Chunk Of Change by The Royals

Brendan Tansey’s insatiable curiosity has seen the marketeer-come-viking chief journey around the globe whilst working with some of the biggest change-makers of the 20th century, including Andy Grove, Lester Wunderman and Tor Hagen.

Thoughtworks is a global technology consulting firm that’s successfully ridden the digital transformation wave since the late 80’s. This interview with the North American CEO, Chris Murphy, took place prior to last week’s IPO that raised US$344 million and valued the company at nearly US$9 billion. Over the past two decades, Thoughtworks has been a major influencer of key trends in IT such as agile development, blockchain technology and microservices, all of which has lead to ‘Thoughtworkers’ publishing more than 100 books. As Marc Andreessen famously said, "Software is eating the world" and with spending on digital transformation forecast to double by 2025, Chris and the Thoughtworks team are set to ride the digital wave for many years to come.

Sam Davy is Founder and Creative Director of Park Social Soccer Co., a social impact brand designed to change the world through a global love of sport and the language of art. He was previously Global Creative Director at Apple, where Steve Jobs shared with Sam his idea of doing well while doing good. Sam also spent time at Crumpler as Head of Brand, Marketing and Product, but nothing could prepare him for what happened after he searched 'how to make a soccer ball' on YouTube. 10,000 balls and millions of soccer games later, Park SSC is proof of what's possible when you combine a love of sport, creativity and an unwavering desire to give back.

In this, our final episode of Chunk of Change for the season, we speak with David Christie, co-CEO of international bakery franchise, Bakers Delight. Originally from South Africa with a degree in History and Literature, David’s journey to running one of Australia’s most successful franchise groups began after meeting his wife Elise (daughter of co-founders, Roger and Leslie Gillespie) and being tasked with growing the business through North America without a crumb of baking experience. One fortieth birthday and millions of Cheesymite scrolls later, the Baker’s Delight and COBS brands are amongst the most recognised bakeries in the world. With over 650 stores in four countries, David speaks openly about how he and his wife Elise are co-authoring the next entrepreneurial chapter in this family owned success story.

2020’s been a tumultuous year for most, but for newly appointed Chief Executive Officer at Movember, Michelle Terry, it’s been a veritable whirlwind of change.  Michelle joined the rockstar not-for-profit earlier this year from Treasury Wine Estates (where she was Global CMO) at a time when Movember’s work in the area of men’s health and suicide prevention was more important than ever.  In the process Michelle lead the reengineering of Movember’s fundraising and program delivery platforms in 20-countries around the world, just as she reengineered the schooling environment for her two young daughters at home.  All this has made for some challenging Mo-ments but through it all Michelle’s stayed focussed on what matters most: having fun; staying humble; and doing good.

On episode 7 of Chunk of Change we speak with "Australia's Superman", Perry Cross, founder and CEO of Accessible Homes Australia and the Perry Cross Spinal Research Foundation.

It was Steve Jobs who said, “You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”

Our guest on episode five of Chunk of Change is Michael Kennedy, Chief Executive Officer of Snow Australia. A certifiable powder hound from the age of two who became Australia’s longest serving sports administrator, Michael shares his unique perspective on how to turn your lifelong passion into a prosperous and rewarding career.

In his 18-year tenure as CEO, Michael has overseen the most significant transformation of the governance and operations of snow sports in Australia's history. His vision for using high performance sport to create a pathway for athletes has resulted in Australian competitors delivering multi medal outcomes in all four of the last Olympics and he's overseen a restructure that’s successfully merged all state associations under one unified, national umbrella.

Michael inspires with the lightness of a person at one with their chosen path, contrasted by a steely determination to speak the truth as a business leader and coach. An exceptional storyteller, Michael honours the impact and legacy of his friend Chumpy Pullin and lets us in on the argument he had with Alisa Camplin just seconds before her gold medal winning jump!

In Episode 4 of Chunk of Change we speak with recently departed Spotify MD, Karen Lawson, about her new found freedom in lockdown, the art of graceful exits and the value of a good side hustle. Karen is one of Australia's most interesting and multitalented technology leaders, having also led online career marketplace, CareerOne and corporate accelerator, Slingshot prior to joining Spotify in early 2019. Karen's natural inclination towards creativity and authenticity in leadership are omnipresent as she discusses everything from the key ingredients of successful scale-ups, to the under representation of women in venture capital, plus how food and travel writing has helped sustain her rocket-propelled career.

In this episode of Chunk of Change, we speak to Carolyn Creswell, founder and Managing Director of Carman’s Fine Foods. In the 28-years since Carolyn started her artisanal muesli business, she’s managed to turn the Carman’s brand into an international breakfast and snacking powerhouse that now exports to over 30 countries. During this candid conversation, Carolyn reveals herself to be a self-aware and heartfelt leader, one who's as determined as ever in her quest to shake up the food industry well beyond the cereal aisle. Her 'drive it like you stole it' approach to business, combined with a meticulous approach to innovation has meant that Carman's has successfully dislodged much larger competitors time and again for the past 20+ years. Carolyn is authentic and generous with her advice for others - qualities that she fosters through a combination of gratefulness and an unwavering commitment to never shy away from tough conversations.