[axr] Recruitment & Search

Your Path to CEO

Business EN ↓ 6 episodes

Your Path to CEO is a podcast for ambitious executives and emerging leaders ready to take the ultimate step in their careers. Hosted by the Executive Search team at [axr] Recruitment & Search, Path to CEO offers rare, behind-the-scenes insight into what it truly takes to reach the top job. Join us as we sit down with accomplished CEOs from the [axr] network to explore their career journeys, pivotal decisions, leadership philosophies, and the lessons they learned along the way. From navigating board relationships to building high-performing teams, each episode uncovers the realities of stepping...

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[axr] Recruitment & Search

Episodes

Episode 6: Swati Prasad | From chemical engineer to Managing Director: Why it's never too late to change direction 09.07.2026 40:30

Mike sits down with Swati Prasad, Managing Director ANZ for Swisse, to talk about what changes the moment you move from functional leader to enterprise leader. Six years after her first appearance on our sister podcast, Your Future in Sales & Marketing , Swati returns having built her career across Unilever, Pernod Ricard Australia and Reckitt Benckiser, before joining Swisse, part of the H&am...

Episode 5: Caroline Waite | Never Fully Ready: How Patience, Breadth and Transparency Built a Path to CEO 25.06.2026 45:52

In this episode of Your Path to CEO, Mike Dickson from [axr] Executive Search speaks with Caroline Waite, Group CEO of Stuart Alexander and recently appointed board member of the AFGC, about a career built on breadth, honest ambition and people-first leadership. Caroline knew she wanted to lead a business from an early age, shaped in no small part by school holidays spent on the factory floor of h...

Episode 4: Anthony Boyd | From finance to CEO: Why curiosity beats a career plan 11.06.2026 40:39

In this episode of Your Path to CEO , Greg O’Shea speaks with Anthony Boyd, CEO of Sydney Markets, about what it really takes to step into the CEO seat. Anthony breaks down the shift from finance leadership to enterprise leadership, and why the biggest leap in his career wasn’t becoming CEO but moving out of his functional comfort zone into general management. Key themes from the conversation incl...

Episode 3: Leeson Brook | Beyond Readiness: How Broad Experience Builds CEO Capability 28.05.2026 44:10

In this episode of Your Path to CEO, Mike Dickson from [axr] Executive Search speaks with Leeson Brook, Regional Managing Director & CEO of STIHL Australia, about a career shaped by ambition, discipline, and deliberately broad experience across global FMCG and manufacturing leadership roles. Leeson reflects on growing up in Adelaide and the formative experience of seeing financial pressure in...

Episode 2: Trish Pegorer | Response Over Reaction: Leadership Lessons from Mutti’s MD 14.05.2026 40:57

In this episode, Mike Dickson speaks with Trish Pegorer, Managing Director of Mutti Australia, to explore her unconventional path to executive leadership and the journey of building a challenger brand into a category leader. Trish’s career is a clear example of a non-linear trajectory, shaped by entrepreneurial roots and pivotal “sliding doors” moments. From early exposure in her family’s small bu...

Your Path to CEO | Launch Episode: [axr] Executive Search 29.04.2026 35:00

Welcome to Your Path to CEO [axr]’s newest podcast, created to explore one of the most ambitious and complex moves in any career: stepping into the CEO role. In this launch episode, you’ll hear from the [axr] Executive Search team - Mike Dixon, Shanthi Smith, and Greg O’Shea - who introduce the series, share why it exists, and outline what senior leaders can expect. At [axr], our mission is to ena...