Securing the Fleurieu’s future Story by Kate Le Gallez. Photography by Heidi Lewis.
Succession is fundamental to survival. It’s seen the gradual and sometimes notso-gradual evolution of the many species that have inhabited our planet over time. But succession also funnels down into our micro experiences of life. Like the ongoing success of a company, or the continuation of a local community. Founded by Charles and Janice Manning, the Fleurieu Future Leaders (FFL) program has succession at its heart, both for the individuals who undertake the program and for the community it’s embedded within. This year they recognise five years of Fleurieu future leaders. Charles and Janice met at 17, married at 23 and in perhaps the ultimate test of marital compatibility, went on to start their boutique consulting firm Face the World in 1997. The business supports leaders, typically in a corporate environment, facilitating thinking 34
around business and strategy and developing high-performance teams. Charles is the front man, while Janice brings the practical business nous and supreme organisational skills, and both have a masters in behavioural science. ‘We’re best friends. We do annoy each other at times,’ says Charles. ‘But most of the time we have lots of fun together and just feel really lucky.’ That said, they’re grateful they have space to maintain separate home offices. The origins of the FFL were perhaps seeded when Janice and Charles helped to develop and facilitate a program called the Barossa Future Leaders program, aimed at developing a new generation of Barossa-based leaders ready to continue the work of the so-called barons of the Barossa. Many years later, after they had moved from Adelaide to the Fleurieu, the idea took hold in the meat section at the old McLaren Vale Coles. Charles bumped into a former client, Tom Harvey of the Chalk Hill Collective. ‘I got chatting and said, “How come there isn’t a regional leadership program down here?” And he said, “It’s because you haven’t set it up yet”.’
