View Full Version : Olivia Wirth-Emerging Leader
Solomons Son
2nd Jul 2014, 22:50
You must be joking!
Come and hear the next Emerging Leader, Olivia Wirth, speak at the Establishment Ballroom, Level 2 Establishment Hotel, 252 George Street, Sydney at 6.30pm on the 7th of August. Hear her talk about Ambition overriding ability!
Hear her talk about confusing Ambition with ability! There, fixed it for you.
BOSS Emerging Leaders event with Olivia Wirth, Group Executive, Brand, Marketing and Corporate Affairs at Qantas
7th Aug 2014 6:45pm-9:00pm
http://sydney.edu.au/business/__data/assets/image/0005/203675/wirth.jpgJoin us for the next AFR BOSS Emerging Leaders event with Olivia Wirth, Group Executive, Brand, Marketing and Corporate Affairs at Qantas.
Olivia is responsible for the company's internal and external communication, community relations and sponsorship as well as the brand and marketing for the Qantas Group.
Olivia has over 15 years of experience in public affairs, government relations and media relations most recently as the Executive Director of industry association and lobby group, the Transport and Tourism Forum (TTF).
She has worked in a range of public and corporate affairs roles including the London based, Business in the Community (part of the Prince's Trust) and the Australian Tourist Commission (now Tourism Australia)
Olivia is young, ambitious and incredibly successful holding a very difficult job amongst difficult times for one of Australia's most reputable brands, respectively cementing herself as one of the country's most prominent women in business right now. Join us at the next Emerging Leaders event to get an insight into Olivia's illustrious career.
Thursday 7 August
Registration: 6:45pm
Formalities start: 7:15pm
Conclusion: 9:00pm
Venue
Establishment Ballroom,
Establishment
Level 2, 252 George Street
Sydney 2000
Price
$55.00
More information: BOSS Emerging Leaders Program (http://bossemergingleaders.com.au/event/august-2014-2/)
dragon man
2nd Jul 2014, 23:07
Do they pay you $55 for attending? That's the only way that I would go!
division1
2nd Jul 2014, 23:14
Paul must be brushing her hair in the mornings now, looks hot.
Is she an emerging leader or an emerging Manager ?
EchoNovemberTango
2nd Jul 2014, 23:57
absolute joke :yuk:
Sunfish
3rd Jul 2014, 00:13
Beware of getting in the way of liv. She will have the job if she wants it.
Firstly Livvy is female and no doubt a member of Emilys list. She will have a cohort of female executives and politicians behind her who will knife and character assassinate any male who raises doubts about her suitability for any role at all.
Secondly, Livvy is well connected on both sides of politics.
Thirdly, In my opinion, the "scientific management tribe" which believes that anyone can manage anything if they are "scientific" about how they do stuff are in the ascendant. This is the MBA qualification mantra; practical experience is irrelevant to them. If Liv wants the job then of course she can do it! Don't look for any industry objections.
Fourth, I would expect that any internal competitor will find their career in ruins if they challenge her. So don't look for staff or management objections.
Sunfish,
Agree, no doubt she is an anointed one.
Cactusjack
3rd Jul 2014, 00:27
Well I read that nauseating spruik for her and I had a vomit emerge from my stomach.And I agree, Paul is doing a wonderful job brushing her hair and wet-nursing her!
Perhaps she shall be anointed officially onboard an A380 when she stands beneath the stairwell and is sprinkled in leaking A380 water??
Cactus
Spruiking or not, it is true.
Qantas 787
3rd Jul 2014, 00:38
"incredibly successful"
Two words that you can't use in relation to OW..........
Sunfish makes many good points, she is being paraded as the next probable appointee.
To take his argument a step further, the really interesting thing is for all intents & purposes has the appearance of a political appointment. She obviously has a "skill set" in the art of politics/PR.
Many years have been carefully honing alliances & networks on both sides of the isle, she is a primarily a political creature. Her appointment as CEO would remove any pretence that there is a difference between the public & private.
The mechanics of running business are now far less important to the mechanics of running the politics of business. Mussolini would be proud.
One can only imagine the pillow talk: "Just think Paul, with my ambition & your ability..."
FYSTI
Appointed to what ?
CEO Qantas, CEO of another company or Politics ?
Lodown
3rd Jul 2014, 02:00
Perhaps she shall be anointed officially onboard an A380 when she stands beneath the stairwell and is sprinkled in leaking A380 water??
