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Derwent are delighted to have hosted over 100 attendees at our Pathway to the Boardroom event in Sydney this week, with guest speakers Inese Kingsmill and Robyn Stubbs . This ongoing series is designed to provide tips and perspectives to aspiring board members as they explore opportunities beyond their executive careers. Inese and Robyn shared their insights on how to plan for a board career; how to effectively develop and position your personal brand and expertise; and tips for identifying and assessing different board opportunities. Highlights of the discussion included: Gaining exposure to boards during an executive career provides professional development and foundational board experience to point to. Establish your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) – t here are unique skills, expertise and attributes that are personal to you, including adjacent experience applicable in other settings (such as regulated settings, customer, transformation, technology). You may be ‘pigeon holed’ throughout your executive career, so it’s important to further develop functional and industry experience in a variety of settings which can help to open up greater board opportunities. Finding board opportunities – there are a myriad of different channels including networking, board search recruiters, consulting engagements, industry associations, LinkedIn, personal connections. Develop a target list and do some initial research, but don’t boil the ocean. Due diligence is key to finding the right board, including research into growth opportunities, competitors, financial positioning, and skills gaps on interesting boards. Future fit boards and diversity including age, functional expertise and different styles around the boardroom table are increasingly valued. Keep an open mind to different opportunities in private, listed and NFP settings, focusing on where there is space for you to learn and contribute your skills. Not for Profits, Industry Associations and other Community Boards are helpful starting points, developing experience working directly with Board Members. This exposure can help to better understand board dynamics, governance responsibilities, the rhythm of board meetings, and how to effectively work ‘on the business’, not ‘in the business’. Continuous learning – with rapidly evolving macro environments, continuous learning, particularly in relation to emerging technology, will be crucial to staying ahead of the skills that boards will require in the future.

Derwent is pleased to announce that Graeme Young has joined the firm as a Partner in the Financial Services Practice. Graeme brings over 15 years’ experience in executive search and recruitment, with a focus on the Insurance market. He leverages his vast experience in global Insurance, with deep technical knowledge and networks to deliver impactful leadership and C-suite appointments. Graeme was most recently a Director at Eliot Partnership, a leading global firm in Insurance Executive Search, where he led the Australian business. Prior to his Executive Search career, Graeme spent over 20 years working across global Insurance and Reinsurance markets, commencing in London and moving to Sydney in 1998. Derwent is proud to be one of Australia’s largest Executive and Board Search firms. Our leading team of 90+ drives our growth, success and scale in delivering to the clients who entrust us to advise on critical hiring needs.

In the 1940’s, women dominated the early days of computing when ENIAC was built. ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) was the first programmable, electronic, general-purpose computer. Then the personal computer was released in 1984, and it led to the rise of white male computing, so the number of women in technology rapidly declined. According to the Tech Council of Australia, women are twice as likely to enter the tech industry at the age of 25-30, as they are before age 25. This means tech is not the first step for many women – they are coming through alternate pathways. Last week, Derwent hosted a ´Women in Tech” breakfast to create a safe space for female leaders to share their challenges and discuss solutions that both executive search firms, like Derwent, and the community can implement to continue to promote and deliver diversity in executive hiring. Our conversation was led by guest speakers Kavita Mistry and Marigold Duncan , who shared their unique and diverse careers in tech. For Marigold, it was the allure of rapid growth, impactful work, and a collaborative culture, a stark contrast to her previous life in banking. Kavita, with a blend of artistic and mathematical influences, found her passion ignited by the logic and creativity inherent in technology. Their journeys, though diverse, highlight a common thread – tech offers a space for innovation and impact. However, the path to leadership isn't without its challenges. Both Marigold and Kavita spoke candidly about the hurdles women face, particularly in finding their voice and navigating leadership dynamics. Kavita emphasised the importance of speaking up, identifying and encouraging quieter voices, and leveraging female role models. Marigold shared her experiences leading international teams, learning to communicate assertively, and overcoming the unconscious biases that often shape decision-making. Mentorship and sponsorship emerged as crucial elements of their journeys. Both leaders emphasised the need for clarity in mentorship goals, the value of diverse perspectives, and the importance of nurturing long-term relationships. Kavita highlighted the distinction between mentorship (guidance) and sponsorship (advocacy), while Marigold stressed the value of seeking out mentors who understand your ambitions. So, how can women support other women in tech? Both leaders advocated for challenging unconscious biases in hiring, building strong networks, and providing coaching, particularly for interview preparation. They emphasised the importance of "watering and feeding" relationships, ensuring they are mutually beneficial and sustainable. Balancing work and family was another key topic. Marigold, a mother of three, acknowledged the constant effort required, emphasising the importance of self-awareness and adapting to changing needs. Kavita echoed this, highlighting the importance of prioritising energy, self-care, and aligning work commitments with life stages. Ultimately, the discussion offered valuable insights for women navigating the tech industry. It's a journey of continuous learning, resilience, and building strong networks. By embracing their unique perspectives, challenging biases, and supporting each other, women can not only thrive in tech but also shape its future. At Derwent, we are committed to long-term diversity through both assisting clients with inclusive hiring processes and attraction strategies, and fostering the next generation of female leaders.

