Meet Australia’s future wine leaders

16 talented and driven professionals from the Australian grape and wine community have been chosen to be the Future Leaders 2017.

Future Leaders is coordinated by Wine Australia in partnership with the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia (WFA) and Australian Vignerons (formerly Wine Grape Growers Australia). The Future Leaders program is designed to develop participants’ leadership capabilities and encourage innovation and thoughtful debate on the future of the sector.

The Future Leaders of 2017 are:

Richard Leask said on learning of his selection, “I’m excited and apprehensive; the alumni list is impressive and a little daunting! I suppose it feels like just before vintage, you have some idea what you’re in for and that it will challenge you at times but you can’t wait to get into it.

“I’m hoping to discover personal leadership strengths and weaknesses and the tools to improve on both. To open up a new network of people that will keep challenging each other and the wine industry to be the best it can be.”

Sarah Collingwood agreed saying, “I’m looking forward to the Future Leaders program challenging me both professionally and personally. It’s a great opportunity for me to look up from running my business to establish new connections in the industry and explore the future of business, marketing and governance.”

Wine Australia CEO Andreas Clark said the calibre of applicants again reflected the impressive talent working in the Australian grape and wine sector. He hopes that the opportunity will bring together the emerging leaders and help establish long-term prosperity in the grape and wine sector.

“We want the best and brightest leading the Australian grape and wine community and it’s vital we support them by investing in their professional development so they can confidently lead the sector in the years to come,” said Clark.

Andrew Weeks and Tony Battaglene, the Chief Executive Officers from AV and WFA, said they were proud to once again support the Future Leaders program.

“The expression of interest from such a large and highly competent field of applicants suggest that the future of the grape and wine sector is in good hands,” said Battaglene.

Future Leaders 17 program

In a dynamic and evolving sector, this year’s program will explore new avenues in business, marketing and governance, and will also look at how global economics will shape the future.

Participants will look at new technology, how they can amplify the innovative thinking that already exists in our sector, and learn contemporary approaches to human development and commercial success.

www.winefutureleaders.com

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