"We have chosen a select group of outstanding Melburnians to shortlist Melbourne's Top 10 jobs. Each will vote for their top 10 Ultimate Jobs out of the Entries we receive. Our judges have given their own time to support their city in choosing The Ultimate Job™ of Melbourne. We thank all of the judges for their contribution to this campaign."
George Patterson Y & R – Russel Howcroft (CEO)
Russel Howcroft has worked in the US, the UK and Australia.
He enjoys getting involved in all manner of thing’s, including a TV show called ‘The Gruen Transfer’, the Board of the Melbourne Football Club, and coaching his daughters netball team.
Russel started his own agency, merged it, sold some of it, bought some of it back, merged it again, sold it and then found himself back at the agency brand he loves the most - George Patterson Y&R, where he is now National CEO.
He’s mad about ideas, all sorts of ideas, any ideas....as long as they’re good ones.
Russel believes the heroes in the business are those brave enough to buy the great work. The buyers, not the sellers. The people who understand the X Factor in business is the role creativity can play in order to achieve an outrageous return.
He sees the ad business as solving the everyday paradox of having an innovative outlook, one that is prepared to rethink agency boundaries while doing a great job making advertising. He spends a lot of time imagining what an agency can be for its clients and has recently settled down to the idea of “the agency business is about making consumer connections that generate better than expected profits for our clients”.
Russel is likely to re-think that notion at any given time of the day.
Mission Australia – Toby Hall (CEO)
Toby Hall is CEO of Mission Australia, the largest fully national not-for-profit in the community welfare field. Mission Australia focuses on early childhood and youth programs in disadvantaged communities, homeless services, vocational training and employment services. Prior to joining Mission Australia, Toby was Chief Operating Officer of World Vision Australia.
Trained as an accountant and with an MBA, Toby has held senior executive positions in both the private and public sector and he continues to hold board positions in the community sector. Toby is also the Chairman of SteriHealth Limited.
Toby’s experience covers not for profit, banking, branded products, documentary production, health and local government. His specialist knowledge areas are strategic leadership, community and organisational development. He is passionate about helping people be the best they can be.
Chief Executive Officer, Executive Director
David was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Treasury Wine Estates on 9 May 2011. He has extensive experience in alcohol beverage companies, most recently Managing Director, Australia and New Zealand Wine for Foster's Group Limited and prior to this, Managing Director, Western Europe and Africa for Brown-Forman. David started his career with Whitbread and Co in various business development and sales roles before joining Inchape in sales and marketing roles rising to Regional Director South East Asia. David has been a Director of Treasury Wine Estates since May 2011.
Brad Hosking
Brad Hosking joined Swinburne University of Technology as Executive Director for the School of
Business in August 2009. As Head of the School, Brad is responsible for leading a team of over 300
educators who deliver a wide range of educational programs to both campus based students and
into industry, across many business areas including; leadership, financial services, marketing and
international business.
Brad has a commercial and industry background, having held senior and executive positions
in Commercial Banking, Strategy, Merger Integration, Six Sigma process re-engineering and
Construction & Development Finance.
Brad holds external board positions with Queensland Affordable Housing Consortium Limited and
Business Icon Victoria.
Cameron Schwab
Cameron commenced work as a junior administrator/office boy at the Melbourne
Football Club at the age of 18 in 1982. He was later appointed Recruiting Manager. In
1987 the Demons made the finals for the first time in 23 years, and were Grand Finalists
the following year.
In 1988, Cameron was appointed General Manager of the Richmond Football Club at
the age of 24 – the youngest person to hold this position in the history of the competition,
and held this position for six years. The Tigers were wooden spooners the previous year,
and in deep financial difficulty. In 1990, Cameron oversaw the 'Save Our Skin' (SOS)
fundraising campaign that effectively saved the club from bankruptcy. In 1995,
Richmond made the finals for the first time in 13 years.
Cameron then studied full-time for two years completing a Master of Business
Administration (MBA) and a Master of Marketing at the Melbourne Business School.
After completing his studies, Cameron was appointed as Chief Executive Officer of the
Melbourne Football Club immediately following the failed merger with Hawthorn. In 1998,
the Demons made the preliminary final having finished last the previous year, and were
Grand Finalists in 2000.
In September 2001, Cameron accepted the position of Chief Executive Officer of the
Fremantle Football Club.
Cameron has overseen the transformation of Fremantle. At the time of his appointment,
Fremantle was $8M in debt, had lost $5M in the previous three seasons, had only 12,000
seated members and won just 2 games that year, losing 18 games in succession. By 2007,
the club has $5M in the bank with over 43,000 members (3rd
in the AFL), and high level
corporate and sponsorship support. The club was first time finalists in 2003 and preliminary
finalists in 2006.