We are delighted to announce the launch of our Interim Solutions business, led by John O’Leary. Demand for interim talent is evolving rapidly given changing market conditions and the way employers are structuring the capability and flexibility of their workforces. Interim talent delivers immediate impact, bringing capacity and capability to deliver outcomes across a range of initiatives and settings. This offering provides flexibility and scalability during peak talent needs, with an available bench of specialist capability and expertise.

In our 28th year of connecting high impact talent with Australia’s leading organisations, Derwent is proud to be one of Australia’s largest Executive and Board Search firms. Our leading team of 90+ drives our growth, success and scale in delivering to the clients who entrust us to advise on critical hiring needs. As a challenger brand, we seek out the new and different. We continue to welcome new consultants, and are pleased to announce the following appointments. Jack Evison – Managing Partner, Consumer & Retail, Melbourne Bel Hissey – Partner, Consumer & Retail, Sydney Simon Faircloth – Partner, Industrial, Melbourne Luke Marshall – Partner, Consumer & Retail, Melbourne John O’Leary – Partner, Interim Solutions, Sydney

Derwent recently rounded out its National executive forum series “Digital Growth – It’s a People Thing” in Perth with guest speakers Jenny Bryant and Colin Nexhip , following the success of the series in Melbourne and Sydney earlier this year. Organisations that succeed in driving growth and transformation are the ones that get the people strategies right. There are critical people elements to consider when leading growth and a more sustainable digital future – these include developing the right operating model, organisational structure, aligning the right capability to the structure, and establishing optimal ways of working. Facilitated by Lindsay Every , Derwent’s Group Managing Partner and Digital Practice Lead, Jenny and Colin shared their perspectives and insights on the strategic imperatives for digital growth and transformation, and the role that talent plays in driving this change. Key takeaways from the discussion included: The technology landscape is characterised by constant change, with no periods of stability. This ongoing evolution demands that organisations remain adaptable and proactive in their technology strategies. Across industries, digital transformation has emerged as a recurring top priority. Companies recognise that leveraging digital technologies is essential for maintaining competitive advantage and driving innovation. Organisations are increasingly looking to technology as a catalyst to turbocharge their transformation efforts. This means not only adopting new tools, but also rethinking processes and strategies to maximise the benefits of digital advancements. It is crucial to view technology in the context of the workforce and organisational culture. Successful digital initiatives require alignment between the tools and the people who use them, fostering an environment that supports innovation and collaboration. Companies are focused on utilising technology to improve productivity levels across their operations. This includes streamlining processes, enhancing communication, and fostering collaboration among teams. Balancing technology investments Organisations face a turbulent landscape when balancing short-term and long-term investments in technology. The need to respond quickly to market demands can conflict with the need for sustainable, long-term planning. Companies are learning how to bridge the gap between “digital natives” – employees who have grown up with technology – and those who may find it more challenging. This integration is crucial for fostering a cohesive work environment that maximises the strengths of all employees. Security versus speed One of the key challenges for companies is establishing robust security, governance, and risk management frameworks without hindering the speed of technological advancement. Striking this balance is essential to protect sensitive data while promoting innovation. The urgency to bring new technologies to market poses significant challenges for organisations. Companies must develop strategies to expedite deployment while ensuring that the solutions are effective and secure. Agility can be a game changer. Adopting agile working practices has proven to be transformative for many organisations, allowing them to embed new thinking and innovative approaches throughout the company. This agility fosters responsiveness to change and enhances problem-solving capabilities. Talent and value exchange The technology function is facing challenges in attracting and retaining top talent, given the competitive nature of the market. Companies must develop compelling value propositions to draw skilled professionals who can drive digital initiatives forward. Companies need to strike the balance of “give versus get” to create a mutually beneficial environment where both the company and individual employees feel they are gaining value. This could involve offering professional development opportunities, flexible work arrangements, and a supportive culture that promotes growth and innovation. Sustainability concerns: As technology continues to advance, the sustainability of energy resources required to support these innovations becomes increasingly important. Companies must consider the environmental impact of their digital strategies and seek ways to minimise energy consumption while meeting growing demands.

