Anthony Kittel Donation
Anthony Kittel Donation
Background
Anthony Kittel prefers to make one off donations and has pledged to donate $5,000 to the Industry Leaders Chairman’s Foundation. The funds will be used 100% to pay grants in accordance with ILF policy.
Eligibility
To comply with the DGR status of the Industry Leaders Chairman’s Foundation all applicants are eligible to apply for a grant from these funds.
Grants can only be provided to an applicant who is:
- An Australian citizen or permanent resident.
- Proposing to undertake a course offered by an Australian based educational body that is relevant to their leadership development. The course could include an offshore component provided it is offered as part of an Australian course.
About Anthony Kittel
As the owner of REDARC Electronics for 25 years, the story of Anthony Kittel is built on foundations of dedication to customer service, innovation and continual improvement. His drive and dedication have set the tone for what has been a successful growth period for REDARC and its teams.
Born and raised in Port Augusta, he worked in school holidays at his grandfather’s garage in Hawker, learning a lot about running a small business and customer service. After school he started work as a Cadet Engineer with BHP Steel in Whyalla, completing a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering at the South Australian Institute of Technology.
He moved to ROH Wheels for five years and was promoted to General Manager before the opportunity arose to buy REDARC in 1997, in partnership with his wife, Michele, and her father, Denis Brion.
It was a tough initiation into small business. They mortgaged their home, sold a car and borrowed some money to make it happen. The business was not in the best shape due to declining product quality and they needed to restore customer confidence, trust, and build the REDARC brand.
Their mantra was “The Customer is King” and they focussed heavily on listening to customers and delivering the innovative products that they needed. This was successful and rapid growth commenced in 2000 with ten staff in the business. In 2002, Denis retired, and Michele and Anthony purchased 100% of REDARC. In the same year they decided to invest 15% of revenue into Research & Development and also released the Smart Start Dual Battery Isolator. REDARC was recognised with the Telstra SA Small Business Award in 2005 and went on to win the Telstra Australian Business of the Year in 2014, at the same time as $25 million annual revenue was achieved with 100 staff. In 2015, the Newcastle electronics manufacturer, Hummingbird Electronics, was acquired to further expand the product range and engineering design capabilities.
In 2018, REDARC doubled the size of its manufacturing facility investing $21 million in the building, and new high-tech manufacturing and testing equipment.
At 31 December 2021, REDARC employed 300 staff.
Anthony believes the three keys to REDARC’s success are the people and culture, its continuous innovation and new product development, and dedication to excellent customer service.
His vision is for REDARC to be recognised as a global brand, highly respected for quality, innovation and performance in all its markets, including Caravan and RV, Automotive, Trucking, Defence, and eMobility.
Anthony is a strong believer in personal development. In 1992, Anthony completed a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the University of Adelaide. In 2010, he became an inaugural Scholar of the ILF and by 2013 had graduated from the three year Owner President Management (OPM) program at Harvard Business School.
He has served on numerous government, education and community boards, and he and Michele are very active philanthropists.
He was instrumental in establishing the ILF Scholars Network as inaugural Chair of the ILFSN committee from 2013 to 2015.
In April 2018, he was conferred the Degree of Doctor of the University honoris causa, Flinders University. His Honorary Doctorate recognises his unrelenting focus on transformative workplace culture and new product development, as well as his investment in the business leaders of tomorrow through mentorship, professional development and career guidance.
In September 2021, Anthony became the inaugural recipient of the ILF’s most prestigious award, the Colin J Peters AM Memorial Award after being assessed by the ILF Board as the Scholar best epitomising the ILF values and as a high achiever in contributing to the goals of the ILF.