Cameron completed an Advanced Management Program (AMP) the Harvard Business
School in 2007.
Cameron returned to Melbourne in 2008 and was later appointed CEO of Melbourne
Football Club by new President Jim Stynes. Since 2009, the club operated profitably
having lost $3.5M the previous year and has now paid off $5M of debt in just two years
and made a profit of $3.5M in 2010 through record membership, establishing significantly
improved funding arrangements with the AFL and MCC. The Club has also realigned
with the MCC thereby re-establishing its traditional relationship with the MCG.
Max Walker
In the space of five decades Max Walker has travelled an amazing road from schoolboy sporting prodigy to having one of the most recognisable faces and voices in Australia. Along the way he managed to play Test Cricket in a golden era, VFL/AFL football for the Melbourne Football Club, take centre stage in the sports media arena and author 14 books – of which 7 are No. 1 best sellers.
Max is also a successful entrepreneur with directorships in a number of companies. Academically he qualified from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology with a Fellowship Diploma of Architecture and practised as an architect for 10 years. Max remains a registered architect with the RAIA. He is constantly considering new growth possibilities and covers all multi-media platforms.
His business activities also encompass patronage of many organizations and demand for ambassadorships is constant. His philanthropic attitude is "If you can, you must".
Max's transition from the sporting fields to the high profile world of mediate has been seamless ... he is a naturally charismatic communicator.
The Walker smile and abundant enthusiasm is contagious. As a talent, Max has been described as 'extremely user friendly'. He is a master communicator who excels as a consultant/moderator and is renown as a corporate connector, matching the synergies of people and their interests.
The Max Walker Company offers a variety of skills under the one umbrella to assist its clients maxxing multi-media platforms and portals, social-media communication, marketing creativity, reinvention, etc.
Max Walker has become a brand that is synonymous with integrity, credibility and success.
IBISWorld - Phil Ruthven (founder and chairman)
Phil Ruthven is the founder and Chairman of IBISWorld, an international corporation providing online business information, forecasting and strategic services. He is also a director of other companies, advisory boards and charitable organizations. IBISWorld now operates in Australia, the USA, China, the UK and Indonesia. It plans to add the rest of the EU, Canada and Japan over the next 5 years or so.
Phil contributes regularly to radio, TV, newspapers, magazines and documentaries on business, economic and social issues. He continues to be one of Australia’s most frequent and prolific commentators in demand by the media, and is widely considered the nation’s most respected strategist and futurist on business, social and economic matters.
He addresses around 70 congresses, seminars and conferences each year and has done so for three decades. His involvement as a communicator takes him around Australia and occasionally overseas.
Phil is a science graduate. He added to these qualifications with further studies in management and economics at various universities and institutes, and he was a Rotary awardee to the USA in the late sixties. He spent over ten years in the food industry, including executive positions in research, production and marketing, before establishing IBIS in 1971. He is a board member of the Melbourne Institute, and a director of Open Family Australia (the charitable foundation aiding street children) and a recent Director of CEDA.
IBISWorld has earned the reputation as an astute forecasting and advisory corporation, based on its unique and comprehensive databases. Its website www.ibisworld.com is rated as one of the most sophisticated and powerful industry & Marketing websites in the world today. Its foresight and insight of business trends is outstanding, with the most envious record of accuracy among its peers. Their clients include almost half of Australia’s Top 1000 corporations and government authorities, and over 500 major US corporate and institutional clients. IBISWorld has become the premier provider of industry information in the US, Australia, China, the UK, Indonesia and other nations. It has now also produces global industry reports on selected industries and markets.
It is a privately owned company employing some 200 staff, growing at 20-25% pa in revenue.
George Calombaris
At the age of 32, George Calombaris is one of Australia's top chefs. His highly influential style of cuisine has earned him accolades and respect from culinary aficionados around the globe.
George has always been fascinated by food. Inspired by his mother and grandmother, two brilliant cooks, George quickly learnt about food and cooking. Although born and bred in Melbourne (Australia), his Greek heritage was central in his upbringing. His heritage not only instilled in him his love for food; it taught him about the enjoyment and satisfaction of seeing others revel in great food and unforgettable dining experiences.
George's career has been exceptional from the beginning. He completed his apprenticeship at one of Melbourne’s five star hotels Hotel Sofitel, winning the Bonland National Apprentice of the Year Award, 1999.
Soon after, George found himself leading a team of 11 qualified and apprentice chefs at MasterChef co-judge Gary Mehigan’s Fenix Restaurant. Among the many accolades achieved during George’s time at Fenix, the restaurant was honoured with the 2001 Restaurant of the Year for Victoria, as part of Melbourne’s Food and Wine Festival with the Herald Sun.
