Page 6 - Australian Pork Newspaper

Cheers to Greg Wall, the current chair of the board for the Margaret River Wine Association – an independent non-profit organisation with 200 industry members and 50 associated grape grower and commercial members.
I posed the question “What makes a good leader?” to Greg Wall, Member of the Order of Australia award recipient and someone I’ve long ad- mired as a universally re- spected and ethical busi- ness leader who – aside from holding CEO and MD roles with large fi- nancial institutions and numerous board posi- tions, including for public companies – has been a significant driver of the cooperative movement here and internationally.
• First Australian to be elected to the board of the International Cooperative Alliance in 2013 and re- elected for another four year terms in 2017.
I always run quarterly updates to all staff via a group meeting for all in the office and then a video to all staff located elsewhere.
A leader must call out and address these issues in the best interests of the business and the staff who are doing the right thing.
Leadership leanings and learnings
HAVING last month profiled three significant pork people – all leaders in their own right – I’m stepping things up this month and sharing some thoughts on what really makes a good leader.
communicating the deci- sions.
Cant
Comment
by BRENDON CANT
Though I’ve devel- oped many of my own thoughts on this subject over the 38 years of prac- ticing as a public rela- tions consultant, advising numerous company and organisation chief execu- tive officers, chairs and managing directors on communication matters – including the likes of branding and issues man- agement – I’ve elected to lean on someone else here for their thoughts.
That is not only the courage to drive the or- ganisation and make de- cisions in the best inter- ests of the business and its people, but also the courage to deal with poor behaviours or perform- ance.
So, here goes... this from Greg:
Such communication updates all staff on the performance of the or- ganisation, updates them on key projects and looks at the goals for the next quarter.
It goes to the culture of the business.
Australia’s
executive and in turn they to their senior managers and so on through the organisation.
Courage in a leader is vital.
• Founding
national peak body for the sector, the Business Council of Cooperatives and Mutuals
Nothing unsettles an organisation more than poor behaviour or poor performance that goes unchecked.
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Some of Greg’s exten- sive achievements in the cooperative space – be- yond his eight years as CEO of the Capricorn So- ciety – include:
They also lead the cul- ture of the organisation, setting the desired behav- iours and symbols of suc- cess.
This goes back to my belief that staff will do the right thing if they know what you are trying to achieve.
If you are happy, you are more productive and in turn this leads to greater success for the business and happiness for team members.
• Establishing the first national forum for the chairs of Australia’s top cooperative firms
Leaders demonstrate integrity by saying what they are going to do and then doing what they say.
If they don’ t know what the goal or strategy of the organisation is, they will make it up.
Leaders should recog- nise good performance and celebrate the success of the business and indi- viduals as often as pos- sible.
• Chairing the United Nations International Year of Cooperatives Sec- retariat 2012
In my experience, most people want to do their best for the company or organisation they work for but need to know what the leader stands for and is trying to achieve.
I also demonstrate some flexibility here be- cause not everyone has the capacity to work au- tonomously towards a strategy.
I appreciated Greg’s above short-notice re- sponse to my request for his leadership leanings and learnings, but did no- tice he neglected to men- tion the importance of listening.
• Presenting at the United Nations in New York for the launch of the International Year of Cooperatives
This is where good communication comes in – leaders must communi- cate and sell the vision on a regular basis, not only once a year at the annual general meeting.
At times some need to have their goals and performance set for them and monitored regularly.
There are many facets to good leadership.
A final observation – everyone goes to work to earn a living so they can live their life as happily as they can.
Over my career the key elements that served me well include vision, in- tegrity, communication, trust, decision making, courage and having some fun.
Having set the vision and culture of the organi- sation and communicated regularly, I trust my staff and allow them to do their job within the parameters of the strategy.
Work dominates a large portion of our time – usu- ally five days a week.
A good leader guides the vision and strategy for the organisation while setting out its key stra- tegic pillars and what success looks like.
I don’t micromanage.
Therefore, I always try to bring a bit of fun into the workplace to make it interesting and enjoyable, rather than a drudge.
I’ve always set up a cas- cading one-on-one com- munication that enables me to communicate to my
People respect a leader who makes decisions based on facts and is de- cisive, fair and clear in
Alas, he has even shared that with me on a one-on- one basis.
A good leader cares for his team and clients and trusts in people, however at times not all are in line with the strategy or culture of the business or organisation.
I know it’s important to him because I’ve often heard him say, “You have two ears and one mouth.”
Such a thoughtful and brutally honest mentor!
I get it.
Page 6 – Australian Pork Newspaper, March 2022
Greg Wall leads from the front while cooperating all the way.
www.porknews.com.au