Slicing Through The Noise

Dana Dupere grew up in the back of a station wagon. Her dad was scouting sandpits; she was doing the road tax. She was seven years old. Her father built Benedict Industries from scratch - a quarry and landscaping business that's now sixty years old. He cleared out at 2pm every day. The two hours after he left is where Dana and Jill - handing out orders to the trucks together as teenagers - bu...

A 17-year-old apprentice asked his foreman how he was going. The foreman didn't answer. He asked a question back: "How many friends do you have?  Thirty years later, John Melvin still tells the story. This week on Slicing Through the Noise, I sat with John — now CEO of North Construction, a tier-two Australian builder with a 40-year history. Three lines from the conversation that stuck....

In 2007, a man walked into Es Chandra's design agency with an electric bike and an impossible ask: raise $1 million in six weeks. Banks had said no. Es didn't know how to run a crowdfunding campaign. He said yes anyway.   The campaign worked. Then another founder came. Then another. Seventeen years later, Glide Agency has raised more than A$65 million for Australian startups — and Es run...

Mathew Pound took his kids to see the Christmas lights. Afterwards, everyone went to McDonald's. Every staff member was going through the motions — except one kid. He didn't know Mathew was watching. He just cared. "There was a genuine look in his eyes that he cared about what the experience was. He didn't have to care. But he did." The first thing Mathew thought: how do I...

Most leaders attempt to hire their way out of an operational problem. Rodney Crestani has spent three decades proving the opposite. In Episode 24 of Slicing Through the Noise, Jennifer sits down with Rodney Crestani — Managing Director of Horizon Coatings, the Sydney-headquartered painting business with crews operating from Jervis Bay to the Gold Coast, and a back office spanning two continents. R...

harlie Crothers built one of Perth's leading hair salons from a single chair, launched an e-commerce brand mid-COVID with a one-year-old at her hip, and now mentors other service-business owners through The Biz Tool Boutique . In this episode of Slicing Through the Noise , Jennifer Elliott sits down with Charlie to talk about the exact moment she realised she was the bottleneck in her own bus...

In this episode of Slicing Through the Noise, we sit down with John Buchanan, one of Australia’s most successful cricket coaches, to unpack what business owners and entrepreneurs can learn from leading at the highest level. This is not a conversation about sport for sport’s sake. It is a conversation about leadership, culture, accountability, decision-making, and building teams that can perform un...

Peter Cannon’s journey from a small village in Scotland to leading operations for Agreco in the APAC region is a masterclass in adaptability, discipline, and leadership. In this episode, Peter shares how his early career in the Air Force shaped his leadership style, the lessons he learned managing teams in high-pressure environments, and how he transitioned across industries—from aviation to power...

In this insightful episode of Slicing Through the Noise, Julio De Laffitte, CEO of JDL Strategies, delivers a powerful blueprint for building wealth, leading with integrity, and navigating tough decisions in uncertain times. Designed for leaders, business owners, and families, this episode offers practical tools and strategies to create financial clarity and purposeful growth. Key Takeaways: 1. Th...

From Farming to Tech: Ronnie Baskind's Leadership Journey — with Ronnie Baskind Ronnie Baskind’s leadership journey begins on a vast South African farm and culminates in Sydney, where he built Kilimanjaro Consulting into one of Australia’s top tech advisory firms. The common thread? A deceptively simple yet powerful skill: deep, ego-free listening. In this episode, Ronnie delves into how the...

From Blacktown to Business Success: Lessons in Leadership and Risk — with Brett Plumber   This episode dives into the entrepreneurial journey of a leader who transformed a small trucking business into a major player in the Port of Brisbane. Growing up in a tight-knit family in Western Sydney, our guest shares how early lessons in discipline, teamwork, and vision shaped his leadership style. From n...

Business strategy improves when leaders measure what drives future performance, not last month's results. Bob shares a practical approach to running a business on leading indicators: tender and quote activity, win rates, market signals, and lead times that show where revenue will land months ahead. This episode is for founders, CEOs and senior leaders who want clearer decisions with fewer sur...

Construction Leadership That Scales: Clarity, Risk and Culture — with Alex Douglas (01:08:58) Construction leadership in a delivery environment is won or lost on clarity: what matters, who owns what, and how quickly decisions move. In this conversation, Alex Douglas shares how he went from a desk and photocopier at home to building a $150m+ business by engineering the client journey and making com...

