Claim OwnershipMinutes by boardcycle: Directors | Executives | Governance
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The Minutes podcast by Boardcycle brings snappy insights and and bite-sized learnings from the boardroom to you. Our host, Richard Conway, interviews Australia’s most prominent boardroom leaders on:
• how they approach making an organisation’s mission-critical decisions
• how they forged their boardroom careers
• practical tips and advice on working with, and as part of, a board.
With each episode less than 20 minutes, directors, executives and governance professionals alike can learn from the best that Australia’s boards have to offer.
www.boardcycle.com
• how they approach making an organisation’s mission-critical decisions
• how they forged their boardroom careers
• practical tips and advice on working with, and as part of, a board.
With each episode less than 20 minutes, directors, executives and governance professionals alike can learn from the best that Australia’s boards have to offer.
www.boardcycle.com
44 Episodes
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"Risk is a currency in these businesses, and we just need to work with it." - Phil MorlePhil Morle, Partner at Main Sequence Ventures and Chair of v2food, Samsara Eco, Eden Brew and Nourish Ingredients, shares how he approaches risk governance across multiple deep tech companies built on scientific breakthroughs.Phil explains why the most valuable venture-backed companies are inherently the riskiest, how boards can use structured risk tolerance exercises to align directors, and why traditional approaches to board decision-making can be dangerously expensive in fast-burning startups. He discusses practical techniques for breaking down large, high-stakes decisions into smaller commitments that allow boards to retire risk progressively rather than facing a single make-or-break moment.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"The company secretariat role is fascinating because you get to hear and see so much — you don't just read the outcomes of a meeting." - Anthony WrightAnthony Wright knows the Company Secretary role from the inside. He was General Counsel and Company Secretary at Transpacific Industries before making the move to Head of Strategy, then founded and exited his own legal operations and technology business, Lexvoco, in 2019. He now chairs Hanlon Industries and sits on the board of CPA Australia.In this episode, Anthony shares what it takes for a Company Secretary to be seen as a genuine strategic partner rather than an administrator. He talks about building credibility through technical excellence first, then using that platform to build relationships, ask better questions, and start contributing to — not just recording — the conversations that matter.He also shares a practical mechanism one of his organisations uses to give the CoSec team a formal voice in every meeting review, and explains why the biggest barrier to CoSec career growth is usually the CoSec themselves.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"I think dealing with risk is really hard - especially without good experience or mentors around you." - Mike GonskiNFP chair and Herbert Smith Freehills partner Mike Gonski addresses the governance tension at the heart of many not-for-profit boards: how to give voice to the people your organisation exists to serve, while managing the very real risks that come with putting inexperienced directors in governance roles.Mike shares what ReachOut learned from its experiment with mandated youth board membership, what effective observer programs actually look like, and why the "empty chair" concept has genuine merit without the governance complications of a board seat.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"The best way to sell a company is to run it properly." - Peter JamesPeter James, former Chair of Nearmap and Ansarada and former Director of iiNet, shares what it actually takes to prepare a company for an exit and how to manage the process when one is underway.Drawing from his experience guiding multiple companies through acquisitions and takeovers, Peter explains why the strategic plan is his primary benchmark for evaluating any offer, how to keep management focused on running the business during a transaction, and what he looks for from a Company Secretary when the pressure is on.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"You need to live through the board meetings and the committee meetings and the annual cycle." - Julie CoatesJulie Coates, Director of Wesfarmers and former CEO and Managing Director of CSR, discusses what successful director onboarding actually looks like in practice. From pre-joining meetings with each existing director to understanding board dynamics, from coordinating with business unit leaders to leveraging the company secretary's support, Julie provides a comprehensive playbook for new directors joining complex organisations. She discusses why onboarding should start before the first board meeting, how to be purposeful about timing, and the importance of patience in contributing effectively during your first year on the board._______________Note: Julie Coates was interviewed in September 2025. Since this interview, Julie has ceased to be a director of the Green Building Council of Australia and been appointed as a director of Scentre Group.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"I find when I talk about these two organisations which prima facie comparable in revenue terms, that the inclination of people is to put more emphasis on Kogan in terms of complexity and scale. When in fact, I think the reverse is true, and substantially so." - Greg RidderGreg Ridder, Chair of Kogan.com and Life Without Barriers, discusses where governance complexity truly lies when comparing listed and NFP organisations. Drawing from his experience chairing both a $500M listed e-commerce platform and a $1B not-for-profit human services organisation, Greg explains why Life Without Barriers' 12,000 distributed workforce serving 25,000 vulnerable clients presents far greater governance challenges than Kogan's algorithmically-driven retail operation.Greg explores how NFP governance demands unique approaches including two-way governance with Indigenous communities, applying governance at operational frontiers, and managing stakeholders who cannot represent themselves. He discusses director remuneration differences between sectors, why values alignment becomes essential for NFP boards, and which governance skills transfer successfully across both domains.