The CEO Magazine has this week held its annual CEO Awards. The CEO of the Year for companies with A$100m+ turnover was awarded to Unilever CEO, Nicky Sparshott. Stepping Stone House CEO Jason Juretic has won CEO of the Year for companies with A$0–$110m turnover.
OzHarvest’s Ronni Kahn has been named the recipient of the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at The CEO Magazine’s gala event.
Event host Merrick Watts
The CEO Magazine crowned a range of leaders as best in their category at the 2022 Executive of the Year Awards at Doltone House in Sydney, hosted by Merrick Watts.
OzHarvest CEO Ronni Kahn was awarded a lifetime achievement award by The CEO Magazine for her work to end food waste at the 11th annual event, which actively celebrates aspiring and established leaders in a range of categories and sectors.
“Our magazine is always on the hunt to shine a light on those leaders who make impactful change in their sphere of influence – and Ronni does that in spades,” says The CEO Magazine’s co-founder, Chris Dutton.
Her impactful purpose-led company, OzHarvest, straddles logistics, sustainability and charity to engineer a better future for the environment, feeding the hungry and reducing waste. Ronni Kahn has not only changed legislation to allow food to stop going to waste but she’s also worked with large profit-led organisations to reduce waste and contribute to people in need. Her mission to fight food waste and feed hungry people is supported by some of the world’s finest chefs. To date, OzHarvest has served more than 50 million meals made up of donated excess food since 2004.
Nicky Sparshott
Unilever ANZ CEO Nicky Sparshott was awarded CEO of the Year for companies with A$100m+ turnover, juggling her executive life on the management floor with being a board member for World Wildlife Fund Australia.
Sparshott is a purpose-led leader, with a focus on delivering consistent triple-bottom impact – profit, planet and people – and transforming and scaling companies, including Unilever, The Coca-Cola Company, P&G and George Patts Y&R, for optimal value creation.
“Nicky is a classic example of the type of well-rounded leader we are seeing succeed in a new world that recognises that environmental and sustainability impact is as important as people leadership,” Dutton said.
Jason Juretic, awarded CEO of the Year for companies with A$0–$110m turnover leads Stepping Stone House, a charity that supports children and young people experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness by providing accommodation and personal development so they can be the very best they can be and enjoy childhood memories.
An initiative led by Juretic is 806 Life Skills, which aims to see youth flourish as they develop important life skills, realise their potential and become independent young adults.
Gina Rinehart attended the event in support of Garry Korte, her CEO of Hancock Prospecting, who was awarded the Highly Commended Award in the CEO of the Year category.
“This is the 11th year of these awards, and it’s always inspiring to see how leaders rise to challenges but break away with success the more they lead with their heart as well as their head,” Dutton says.
He explains that different businesses produce different types of leaders, but all leaders share similar qualities – a passion to inspire change and move people towards clear goals.
“The CEO Magazine is all about celebrating the magic of business leaders,” he says.
Finalists were judged by a panel including Janine Fraser (Co-Founder, Directioneering), Simone Tilley (General Manager Corporate Bank, ANZ), Shaun Bonétt (CEO & Managing Director, Precision Group), John Karagounis (Managing Director & CEO, The CEO Circle) Chris Dutton (Co-Founder, The CEO Magazine), Anna Dutton (Co-Founder & Executive Director, The CEO Magazine) and David Jepson (CEO, The CEO Magazine).