In last months issue we discussed the issue of diversity in Australia’s export portfolio and how that played a role in helping us avoid being swept into recession along with the rest of the world. This raised its head again recently when I had the privilege of reading the more than forty nominations that came in for the Australian Export Heroes Awards.
The awards created by the Australian Institute of Export over ten years ago recognise people who have made an outstanding contribution not only to export but to building Australia’s reputation overseas as a leader in many fields of endeavour. This year’s nominations included people from some of our traditional export sectors like agriculture and mining and others from an extremely diverse range of business activities, like avionics, skin care and architecture.
It always amazes me when I’m involved in either judging the export awards or when reading the export heroes nominations that Australians can not only do almost anything but do it to a level that’s worlds best practice. This year’s Australian Export Heroes are certainly good examples.
Take Will Hutchinson who runs Thomas Electronics a Western Sydney company that works in the very complex field of avionics. Will has worked tirelessly for over for over twenty years to gain accreditation and certification from a wide range of international authorities that position his company as a leading supplier of electronic systems and display technologies. His company today is the designated support facility for cockpit display units used by the Australian and New Zealand Defence Forces, as well as over twenty five international airlines.
The diversity goes even further when one looks at the achievements of Queensland based Vivienne Lipke the owner of Icecraft International a company that produces and markets unique ice mould freezing systems used in hospitality venues, hotels and retail outlets in more than 117 countries from Alaska to Zimbabwe. Next time you are in Harrods, an Inter-Continental, Ritz-Carlton or one of more than forty top hotels, the ice sculpture in the ballroom very likely came from a mould made by Vivienne’s family business just south of Brisbane.
And it doesn’t stop there. Alan Oppenheim Managing Director of Ego Pharmaceuticals also joined the register of export heroes this year. Alan after being appointed Scientific Director in 1981 has been instrumental in taking the well known Ego brands first to Cyprus in 1990 then the UAE, Iran, Malta Bahrain and Jordan and today across Asia. For an Australian company to successfully compete in the world of skincare is not only a credit to Alan and his team but to those who have developed the technology required to be internationally competitive.
Going to yet another extreme of diversity is Paul Henry, Senior Principal of the global specialist architecture firm Populous, world leaders in the design of stadia, racecourses, arenas and the planning of Olympic games. Paul leads the Asian region and sits on the Populous worldwide Board. The firm has designed over 1000 projects in 24 countries and during his extensive career Paul has led the team designing the Sydney Olympic stadium, the Beijing 2008 Olympic Buildings Brief, Nanjing Sports Park for the China National Games and the master plans for the Hong Kong Jockey Club. Paul is passionate about Australia exporting its services, knowledge and creative skills. Australians not only love their sport, but when it comes to architecture, stadium construction and starting gates, sport plays a significant role in our export earnings.
Out of the ACT comes another fine example of diversity. David Gaul started his career in the Royal Australian Navy where he spent twenty two years as a naval officer. In 1983 with his partner Ian Croser, David founded CEA Technologies, a Fyshwick based company specializing in the design, development and manufacture of advanced radar and communications solutions for civil and military applications. David and his team have taken their capability to all corners of the earth with projects in Europe, the Middle East and the United States. In 2003 David was awarded the Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year award and in the same year received the Centenary Medal for Services to Australian Defence.
Education has for many years now occupied a strong position in Australia’s export performance. Max Schroder was one of the people that drove the birth and growth of what is now a major contributor to export. After many years at the University of New South Wales and driving the marketing function of a consortium of NSW and ACT universities, Max took a major career shift into private enterprise establishing the Sydney Institute of Business & Technology (SIBT) in collaboration with and on the campus of Macquarie University. SIBT established colleges here in Australia, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Zambia, Indonesia and the UK.
To remain in strong economic shape Australia needs export. For export to remain strong Australian needs to diversify across a range of disciplines. It also needs people like our Australian Export Heroes, who apart from being passionate about the cause are entrepreneurial, focused and willing to make sacrifices to drive their businesses beyond world’s best practice.
Comments
Post has no comments.