QUEEN OF THE CASTLE
Rugby Australia’s chief executive tackles her critics
First it was the Israel Folau ‘‘challenge’’, then the ongoing discussions about broadcasting rights with Foxtel. Then followed ‘‘feedback’’ and calls for her to move aside.
It hasn’t been an easy 12 months for Rugby Australia chief executive Raelene Castle, but she says she takes it all in her stride.
‘‘These jobs aren’t easy,’’ she said. ‘‘They are challenging by nature.’’
Two months ago one-time head of Channels Nine and Seven in Australia David Leckie called Castle a ‘‘complete disaster’’ who should leave ‘‘before she does any more damage’’.
He was referring to the negotiations with Foxtel. When Leckie’s view of her future was raised, Castle shrugged it off.
‘‘The board of Rugby Australia makes that decision,’’ Castle said about who determines whether she stays or leaves. It won’t be the likes of Leckie.
‘‘There are certainly some sensational headlines these days. At the end of the day we are in the middle of an exciting time for rugby and a broadcast process. We’re looking to get a favourable outcome.’’
Castle ‘‘doesn’t know rugby’’, Leckie claimed in his attack.
But Castle said she’s a ‘‘brave’’ leader who recognises the expertise of others, whether it’s in communications, finance or the game of rugby.
‘‘People want to work in a team environment that’s open, trusting and rewarding, but robust,’’ she said. ‘‘Being brave enough to employ people that are better than you is also a really important part of this.’’
That’s how she sees her leadership style – brave, honest, authentic and with integrity. And with Castle, what you see is what you get.
At 49, she has already held three CEO positions. She goes for big jobs. And she gets them.
First with Netball New Zealand, which saw the introduction of the ANZ Championship and pay for athletes under her leadership.
Then in 2013 she became the first female CEO in the NRL when she took the helm at the Bulldogs, a club still under fire following gang-rape allegations, then a salary cap crisis.
She made history once more in 2018 when she became the first female CEO in rugby. During this time she’s introduced equal pay for female sevens players.
Castle is also the first female CEO of Ma¯ori heritage in top flight sport. She’s has connections to Nga¯ puhi via her mother, Marlene Castle, a four-time Commonwealth Games lawn bowls representative and medallist.
Being a woman in a male stronghold can be tough, but it was never about gender for her.
‘‘I think diversity is important. I don’t think it’s just about gender,’’ she said.
Castle is supportive of the New Zealand government’s plans for diversity in sport, particularly in governance.
But it’s not just women who need to be around the table in leadership positions.
‘‘When you have a large representation, for example, of Polynesian or indigenous representatives, those are also the types of voices we should be looking at,’’ she said. ‘‘Because diversity is not just about gender, it’s also about the other voices that bring expertise to the table.’’
Castle said to achieve that it also required men to champion for others.
‘‘The importance for me is about having sponsors. When I say sponsors I don’t mean people that are . . . writing cheques,’’ she said.
‘‘I mean male sponsors that are working to make sure that gender is an important part of the conversation and sponsoring young females . . . and [offering] opportunities in the same way they sponsor male colleagues and opportunities.’’
Women have to step up too, by being brave and backing their capabilities.
‘‘Women also have to step forward and take the opportunities when they get offered,’’ she said. ‘‘You can’t get a job you don’t apply for.’’
Castle is doing her bit to encourage women in sport. She’s a co-founder of the Minerva Network, an organisation that connects female business leaders with female elite athletes.
The network offers opportunities for mentoring and growth for women in sport. Castle mentored cricketer Alyssa Healy, who this week won Australian women’s player of the year.
In New Zealand, Women in Sport Aotearoa (Wispa) does the same. Castle will be the keynote speaker at Wispa and the TransTasman Business Circle’s Captains Lunch in Auckland on May 8, where she’ll share her insights into business and sport.
‘‘I think we have to stop talking about the challenges that we face and talk about the opportunities that appear,’’ she said.
‘‘We have to stop saying ‘aw, but’ or ‘that’s not fair’. And say ‘look at the opportunities that there are out there and how do we put enough women forward for those opportunities?’.’’
She does describe what happened with Folau as a ‘‘challenge’’ though.
In April 2019 Rugby Australia faced a crisis when Folau posted homophobic messages on social media. He was found to have breached the organisation’s code of conduct and was stood down. The two parties settled out of court in December.
‘‘I don’t think there’s a senior executive anywhere in Australasia that thought they had all the answers to the Israel Folau challenge,’’ she said.
‘‘People want to work in a team environment that’s open, trusting and rewarding, but robust.’’ Raelene Castle, left
Having a culture based around respect and inclusion, bringing people of all backgrounds together, is important to Castle.
She’s shaped the culture in a number of sports bodies and for her, the toxic masculinity associated with traditional male sports, particularly rugby and league, has mostly fallen by the wayside.
Yes, Castle said, there are a some athletes who behave badly, and that’s not acceptable, but overall many understand the responsibility they hold.
During her career in these environments no-one has been ‘‘rude or disrespectful’’ to her. She’s had ‘‘no issues with sexism’’ either.
She’s just been doing a job, making tough decisions, like every other chief executive.
‘‘It’s about making sure that I put myself or the organisation in the best situation to make those decisions,’’ she said. ‘‘I don’t go to work every day thinking about the gender divide.’’
Outside of work, a glimpse into her personal life is rare but in 2014 she spoke openly for the first time about Alopecia Areata, an auto-immune disease that causes her hair to fall out.
Having the disease puts everything else into perspective. ‘‘It is what it is,’’ she said. ‘‘There are some challenges it creates around logistics for me on a daily basis.’’