Blood, sweat but no fears of work
FIRST JOB – AND WHERE ARE YOU NOW?
A suit character for Red Cross called Rosie the Bloodbag. I used to go out on the street, dance around and encourage people to give blood. I’m now CEO of HOTA, Home of the Arts. It was quite an eclectic career path.
BEST BUSINESS ADVICE YOU’VE RECEIVED?
I was fortunate to receive a scholarship to Harvard Business School. I came away with a lot of insights and strategies for managing notfor-profit organisations, but the thing that really stuck was a simple statement from one of the professors, “Be curious”.
WHAT YOU WISH YOU KNEW WHEN YOU STARTED OUT? Someone should have told me that being a suit character is smelly, hot work. And in your early career, make the most of working with people more experienced than you – don’t be afraid to ask questions, make mistakes and seek advice. Having great mentors throughout your career is important.
YOUR GOLDEN RULE IN BUSINESS?
Start as you mean to continue.
A LONG LUNCH – A WASTE OF TIME OR ESSENTIAL? EXPLAIN
How about an invitation to see some art followed by a glass of wine and conversation? There’s nothing like a great exhibition or performance to get people talking and post-show functions always lead to new networks, interesting collaborations and unlikely partnerships.
WHO IS ON YOUR BUSINESS MOBILE’S SPEED DIAL? Louise Bezzina, artistic director of Bleach Festival – creative collaborator, friend and cultural change agent on the Gold Coast. Robyn Archer AO – a legend of Australian performing arts, actor, singer, festival director, strategist and HOTA chair.
IF YOU HAD $1 MILLION SPARE, WHAT INDUSTRY WOULD YOU BE INVESTING IN NOW? Our push to be a smart city and diversify the economy through the health and education sectors is great. Creativity is central to innovation, so I’d invest in new ways of integrating art with science and technology – put the STEAM into STEM. That, and automated cars.
WHAT SHOULD GOLD COAST PRIMARY STUDENTS BE STUDYING?
Critical thinking and early years philosophy. Technology is a great enabler and we now hold a lifetime of knowledge in our iPhones. Our kids need to know how to interpret this, be resilient and adaptable. The liberal arts provides that. YOUR BIGGEST FRUSTRATION DOING BUSINESS ON THE GOLD COAST? AND HOW TO FIX IT? There’s a way to go to convince the rest of Australia, and the world, what a unique and thriving arts and cultural scene we have here on the Gold Coast. But I think we are beginning to get real cutthrough. The Festival 2018 program for Commonwealth Games will showcase local talent on the world stage and the world class infrastructure the city is delivering at HOTA provides a beacon for Gold Coast culture. The other thing we can do is support local creatives. See a show, buy an artwork, wear Gold Coast design.