RUSSELL BASKERVILLE

The Empired managing director tells Nick Sas it’s all about being approachable and driving ambition.

Biggest career break?

Definitely when we listed Empired in 2007. That was an extremely difficult time, right in the midst of the GFC. I was the managing director and at that time our business was really small, with only about 50 people (Empired now has 850 employees). To raise money and get people supporting us was a huge break and it provided the platform for what Empired has become today, which is a company that competes for major deals with multinationals, and is worth about $75 million.

Describe your leadership style.

I think a key part of my style is to be approachable and be able to relate to all people, at every level, and be able to listen to those ideas. The other thing I try to drive is ambition. We have a lot of young people on our staff and they like being part of a successful organisation. So we try to engage the whole organisation towards that success.

First or most unusual job?

Very early in my career, when I was about 20 years old, I did some IT-tech installation work for the Department of Justice. One of my assignments was to go into a number of prisons around WA. At the time I was a bit of a surfer-dude, with long blonde hair. I remember walking through maximum security in one of the prisons and this six-foot tall prisoner was shaking the bars and yelling in so many words “come over here, I want to spend some time with you baby”... that was a pretty interesting experience.

Best way to improve productivity?

It needs to be driven through a workforce that is all going towards a common goal, otherwise it’s very tough to have that productivity. For example, at Empired we have a small number of really clear goals that we want to go and achieve. In my view, you have to put in very thorough processes to allow people to contribute towards it. And then that’s when you can leverage technology, using it to automate processes, measure things and allow productivity.

Best holiday destination?

Europe. To have so many options, so close, with vastly different cultures, all within 45 minutes on a plane, well, you can’t beat it. And I think it has something for everyone. In Australia, I just love going down south. I’m a surfer so I love to go down there and get some waves.

Do you use social media?

On and off, yes. I go through periods where I use it a fair bit and then forget about it for a month. It’s a bit of fun socially, but I see it becoming far more prevalent in enterprise. At Empired, we implement social media solutions for other businesses, mainly around social collaboration. Social media provides online forums for staff to talk about projects that they’re working on. Things like Yammer, we’re a partner with them. In major corporations social media can help break down barriers and improve general collaboration and communication. Some of these businesses are so large that they can have two divisions doing the same thing and they don’t know it.

Last book you read?

The CEO, Chairman and the Board by Trevor Eastwood. It was interesting to understand how he got where he did and his ideas around financial management.

What do you do in your spare time?

The spare time I have I spend with my family. I have two young kids, Rose who just turned three, in fact her birthday party is today. And Tommy, who turned one a little while ago. But I surf as much as I can. I live in Trigg and get down south as much as I can, I’ve been surfing my whole life and it’s a passion of mine.
Best travel tip? Travel light. For years I used to pack extra stuff I didn’t really need... and let’s be honest, waiting for luggage is a pain in the arse. Travel casual as well, the whole suit and tie on the plane is hard work.

What needs to be done to make Perth more tech-aware?

I reckon Perth is actually a pretty tech-aware community. There have been a lot of backdoor listings of tech into resources shells this year, what that actually means is arguable. But at least there’s an awareness in the equity markets. Maybe government could do more, I don’t see them being very active in the venture capital space at all and start-ups don’t seem to get too much help.