Breeding leadership in the next gen

The future of the wool industry is in good hands judging by the latest group of Breeding Leadership participants.

22 wool industry representatives from across the country participated in AWI’s Breeding Leadership course for 2024. Held every two years, Breeding Leadership arms the young participants, selected from throughout the wool industry, with the skills and tools to become better leaders.

The program course includes sessions on personal leadership, strategic planning, and corporate governance, as well as skills such as communication and delegation. It also provides an excellent opportunity for participants to network with other like-minded people from across Australia, as well as the skilled program deliverers and others from the wool industry.

Now in its tenth year, the five-day course has helped progress the careers of 219 young people within the wool industry, many of whom hold leading wool roles today.

The course this year was held at Clare in South Australia. As well as undertaking the structured course work, the group toured several wool-focused businesses, including Michell Wool in Adelaide and two local Merino operations to look at innovative on-farm practices and hear lived examples of what they’ve been hearing on the course.

AWI CEO John Roberts hosted the AWI Breeding Leadership Industry Dinner as a networking opportunity for the course participants with industry guests.

AWI has funded the Breeding Leadership course since 2012, with this year’s course delivered by Pinion Advisory.

Emily King, AWI National Extension Manager, says the AWI Breeding Leadership course is a flagship investment under AWI’s Leadership and Capacity Building program.

“The Breeding Leadership course is an industry-recognised program that aims to develop young leaders to enable them to actively contribute to the future of our wool industry and encourage them to step into leadership roles within their business, industry and community,” Emily said.

“The course forms a key part of AWI’s commitment to education in the wool industry. Other initiatives include support for the Hay Inc Rural Education Program, Peter Westblade Wyvern Training Weekend and SA Sheep Expo."

Charlie Brumpton from Mitchell, Queensland, day to day oversees three employees and aims to bring his new knowledge back to his team and business. “It has boosted my confidence in people management, decision making and future planning,” he said.

Allie Brinkworth from Meningie, South Australia, says she enjoyed developing her personal skills on the course. “The opportunity to network with people across the wool industry from right across Australia is so beneficial for the whole rest of my career,” she said.

AWI Breeding Leadership 2024 course participants

This article appeared in the March 2024 edition of AWI’s Beyond the Bale magazine. Reproduction of the article is encouraged.