CEO Report

Scott Wright, Chief Executive Officer

If I have a great love in this role, it is to engage with you all as members. We have just completed two large and significant events, firstly our 'Beyond the Beef” Zoetis Angus National Conference in Tamworth and secondly the “GenAngus Future Leaders Program.

Thank you to everyone who came and participated. It was great to have the Angus community or “Family" come back together at the conference for the first time since COVID-19. The enthusiasm amongst members was infectious and I appreciated the great many conversations and words of encouragement. While as a society we try to put a great program of information together, I’m convinced that the greatest exchange of information is amongst members over meals, coffee and through informal conversations. The conference had several important components which are worth drawing attention to specifically. One important thing that happened was that we launched a "refresh" of the Angus Australia branding. I'm delighted by the brand refresh. It was developed in-house by our Marketing and Communications team and I thank them for an excellent job, particularly Ebonie Jones and Diana Wood, but also to the whole team. I'm a great believer in brand evolution so you will notice that we've kept the bull but refreshed the look and feel, in a similar way to how Apple has always kept the iconic apple. I hope you are as proud and excited as I am.

Secondly, I had the great privilege of launching our new five-year strategic plan. This has been an enormous project, particularly for the Board of Directors. You will have had this plan delivered together with this bulletin. We are so excited to have a roadmap for growth for the next five years. The plan was developed from all of the ideas and interactions from our “Have Your Say” Workshops in 2022, Director’s observations, staff input, member surveys and much more.

You will see the vision statement, “Angus for Every System”. This is important as we think through how to grow the breed in its reach, market share, “Angus Premium” and its ability to effect real profitability gains for the entire beef industry. Coupled with that vision is our mission statement, revised only slightly from the original mission statement proposed by Graham Truscott in the early 2000’s:

"To maximise the profitability & sustainability of our members through innovation & service”.

You will notice we have six Critical Strategic Objectives - these are deep and thoughtful, giving us the framework to improve the service to our members and grow the breed over the next five years.

We now have to work hard to bring it to life, but we can’t create this future on our own in Armidale. The Board and I see a new picture and we hope our vision becomes your vision. There’s a lot to be excited about!

I recently attended the QLD Angus meeting and Farmfest in Toowoomba. They are a wonderful group of breeders committed to marketing world class Angus genetics to the ever-growing Queensland cattle industry. At their meeting this week we talked through the enormous opportunity that they have on their doorstep and how as an affiliated Angus group they can work with the society to grow the breed in their patch. And while we can promote the breed and come up with the most successful programs and technology, it comes down to face-to-face interactions where our members sell their genetics to a growing market. A great example of a group of members working with the larger society for the benefit of the breed. We have an exciting period ahead; we have started working on the World Angus Forum to be held in Australia in 2025. Announcements will soon follow!

This will be an amazing opportunity to showcase our genetics to a world audience. Later this year you will also see a new platform in the genetic evaluation space that has been worked on for the past several years.We hope it will be another chance to grow the breed.

I’d like to thank Erica Halliday, President, the Board of Directors and all the staff for their continued enthusiasm as we put this strategic plan into action! Finally, welcome to the board to our new Directors - Simone Bond from South Australia and Peter Collins from Victoria! We welcome their enthusiasm and ideas going forward. Over the coming months you will see the announcement of two new team members to join Angus Australia who will bring new energy and talent to the Angus community.

Yours sincerely,

Scott Wright, Chief Executive Officer

Top image: Scott Wright, Hannah Powe, Erica Halliday & Brad Gilmour at the Zoetis Angus National Conference, Bottom image: Scott Wright, Simone Bond, Erica Halliday at GenAngus