Institution:
Harvard Business School (USA)
Course:
Program of Leadership Development
I first heard about the Industry Leaders Fund in typical South Australian style, through a friend of a past scholar. The ILF really bookend the leadership transformation process. The application process was reassuringly smooth, challenging but very fair. Through that process you reflect on your own journey, which prepares you for your chosen course.
I chose to attend the Program for Leadership Development (PLD) at Harvard Business School. This program is a fast-track alternative to an executive MBA and is designed for high impact individuals who would like to rapidly accelerate their understanding and preparation for wider business leadership. The eight month course covered the usual topics of strategy, accounting, finance, organisational behaviour, operations, marketing, macroeconomics, ethics and negotiation, among others. The HBS case method was remarkable for the depth of understanding it generated, however, the greatest impact was the network formed with your peers. A striking take-away was the realisation that South Australians are good enough to not only play on a world stage, but that we are capable of leading from the front.
Since completing PLD I helped grow MaxMine revenue by 2x, increased my team size by 3x and helped set the company up for scale. I also attended two further executive education courses at HBS, Launching New Ventures and Foundations of Private Equity and Venture Capital. Across the three courses I have gained a close network of over 250 emerging leaders from virtually every industry and country. While this has opened many high profile opportunities overseas, it is the ILF mission to create a head-office mentality in South Australia that has remained a North star for me.
I believe the ILF is playing a remarkable role in our state. Scholarships are the direct action to close the gap between talent and opportunity, but the magic is in pairing it with a sense of ongoing community and possibility – which lifts our collective eyes to the horizon. This gives me a great sense of hope for the future of South Australia.
