From Blacktown to Business Success: Lessons in Leadership and Risk — with Brett Plumber

This episode dives into the entrepreneurial journey of a leader who transformed a small trucking business into a major player in the Port of Brisbane. Growing up in a tight-knit family in Western Sydney, our guest shares how early lessons in discipline, teamwork, and vision shaped his leadership style. From navigating the challenges of capital-intensive industries to scaling a business while maintaining a strong team ethos, this conversation is packed with actionable insights for executives and entrepreneurs.

Discover how to manage risk without stifling growth, the importance of diversification, and why clear communication is critical in leadership. Whether you're leading a small team or scaling a large enterprise, this episode offers practical frameworks and real-world examples to help you adapt and thrive in competitive markets.

Key takeaways:

- Diversification is essential to mitigate risk in business.

- Clear communication and timely feedback drive team performance.

- Scaling requires adapting leadership styles and strategies.

- Risk management ensures long-term sustainability.

- Investing in team culture fosters resilience and growth.

Valuable learnings for business leaders:

- Build a clear vision and strategy to guide your team.

- Focus on cost control and cash flow for stability.

- Address poor performance early to maintain a strong culture.

00:00 — Intro

• Welcome and episode overview

• Guest introduction and background

• Focus on leadership and entrepreneurship

05:12 — Family Roots and Early Influences

• Growing up in Western Sydney

• Lessons from a tight-knit family

• Vision and discipline instilled by parents

12:45 — Leadership Style Evolution

• From 'follow me' to collaborative leadership

• Learning from team sports and captaining roles

• Adapting to larger teams and scaling challenges

20:30 — Risk Management and Diversification

• Importance of diversification in business

• Managing risk in capital-intensive industries

• Lessons from losing a major client

30:15 — Scaling SEQH and Operational Challenges

• Transitioning to the Port of Brisbane

• Building a seamless service model

• Overcoming operational hurdles

40:00 — Team Culture and Performance

• Addressing poor performance and bad behaviours

• The role of gender diversity in team dynamics

• Consistency and follow-through in leadership

50:30 — Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

• Balancing risk and opportunity

• Planning for cash flow and strategy

• Building strong working relationships

58:00 — Closing and Key Lessons

• Reflections on leadership and resilience

• Final advice for business leaders

• Thank you and outro

Thank you for listening to 'Slicing Through The Noise' the podcast that uncovers real stories behind impactful leadership in Australia and around the world.

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Business strategy improves when leaders measure what drives future performance, not last month's results. Bob shares a practical approach to running a business on leading indicators: tender and quote activity, win rates, market signals, and lead times that show where revenue will land months ahead.

This episode is for founders, CEOs and senior leaders who want clearer decisions with fewer surprises. You will hear how to set a purpose people can repeat, turn it into objectives, and keep culture aligned from the executive level. Bob explains why faster month-end reporting matters and how to manage trust: give people boundaries, then watch trends so you can intervene early.

We also cover codifying what works in sales, targeting the right customers, and avoiding cheapest-price thinking that destroys value. The outcome is a simple operating rhythm: monitor drivers, build capability through delegation, and keep values visible in everyday trade-offs.

Key takeaways:

· Monitor drivers (quotes, tenders, lead times), not last month's results.

· Shorten reporting cycles so corrective action is still possible.

· Define purpose, then set objectives as stepping stones.

· Codify successful sales and train consistency across the team.

· Use values to shape culture from the executive level.

Valuable learnings for business leaders:

· Build capacity before the market turns, not after.

· Delegate admin work to create time for strategy and mentoring.

· Choose roles and partners that match your values and make work enjoyable.

Thank you for listening to 'Slicing Through The Noise' the podcast that uncovers real stories behind impactful leadership in Australia and around the world.

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Construction Leadership That Scales: Clarity, Risk and Culture — with Alex Douglas (01:08:58)
Construction leadership in a delivery environment is won or lost on clarity: what matters, who owns what, and how quickly decisions move. In this conversation, Alex Douglas shares how he went from a desk and photocopier at home to building a $150m+ business by engineering the client journey and making communication a competitive advantage.

This episode is for founders, CEOs and senior leaders who are scaling operations, managing thin margins, or trying to lift performance across a complex partner ecosystem. Alex breaks down what smooth delivery looks like in practice: early intent-setting, disciplined pre-construction, and creating the conditions for subcontractors and consultants to do good work without churn.

You’ll also hear the less glamorous lessons: why “later” becomes too late in leadership, how teams notice what you don’t address, and how Douglas Construction protects margin through calculated, informed risk—sometimes by walking away from work that removes their value-add.

Key takeaways:
• Clear intention drives aligned attention and faster decisions.
• Smooth delivery comes from upfront communication, not heroics.
• Avoid uninformed risk: price what you don’t know or don’t bid.
• “Later” is a leadership tax—small issues compound into culture problems.
• Retention and sustainable hours protect safety, productivity and margin.

Valuable learnings for business leaders:
• Build a repeatable pre-construction roadmap to reduce variation and rework.
• Choose clients and partners that allow you to add value, not just carry risk.
• Design rhythms that scale leadership beyond the founder.

Thank you for listening to 'Slicing Through The Noise' the podcast that uncovers real stories behind impactful leadership in Australia and around the world.

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