Ian Thatcher

“From the outset, Ian engaged the IT team in a manner which drew respect. Approachable, knowledgeable and pragmatic, it was a pleasure to work with Ian. Ian is a capable executive who will add value to any organisation and I would recommend him without hesitation.”

“During Ian's time at Kmart I worked alongside him as both a peer and a direct report. As a peer he was always willing to listen and share his experiences, and as a manager he was a supportive and considerate leader. Ian's collaborative approach, attention to detail and clear communication style was seen in his management of a number of large change management projects. He has a calmness about him that means no task is ever too big, and his ability to listen and talk through challenges always provides a different perspective. On a personal note, Ian provided me with a great deal of support in achieving on both my professional and personal goals, support I'll always appreciate having had.”

“I had the pleasure of working with Ian whilst he held the role of Kmart National HR Operations Manager. I found him to be a truly gifted and highly professional leader, his ability to support the business strategy, his team and those who worked with him as a peer, made him a truly inspirational leader and one I would proudly work alongside again in the future.”

“I had the pleasure of reporting directly to Ian when he was the Human Resources Manager of QLD and then indirectly when he was promoted to National Human Resources Manager of Kmart. I found Ian to be a passionate leader driven towards producing effective results with efficiency. Ian's open minded approach enables him to identify opportunities and implement innovative strategies that will benefit the business at all levels from local to national. Ian has built solid working relationships with people at all levels of the business both internally and externally which is attributed to his distinguished communication skills and is a driving force in his ability to influence positive outcomes for the business. His leadership style challenges and inspires not only me but many others to strive for personal and professional excellence through continual growth and development. As Simone Henderson mentioned in a previous recommendation "No task is too large or too small for his personal attention and his responses are always considered and accurate", I would also add, timely. I have a great deal of respect for Ian and the impact he has had on my professional development and career.”

“I had the pleasure of reporting directly to Ian during his time with Kmart. Ian is an enthusiastic leader who welcomed me in to the Kmart family and made my transition in to my new role very easy. Ian made a huge impact to the Kmart business with his involvement in a number of projects he was invloved in utilising his excellent leadership, change management & communication skills.”

“I had the pleasure to work with Ian on an Online Succession Planning tool that would gather invaluable information across multiple IT systems and provided detailed reports to help the HR Operations team organise development activities and workforce planning. Ian’s vision resulted in an outstanding achievement as for the first time in history we were able to gain visibility of all talent across 2 countries, 6 states and 190 Stores. It was pleasant and easy to work with Ian. He communicates his ideas cleary and follows tasks through to completion. He is hard working and has outstanding leadership abilities. At the end of our project Ian was thoughtful and rewarded me with an expensive headphone as he noticed that mine was broken during our meetings at my desk. He also made sure my achievements were recognized by my superiors and the General Manager of IT and HR. Ian has my highest recommendation without reservation.”

“Ian was a great presenter at my conference, The National Recruitment and Retention Summit 2010. It was such a pleasure to work with Ian. he was so helpful throughout the whole planning of the event and during the two days. Ian is a very engaging speaker and got great feedback from the attendees. It would be an honour to have Ian speak at any of my other events.”

“Ian and I have been working together as part of the National Kmart Disability program for approx 12 months now and during that time, he has displayed an extremely supportive and professional manner across all areas. Ian’s awareness of HR and the intricacies of his extended management team, their stores and their people is an absolute credit to him. Almost daily, we are reminded just how highly he is regarded by his peers. Ian’s business style is engaging and positive, as is his passion for people of all walks of life. No task is too large or too small for his personal attention and his responses are always considered and accurate. It is a pleasure to work with Ian and his team and his contribution towards the past and future success of this ongoing project is pivotal.”

“Ian & I crossed paths at MGSM where I was fortunate enough to work with him as part of a successful syndicate group. Ian demonstrated excellent work ethic & organisational skills; he was a key member when it came to planning, tracking progress and ensuring that the team delivered on time and met expectations. Ian communication & relationship management skills contributed to ensuring that a diverse group of people delivered succesful outcomes”

“I often reflect on the leadership Ian displayed in our group project sessions and use it as a model for my own actions. He was influencial, friendly, diplomatic and focused on outcomes which helped the group work together effectively to deliver and earn a top grade.”

“Ian is a dynamic, inspiring and talented HR professional whom I have had the pleasure of working with during my time with Pumpkin Patch. An astute HR professional, Ian often sought out new ways to improve and streamline operations, enhance the business, and grow sales through developing and training people. His insight into how to coach individuals and teams to achieve high levels of performance was exceptional. He was great at recognising the value of a new idea or approach and would encourage his team and others around him to proactively seek out better ways of doing things. One of Ian’s core strengths was his ability to see a solution in any issue that presented itself. He had an inate ability to look at a problem, no matter how complex, and find a way to get through it with positive results. When asked for advice he brought reason, rational logic and objectivity to all discussions. As the National HR Manager for Pumpkin Patch he would create strategies which impacted the business at both a local, national and international level. He was instrumental in developing policies and procedures, creating certified agreements, leading conferences and meetings, growing the profile of the brand and working with external stakeholders on HR and business matters. Dynamic, motivating and highly respected by all, Ian was a champion of people and a champion of business!”

