Peter Smedley
Encyclopedia
Peter Smedley is an Australia
n businessman and Chairman of Onesteel Limited
and Spotless Group Limited.
in Australia and around the world, gaining experience in energy and resource industries. He held a number of senior positions including Executive Director of Downstream Oil and Chemicals from 1990 to 1992 and Executive Director of Coal and Metals for Shell Australia
Limited from 1986 to 1990 and Area Co-ordinator Central America, Caribbean and South America for Shell International from 1982 to 1986.
From 1992 to 2000 he was Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Colonial Group Limited. Colonial was demutualised and listed on the ASX
under his leadership. Colonial grew quickly in this period and was ultimately acquired by CBA
in 2000.
From 2000 to 2002 he was Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Mayne Group Limited. Originally a transport business, Mayne diversified into health, pharmaceuticals and other industries. While at Mayne, and against long-standing practice in Australian hospitals, Smedley undertook a ruthless campaign of cost cutting which included the centralisation of the group's hospital management. This resulted in an alienation of the hospitals' primary customers, their specialist doctors, who then referred their patients to other health care providers. The resultant heavy loss of income was a significant factor in Mayne's failure as a hospital provider. Smedley has not had an executive role since this time.
He had a long association with CARE Australia
, establishing its Business Council and serving as its Chairman. He subsequently joined the Care Australia Board in 2000 and retired as its Chairman in November 2009.
Smedley also served as a Director with the Australian Mining Industry Council, the Australian Mining Industrial Research Association, Lloyds Register of Shipping, the Alumina Development Council, the Life Insurance Federation of Australia, and the Australian Banker's Association. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors
.
where he completed his secondary education at the Christian Brothers
' Aquinas College
.
He studied for a Bachelor of Commerce at Western Australia University, and completed an MBA at Melbourne University.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n businessman and Chairman of Onesteel Limited
OneSteel
OneSteel is an Australian-based mining, ore processing and steel manufacturing company specialising in steel-long products for the construction, mining, transport and agricultural industries...
and Spotless Group Limited.
Overview
Smedley spent much of his early career in the resources industry. He spent over 29 years working for ShellShell Oil Company
Shell Oil Company is the United States-based subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, a multinational oil company of Anglo Dutch origins, which is amongst the largest oil companies in the world. Approximately 22,000 Shell employees are based in the U.S. The head office in the U.S. is in Houston, Texas...
in Australia and around the world, gaining experience in energy and resource industries. He held a number of senior positions including Executive Director of Downstream Oil and Chemicals from 1990 to 1992 and Executive Director of Coal and Metals for Shell Australia
Shell Australia
In Australia, Royal Dutch Shell conducts a large range of activities. These include exploration for, and the production and commercialization of, oil and natural gas, the operation of two refineries, 19 terminals and 33 depots for the manufacture and distribution of oil products; and the marketing...
Limited from 1986 to 1990 and Area Co-ordinator Central America, Caribbean and South America for Shell International from 1982 to 1986.
From 1992 to 2000 he was Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Colonial Group Limited. Colonial was demutualised and listed on the ASX
Australian Securities Exchange
The Australian Securities Exchange was created by the merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange in July 2006. It is the primary stock exchange group in Australia....
under his leadership. Colonial grew quickly in this period and was ultimately acquired by CBA
Commonwealth Bank of Australia
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia is a multinational bank with businesses across New Zealand, Fiji, Asia, USA and the United Kingdom. Commonwealth Bank provides a variety of financial services including retail, business and institutional banking, funds management, superannuation, insurance,...
in 2000.
From 2000 to 2002 he was Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Mayne Group Limited. Originally a transport business, Mayne diversified into health, pharmaceuticals and other industries. While at Mayne, and against long-standing practice in Australian hospitals, Smedley undertook a ruthless campaign of cost cutting which included the centralisation of the group's hospital management. This resulted in an alienation of the hospitals' primary customers, their specialist doctors, who then referred their patients to other health care providers. The resultant heavy loss of income was a significant factor in Mayne's failure as a hospital provider. Smedley has not had an executive role since this time.
He had a long association with CARE Australia
CARE Australia
CARE Australia is an Australian, not-for-profit, secular humanitarian aid agency assisting in disaster relief efforts and addressing the causes of global poverty in developing countries...
, establishing its Business Council and serving as its Chairman. He subsequently joined the Care Australia Board in 2000 and retired as its Chairman in November 2009.
Smedley also served as a Director with the Australian Mining Industry Council, the Australian Mining Industrial Research Association, Lloyds Register of Shipping, the Alumina Development Council, the Life Insurance Federation of Australia, and the Australian Banker's Association. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors
Australian Institute of Company Directors
The Australian Institute of Company Directors is Australia's leading membership body for directors in Australia and the leading Australian not-for-profit corporate governance organisation....
.
Early years
Smedley was born on 2 January 1943 in Perth, Western AustraliaPerth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
where he completed his secondary education at the Christian Brothers
Christian Brothers
Christian Brothers may refer to:* Congregation of Christian Brothers, a Catholic lay order founded at Waterford, Ireland in 1802 by the Blessed Edmund Ignatius Rice...
' Aquinas College
Aquinas College, Perth
Aquinas College is a Catholic independent, day and boarding school for boys, located in Salter Point, Western Australia. Its sister school is Santa Maria Ladies College located in Attadale...
.
He studied for a Bachelor of Commerce at Western Australia University, and completed an MBA at Melbourne University.
Directorships
- Director and Chairman of Onesteel, appointed October 2000
- Chairman of Spotless Group Limited, appointed Director 2006
- Chairman of the Colonial Foundation
- Chairman of Orygen Youth Mental Health Research
- Director of The Haven Foundation
- Director of The Australian Ballet
- Chairman State Bank of New South WalesState Bank of New South WalesThe State Bank of New South Wales was a bank that was owned by the Government of New South Wales. It existed from 1933 until 2000, when it was taken over by the Commonwealth Bank....
- Deputy Chairman of Newcrest MiningNewcrest MiningNewcrest Mining Limited engages in the exploration, development, mining and sale of gold and gold-copper concentrate. Newcrest is an Australian based Company which initially incorporated in Victoria in 1980. Today it has become Australia’s leading gold mining company...
Limited - Director Austen & Butta Limited
- Director Australian Mining Industry Council
- Director Australian Mining Industrial Research Association
- Director Lloyds Register of Shipping
- Director Alumina Development Council
- Director Life Insurance Federation of Australia
- Director Australian Bankers Association
Community, Charity and the Arts
- Director The Australian Ballet
- Director The Haven Foundation
- Director Orygen Youth Health Research Centre
- Former Chairman CARE Australia
- Former Director CARE International
- Business Council of the National Gallery of VictoriaNational Gallery of VictoriaThe National Gallery of Victoria is an art gallery and museum in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest and the largest public art gallery in Australia. Since December 2003, NGV has operated across two sites...
- President's Council of the Art Gallery of New South WalesArt Gallery of New South WalesThe Art Gallery of New South Wales , located in The Domain in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, was established in 1897 and is the most important public gallery in Sydney and the fourth largest in Australia...
Other positions
- Advisory Council of CARE Australia
- Former Councillor for the Business Council of AustraliaBusiness Council of AustraliaThe Business Council of Australia represents the chief executives of approximately 100 large Australian corporations. It was formed in 1983 by the merger of the Business Roundtable - a spin-off of the Committee for Economic Development of Australia - and the Australian Industry Development...
- Former Director Business/Higher Education Roundtable
- Former Director Christian Brothers Foundation for Charitable Works