Finalists

Growing up in Tasmania, Kate Morris found it frustrating that she was often unable to buy cosmetics advertised in magazines. So in 1999 at the age of 21, she started developing the idea for an online cosmetics shop. The result, adorebeauty.com.au, now has 100 cosmetics brands and more than $2 million in revenue. The biggest hurdle Kate faced was the reluctance of high-end cosmetics manufacturers to supply a small independent online retailer. Her determination and persistence eventually won them over. With no assets, Kate also found it extremely difficult to raise capital. She started the business with $12,000 in savings and has funded growth through cashflow. Kate is presently developing an innovative navigation tool that will allow customers to make better choices based on the opinions and experiences of other customers. Her ambition is for the business to cement its position as the leading Australian beauty site into 2020.

After serving four years as a partner, and at times the only female partner, in a large Melbourne law firm, Sally Nicholes decided it was time to start her own practice. In 2005 she established Nicholes Family Law with the objective of creating a law firm that gave back to the community. The result is a practice that provides 20 per cent of its work on a pro bono basis while maintaining profitability. Nicholes Family Law is at the cutting edge of family law with Sally receiving recognition for her contribution to a successful outcome in an international child abduction case. Sally is active in various welfare organisations including the World Congress of Family Law and Children’s Rights and Children’s Rights International and writes regularly for the Law Institute Journal. Sally’s desire to help people also extends to her staff members who receive regular mentoring to encourage them to actively contribute to the direction and growth of the practice.

By 23 Sharon Pearson had established a direct marketing business generating more than $1 million revenue. In 2004 she founded The Coaching Institute (TCI), now one of Australia’s leading coaching training businesses and the most accredited coaching school in Australasia. Enrolling its 1600th student in 2010, TCI helps participants discover their potential through innovative products like the ‘Mastermind’ program which helps businesses accelerate growth through practical marketing tools. Sharon’s first big challenge came at TCI’s inception. At the time there was no government-accredited diploma in coaching. So she wrote the course herself, sat for it, and was awarded Australia’s first Diploma in Life Coaching. In 2008 Sharon set up the Coaching Institute Foundation, a charity dedicated to helping those less advantaged. The foundation has strongly supported Sacred Heart Mission, numerous animal foundations including WASPA and Animals Asia, and has financed an education program for orphans in Nigeria.

In 2003 when Cheryl Smith left a highly paid database marketing job to pursue her real love of dancing, she was told by one and all that she was too old. Shedding her career, her boyfriend and 25 kilograms, the former hairdresser set about proving them all wrong. Seven years later, DANCE 101, Cheryl’s virtual dance studio, turns over half a million dollars, employs eight full-time and 15 casual employees and is on target to becoming Victoria’s market leader in social dancing. As a virtual or online dancing school, DANCE 101 does not have premises. The company uses the internet to create events that bring dancers and venues together. Cheryl’s dream is for DANCE 101 to become the first dance school to gain an ISO quality accreditation and for it to become a global business. On a personal level, Cheryl aspires to become an Australian and world salsa champion.

Youth development officer Anne Hooker has been responsible for developing the first youth unit at Port Phillip’s maximum security prison, operated by G4S Australia. With an innovative approach to dealing with young offenders, the unit focuses on rehabilitation by treating them separately from the general prison population and concentrating on their potential rather than their crimes. When setting up the unit, Anne threw down the gauntlet to large corporations inviting them into the prison. She achieved startling results, getting Sir Richard Branson to visit and discuss leadership with the young inmates. Anne formed community and corporate partnerships to create programs ranging from literacy to parenthood and facilitating a small business program that teaches young offenders how to run a small business. Now a leading expert in the field, Anne hopes that by making a difference to the lives of her young charges she will also make a difference to the wider community.

