Michael Poulton is bursting with enthusiasm at the prospect of his new job.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
On July 1, he'll take over as chief executive of the Committee for Ballarat, a lobby group that aims to ensure the region's voice is heard.
A former Stawell Gift competitor and keen hockey player - he's still in the firsts for Eureka and Golden City - with a background in sports management, he brings his experience "coaching the coaches" to the role.
"You go to the Olympics or a Grand Final, and that's all nice, but sports is only so big - this has an opportunity to shape the way people live and how the town thrives, and our future on the planet," he said.
"I'm loving the idea of actually being able to start the conversation and make a real, serious effect on people's lives."
He takes over from Melanie Robertson, who resigned in March.
Previously, Mr Poulton's worked for Athletics Australia, the AFL, and Geelong and Gold Coast football clubs, and has been involved in the Beijing and London Olympics - he also had a key role in setting up
He's lived in Buninyong for about 30 years, and maintained strong connections despite spending the last 13 years commuting to Melbourne every day on the train.
"The growth in the patronage has been enormous, which has been fantastic, but the system now has to catch up," he said.
"I'm sure I would have wrapped myself around a tree driving the car for 12 or 13 years every day, I just couldn't do it."
That aim to improve the system aligns well with the Committee's goals - recently departed chair Nick Beale famously took on the mantle '59 Minute Nick' as he pushed governments for faster trains.
As Mr Poulton is from a different background - "I haven't run a business, I haven't been a CEO," he said - he's aiming to bring an entirely fresh perspective to the job.
"My background has been coach education and coach development, and bringing the best out of performers - whether they're athletes, coaches, CEOs," he said.
"I like the idea around this thought leadership and having the capacity to be part of a vision for Ballarat, and stakeholder engagement, working with members, was the piece that really attracted me.
"(I said in my interview) here's a capacity for somebody who's got a chance to build relationships with people first and foremost to understand what their needs are, and then help the community and plan how things can happen."
While acknowledging he had little experience dealing with governments at a state or federal level, the Committee's deputy chair, Rod Walton, said he would have plenty of support from the board.
"Michael's a little bit understated, certainly with his experience with stakeholder management crossing the key pillars of education, corporate, and elite sport, he brings great leadership qualities, and he's passionate and understanding of Ballarat and the region," he said.
"He's got genuine vision, what he has in mind is certainly aligned with what the Committee for Ballarat's dialogue and vision have for going forward."
As chief executive, Mr Poulton's goals are to deal with Ballarat's rapid population growth, focus on sustainability and waste, and intra-connectivity between regional cities.
"I'm really interested in how we might be able to ensure that Ballarat becomes a town people want to come to," he said.
FROM THE ARCHIVE: Michael sticks to his passion
"There's jobs here, and therefore (people are) attracted to come to Ballarat because it delivers a style of living that caters for a whole range of people."
Mr Walton agreed, and added it was important to keep thinking in the long term.
"We want to protect what we enjoy, the liveability, the beauty, the heritage, we don't want to lose those thing - it's how do we maintain that while inevitably there will be population growth?" he said.
The gains in renewable energy in the region should be leveraged to benefit local businesses, Mr Poulton said, and the troubled recycling industry could present great opportunities for the entire city.
"The notion of the circular economy, of being smarter about the way we deal with what we produce, and from this perspective, we can actually see great investment in renewing the sorts of things we're expending," he said.
"There's some good examples of businesses getting great business outcomes from reducing their CO2 emissions and utilising the waste products they create for the purpose of production.
"It makes great economic sense and great environmental sense."
While Mr Poulton maintained he would begin the job by listening to members, he noted that in the short term, he would look to complete projects the Committee is already heavily involved in.
"Longer term, it's about continuing to see what the community's needs are, it's more about what the town wants and the businesses around the town see as the future, instead of what I see as the future," he said.
"What I'm really impressed about (with the Committee) is the fact you've got some major employers, Ballarat Health Services with 4000 employees, Sovereign Hill, some marquee employers, but you've also got some small businesses and balancing the needs of those members is an interesting proposition.
"A small accountancy firm with 10 employees, their needs and interests, the pieces of information they can bring to the table, versus a university with 2500 employees is quite different - and that's the bit I'm looking forward to, working with those organisations to understand what their needs are and how we can best deliver for them."
Have you signed up to The Courier's variety of news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in Ballarat.