What's an A380????? And is that Evian water?
Frank Burden
3rd Jul 2014, 02:30
All,
I was wondering if some of the invective on this thread reflects the rapidly reducing social standards of good manners and respect in our society?
I consider myself a professional working in the aviation industry and commend others to take a similar stand.
More than happy to read criticisms based on fact but gutter sniping is a low act.
Cranky Franky
tartare
3rd Jul 2014, 02:31
Although high profile - I would be very surprised if she was appointed to the top job.
Boards generally look for people with operational experience (not necessarily in the same industry or even a related industry mind), running a P&L account at the upper end of the hundreds of millions of revenue range at least before they'll even shortlist them for the corner office.
Even then it is actually quite hard for someone from a support function like marketing or PR to transition into an operational role - privately, execs with P&L responsibility see them as lightweights.
If you can do it, the route is support function, then into a P&L role of around $300 mil per annum revenue, then another jump up to $600-700 mill revenue, then you might be in the league.
You also need to demonstrate you can run a complex business, preferably with multinational experience.
Big investors would also get the ****s with any candidate who didn't have that sort of experience under their belt.
Mstr Caution
3rd Jul 2014, 02:34
FYTSI
Its quite probable that OW has inside knowledge, a search for a new QF Chairman "may" be in progress.
Putting her best foot forward in the interim, as a serious contender for the CEO position well in advance.
MC
AEROMEDIC
3rd Jul 2014, 03:32
Assuming he WILL go, and that Alan Joyce has been able to convince the board that his current strategy is the way to go, he will have no difficulty in having his recommended replacement accepted no matter who it is.
You can bet your bottom dollar that this person will be "in tune" with Alan, and would have "sold their soul" to get there.
Wirth is right to raise her profile in order to have a tilt at the top job, no matter how dumb the attempt may seem to be, but the winner will be who is best at convincing Alan that they are the best candidate.
Having said that, I don't believe Alan is going any time soon under his own steam, rather to say that he will stubbornly resist any attempt by anyone to remove him. His "plan that cannot fail" will stumble along until the demise of the whole company and he'll leave with the others carrying a bundle of cash for their efforts.
1A_Please
3rd Jul 2014, 03:37
Its quite probable that OW has inside knowledge, a search for a new QF Chairman "may" be in progress.
Maybe Paul could go for chairman and they could have board meetings in a queen-size bed.
Usually you don't do exec searches for chairmen. They are typically existing board members who already have operational knowledge of the business. You do do exec searches for CEOs though:D
Genuine question.
Does she really have the experience, operational or otherwise, to run a company like Qantas. With or without a good Lieutenant or two ?
Potsie Weber
3rd Jul 2014, 04:27
Does she really have the experience, operational or otherwise, to run a company like Qantas.
No! She would likely have to prove herself first as CEO J*/Int/Dom.
Would not surprise me one bit to see piggy get a board seat though.
Capt Kremin
3rd Jul 2014, 04:27
Depends what you mean... A company like Qantas, Yes. A respected international airline...No.
AnQrKa
3rd Jul 2014, 04:53
You guys should be ashamed of yourselves.
The derogatory sexist comments towards this persons professionalism simply highlight how stuck in the fifties airline pilots really are.
Dislike her work ethic, her reults or her resume if you want to, fine. But attacking her because . . . .
She is female or
She is being propped up by a male or
She got her job because she is female or
She only survives by surrounding herself with females
. . . . as comments here indicate directly or indirectly, make you look like tools.
And why use childish ozmate nicknames for her but not for AJ?
She has acheived a lot more in her profession than we have by simply by waiting for seniority to pull us up the hill into the next level of button pushing and newspaper reading.
Embarassing the lot of you!
tartare
3rd Jul 2014, 05:46
Actually - external searches are often done for Chairman.
In Orstraylia Heidrick and Struggles and Egon Zehnder are regulars in that lucrative little gig.
A current Chair worth their salt will have a good idea of which director they mightpromote to sit at the head of the Boardroom table, but they'll also look outside the organisation as well with the assistance of a search firm.
It's quite a structured process.
Again - OW would have to prove she could run a P&L.
Marketing, Corp Affairs are overhead roles - you don't make any coin for the business.
The Board wants to see a proven track record that you can operationally run a large business, successfully drive change and make an acceptable profit. Put simply, you need to be a statesperson par excellence and know how to get large groups of people to do what you want.