While women in tech may face unique challenges, such as feelings of imposter syndrome, they are increasingly making significant contributions to the industry. Last week, Derwent hosted a “Women in Tech” breakfast to create a safe space for female leaders to share their challenges and discuss solutions that both executive search firms, like Derwent, and the community can implement to continuously promote diversity in the executive leadership team (ELT). The AFR recently shared staggering figures regarding the decline of women’s paths to the CEO seat, highlighting how much work is still needed. The conversation was led by guest speakers Heather Cook and Memo Hayek , both tech leaders in some of the country’s largest organisations. We heard anecdotes of senior female leaders often feeling the need to continuously prove themselves to be in a position of authority, despite being the technical experts in the room, leading to self-doubt. So what advice is there for women in tech to overcome imposter syndrome? Be deliberate about building a strong network. Surround yourself not only with female mentors but also with allies of all genders. These advocates can accelerate your career and provide support when self-doubt arises. A trusted cohort that shares your values can be invaluable in combating imposter syndrome. Remember that everyone experiences imposter syndrome. It’s all about how we manage those thoughts. While the playing field is not level, reflecting on your successes and acknowledging that you are where you are for a reason can help you navigate these feelings. Careers involve continuous learning. Being open to learning and listening is a strength; you don’t need to know everything. Heather shared her journey into the tech space, highlighting her fortunate experience of having a successful, strong-willed mother as a role model in tech. Similarly, Memo was inspired by her older sister, who studied computer science and paved the way for her own journey. These stories underscore the importance of representation of women in senior leadership roles to create pathways and enable the next generation for success. The Australian Government's Pathway to Diversity in STEM Review , published in February 2024, aims to increase representation of underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. The review states, “Australia must accelerate its efforts not just to address skill needs. Getting STEM-skilled people into these jobs is not enough. Diverse STEM-literate people on Boards and in leadership positions across all sectors is critical to ensure good decision-making in an increasingly technologically advanced economy. Retaining these people in these positions is also critical for ensuring that improved decision-making capability builds over the long-term.” Organisation's need to do more to promote senior female tech talent, but also to encourage younger female generations to enter into the STEM workforce. Support from both women and men for the female community is of utmost importance, especially where this representation is lacking. At Derwent, we are helping our clients navigate these conversations and meet diversity targets, while advocating and proactively building a future pipeline of female leaders to ensure that representation remains a priority.

Derwent had the pleasure of hosting an executive forum “Digital Growth – It’s a People Thing” in Sydney with guest speakers Emma Hogan & Richard Joffe . Organisations that succeed in driving growth and transformation are the ones that get the people strategies right. There are critical people elements to consider when leading growth and a more sustainable digital future – these include developing the right operating model, organisational structure, aligning the right capability to the structure, and establishing optimal ways of working. Facilitated by Lindsay Every , Derwent’s Group Managing Partner and Digital Practice Lead, Emma and Richard shared their perspectives on some of the key success factors for teams and organisations to consider when developing and enabling digital capability. Key takeaways from the discussion included: Great leaders will attract the best, which has a flow-down effect – it all starts with having the right people at the top. Digital strategies are truly the enabler to be more efficient and effective. Culture is critical – remove boundaries, allow people to test and fail, and let them do their best work. Clear KPI’s and the right mix of incentives are key to alignment – people will often do what gets rewarded. Assessing the digital health of an organisation It’s important to firstly understand what technology is currently in place. What’s working effectively? Where is there overlap? How do we align digital and technology plans to the company goals. Get a sense of what digital means to an organisation and the people in different parts of the business. The sophistication of an organisation’s data and analytics capability is often a great measure of its digital maturity. Data drives everything, rather than basing decisions just on feelings or hunches, take the temperature of a team on how they use data. Prioritising areas for digitisation Digitisation is much more about enablement than automation. How do we improve service delivery? How to we deliver to customers who are expecting an anticipatory experience? The age and stage of a business play a key role in establishing priorities. It’s important to protect the core business while also progressing new opportunities to think differently, innovate and enable change. You have to be careful that innovation is not BAU. There should be urgency that a small section of an organisation is working to actively move the needle. Service-based industries can see significant improvements in areas such as marketing, customer service, supply chain etc. Review the decisions and investments you make in digital strategies. A recent BCG article highlighted that less than 40% of companies that have implemented AI or ML have seen any yield. Are their key opportunities or functional areas that are ripe for digitisation? For example, the use of Data Science, Analytics and AI has transformed modern day marketers and allowed them to deliver a level of hyper-personalisation that customers in today’s world now demand. Creating a culture of digital innovation There is a constant tension between digital experimentation and achieving standard business goals. Whilst it’s important to remained disciplined on core priorities, you are able to achieve amazing things when removing boundaries and shifting the thinking about what’s possible when it comes to accelerating digital. A burning platform can change the psychology of how individuals frame the upside and downside. Turning “no’s” into “maybe’s” and positioning “what’s the loss of not doing something?”. People are neurologically wired to avoid losses, so you are able to shift the mindset to accept and grow from testing and failing. As an organisation grows, maintaining a culture of digital innovation can become increasingly hard. What people, processes and systems can be replicated as the business scales? Incentives and culture are inherently aligned. Individuals will behave and perform according to the goals and associated rewards of an organisation. The people elements for success in digital transformation Talent drives digital. The top 10% of a workforce can drive the majority of digital outcomes. Attracting them to the organisation, providing autonomy, and setting them up for success is critical. The storytelling and framing of any digital projects or investments is very important. When done effectively, it can ensure buy in from employees and customers. You can constantly improve the organisational organism by bringing in people who can be the best at something. Leading talent have a flywheel effect.