HEATHER RIDOUT
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP
Mrs Heather Ridout is Chief Executive of the Australian Industry Group - a leading
industry association representing businesses in a broad range of sectors including
manufacturing, construction, automotive, ICT, transport, defence, labour hire and
other industries.
She is a member of a number of key national policy setting and consultative groups
including the, National Workplace Relations Consultative Committee; Infrastructure
Australia; Skills Australia and the Prime Minister’s Taskforce on Manufacturing.
She was also a member of the Henry Tax Review, Business Roundtable on Climate
Change, the Prime Minister's Business Taskforce on Flood Recovery and chaired the
Productivity and Prosperity Advisory Panel of the Population Strategy Task Force.
Mrs Ridout has various other appointments including Director of the Australian Super
Trustee Board, the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth.
She heads an organisation committed to helping Australian industry with a focus on
building competitive and sustainable industries through global integration, skills
development, productive and flexible workplace relations, infrastructure development
and innovation.
Mrs Ridout has regularly appeared on the Australia Financial Review’s Power List.
Her appointments include:
Director
AustralianSuper Trustee Board since July 2007
Member
Board for Electrolux Home Products Pty Ltd 2003 to
2009
Advisor to the
Board for Electrolux Home Products Pty Ltd from June
2009 to February 2011
Council Member
Infrastructure Australia Advisory Council since May
2008
Director
Sims Metal Management – Sept 2011
Member
Skills Australia since April 2008
Member
PM’s Taskforce on Manufacturing – Nov 2011
Panel Member
Henry Review into the Australian Taxation System
2008 to 2009
Member
National Workplace Relations Consultative Committee
since 2004
Chair
Population Strategy Taskforce - Productivity and
Prosperity Advisory Panel – June to December 2010
Chair
NSW Industry Capability Network (ICN) 1998 to 2010
As at 24Nov 2011
Member
Business Roundtable on Climate Change Nov 2010 ti
June 2011
Member
Advance Advisory Board
Director
Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth –
ARACY – from July 2009
Member
Australia-India Education Council – AIEC-July 2011
Member
Board of Trustees for the Global Federation of
Competitiveness Councils (GFCC).
Member
General Motors Australian Advisory Council 1999 to
2005
Member
Prime Minister’s Business Taskforce for the Floods
from January to June 2011
Member
Business Advisory Group on National Security
Chair
APEC Women Leaders’ Network in 2007
Member
Advisory Board Birmingham University Business
School (UK) since 2005
Member
Labour - Management Studies Foundation - Macquarie
University to January 2010.
Director
Ai Group Training Services Pty Ltd since 2004
Member
Australian Institute for Population Ageing Research –
AIPAR - from September 2009
Ambassador
Australian Indigenous Education Foundation – AIEF –
from May 2009
Board Member
Pacific Friends of the Global Fund -To fight AIDS,
Tuberculosis and Malaria – from January 2009
Member
External Advisory Committee of ADRSI -Australian
Demographic & Social Researchers Institute from
February 2008
Judge
Reconciliation Australia Indigenous Governance
Awards – since 2006
Director
Worldskills Australia NSW 2006 to 2009
Panel member
Inquiry into Women’s Representation on Rural and
Regional Bodies of Influence in Australia – 2005 to
2006 – At the Table report.
Panel Member
Report of the ANU’s Independent Review of
Breaches and Penalties in the Social Security System
2001.
As at 24Nov 2011
Awards:
•
Honorary Doctorate of Business from University of Ballarat in May 2011
•
Vocational Excellence Award by Rotary International District 9680 in March
2010
•
Centenary Medal 2001.
ABOUT AI GROUP
The Australian Industry Group (Ai Group) is a leading industry association in
Australia. Ai Group member businesses employ around 750,000 staff in an
expanding range of industry sectors including: manufacturing, engineering,
construction, defence, ICT, call centres, labour hire, transport, logistics, utilities,
infrastructure, environmental products and services and business services.
Ai Group is closely affiliated with more than 50 other employer groups in Australia
alone and directly manages a number of those organisations. Together, Ai Group
and its affiliates represent the interests of approximately 60,000 businesses which
employ in excess of 1.2 million staff across Australia and the world.
Ai Group members operate small, medium and large businesses. They include many
major Australian and global companies operating in a range of industries.
The organisation provides practical information, advice and assistance to help
members run their businesses more effectively. It ensures through policy leadership
that members have a voice at all levels of government, by representing and
promoting their interests on current and emerging issues.
Ai Group has formal and long standing links with more than 80 overseas employer
organisations such as the Confederation of Indian Industry; the Chinese Machinery
Industry Federation; The Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry; the Federation
of Malaysian Manufacturers; the US National Association of Manufacturers and the
Confederation of British Industry.
Ai Group’s Trade& Export Development team assists member companies to expand
their businesses overseas and this service is coupled with a deep engagement by Ai
Group in trade policy generally.
As at 24Nov 2011