Enlightened, responsible leadership

Sometimes it seems it's a little thin on the ground. Even the most well-intentioned of us can get lost in the constant white noise of our frantic, over-saturated professional lives. It's an environment that doesn't always lend itself to taking a step back and considering the societal implications of the decisions we make, macro and micro, every day.

Recently I was lucky enough to participate in The Cranlana Programme, a unique week-long leadership programme run by The Myer Foundation, and do just that.

Cranlana is founded upon the belief that there are enduring values underpinning Australian society, and that these values have their roots in the writings of great thinkers from both Western and Eastern traditions. The programme provided us with an opportunity to revisit those great thinkers – from Plato and Aristotle to Sartre and Peter Singer – and discuss how to apply their vision and perspective in our everyday lives.

The pillars of a just, prosperous society
We talked about concepts like freedom, generosity, tolerance, understanding, community, and how it's these ideas that should impact the way we do the things we do, the way we build our businesses and the way we treat others, rather than financial or competitive drivers.

Through all of this, I was particularly struck by the idea of how interconnected we all are, both directly and indirectly, and how every little thing we do impacts others in ways we can (and can't) imagine.

To that end, I wanted to share a snippet of this experience with you. Courses like Cranlana provide the kind of opportunity that seems like a luxury and a privilege, but they are actually so important to the development of the kind of leaders we need in this country. I can't recommend it highly enough.

Look forward to staying in touch. All the very best for Spring!

Are executive search firms worth it?

You can imagine our thoughts on that. But, as the market for executive talent becomes even more competitive, it's a good time to consider a couple of very specific reasons why:

1. Discovering what's possible – when an organisation engages an executive search firm, it opens itself up to the possibility of discovering something new. Rather than looking inward and sticking to what they know, our clients have seen that when they look outwards and search for what's possible, organisational learning and new frontiers emerge. The key is to welcome a fresh perspective, and encourage a creative, imaginative approach to search that opens up a whole new world of potential candidates.

2. The power of ‘comparative scrutiny’ – an executive search firm assesses candidates against the best qualified and available talent, which means organisations can have complete peace of mind about the appointments they make. It’s a process that’s particularly useful for successful internal candidates, because it energises them with the knowledge that ‘I was up against the best and I won this job’ rather than ‘I was next in line and was given this job’.

Emma Cassar
The new Chief Executive Officer at Open Family Australia

Frank Gannon
The new Director at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR)

Sharon McGowan
The new Executive Director Communications & Community Relations at Melbourne Health

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