In the same year George was the mastermind behind the successful Melbourne restaurant Reserve, where his own personal style was on show. His food was an often-surprising hybrid of classical haute cuisine and experimental ideas. Quoted as “very out there”, George’s molecular gastronomy has seen him become a much talked about chef on the international cooking circuit. As a result, in 2004, the Global Food and Wine Magazine voted George as one of the Top 40 Chefs of Influence in the /World.
In the Age Good Food Guide (2004), George was awarded with 'Young Chef of the Year 2004'.
In October 2006, at the age of 27, George opened, The Press Club Restaurant and Bar. This began a new era for George and cemented his place as a culinary star for his Modern Greek Cuisine.
George’s 'Modern Greek' concept paid off. At the Victorian Restaurant and Catering Awards in 2006 The Press Club was named Best New Restaurant and nominated for Best New Restaurant in Australia. At the 2008 Age Good Food Guide Awards, The Press Club was awarded two chef hats and named 'Best New Restaurant 2008'. George was also awarded 'Chef of the Year 2008'.
In 2007 he was approached by a 5 Star Boutique Hotel in Mykonos, The Belvedere Hotel, to use his much admired Modern Greek Cuisine style in their hotel. In June 2008 The Belvedere Club was born - a poolside restaurant, sitting opposite the world famous Nobu Restaurant.
George went on to launch his first Cook Book aptly named 'The Press Club' and in February 2008 opened his second restaurant Maha Bar and Grill, a Mediterranean Middle Eastern restaurant with good friend and renowned chef Shane Delia.
In December 2008 George took his traditional Greek heritage further with the opening his third Melbourne restaurant Hellenic Republic. With this extremely busy restaurant came George’s second cookbook 'Greek Cookery from the Hellenic Heart'.
In 2009 George became a judge on MasterChef Australia. Now into its 3rd series, MasterChef Australia has become a benchmark for MasterChef programmes around the world. George’s connection with the children on Junior MasterChef touched viewers nationally. Motivated by this experience, George began working on a cookbook for kids, ‘Georgie Porgie’, due to be released late 2011.
In late 2010, George opened his 4th restaurant with Bocuse d’Or mentor Philippe Mouchel, named P M 24; a French bistro with a New York feel. In its short existence the media has already praised its cuisine and its impact on Melbourne’s food culture.
Also in 2010 George launched his 3rd cookbook ‘Your Place or Mine’ with once boss and MasterChef Australia co-judge Gary Mehigan. Its
success has led to the up and coming cookbook sequel ‘It’s your turn to Cook’ due to be released late 2011.
George prides himself on never forgetting the detail, but always thinking big. His restaurant standards continue with The Press Club being awarded two chefs hats in the 2011 Age Good Food Guide, and all the while working towards opening his 5th Melbourne restaurant, St Katherine’s with partner at Maha, Shane Delia.
George’s energy and enthusiasm is running strong in 2011 with the opening of his 6th restaurant Mama Baba, a Greco-Roman eatery in one of Melbourne’s affluent suburbs, South Yarra later this year. This new venture will coincide with the launch of his product range, GC By George Calombaris including items like Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Taramasalata, Saganaki, Peppered Figs and a range of olives.
Peter Sidwell
Peter Sidwell has been involved in many business activities over the last twenty five plus years.
Highlights through his career have been the management of an international publishing, printing and television company which floated on the Australian stock exchange and was successfully taken over by the Murdoch controlled PMP in 1996. Sidwell has since been involved in many diversified business activities and owns companies working in online communities, cloud software development, commercial farming, winery and property development. Sidwell is a seed investor in many life science businesses.
Sidwell is also inaugural Chairman of Melbourne Heart, the latest soccer team to enter the FFA national competition.
He is also a director of the CCCF, the cancer foundation at the Royal Children’s Hospital (Melbourne) and is a committee member of charity fundraisers, My Room and Million Dollar Lunch.
Frances Lindsay
Frances Lindsay is Deputy Director of the National Gallery of Victoria and is one of Australia’s most experienced art museum professionals. She has been responsible for groundbreaking temporary exhibitions of both International and Australian artists and in her role at the NGV leads and oversees the display of the permanent collections of both Australian and International art, and the departments of curatorial, education and public programs, exhibition design, multimedia and publications. Prior to joining the NGV in 2000, she was Inaugural Director of The Ian Potter Museum of Art, The University of Melbourne.
Among her achievements she has been responsible for bringing two large, internationally acclaimed museum redevelopments to fruition, from initial design stages to opening, first with The Ian Potter Museum of Art and then at with The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia at Federation Square.