She doesn't have that experience, and would need to spend a few years successfully running Jetstar or a part of the mainline business for example before she could put up her hand.
That's why the AFR have called her an emerging leader.
Cos she ain't there yet.
waren9
3rd Jul 2014, 05:56
i thought hrdlicka was next batter up?
tartare
3rd Jul 2014, 05:58
Yes - without a detailed knowledge of the QF exec team, I would have thought Jane H. would have the necessary experience to at least be considered as an internal candidate.
The derogatory sexist comments towards this persons professionalism simply highlight how stuck in the fifties airline pilots really are.Are we talking about the same person? This a member of the the team that spends its days belittling those same pilots in the corridors of Parliament house.
She is a communications PR specialist. How did all those leaks to the media painting about the pilots in a poor light occur? These would be likely be sanctioned at the top level of Group Communications. Tipping the dirt & muckraking against your opponents is a specialty of this field.
Olivia Wirth even admitted shopping a dirt file around in Canberra:
Sometimes Wirth's strategy can blow up in her face. Last year, Qantas was furious about the United Arab Emirates-based airline Etihad being allowed to invest in Qantas' local competitor, Virgin Australia. Wirth's team distributed dirt sheets in Canberra about the UAE, criticising its record on democracy and human rights, among other things. But then Qantas unexpectedly struck an alliance deal with Emirates, also from the UAE. Overnight, the dirt sheets vanished and Wirth went back to Canberra to tell those same politicians why the UAE was now a wonderful place. "We had to go back to the drawing board," she admits sheepishly. "I guess you've got to be careful you don't become too cute."Olivia Wirth is Qantas's high flyer (http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/features/high-flyer/story-e6frg8h6-1226623529511)
So please, enough with the crocodile tears for Wirth. She's a big girl playing a tough game.
Sunfish
3rd Jul 2014, 06:38
Frank Burden:
All,
I was wondering if some of the invective on this thread reflects the rapidly reducing social standards of good manners and respect in our society?
I consider myself a professional working in the aviation industry and commend others to take a similar stand.
More than happy to read criticisms based on fact but gutter sniping is a low act.
Cranky Franky
I once thought that way too.... Then I saw how Board and senior executive appointments were made. Professionalism no longer has anything to do with it. It's a beauty contest.
Tartare:
Again - OW would have to prove she could run a P&L.
Marketing, Corp Affairs are overhead roles - you don't make any coin for the business.
The Board wants to see a proven track record that you can operationally run a large business, successfully drive change and make an acceptable profit. Put simply, you need to be a statesperson par excellence and know how to get large groups of people to do what you want.
She doesn't have that experience, and would need to spend a few years successfully running Jetstar or a part of the mainline business for example before she could put up her hand.
In a properly run business you are correct, but this is Qantas.
AnQrKa:
Sorry, too many female managers get a leg up by playing the discrimination game. Some Female managers are just bloody awful.
tartare
3rd Jul 2014, 06:51
It won't happen Sunfish.
Betcha.
Tiger35
3rd Jul 2014, 07:24
QF32 engine cowling on the ground south of Singapore: " There is no evidence that those parts came from a QANTAS aircraft."
A380 with water flowing down the aisles: " There was no safety concerns with water leaking onto passengers last night".
or words to that effect.
Can I get a job like this? Please. I'll do anything to get it. ;)
Outside In
3rd Jul 2014, 07:49
I seriously doubt that when AJ goes anyone very closely associated with him will get the CEO job. The airline needs to be rebuilt and the internal talent is just not there, be it OW, JH, LS or anyone else.
Sadly it all depends on the major shareholders and given they are mainly financial organisations and venture capitalists, it is probable they do not want to see a rebuilt Qantas.
Tiger,
That QF32 quote when it happened was a classic as at the same time they were showing someone picking up the pieces !
Rotorhead1026
3rd Jul 2014, 08:20
That QF32 quote when it happened was a classic as at the same time they were showing someone picking up the pieces !
Was she graduated from the same PR school as "Baghdad Bob" ? :)
neville_nobody
3rd Jul 2014, 08:25
She has acheived a lot more in her profession than we have by simply by waiting for seniority to pull us up the hill into the next level of button pushing and newspaper reading
I would suggest her connections in the Liberal Party got her where she is today.