The 2018 Gold Coast Power 100 revealed
A YEAR of seismic change, renewal and opportunity for the Gold Coast has been reflected in the 2018 Gold Coast Bulletin
Power 100, which is revealed in full today.
Mayor Tom Tate has reclaimed his position as our city’s most powerful person, with his decisions having the most profound effect on current and future Gold Coasters than anyone else.
In his interview for this year’s list, Cr Tate revealed his troubles last year were worse than he let on at the time – he nearly died on the operating table – but said the lows of 2017 had made the highs of the current year sweeter.
The year has been one of great accomplishment for many city power players.
The 2018 Commonwealth Games – planned and talked about for so long – are finished, taking with them the power and influence of some of last year’s most sought-after VIPs.
The Gold Coast, since its inception has been a city of unrelenting growth and change – even in the days since our Power magazine was printed things have changed, including the appointment of a new CEO for the Gold Coast Titans.
While he’s not on today’s list, Steve Mitchell could be the city’s hero this time next year.
As conversation starters go, they don’t get much better than the Power 100 list.
In offices and cafes across the city people will be flipping through with varying degrees of glee and fury – and if nothing else is certain, we know that almost no-one will agree on whether we’ve got it right.
As we write every year, this list aims to reflect the city’s current state of play – not what we wish it was, or what it should be – and comparing different people who do different things is not an apples-for-apples proposition.
Some people have fallen in ranking, not because they’ve lost power but because others on the list have made greater gains.
There are 17 new faces on the list in 2018 as the Gold Coast continues to be rejuvenated by fresh ideas and young talent.
Eighteen people on the list work in property or development, 12 are in tourism and nine are athletes or sport administrators.
There are five entries each in health and education and 15 on the list are bureaucrats or politicians.
There are 23 women, including six in the top 20, which is up from 18 in 2017 and is the highest representation in Power 100 history.
Many people are from big business, however, heavy hitters increasingly exist in the nation’s small business capital and are growing their influence in Australia and beyond.
The influence of our researchers and academics continues to grow, while social and digital media are crucial to which businesses, and their people, succeed.
In this year’s magazine we’ve also taken the opportunity to break off some of our sectors, including food, sport, motoring, property and night life, to see who the influential people are in those parts of our city.
THERE ARE 17 NEW FACES ON THE LIST IN 2018 AS THE GOLD COAST CONTINUES TO BE REJUVENATED BY FRESH IDEAS AND YOUNG TALENT.