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"Purpose and profit collide. Now in a beautiful world, they work together. But they require a series of choices and trade-offs, and they require enormous integrity." - Audette Exel AOAudette Exel, Chair and Founder of Adara Group and former Director of Westpac and Suncorp, explains how to build a purpose-driven business model where purpose and profit coexist. Drawing from her experience creating Adara's structure where an investment banking business funds international development work, Audette explains why traditional not-for-profit funding models create asset-liability mismatches and how she designed an alternative that's survived nearly three decades. She discusses the practical challenges of balancing commercial and development priorities, why purpose must trump profit when they conflict, and how to avoid the trap where purpose becomes marketing rather than operational reality.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"The perfect decision is rarely the right decision" - Catherine Livingstone ACCatherine Livingstone AC, former Chair of the Commonwealth Bank and Telstra, discusses why seeking perfect information can be a director's worst enemy.In this episode, Catherine explains how boards navigate ambiguity, when to stop asking for more information, and why judgement - not process - sits at the centre of effective governance.With practical insights from chairing some of Australia's most significant organisations, Catherine explains what separates directors who can make tough calls from those who avoid them.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"Value created to time used is the most important metric." - Phil MorlePhil Morle, Chair of v2 Food, Samsara Eco, Eden Brew and Nourish Ingredients, and Partner at Main Sequence Ventures, discusses how boards can govern companies where being unprofitable is the strategy for years. He explains the concept of "binary companies" where revenue doesn't gradually increase but literally turns on after years of investment, and why traditional governance approaches fail in these environments.Phil shares practical frameworks including burn-down charts that track cash runway and the "slam dunk financing" slide that defines what must be delivered before the money runs out. He discusses why directors need elasticity and imagination rather than rigid metrics, how to create psychological safety when bad news is routine, and why boards must get into the swamp rather than passively reviewing reports.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"The objectives are not necessarily monetary related - but how do we add more value to what those members do in their jobs?" - Anthony WrightAnthony Wright, Independent Director of CPA Australia and Chair of Hanlon Industries, explains the governance challenges that arise for organisations that exist to serve members rather than shareholders.Drawing from his experience with CPA Australia's 170,000 members across 50 countries, Anthony explores how such boards measure success through member satisfaction and educational outcomes rather than financial metrics alone as well as the the sophisticated governance architecture required to ensure that members are appropriate represented on the board, while also ensuring the right skills are available and that there's independence and diversity of thought.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"In smaller organisations, I prefer a board director on my board who will err towards being more hands-on than hands-off." - Mike GonskiMike Gonski, Chair of ReachOut Australia and Carriageworks and partner at Herbert Smith Freehills, challenges conventional governance wisdom about board size and director involvement. He explains why he prefers larger boards where directors actively contribute their expertise rather than maintaining strict separation between board and management. Mike shares practical approaches for preventing director overreach, knowing when to move conversations offline, and why smaller NFPs genuinely need hands-on board contributions to fill capability gaps.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"There shouldn't be two lists. There should just be the list of things that need to be done." - Julie CoatesJulie Coates, Director of Wesfarmers and former CEO and Managing Director of CSR, shares practical guidance for managing board actions/matters arising effectively. Drawing from experience on both sides of the boardroom table, Julie explains why action items without context can be unhelpful and how company secretaries can apply disciplined thinking to distinguish between actions that add value and those that don't.She discusses the importance of post-meeting conversations between the chair, CEO, and company secretary to refine action lists, why management often already has the information boards request, and techniques for dealing with unrealistic or unfocused board requests during meetings.This episode provides company secretaries and governance professionals with concrete strategies for making board actions more effective whilst maintaining credibility with both boards and management teams.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"It's simply attract and retain... but once you deconstruct that, it's all about how do you get the right talent, the right incentive, the right people in place." - Greg RidderGreg Ridder, Chair of Kogan.com and Life Without Barriers, shares the practical realities of executive remuneration decision making. From navigating proxy advisor resistance to managing shareholder strikes, Greg discusses how boards can maintain fairness principles while handling market pressures. This episode tackles the challenging balance between attracting top talent, satisfying stakeholders, and creating incentive structures that actually drive value creation.