Professor Brett Heyward

Biography

Brett comes to QUT with a wealth of experience in the public and private sectors.  He has led large agencies in Health, Natural Resources and Mining, as well as holding senior roles in the consulting industry.  Early in his career he managed manufacturing businesses and held roles in environmental science management. Brett received his undergraduate degree from the University of Southern Queensland, majoring in Accounting. He added to this with a Masters in Administration (focused on Change Management), and a PhD focused on competition policy frameworks in national and provincial governments. As an Adjunct Professor with QUT, Brett coordinates and contributes to many of the leadership subjects in the Graduate School of Business, including the Business Leadership Practicum and Personal Leadership and Change in the EMBA and MBA programs.  He also facilitates leadership development and coaching activities with corporate clients including several large businesses in the retail and manufacturing industries, as well as large public sector agencies, particularly those with commercial or "self-funded" operations. Brett is also a Chief Investigator for QUT's Centre of METS Business Innovation (CMBI) as well as the Centre for Behavioural Economics, Society and Technology (BEST) and contributes to research there.  In addition, Brett is often sought after to review research in the fields of mining and resources generally, as well as engage with corporate leaders in this area, particularly on the topics of government regulation and leadership development. He is also very interested in progressing institutional strengthening activities in developing countries, and is currently supporting research into aged care and disability support services in Vietnam. Brett loves sport and devotes much of his "free time" to coaching (largely Rugby League and Cricket), as well as supporting the development of sporting expertise, particularly in back office functions and high performance systems (a major focus of his early consulting career).