VA-MarApr2017lr

10-11 / 56

10 | March/April - 2017 | 11
Following a lengthy search, AUSVEG appointed James Whiteside as its new CEO in December 2016. James
has an extensive background in agriculture and agribusiness, with over 20 years of experience in the fertiliser
industry. He spoke to Vegetables Australia about taking on the role of AUSVEG CEO, his plans for the future of
the peak industry body and the importance of communicating with Australia’s vegetable and potato growers.
DAWN OF A NEW ERA:
AUSVEG WELCOMES ITS NEW LEADER
James Whiteside has a strong future vision for AUSVEG, the
nation’s leading horticultural body representing vegetable and
potato growers.
As the former Chief Operating Officer for Incitec Pivot Fertilisers,
James brings a high level of enthusiasm, industry knowledge
and expertise to his new role as AUSVEG CEO. James was also
the Chief Executive Officer of one of Incitec Pivot’s joint venture
companies, Quantum Fertilisers, a Hong Kong-based international
fertiliser trading company, and he is currently Chairman of Verdant
Minerals Limited and a director for Agribusiness Australia.
As he settles into the role of AUSVEG CEO, James has hit the
ground running – identifying the need for an updated business
strategy, as well as outlining the challenges the organisation faces
and how these can be overcome.
FRESH CHALLENGES
After graduating from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor
of Agricultural Science and entering the world of agribusiness and
corporate leadership, James explained what attracted him to the
CEO position at AUSVEG.
“I was keen to do something different in my career after having
spent a long time working for big commercial organisations. I was
looking for a change but was keen to continue to pursue a career
in the broader agriculture industry, which is where I feel most
comfortable,” he said.
“What I liked about AUSVEG was a couple of things: I was
taken by the integrity, capability and enthusiasm of the board
members that I met. These are people who are giving a life-long
commitment to the industry, and I’ve found that quite inspiring.
“I also think the horticulture industry is a noble one. It makes
a wonderful product; an important product for society and
in markets that have huge potential to grow. Not only is this
important as we deal with the challenge of feeding an ever-
growing population, but also because it means that growers’
businesses can also grow and prosper.
“There are a raft of opportunities for growers to access new
markets, develop new brands and grow profitability through
really good, canny marketing, both domestic and off-shore. I
like that challenge.”
DEVELOPING A STRATEGY
Resetting AUSVEG’s business strategy is at the top of the to-do list
in 2017, and James admits there are a range of challenges he faces
in implementing this strategy.
“Some of the challenges, I think, stem from the fact that the
industry is extremely fragmented. Not just from a grower
perspective, with lots of different products being grown in
different regions by growers large and small, but also there is the
structure of the industry associations, the way monies are levied
and the way those monies are managed. There are a lot of peak
industry bodies, all with a lot in common but with differing views
on certain issues,” James explained.
“I need to pick my way through all of those complexities and develop
an appropriate strategy which addresses the needs of growers, assures
the economic viability of the organisation and ensures that we have
the right people doing the right jobs to deliver it.”
POSITIVE OUTLOOK
James believes there are opportunities for AUSVEG to expand,
provided the peak industry body continues to demonstrate that
it can deliver value to growers.
“We have an opportunity to expand our range of services, so I
think the growth opportunities are significant,” he said.
“There’s a huge thirst for information. We’re probably only
scratching the surface now in terms of the work that we’re doing
in our export program to help growers access some of the export
market opportunities. I think there are a number of opportunities
that we will be pursuing pretty aggressively over the next 12 months.”
However, meeting Australia’s vegetable and potato growers is
something James is most looking forward to in 2017. The new
AUSVEG CEO said getting to know growers is a privilege and he is
inspired by talking to farming operators, both big and small.
“I find those people are really inspiring, and the industry is
jam-packed with those sorts of growers. It’s important that we can
come up with a business that actually delivers the benefits that
demanding, high-performing growers want us to deliver,” James said.
“What I want is for growers to see us being active in the
marketplace, and see us doing things that they think are important.
For more information, please contact AUSVEG on 03 9882 0277 or
.
INFO
“I think if we can do those two things, then growers will by and
large be pretty happy with our performance.”
James added that communication between AUSVEG and
Australia’s vegetable and potato growers is a two-way street.
“As much as we want to communicate with growers, we also
want growers to communicate with us, because fundamentally
we’ve got to make sure that we’re spending our time doing the
things that are important to them,” he said.
Photography by Luka Kauzlaric.
Tel: 1300 307 407
Fax: 03 9369 3865
Email:
Web:
213 - 217 Fitzgerald Rd
North Laverton, VIC 3026
Australia
NETAFIM AUSTRALIA
AUSVEG CEO James Whiteside.