As Vice President of Operations reporting to the CEO of IBM Australia and New Zealand, Janet Matton is responsible for the operational systems and processes for all divisions involving about 14,000 employees. In a 31 year career with IBM, Janet’s achievements include many successful ‘firsts’ in Australia, such as deploying the first ever client server systems and establishing the first outsourcing delivery business. The latter was achieved despite going against corporate wisdom of the time. One of the most difficult times occurred when Janet was involved in the retrenchment of large numbers of staff in the 1990s. Using her high corporate profile to champion women in business, Janet is the executive sponsor of the mentoring program, ‘A Smarter Planet needs Smart Women’ and regularly delivers motivational and educational presentations at women’s networking events. She also mentors 15 women at IBM including two in China.

With a background in nursing and health administration, Ingrid Williams was appointed the CEO of TLC Aged Care in 2007. Managing a $70 million budget and a staff of 1,200, Ingrid is responsible for nine aged care centres looking after approximately 1,000 residents. When she began her nursing career it was with the desire to care for and help people. That motivation still drives Ingrid today. As a director on the board of Aged and Community Care Victoria, her role involves contributing to the strategy of lobbying government departments on the issues concerning aged care. In her role as CEO of TLC, Ingrid has introduced the aged to social networking. The TLC Facebook site has been established as an innovative way of connecting residents with their families and friends as well as the TLC team. Ingrid says it is the first residential aged care provider site in the world to have more than 303 friends.

Dr. Nicole Highet’s career has been dedicated to depression. After graduating with a Clinical Doctorate in Psychology in 1997, she diversified into marketing and advertising research. These two seemingly opposite fields came together in 2001 after Nicole joined the national organisation battling depression, beyondblue. In her current role as Deputy CEO of beyondblue, Nicole has been the driving force behind education and research campaigns designed to raise awareness of depression across Australia. The campaigns were innovative as they accurately portrayed what it is like to live with mental illness. Nicole says her personal goal is to reduce the burden of disease associated with depression by symptom and illness recognition, stigma reduction and ensuring access to effective treatments. She was instrumental in the implementation of universal screening for ante and post natal depression in women throughout Australia by negotiating $85 million in funding for the program from the Federal Government.

After joining the Women’s Circus at the age of 16 and consequently pursuing a career as a youth worker, Debby Maziarz decided to combine her two loves by founding the Westside Circus in 1995. Westside Circus is a not-for-profit community arts organisation that uses circus in state-wide programs to build personal confidence and resilience in disadvantaged people. The circus employs an artistic team of 20 who deliver up to 80 circus projects each year, targeting issues such as poor mental health, poor literacy and social disconnection. Since its inception Westside Circus has developed 30,000 workshops reaching 100,000 participants. Much of its success is due to $3 million raised through earned income and strong philanthropic relationships that Debby has nurtured. Debby says that joining the Women’s Circus was a life-changing decision that transformed her from an unsettled young girl into a confident and determined young woman with a passion for entertaining and helping others.

As an artist, curator and writer, Grace McQuilten has a keen interest in observing the connection between art and social change. While working in refugee community groups she was impressed by the creativity, design flair and passion for fashion shown by young refugees. Unfortunately, she was equally troubled by the difficulty they faced in accessing mainstream education and employment. So Grace established The Social Studio, a not-for-profit organisation employing and training young refugees in clothing production, retail and hospitality. In just two years Grace has raised $500,000 in donations, grants and sales. With a workforce of two full-time managers, 20 part-time staff and more than 30 volunteers, The Social Studio’s designs are now gracing the coat hangers of some of Melbourne’s finest fashion outlets. Grace’s future plans include doubling staff, tripling sales and introducing 10 innovative bicycle-powered ‘pop-up’ retail outlets.

Tracey Wilson commenced her career as a dental therapist in rural Victoria 30 years ago with a passion for oral health. She is presently the Manager Population Health within Ballarat Health Services, a demanding role giving her responsibility for the delivery of public dental services in the area. Since assuming the role, Tracey has been successful on a number of fronts. In just two years she has reduced the waiting time for general dental care from fifty-six months, the worst in Victoria, to 34 months. Under her leadership the take up of dental care has improved from 25 per cent to 60 per cent. Tracey’s proudest achievement though has been her lead role in advocating fluoridation for Ballarat’s water supply, a program that was introduced in 2010. To provide the best possible dental health care in the region Tracey is constantly updating and expanding her qualifications and encourages her staff to do the same.

