About Us

Queensland Leaders inspires companies through knowledge, connections and resources.

Leaders surrounds growth companies with the expertise and experience of Business and Industry leaders to provide an effective, trusted community that fast-tracks outcomes and leads to greater prosperity for each Member.

Using this experience and its networks, Queensland Leaders operates a range of initiatives designed to benefit companies at different stages of growth.

These initiatives include:

• Executive Leaders Series
• Future Leaders Series
• Connect Series
• Alumni Series

Queensland Leaders has a vision that includes:

• Assisting growth companies to become national and international  market leaders;
• Developing and enhance the leadership skills of Founders, Directors and Executives;
• Developing greater link to local, national, international opportunities and capital markets;
• Surrounding growth companies with Business, Industry and Government leaders.
  

Advisory Board

Queensland Leaders has engaged a highly qualified and respected Advisory Board to assist in strategic direction provide strategic insight, support and connectivity to the broader network. This Advisory Board includes:

John Allpass

John Allpass has had a 25-year career as a non-executive director.  He served on the board of various companies including Envestra Limited where he was Chairman for 12 years.  John has also served as a director of Macquarie Bank Limited, Bupa Australia Group, Brisbane Airport Corporation, Queensland Investment Corporation, and as Chairman of Macquarie Life Limited and Hamilton Island Limited. He also holds a number of appointments in community organisations.

Vivienne Anthon

Vivienne is an experienced management consultant, professional facilitator and mentor to women in business. She was formerly CEO of the Australian Institute of Management and has held executive positions in private education, professional services firms and not for profits. Vivienne works with private companies to create the conditions and conversations in which people will contribute their best. She sits on a number of Boards including the Victorian Leaders Advisory Board and is Deputy Chair the La Boite Theatre Company. Vivienne holds a Bachelor of Law from ANU, a Graduate Diploma in Education from QUT and an MBA with Distinction from Griffith University.

Hon. Sallyanne Atkinson AO

Sallyanne started her career as a journalist and went on to become Lord Mayor of Brisbane and Special Representative for South East Asia for the Queensland Government. Sallyanne now holds several non-executive director roles for local and national organisations and companies. She was recently appointed as Chairman of the Museum of Brisbane.

Peter Birtles

Peter Birtles was the CEO of Super Retail Group from 2006 until early 2019. During this time he oversaw the development of the Supercheap Auto and BCF businesses and the acquisition of the Rebel and Macpac businesses increasing Group sales from $500 million to $2.6 billion. 

Peter is now a non-executive director of the publicly listed GWA Group and Metcash and the privately owned APG&Co (the owner of the Sportscraft, Saba and Jag businesses). He is also a non-executive director of Good 360 a not for profit distributing excess inventory from retailers and consumer goods companies to charities. 

Stephen Copplin

Stephen started his working career as an accountant and CPA. After senior executive positions with Philips and News Corporation. Stephen took on the challenge of a startup that supplied business software to the Media industry that grew to become an international industry leader. After successfully exiting that company Stephen commenced his continuing career as an angel investor, professional company director, coach and mentor to companies in a variety of industries. Stephen was the founding CEO of I.lab, The Creative Industries Precinct accelerator and was part of the group that founded Brisbane Angels. He is the facilitator of Future Leaders in Queensland.

John Mactaggart

Mr Mactaggart’s experience spans industries such as agriculture, agri-tech, manufacturing and software. He co-founded the Australian Association of Angel Investors Limited, is a co-founder of Brisbane Angels and was the Australian representative of the World Business Angels Association. Mr Mactaggart played an integral role in the creation, funding, and development of TechnologyOne and remains a major shareholder. Mr Mactaggart has been a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors since 1991.

James Paulsen

James initially worked in investment banking and private equity for several years assisting private companies access new opportunities, capital and exit strategies. He also founded Enterprise Angels, one of the first cloud based business angel networks in Australia. In 2006 he founded Queensland Leaders, a platform based business initiative to work with leading private companies to assist them become national and international market leaders.  After the success in Queensland, he established the Leaders business platform across Australia, New Zealand and the UK through the International Leaders business. James studied accounting at QUT and then completed an MBA with Bond University. His focus for the last 25 years has been to assist private business owners achieve their best through access to expertise, experience and inspiration.

Ian Runge

Ian Runge is a mining engineer and economist and the founder of Runge Limited– now ASX listed company RPM Global Holdings Ltd which he started in 1977 – the world’s largest publicly traded mining technology services companies. He retired from the board in 2018 after 41 years.

Ian Runge has had active involvement in more than 120 mining projects in 10 different countries.  Ian believes that if you have achieved some modicum of success then you have an obligation to pass along what you have learnt for the next generation. So, along with dozens of articles and papers on economics and technology he has subsequently written two books. His book Mining Economics and Strategy is the world’s largest selling mining textbook.

He has been on the advisory board of Queensland Leaders for 12 years, and has honorary positions as Industry Fellow in the School of Economics and Adjunct Professor in the School of Mechanical and Mining Engineering at The University of Queensland.