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Stories
Getting Life Back in Balance
Disenchanted with the corporate world, Benjamin Gower (GMP 19, 2015) quit his job as senior vice president of operations for Australia’s Cobham Aviation Services and made a bold career and lifestyle change, moving to rural South Australia to become the CEO of the regional governing agency, the Wattle Range Council.
“I was becoming more and more disillusioned with working for a nameless, faceless shareholder, where short-term financial returns were becoming more important than long-term sustainability,” he says. That said, a change was in order for Gower.
The job with the Wattle Range Council, which he started in April 2016, puts his business experience to work, managing everything from roads and cemeteries to libraries and sewerage systems. Within the organization, Gower has focused on increasing workforce morale and fostering a culture in which staff are encouraged to experiment and make mistakes.
“My greatest focus is—and will always be—on people: motivating them, empowering them, and encouraging them to experiment and take calculated risks,” Gower says. “I have tried to create a learning environment and a culture that fosters teamwork, trust, and having fun.”
(Published September 2018)
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