QUT has launched a new institute that will focus on creating leadership growth as one of the legacies of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The QUT Leadership Institute (QLI), co-led by Executive Director Professor Sarah Kelly OAM and Professor Gene Moyle, will deliver “high impact” programs led by industry leaders and partnered with researchers.
QUT says the QLI was developed in response to challenges facing business, government, sport and not-for-profit sectors across Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.
The timing was closely linked to the leadership opportunities stemming from the 2032 Brisbane Games which will allow Queensland to “monumentally lift its international profile”.
Professor Kelly said engagement with industry and government revealed that leadership capability was a growing challenge in the region.
“Organisations told us they were navigating a perfect storm of issues including technological disruption, increasing governance expectations, and growing complexity in decision-making,” she said.
“There is a pressing need to strengthen our current leaders and to grow a new generation of leaders equipped to navigate this upheaval.”
Professor Kelly said other cities and countries that hosted major events had found potential for an “exponential leap in economic expansion”.
This has been experienced in Brisbane through the World Expo in1988 but the Olympic and Paralympic Games were a bigger scale opportunity.
“The conversation ahead of the Games often focuses on physical infrastructure, but what we are instilling at QLI is leadership as legacy,” Professor Kelly said.
“We want more ‘lighthouse leaders’ in our region – those who can shine the way for others based on their lived experience of leadership,”
Experts and mentors for the programs will come from areas like information systems and data centre infrastructure, cutting-edge deep tech, healthcare and health-tech, defence, banking, consulting, legal, energy, mining and resources, advanced manufacturing and creative industries.
Programs will be delivered in short sprints and built through “live organisational challenges, immersive experiences and hands-on practice” rather than passive classroom learning.
The first cohort of QUT Leadership Institute Leaders in Residence will include:
Olympian John Bertrand, skipper of the Australia II in “Race of the Century” America’s Cup win in 1983; chair of Sport Australia Hall of Fame; author and speaker; former president of Swimming Australia.
Najoh Tita-Reid, global chief growth officer at Mars Petcare and a global leader on AI and ethics, who has also worked in senior positions at Bayer, Hero Group, and Logitech across the UK, continental Europe and the US.
David Moffatt, chairman of Ventia Services Group, chairman Australia-New Zealand for Apollo Global Management, and chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia.
Kristina Karlsson, founder of stationery and lifestyle brand kikki.K over the course of two decades to become a household name in retail; now the founder of Dream Life, a business that provides coaching, programs and products centred around inspiration, planning and wellbeing.
QLI has built five leadership programs:
QLI Trailblazers: For undergraduate students in their penultimate year, to build critical leadership skills, confidence and clarity to step into their careers ready to lead.
QLI Unlimited: For women preparing to lead at the highest levels. Focuses on leadership capability, strategic perspective and the influential networks to thrive in senior executive and C-suite roles.
QLI LeadLab: For C-suite leaders ready to lead with global systems perspective and multi-sector networks.
QLI Ignite: For senior leaders shifting from delivering within a function to shaping direction across the organisation. The program focuses on strategic acuity, systems awareness and an enduring peer coalition.
QLI Unlocked: For sports executives leading at the intersection of high performance and innovation. Focuses on confident leadership identity, practical tools and a peer network spanning codes and career stages.
QUT Vice-Chancellor Professor Margaret Sheil AO said the institute directly responded to demand for short, non-award programs that supported targeted leadership capability development .
“The QUT Leadership Institute will operate as a central platform to connect external demand, industry partners and leadership development opportunities with QUT expertise,” she said.
“Its establishment is a deliberate strategic choice for our university that builds on our real-world focus.”
More information is available here