As Deputy CEO of beyondblue, the national organisation battling depression, Dr. Nicole Highet has been the driving force behind unique advertising campaigns designed to raise awareness of depression across Australia. The campaigns were innovative as they accurately portrayed what it is like to live with specific mental illnesses and how debilitating they can be. They were also different in that they targeted family members as well as the person experiencing the condition. This personal approach dramatically raised awareness of depression and other mental illnesses. Nicole has also been instrumental in the implementation of universal screening for ante and post natal depression in women throughout Australia. She helped to negotiate funding to the tune of $85 million from the Federal Government for the program. Nicole also developed beyondblue’s successful national “Depression in the Workplace” and “Maturity Blues” programs to address depression in the workplace and in later life.

As CEO of The Mali Initiative, Elise Klein is responsible for developing the organisation’s strategy and for managing its volunteers in Australia and full-time staff in Mali. The organisation was launched after Elise began to raise funds to build a school in Mali in West Africa. The Mali Initiative aims to support projects and the aspirations of local visionary leaders and has raised more than $500,000. Elise says that all of the organisation’s projects are self-sustaining and need little on-going support. A recent evaluation of The Mali Initiative projects in Mali found that 99 per cent of respondents said the projects have had a positive effect in their communities. In 2006, Elise was part of an Australian delegation to the United Nations General Assembly in New York where she delivered a statement on behalf of Australia’s youth. Elise is currently writing her PhD in Development Studies at Oxford University, specifically on the philosophy of the Mali Initiative.

In 2005, Sally Nicholes established Nicholes Family Law with the objective of creating an innovative law firm that would lead the way in giving back to the community. In a rare gesture among family law practices, she decided to donate 20 per cent of her turnover to pro bono work. Not only is this a move designed to help families in distress, it also serves as a huge boost to staff morale. Sally’s company is at the cutting edge of family law, devoting time to legal issues involving children in particular. Sally is active in various welfare organisations including the World Congress of Family Law and Children’s Rights and Children’s Rights International and writes regularly for the Law Institute Journal. Sally’s desire to help people also extends to her staff members who receive regular mentoring to encourage them to actively contribute to the direction and growth of the practice.

In the medical recruitment business finding the right staff to fill positions quickly is critical. Corrine Taylor established her business, International Medical Recruitment (IMR), in 2001 to meet these needs. IMR is now an industry leader largely due to Corrine’s innovative databases that allow instant access to both clients and candidates. At the forefront of these is LocumBank and I-Arrive. LocumBank is a database specialising in short-term placements while I-Arrive helps candidates relocate nationally and overseas. Corrine considers her election to the position of Vice President of AMRANZ, the Association of Medical Recruiters of Australia and New Zealand, in 2008 as her greatest achievement. Apart from increasing her business profile, in this role she is also a regular consultant to government on policy changes affecting the healthcare sector. Often featured in the press and as the author of a regular monthly medical magazine, Corrine has a strong voice in her industry.

As a mother with two little boys, Alexandra Wardle found it frustrating that there were no containers on the market designed just for storing and freezing baby food. So she created Qubies, an upside-down ice cube tray designed specifically for baby food. Qubies is a one-woman operation with Alexandra serving as CEO, sales person, marketer, packer and tea lady although she does outsource delivery services. Her innovative ice cube trays are sold in most national baby product stores and exported. On starting up Qubies, Alexandra faced two big challenges. Firstly she had to learn how to create a product from plastic. Then she had to find a manufacturer that would take her idea seriously. One company did - in China - and four thousand Qubies were made on the first production run, making their first appearance in Australia in 2007. Alexandra now mentors other mothers starting up small businesses.