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"There is enormous risk when you try to metricise the value of a human life." - Audette Exel AOAudette Exel, Chair and Founder of Adara Group and former Director of Westpac and Suncorp, discusses how boards can transform social impact reporting from a compliance exercise into a strategic governance tool.She explores why the "S" in ESG lags behind environmental reporting, the dangers of reducing human services delivery to mere metrics, and how to balance data-driven measurement with meaningful storytelling. Audette explains why directors must get out of oak-panelled boardrooms to witness their organisation's impact firsthand, and how to create substantive reporting that moves beyond compliance requirements.________________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"You want a Company Secretary that's helping you work out how things can be done, not telling you why they can't be done." - Catherine Livingstone ACCatherine Livingstone AC, Chancellor of UTS, Chair of Pacific National and Director of The Australian Ballet, reveals what separates exceptional Company Secretaries from competent ones during periods of intense governance pressure.Drawing on her experience leading organisations through Australia's most challenging governance transformations, including Commonwealth Bank during the Banking Royal Commission, Catherine explains how Company Secretaries must exercise judgement about which processes matter most whilst enabling rapid decision-making.She discusses the delicate balance between serving the Board and being part of the management team, and reveals why technology literacy has become essential for modern governance roles._____________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"Different science choices could have huge downstream impacts on timing, capital, customers, or how big the business might be." - Phil MorleMain Sequence Ventures Partner Phil Morle shares insights from chairing breakthrough deep tech companies like Samsara Eco and V2 Foods about the governance challenges facing science-based businesses.Phil explains how boards can bridge the gap between laboratory innovation and commercial success, focusing on practical approaches to oversight when directors may not fully understand the underlying technology.He discusses the importance of curiosity over expertise, creating forums for productive dialogue between scientific and commercial teams, and establishing metrics that connect scientific progress to business outcomes.Drawing from real examples including Eden Brew's dairy protein development and engineering decisions at scale-up stage, Phil provides a roadmap for effective deep tech governance._____________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"I think it's really a change in mindset... once you've got the basics right, it's then taking a step back and asking yourself, what more could we do to help this organisation or this team being the board to do better, to do things more efficiently?" - Anthony WrightJoin Richard Conway as he interviews Anthony Wright, Chair of Hanlon Industries and Director of CPA Australia, about why governance teams need their own operations revolution. Anthony, who founded and successfully exited legal technology business Lexvoco, argues that whilst legal operations has transformed how legal teams work, governance functions remain largely untouched by similar efficiency methodologies.In this episode, Anthony explores how governance teams can move beyond "getting the basics right" to become strategic partners focused on efficiency and effectiveness. He introduces practical frameworks for measuring governance performance using time, cost and quality metrics, challenges the perfectionism trap that many governance professionals fall into, and explains why standardisation doesn't mean losing the bespoke service boards deserve.Drawing on his experience building scalable operations across legal and governance functions, Anthony provides actionable strategies for Company Secretaries wanting to demonstrate value through operational excellence._____________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"It is a hundred percent not a silver bullet to anything. It's just another useful tool we need to know how to use." - Mike GonskiMike Gonski, Chair of ReachOut Australia and Carriageworks and Partner at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, discusses strategic approaches to AI adoption in governance functions.From the risks of AI minute-taking creating litigation hazards to building "walled gardens" for safe data handling, Mike shares practical frameworks for boards considering AI implementation whilst maintaining professional responsibilities and stakeholder trust._____________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"Give the founder the oxygen to do what they do really well." - Peter JamesExperienced technology chair Peter James reveals practical strategies for governing founder-led businesses without stifling innovation. Drawing from his experience at companies like iiNet, Nearmap, Ansarada, Macquarie Technology Group and DroneShielf, he discusses managing the unique dynamics when founders hold significant shareholdings, the importance of constant communication, and red flags that signal trouble ahead._____________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
"You know if you can secure their backing, that's incredibly empowering." - Alison WatkinsIn this candid conversation, seasoned director Alison Watkins pulls back the curtain on boardroom dynamics from both the CEO and director perspectives. Having been CEO at Coca-Cola Amatil, Graincorp, and Berri before transitioning to non-executive positions, Alison reveals the completely different experience of attending the same board meeting depending on your role. She discusses the unique pressures CEOs face, the challenge of measuring impact as a non-executive director, and why former CEOs must be careful not to cross operational boundaries. This episode offers valuable guidance for anyone involved in governance relationships._____________Follow Podcast Host Richard Conway on LinkedInFollow boardcycle on LinkedInVisit the boardcycle website
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