ILF Scholars Network Bulletins
Latest Bulletin
Shaun Westcott
CEO, President and Chairman, Mitsubishi Motors Australia
Leadership for Senior Executives
Harvard Business School, USA, 2018
Like many South Africans, Shaun Westcott has faced adversaries tougher than the steel that shapes the very cars his company manufactures. Having survived a brutal shooting that could have killed him and his family, the CEO, President and Chairman of Mitsubishi Motors Australia has emerged from the shadows of the past to paint a bright future as he steers Mitsubishi into new frontiers of innovation and success.
South Africa to South Australia
Born and raised in South Africa, Shaun’s life took a dramatic turn when his family encountered the horrors of an armed robbery. In the terrifying ordeal, criminals unleashed a hail of gunfire on innocent shoppers – including Shaun, his wife Julie and their two daughters Stacey and Amy-Rose, leaving them traumatised and fearful for their safety.
But this wasn’t the family’s only brush with danger.
Another incident saw a rock hurled through the windshield of their car as it drove along a freeway at 120km/h. This calculated act of violence sought to wreak havoc, overturning the vehicle to facilitate robbery or worse.
Exhausted from the endless threat to their safety, the Westcott family sought refuge in a land far removed from the dangers of their homeland. Choosing Australia as their haven, Shaun’s final destination was guided by circumstance. Owing to emigration rules favouring those aged under 45, Shaun was sponsored by South Australia on a skilled visa.