In this episode of Slicing Through the Noise, Jennifer sits down with Brendan Flaxman to unpack what leadership really looks like when the stakes are high, the work is physical, and the consequences are real.  Brendan’s story doesn’t begin in a corner office — it starts with humble work, an early setback, and the kind of “figure it out” pressure that forces you to build resilience fast.  From ther...

Tim Cutler—senior executive with over two decades of leadership experience—shares his candid journey through the realities of leadership, culture, and accountability. From sourcing great products to building high-performing teams, Tim reveals the hard-earned lessons that shaped his leadership style. Whether you’re a seasoned executive or an emerging leader, this conversation delivers practical ins...

In this episode, Jennifer Elliott speaks with Peter Drinkwater, founder of House of Brand, about how leaders can build brand energy that cuts through the noise. Peter unpacks the attention economy, why authenticity now outperforms polished messaging, and how organisations can create signals people want to engage with rather than push content that gets ignored. This conversation is practical, direc...

In this episode, Paul Noppen, CEO and founder of Noppen Air, shares his remarkable journey from a 14-year-old apprentice to leading a thriving air conditioning business. Paul’s story is one of resilience, adaptability, and learning from both triumphs and setbacks. Whether you’re an aspiring leader or a seasoned executive, Paul’s insights into leadership, cashflow management, and building a values-...

Top 3 Quotes from Craig Patterson “You can’t steer a boat sitting still. I was always willing to give something a go—and if it didn’t work, just change direction.” “Business is about trust, and trust is built on relationships. Relationships start with conversations.” “The thing that stopped the growth of our business—was me. I had to learn first.” Episode Title: From Bulldozers to Boardrooms: Crai...

“Leadership isn’t about being the smartest in the room — it’s about creating an environment where others bring the gold.”  “You cannot shrink your way to greatness. You cannot cut your way to success and profitability.”  “Leadership is a team game. It’s not a pyramid with you at the top — it's an inverted pyramid where your job is to support and enable.”  In this compelling episode of Slicing...

🧠 Top Quotes “If I wouldn't do it personally, then I wouldn’t do it in the business.” 🎧 Episode Synopsis In this compelling episode, Rohan McLellan, founder and CEO of Clover Pipelines , shares his remarkable journey from junior world champion cyclist to pioneering third-generation entrepreneur in Australia’s water infrastructure industry. With deep insight and humble candor, Rohan reflects...

In this episode of Slicing Through the Noise , host Jennifer Elliott interviews Tony Dodd, CEO of GT Insurance, a leading Australian underwriting agency specialising in commercial transport, marine, and fleet insurance.  Tony shares his journey from a junior clerk to CEO, discussing how his leadership philosophy has been shaped by values such as fairness, responsibility, and empathy. He emphasises...

In this episode of Slicing Through the Noise, we hear from Ian Whiting, CEO of Vela APX, a leader who has built one of APAC’s most respected enterprise software portfolios through disciplined leadership, sharp commercial insight, and a deeply human approach to growth.  Ian shares the pivotal moments that shaped his leadership philosophy—from growing up in a military-meets-entrepreneurial household...

In this sharp and candid episode of Slicing Through the Noise , host Jennifer sits down with Mark Casey, current CEO of RIS Safety and a seasoned serial entrepreneur known for building, fixing, and selling high-stakes businesses across the globe. With 30+ years of leadership experience—including scaling international operations, leading businesses through crises like the GFC, and integrating multi...

In this insightful and deeply human episode, host Jennifer welcomes Mitch Birt, Managing Director of Pure Fishing Asia Pacific, for a raw, honest, and inspiring conversation about modern leadership. From humble beginnings as a supermarket checkout clerk to leading a multi-national organization, Mitch shares the real story behind his rise—and the leadership lessons learned through both triumphs and...

🎧 Episode Synopsis   In this deeply personal episode, Slicing Through the Noise welcomes Chris Essex, founder and CEO of Big Dog Pet Foods, for an unfiltered conversation about leadership, resilience, and purpose-driven entrepreneurship. Chris shares how early lessons in nutrition and sport sparked a lifelong passion that evolved into a pioneering pet food business that champions raw, biologicall...