CEO Report

Scott Wright, Chief Executive Officer

The past three months has been an incredible journey as I settled into the role of CEO. I have endeavoured to keep the best aspects of the culture at Angus Australia, and at the same time pivot and bring a new direction to the organisation.

Angus Australia CEO Scott Wright with Angus NSW during farm tours near Mudgee

Moving the culture of an organisation isn’t an easy process. Perhaps change is the wrong word; rather it would be that I am seeking to focus the organisation on member engagement and to simplify and streamline all our processes. That engagement and simplification is what has preoccupied my time since commencing as CEO in March. 2022 is all about focus and working with the Board to formulate a new 5-year strategic plan to begin in 2023.

New Zealand

In May, Sam White, Erica Halliday, Tammy McLeod and myself visited New Zealand to welcome and interact with our newest group of breeders, AngusPRO. This was a helpful workshop with a very passionate group of breeders who are a great addition to our “Angus family”. AngusPRO bring a great energy to Angus Australia, headed up by the positive work of Tim Brittain. While in New Zealand, we also had a meeting with New Zealand Angus to consider a way of working together moving forward. While the content of the discussion at that meeting is confidential, I can report we had important and very helpful discussions in which both parties resolved several ways of working together in a positive partnership moving forward.

Visitation and “Have Your Say” Workshops

As I write this, we are midway through our “Have Your Say” workshops. Can I say thank you to the membership for your attendance, attitude and your enthusiasm for the future of both the organisation and the Angus breed. These discussions have helped me to gain an even better understanding of the needs of the membership. I appreciate the time given by the various Board members to attend and contribute. In addition, I have continued to visit as many members as possible to enable frank and open conversations about the future of the breed and the society. The “Have Your Say” workshops have been very useful in drawing out the small (and large) issues that perhaps have been overlooked. If you would like to contribute any feedback about Angus Australia in any way, please email: scott.wright@angusaustralia.com.au or kathryn.duddy@angusaustralia.com.au.

May Board Meeting

At the May board meeting, Erica Halliday was elected as the new President of the Board. Erica and I share a common heart for improving service and engagement with members. I am certain this will be a positive chapter for the entire organisation. Sam White finished up his time on the board following the AGM and Sinclair Munro has joined the board as a National Director. The board meeting was productive, with considerable time spent on several significant projects currently in development. Importantly, a new regulation around leasing of females was considered and passed. This new regulation will be communicated to members in the coming weeks.

GenAngus Future Leaders

One of the absolute highlights of the year was being able to attend the GenAngus Future Leaders event held in Adelaide in May. The organisation was fantastic, and you can be assured the future of the breed is in great hands, judging from the high calibre of young people who attended. The course has a team building component and then moves into a number of skill building sessions, aiming to equip our Angus leaders of tomorrow with the skills and mental outlook they will require to make their businesses a success. Thank you to Achmea Australia for their valuable alliance in allowing us to host such an enriching event for these young people.

Affiliated Angus Groups

Another key activity has been to start engaging with our Affiliated Angus groups. I have been able to attend several meetings including the NSW Angus AGM and farm walk at Mudgee. Sam White and I presented to the group and held a very helpful discussion on a range of topics. We enjoyed dinner with the group that evening and enjoyed the hospitality of Coffin Creek and Talooby the following day. I was able to attend the June QLD Angus meeting, and it was a pleasure to start building a rapport with that group. I am looking forward to joining the meetings of the Tasmanian and West Australian groups in the coming months.

Staff Changes

Many will have noticed some significant staff changes at Angus Australia since my appointment as CEO. This follows a restructure of the business into the following four areas: 1. Genetic Improvement 2. Member Engagement 3. Marketplace Services 4. Corporate Services Christian Duff has been appointed as General Manager of Genetic Improvement. This senior role will oversee a team to deliver Angus Australia’s genetic improvement initiatives, including our genetic evaluation services to members and associated Research and Development (R&D) programs (both internal and collaborative). For the foreseeable future, Christian will also maintain his role directly managing our R&D programs, including external collaborations and the Angus Australia reference population program (Angus Sire Benchmarking Program). Christian has a depth of experience in beef cattle genetics, has a great connection with members, is currently studying for his PhD with UNE and is the perfect candidate to oversee this business unit. Andrew Byrne has been moved into the role of Genetic Evaluation Manager, which sits within the Genetic Improvement business unit. This role will focus on the delivery and development of our Genetic Evaluation services. Jake Philips has been appointed as Extension Manager. Jake, who is based in Naracoorte SA, will oversee Angus Australia’s extension and engagement programs. Jake’s appointment is an important part of our new strategy to increase field engagement with members. He has a depth of experience in the beef processing sector and the seedstock breeding sector. You will find Jake very approachable; he also shares my “member first” philosophy. Bernard Beatty has been appointed as my replacement to head up our Member Services. This team of course is the primary contact for most of our members. Bernard oversees most of the day-to-day transactional activity between our team and members. Hailing from the health industry, Bernard has a career of customer service and staff management. Kathryn Duddy was appointed in a multi-faceted role as Company Secretary, Human Resources Manager and Assistant to the CEO, with a range of responsibilities. As my assistant, Kathryn is an excellent point of contact if I am unavailable, and for anything that is related to the Board of Directors. Kathryn has a depth of experience in both management and customer relationships and will bring new energy to Angus Australia as we seek to improve our culture going forward.

Goodbye to two great men….

I would like to acknowledge the important work and now friendship of Sam White and the mentoring of Dr Peter Parnell, whose priority was always the organisation. In his final days at Angus Australia, Peter concentrated on setting me up for success. Thank you to both Sam and Peter! Both of you have made the transition of myself into the CEO role easier and smoother than I could have ever hoped. Thank you for putting the future of Angus Australia above your own personal success. Should any member wish to contact me, please feel welcome to touch base via phone or email. In the event I am unavailable, please contact Kathryn Duddy and she will alert me to your needs. Yours sincerely, Scott Wright, Chief Executive Officer