporate Mental Health Alliance. She talks about her passion for gender diversity, psychologically safe teams, and her growth mindset.
#7 Keep it Simple – Chris Sutherland, ex CEO Progammed (s01ep7)
Chris's most recent CEO role was a Programmed. An organisation that supplies labour-hire to industries such as mining and public works. Chris lives and breathes care and empathy.
#6 How to increase the impact of R U OK? with 3 questions- Emma Hogan, Secretary, NSW Dept of Customer Service (s01ep6)
Emma Hogan leads over 9, 500 employees as Secretary of the NSW Department of Customer service. She is also an Ambassador for Mentally Healthy Workplaces.
#5Putting level 5 leadership into action – George Savvides, Chairman, SBS (s01ep5)
George Savvides is the Chairman of SBS and former CEO of Medibank Private. George tells talks about what he learnt from his parents who were Greek Cypriot immigrants, and how he puts Level 5 leadership into action.
#4 Increasing employee engagement in a pandemic – Lisa Claes, CEO International, Corelogic (s01ep4)
Lisa Claes is the CEO International for Corelogic, a NYSE listed global property information company. Lisa has shown real flexibility in her career progressed from being a Barrister, General Counsel, Divisional Director, and finally a CEO.
#3 How he leads from behind – Pat Grier, ex CEO, Ramsay Healthcare (s01ep03)
Pat Grier is the ex CEO of Ramsay Health Care. Pat talks about how he established a vision for Ramsay Healthcare to be recognised as the best hospital operators in Australia, and how he developed the term leading from behind.
#2 How she builds connection – Amanda Yeates, Deputy Director General of the Department of Transport and Main Roads. (s01ep02)
Amanda Yeates is Deputy Director General of the Department of Transport and Main Roads. She is also Chair of the Departments Wellbeing Committee, because she sees employee wellbeing as being integral to the group’s success.
#1 Humble Leadership – Mike Schneider, CEO, Bunnings (s01ep1)
Mike Schneider is the CEO of Bunnings, Australia's most trusted brand. Mike oversees a workforce of 55,000 people, yet he is very down to earth and humble. Mike explains his 4 H's of leadership, talks about some tough decisions he's had to make and shares his self-care strategies.