On Thursday 24 October, the Western Australian family business community came together at the Family Business Insights WA State Conference at Aloft Perth.
The event provided an opportunity for members to connect, learn, and share insights on critical topics such as stewardship of the family business across generations, avoiding insolvency in family businesses, creating an effective workplace culture and building resilience through crises.
Family Business Excellence Awards
The Family Business Insights WA State Conference started with a presentation to the WA award winner of our Family Business Excellence Awards.
The Family Business Excellence Awards are presented to an outstanding family business demonstrating excellence and achievement in the core business principles of Governance, Entrepreneurship and Stewardship, and exhibits how family ownership and involvement has helped the business to achieve a competitive advantage.
Bestbar Reinforcements were the winners of the 2024/25 Established Family Business Award for Western Australia. The award was accepted by Grant Johnston, Co-Founder and Managing Director.
“I’m very happy to be here today and very proud of what we’ve achieved. It means a lot to be recognised today, especially alongside many other incredible family businesses in the room.”
“Our journey has been built on hard work, resilience and a bit of luck. I still remember stories from the early days, like my brother working 18 hours a day manually bending steel, while mum hand wrote thousands of production tags.”
“I’m extremely proud of the 11 family members who have come through the business including our children Aaron, Courtney, Ethan and Karl, and not just from our family but from many other family units that are part of our business today and our success.”
“A special thank you to our executive team for your leadership, and mentoring the next generation. Your patience, guidance and willingness to let our children learn and the freedom to fail has been invaluable. It’s because of your mentorship that they have developed the skills and confidence to lead us into the next chapter.”
“Today recognises not just our family, it’s for our whole team, who have worked beside us over the past 30 years. They believed in our vision, rolled up their sleeves and have been part of this journey with us. The hard work doesn’t stop here. Next year we are starting construction in Australia on the first low carbon steel mill in Queensland and I couldn’t be prouder of the legacy that we are building together.”
Founded in 1995, Bestbar Reinforcements began as a small local operation and has grown into a thriving national enterprise. From its humble origins in a Subiaco panel beating shop, the family identified a unique opportunity to support the local construction industry by supplying reinforcement steel. Overcoming significant challenges in its early years, the business now employs over 850 skilled workers and is renowned as Australia’s most reliable supplier of steel reinforcement mesh and bars. Their success is built on hard work, a commitment to innovation, and a deep-rooted family culture that prioritises sustainable growth and customer satisfaction. As they continue to support the nation’s largest builders and infrastructure projects, the company remains dedicated to challenging industry norms and seeking innovative solutions.
Family Business Insights WA State Conference
The event begun with networking and drinks out on the Balcony at Aloft Perth, where the WA family business community enjoyed each other's company and the beautiful views of the Swan River.
Kicking off the conference, attendees were given a warm welcome from FBA’s CEO, Catherine Sayer. Catherine emphasised FBA’s core values - One Family, supporting members to thrive, being authentic, and a learning mindset.
To start our afternoon of speakers and keynote presentations, Karen Nelson, Workplace Relations Practice Lead at Ai Group Workplace Lawyers, provided a brief overview of the recent changes in industrial relations. Due to recent changes to the Industrial Relations Legislation through the passing of The Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Act 2023, and The Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes No. 2) Act 2024, there are differing implications for business. Karen provided insights into these implications to help attendees understand how these changes may impact on their family business.
Download Workplace Relations Regulations Slides
For our keynote address, Melanie Cooper AM, the first female Chair of Coopers Brewery, shared her journey through leadership and the importance of custodianship across generations.
When asked what Melanie Cooper loves most about her family business, she says ‘I love beer. I feel the beer industry is in my blood. We grew up opposite our brewery in Leabrook, South Australia and would spend weekends there with my father when he was checking on the brews. I love the family feel of the organisation, even though we are now much larger and more corporate than a generation ago.’
Melanie shared her insights into becoming the first female Chair of Coopers Brewery, offering valuable perspectives on the major challenges of leadership. She also delved into the significant obstacles Coopers Brewery has faced over generations, particularly during the takeover attempt by Lion Nathan, and discussed the motivation behind the substantial reinvestment in the family business—a $70 million development that includes a microbrewery, distillery, restaurant, function centre, and museum.
Next we were joined by Clint Joseph, Director at KPMG, and Carmen Boothman, Partner at HWL Ebsworth Lawyers who provided great food for thought while sharing key lessons in managing insolvency risk and the protective measures that can be taken, from both accounting and legal perspectives, to protect business assets and family wealth.
Clint and Carmen discussed the current landscape and key strategies for avoiding insolvency in family businesses, emphasising the importance of proactive financial and legal measures, illustrating their points with a real-life case study.
Download Avoiding Insolvency Slides
In our third session, Georgia Henry, Founder, CEO & Culture Expert at Henry Reed, and Chris Mathews, Senior Consultant - Risk Advisory at Gallagher, explored the importance of psychological safety and managing psychosocial risk in family businesses and provided strategies to cultivate a supportive and effective workplace.
Facilitated by Catherine Resnick, Psychotherapist at Amygdala Consulting, the group discussed how psychological safety encourages employees to be open and honest about their thoughts, feelings, and ideas. This openness leads to greater creativity, collaboration, and productivity.
A key takeaway for attendees was, in family businesses, the way you communicate with family members is crucial, as it can influence the psychosocial dynamics within the workplace and impact how other staff perceive these interactions.
Download Resources for Psychosocial Safety Slides
For our final session of the conference, Darren Linton, Managing Director, and Gerry Hanssen, Executive Director at Hanssen Construction shared the inspirational story of the Hanssen family business.
This session, facilitated by Stewart Blizard, Managing Director and Principal at Insight Advisory Group, provided valuable insights into how founder Gerry Hanssen has navigated crises and adversity throughout his career in the building industry, particularly in his dealings with unions and and the journey of his stepson, Darren, as the company's successor.
Gerry and Darren also shared their family business's unique strategies for success through the 12 non-negotiable rules that have shaped Hanssen Construction's distinctive company culture, which are posted on the walls of all their sites for family members and workers to abide by:
**THE JOB IS THE BOSS**
- Do you understand your job?
- Be ready for the job with tools & materials, and clean up as you are working.
- Keep Hanssen Standard Details, drawings, etc in your tool container. If in doubt, ask your Foreman.
- Be proactive, not reactive – Effective, not busy.
- Take care of personal health and safety.
- Bullying, racism, and sexism are not tolerated.
- Good work ethic is judged by your mates and rewarded with earning respect.
- Successful projects are built with team spirit.
- Each individual is accountable for their behaviour.
- Be proud of your achievements.
- Mistakes are not a sin; honesty earns respect.
- YOUR future is judged by the above actions.
Download Hanssen Family Slides
Thank you to all those who attended, presented and made the event such a success.
Thank you to our Table Sponsor:
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