Chief Executive, WAITOC
Robert is a Nanda Yamaji man and the first Aboriginal WAITOC CEO. In the past ten years, Robert has taken the organisation from a marketing and advocacy Aboriginal tourism organisation and introduced business development as a further arm of the organisation to build business leaders for the future and create a robust Aboriginal tourism sector for Western Australia. His drive to ensure the country understands the value of Aboriginal tourism has been rewarded through securing local, state, and federal government funding for Aboriginal tourism, along with developing philanthropic partnerships.
Rob offers over 38 years of experience in the hospitality and tourism industry. He has owned and managed hospitality, tourism, mining camps, and sports and recreation businesses. Having an entrepreneurial spirit, he has proved his capability for diversification, utilising his skills and knowledge to cross over industries to develop diverse income streams for WAITOC and add value for its members. Robert became CEO of WAITOC in 2015. He has been a leading voice to the government, successfully advocating for 40 million dollars invested in Aboriginal Tourism Nationwide from this work and was recently named the chair of the National First Nations Visitor Economy Partnership.
Robert has a strategic mind, offering businesses and organisations a fresh way of analysis from both an operational and high-end tactical perspective. He can differentiate between key opportunities and create embedded processes to ensure outcomes are reached on time and within budget.
