Women Finalists in Telstra Social Enterprise Award
9 September 2015 at 10:19 am
The first finalists in a new awards category of For-Purpose and Social Enterprise have been announced in Queensland in the 21st Telstra Queensland Business Women’s Awards.
The finalists are Rebecca Glover for Ruby and Ollie’s All Abilities Childcare which cares for children with special needs, the 2015 Australia’s Local Hero Juliette Wright who developed GIVIT, an online portal to source urgently-needed items from the public for Australian charities, Fiona Jose, an Indigenous woman from Cape York, who is General Manager of Cape York Partnership (CYP) and Samantha Power, a former radio announcer and comedian who heads up the Jan Powers Farmers Markets across Brisbane.
Telstra Chief Operations Officer and Telstra Business Women’s Awards Ambassador, Kate McKenzie said the introduction of new categories in Australia’s longest-running business women’s awards was important to reflect changes in Australian business.
“We believe in a broad definition of success, so we’ve adjusted our Awards categories this year to make sure we continue to recognise vibrant business women from all industries,” McKenzie said.
She said the new category of For Purpose and Social Enterprise recognises that more and more Australian women are leading businesses, including Not for Profits and social ventures, designed to deliver positive social and environmental change here in Australia and overseas.
“Another key change this year is the addition of both Start-Up and Entrepreneur categories that are open to the many inspiring women who’ve backed themselves and taken the risks to turn their passion into businesses,” she said.
The Brisbane finalists in the Start-Up and Entrepreneur categories are Belinda Brosnan from HR Junction, Hollie Hewett from Arete Academy of Arts , Valeria Ramirez from The Well Nest Kitchen, Katie Richards from Virtual Legal, Catherine Roberts from The Spring Collective and Karen Young from Property Zest.
“The Telstra Business Women’s Awards not only celebrate women who have the courage to start their own business and lead their industries, but also offer them a platform to encourage others to challenge the status quo and think differently,” McKenzie said.
“The 2015 Queensland finalists join a long list of successful business women, whose unique and innovative approaches to leadership at state and local community levels, and in some cases, globally, continue to impress and inspire the Awards judges.”
In 2014, Anne Cross, the CEO of UnitingCare Queensland was named the 20th Telstra Australian Business Woman of the Year.
Cross, a former front-line social worker and champion of the Not for Profit sector, reshaped the way healthcare, community and aged care services are delivered to hundreds of communities and the thousands of people UnitingCare helps every day.
Winners of the 2015 Telstra Queensland Business Women’s Awards will be announced on Tuesday 29 September in Brisbane. The Queensland winners proceed to the national finals in Melbourne on Wednesday 18 November.
