I’ve been reading, through Jana Wendt’s eloquent and investigative prose about Ann Sherry, CEO of the Australian arm of P&O cruise line.
It’s a fly on the wall portrait of one of Australia’s top female CEOs, but it left me wanting more — so I turned on my Google-machine.
Sherry joined the ranks or rather put on her hard hat a few years after the death of Dianne Brimble on one of the P&O ships.
The Brimble case played out on her shift nearly half a decade later and in my opinion she dealt with it with elegance and resolve.
What really caught my attention was her ownership of the issue, even though you could argue that it wasn’t her responsibility at the time. It is, however, what she is held to account on, and for that and her management of the situation, she scores 10 out of 10.
I’ve drawn various thoughts from her actions.
Primary is her CEO style, which was to put the customer, her people and the business ahead of her own personality. Something can be said of this that our current politicians and company leaders could learn from.
She has a passion for pushing politicians for better port facilities, given that cruise travel is the fastest growing area of tourism for Sydney.
Her choice to have her disabled son raised primarily by her husband so she could prove her work abilities speaks volumes about the relationship she cultivated with her family. No price to pay for wanting to work, just comfort knowing her family agreed with her.
And finally, her concern that as ships sail in the night, now more responsible for serving alcohol and security to prevent more Brimble cases, watering holes on dry land are still overservicing and divesting responsibility. A case in point is the recent drowning death in Cockle Bay and the frequent unease in Kings Cross and Oxford St, Darlinghurst.
An inspiring woman in a sea of many.