In 2006, just four years after finishing her degree, Michelle Crowther established her own practice, Be Your Best Physiotherapy. The rapidly growing business now has thirteen staff providing a range of physiotherapy services plus pilates and fitness classes with an emphasis on women’s health. Michelle always dreamt of owning her own practice but is amazed at how quickly it has happened. Innovation has been at the forefront of her success, particularly the development of PREP, a program developed by her to assist non-exercisers get fit in a safe, supportive environment. Michelle also gives time to the community, volunteering her skills at the local football club. Not just a good physiotherapist, Michelle has applied sound business principles to her practice. In early 2009 she developed the ‘target 22’ campaign, setting a goal with her staff of attracting 22 physiotherapy patients per day. They reached the target six months later and earned a night out.

After completing a Bachelor of Education with Honours, Emma Donaldson, 26, was given the opportunity to co-ordinate gifted education at an independent school. During this time she developed and now co-directs two education-focused businesses PLIESE Pty Ltd and Colours of Grey Matters. Seeing a gap in education support about Autism Spectrum Disorder, Emma approached Autism Victoria to discuss her ideas and ended up joining the organisation in 2009. Emma has been part of many developments at Autism Victoria and manages the organisation’s Helping Children with Autism program which has been recognised for its innovation in providing service to more than 3000 families. Emma says that experiencing the challenges of disability in education drives her to seek better solutions and is behind her passion to develop AV’s businesses. She says a key lesson was learning that, to turn a dream into an achievement, vision must be accompanied by teamwork to reach the goal.

At a young age, Elise Klein has achieved a lot. Young Australian of the Year finalist in 2008, a Reach facilitator running programs for 50,000 young Australians and an address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York are just a few of the successes she has crammed into her short career. Elise’s proudest achievement is The Mali Initiative, an organisation that she founded in Mali, West Africa, in 2004 when she was raising funds to build a school. As The Mali Initiative’s CEO, Elise manages teams in Australia, Germany and Mali sourcing assistance for development programs in Mali. In the past six years Elise and her teams have raised more than $500,000, built schools, a health care centre, and started a micro-credit program. Elise’s next step is taking the Mali Initiative to the rest of the world by connecting people who want to make a difference.

For the past two years, 28 year old Grace McQuilten has been driving the development and expansion of The Social Studio a not-for-profit organisation employing and training young refugees in clothing production, retail and hospitality. A trained artist, curator and writer, Grace decided to establish The Social Studio based on the unique skills, talents and capacity of young people from the refugee community and the incredible barriers they faced in accessing mainstream education and employment. She set about convincing key people from the fashion, design and business sectors to support the idea of The Social Studio, and raising the necessary funds to make her dream a reality. So far, Grace has raised $500,000 in donations, grants and sales. It is anticipated that the organisation will become completely financially self-sustaining through retail operations by the end of 2011. Grace’s future plans include doubling staff, tripling sales and introducing 10 innovative bicycle-powered ‘pop-up’ retail outlets.

With no money, connections or business experience, Kate Morris set out to create an online cosmetic shop after becoming frustrated with not being able to buy the cosmetics she wanted. At just 21, she and her partner James Height established adorebeauty.com.au with $12,000 and two brands available. The biggest hurdle Kate faced was the reluctance of high-end cosmetics manufacturers to supply a small independent online retailer. Her determination and persistence eventually won them over. Today, the 32 year old runs a company with 100 cosmetics brands and more than $2 million in revenue. Kate aims to cement adorebeauty.com.au’s position as the leading Australian beauty site by 2020. Underpinning the goal are plans to increase the range of brands sold, making the online experience more engaging, boosting the business’ profile, and improving relationships with existing customers.

Last year, 32 year old Claire Vellios decided to draw on her 14 years experience in early childhood education to develop her own children’s centre, Malin Friends. Within just a year, the centre, which provides excellence in early childhood education, has grown from 20 enrolments to an average of 80 children attending each day and 16 full-time employees on the payroll. The success of Malin Friends stems from Claire’s immense passion for the industry and goal of delivering a truly excellent service. In addition to building the business from the ground up, Claire is also currently working towards completing a Doctorate with her thesis focusing on the development of emotional intelligence in children. She is also a member of the Australian College of Educators, the Australian Education Union, Early Childhood Australia, the Victorian Institute of Teaching and the National Association for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect.