David Thodey AO
Chair, Commonwealth Science, Industry & Research Organisation (CSIRO)
Ceremony: 11 May 2018, 2:00pm - UTS Business School
Speech
My thanks to Chancellor, Vice Chancellor, President, Deputy Vice Chancellor, University Secretary, members of the Academic Board, staff, distinguished guests, family and friends, and of course, graduates. Congratulations. I too would like to begin by just recognising and acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we’re meeting today, the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, just pay my respects to their Elders past and present. Well, I’ve got to say, it’s a real pleasure to be here at UTS. I’ve watched UTS grow over the last 20 years while I was at IBM and what a vibrant, exciting university it is, and it’s just developed enormously well, and it’s a real privilege to be here today. And I do need to say my congratulations to all the students, because what great degrees – finance, accounting, management, international studies. These are the languages of business and I wish you really great success as you move forward. You know, you’ve all achieved so much, as Catherine said, in getting to this stage, and I know there’s a lot of work involved, but it really does provide this great foundation, and it is a foundation for what you’re going to do as you go forward. But it is what you do with it, and that’s really the key. I really am sure that you’ve had a great time here, because the friends and associates and people you now know may become your friends for life, and make sure that you do keep in contact. And now you’re part of the UTS Alumni; make sure you stay part of that, because it really is a great global fraternity. As the Vice Chancellor said in that very long citation – by the way, thank you very much, Attila – you know, I am doing a number of different things now, but everything I do is about trying to make Australia even more prosperous and based on innovation and just trying to take it forward and make a difference. Now, as Catherine said, it is a time of enormous change, there’s digital disruption and things, but it’s really what you do with it, because there’s always change. It may not be digital; it may be something else, but it’s really what you do with it, because it’s changing every part of our society. So that’s why we need to all have a vision – a vision of where you’ll be. Now, many of you might go back to your home countries, you may stay here in Australia, but it’s what you do with it and how you find something that you can really grasp hold of, because that’s what life is about. And it’s important that we all strive to make a better society and improve the world in which we’re living in, be it your local community or at a national level. But it does take leadership, and it takes a really special type of leadership. In fact, I was reading the order of the events today and I read what Catherine said: we need people who maintain the highest professional and ethical standards in today’s complex workplace. And I think this is a really timely reminder for everybody in the room, including myself. So, what I thought I’d do in the brief time that I have is just share three principles that I’ve found helped me in my life, and I hoped at least they might be of some relevance to you. Just three very quick principles, and the first one is around purpose, boldness and integrity. See, one of the most important things for all of us is to discover what you really enjoy, and it’s actually not that easy, because usually what you really enjoy, you’re good at doing, and then you make a difference in life, but you’ve got to work at it. As you say, you’ve got to turn that wonderful iPhone off and iPads, as much as I like them, but you need to think about it and you need to take time out. So, it’s very important that you do it. You need to actually put time aside. It’s interesting; it’s also, in a way, about self-belief, about believing you can make a difference, and doing that with humility, but you need to step out and you need to be bold. And too often, people have a too low a view of themselves, so think you can change the world. You know, be aspirational. Think that you can make a difference, because in that, you do do wonderful things. And again, there will be times that are difficult, decisions you need to make that you’re not quite sure what the answer is, but do take time out to think it through, to make the right judgement, because judgement is so important. You know, throughout my career, I’ve always endeavoured to things that make a difference. Yes, I wanted to be good at what I did, but I always tried to aspire to a greater good, rather than my own personal advancement, and I think it’s a very important part of life. And it’s about maintaining your integrity. You see, integrity, a much-used word, is a bit like reputation. It’s tested over a lifetime, but can be destroyed in a moment, and your integrity will be what people judge you by. Integrity needs to be nurtured and guarded. It is essential for strong leadership, and it is the foundation for trust, and trust is what makes our world go round. Integrity’s about accountability, it’s about honesty, and it’s about the truth. Unfortunately, it’s often the lack of integrity that have destroyed people’s careers and destroyed organisations. So, keep striving. Keep working to find what you want to do. Be bold in that, believe in yourself and do what you believe is right, and then, at all costs, maintain your integrity. Do what you believe is right. The second principle I wanted to share with you is around learning and change. I have the great privilege to work with many scientists and technologists and business people who have this wonderful thirst for knowledge. It really is, it’s – when you’re with these people, you just feel excited, and they’re always learning. They have this innate inquisitiveness about life and their profession. You know, at CSIRO we have our Six Futures science platforms, which involve many different things, from synthetic biology to [inaudible] biosystems etcetera, but the one that really excites me is the one we’re doing around deep earth imaging, where a team of scientists are trying to map the Earth’s crust of Australia, three kilometres down. We look to the stars, but often we don’t look down to see what’s underneath us – we have many oil companies doing that. We’re trying to bring all that data together. Just imagine being able to look three kilometres down across the whole of Australia, what wonderful things we’d find. But what I find so inspiring about that team, because this is an enormous task, you know, they’re testing hypotheses, they’re making mistakes, they’re challenging the status quo, but they’re redefining what’s possible, and that’s what’s exciting about what they do. Or in business I could give examples, be it Telstra, again, at CSIRO, or small business right across this country, and including the start-up community, where there’s this wonderful hunger to do things differently and to get them done, and it’s exciting to see so many of them right across Australia, and even here at UTS, I know you’ve got the Hatchery and now you’ve got the Centre for Robotic Studies, it’s exciting what’s going on, and these are going to change the world. So that’s what inspires people – it’s about that constant desire for learning, and no matter what you’re doing, in accounting and finance and management, have that thirst for knowledge and never accept the status quo. Never stand still. Because in striving for improvement, that’s how we better ourselves and the world in which we live. So, remember: learning, and don’t stop changing the world. And then just the last one is around respect for people. In life, you meet many people. Sometimes the world seems a very small place – maybe we are only separated by two degrees; I don’t know. But you just never know the impact you have on people’s lives. Even today, the people you meet. At times you have difficult conversations, sometimes you don’t always agree with people, sometimes it’s easier to do the expedient thing than the hard thing, sometimes it’s hard to discern what other people are saying or where they’re coming from. But I would encourage, in the midst of all those interactions, it’s always important to treat people with respect, not just because it’s a moral standard, but because of the practical outworkings from there. I’ve had many experiences in my life when I was not aware of the person I was speaking to, and yet I found out later who they were or what they were doing, and they had an enormous impact on my life. So, never judge people too quickly. Always be open to understand where they’re coming from. And I’ve often received some of the wisest counsel from people who’ve experienced enormous hardships in their lives. They may not have a title, they may not be someone who’s in the papers, but they’re people who speak from experience, who speak from life and humanity, and that’s what makes us all special. And I’m inspired by the people I meet each week, because that’s what keeps us going, and for all of us in this room. So, in summary: what a wonderful opportunity you’ve all got, and I wish you all the best as you move forward. Yes, it’s times of change; yes, it’ s times of opportunities and challenges, but remember, it’s what you make from them that really counts. How you find those opportunities to grow, what you do with your life – that is what counts, both for Australia or the countries that you live in, or for yourself individually. So, find your purpose, be bold, think you can change the world. Secondly, never stop learning, have that insatiable appetite for knowledge, be inquisitive and never accept the status quo; and lastly, always treat people with respect. So, before I finish, I would like to thank the university for my honorary doctorate of business. It’s a wonderful honour to reeive, and thank you very much for it. And lastly, for all your careers and lives, I wish you every success. Take care of yourselves and take care of the people around you. Thank you very much.
About the Speaker
Mr David Thodey, AO holds a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and English from Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand. He attended the Kellogg School of Management postgraduate general management program at Northwestern University in Chicago, USA. In 2016, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Science and Technology from Deakin University.
David Thodey is a global business leader focused on technology and telecommunications with more than 30 years of experience creating brand and shareholder value.
Mr Thodey is currently Chair of Australia’s national scientific research agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), and Chair of JobsNSW, a site focused on job creation in NSW. He is also an ambassador for business events in NSW. David also chairs the NSW Government’s Quantum Computing Fund Advisory Panel.
Mr Thodey is on the advisory boards of Square Peg Capital and Unified Healthcare Group. He is on the Investment Committee of Evans and Partners Global Disruption Fund, and is a non-executive board director of Ramsay Health Care, a global hospital group.
Mr Thodey also had a successful career as chief executive officer of Telstra, Australia’s leading telecommunications and information services company.
Former board memberships include co-chair of the infrastructure and investment taskforce of the Australian B20 leadership group and chair of IBM ANZ; director of The Global Services Mobile Association and chair of its regulatory committee; and directorships at TelstraClear, Information Technology (IT) Skills Hub, Basketball Australia, and industry groups.
In 2017, Mr Thodey was made an Officer (AO) in the General Division of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to business, notably to the telecommunications and information technology sectors, to the promotion of ethical leadership and workplace diversity, and to basketball.
Mr Thodey has a great deal to contribute to UTS across a wide range of industry sectors and areas of research in ICT, digital business, data services and digital services. He is passionate about authentic leadership, workplace equity, technology and corporate social responsibility.