“I worked with Ian as a fellow student at Macquarie University. I found him to be consistently pleasant, tackling all assignments with dedication and a smile. Besides being a joy to work with, Ian is a take-charge person who is able to present creative ideas and communicate the benefits. He successfully developed a comprehensive financial valuation framework for the project team that was a crucial part of our group work. Ian was also extraordinarily helpful in other areas and assumed a leadership role in meetings, inspiring and motivating team members. I would like to recommend Ian as he can make a real difference and can add great value in anything he does.”

“Ian made working remotely easy with his engaging style, willingness to listen and consistent communication. His instinctive sense of the relationship between every day activity and profitability made a considerable contribution to our project. I'd like to think I'll be working with Ian Thatcher again in the future.”

“Ian's professionalism as a commercially pragmatic HR leader delivered both strategic and operational advice, guidance and direction across our fragmented workplace. The hallmark of Ian's leadership was his ability to provide detailed evaluations across an array of business operations.”

“I worked closely with Ian on syndicate group work during our MBA studies at the Macquarie Graduate School of Management. I found Ian to be highly motivated and organised, with a strong drive to achieve quality results under challenging timelines. From a functional perspective, Ian demonstrated strong insights and sharp business acumen in the area of business leadership styles and organisational culture – he brought deep functional experience in all areas of human resource management for which he was highly regarded by the team.”

“I worked with Ian during my time at Pumpkin Patch. Through the many dealings I had with Ian it was obvious Ian maintained a professional approach to work, gaining much respect from the people he dealt with and in doing so easily building great working relationships with the people around him. Ian was clearly focussed on growing the business and quite obviously worked hard at this. Through many conversations with Ian during our time at Pumpkin Patch and beyond, I have found that Ian also has a good knowledge of general business and has helped me develop my business. I wish Ian great success in his career. Kind Regards Shane Watkin Director PIDPLATES and The Elite Labelling Company.”

“Ian was great to have as a colleague. We worked together on a number of projects which Ian lead, including integrating Pumpkin Patch's online recruitment advertising into the Pumpkin Patch Corporate Relations website. Ian was able to stitch the project together across departments and countries, and make it happen. I enjoyed watching him manage the difficult task of inculcating anti discrimination best practice into retail people from the broadest possible range of nationalities and backgrounds at the Pumpkin Patch global conference Diversity and Discrimination Workshop. Ian is all class, combining sensitivity, deep insight into people and business acumen.”

“I had great pleasure to work at Pumpkin Patch for a number of years with Ian whilst in his position of HR Manager Australia. I always found Ian superb to work with and admired his attention to detail. He was very well liked and respected and related with ease to staff from all areas of the business. Displaying strong communication skills he has the gift of communicating clearly at all levels. I am pleased to recommend him.”

“I am happy to recommend Ian. I studied with Ian at MGSM where Ian was a core member of our Syndicate team. Ian displayed strong leadersip skills in maintaining the teams focus and momentum. Ian was a solid contributor to the planning and content of the projects, under tight deadlines. I was very pleased with the successful results produced by the team, with Ian being a stand out team member.”

“I had the pleasure of working alongside Ian for a number of years at Pumpkin Patch. Ian gained the respect and admiration from his peers due to his professionalism, hard work and dedication to the role. Ian is able to bring cross -functional teams together, identify challenges, and help create team success without alienating internal stakeholders. He is definitely a self-starter who will take on any task, and is always constantly looking for ways to improve. Ian has a wonderful disposition, and always has a smile and a genuine interest in others. I have definitely missed working with such a high caliber professional and I would have no hesitation in recommending him to any future employer.”

“Ian Thatcher and I have maintained a strong personal and professional relationship over the years since we studied Sports Marketing and Management together at Southern Cross University. Ian’s approach to business operations; both on the large and small scale, demonstrate a keen understanding of the necessary business philosophies to be a successful manager and business owner. He has strong communication skills with all levels of an organization which allow him to effectively build strong relationships with his peers.”

“I am pleased to recommend Ian in my capacity as a fellow former MBA student at the MGSM. During my studies I had the opportunity to work with many different types of managers with varying degrees of competence. Ian stood out for his attributes of collaboration, problem solving and willingness to commit to a outcome of excellence. I have no doubt these attributes Ian demonstrates in his day-to-day management repsonsibilities, and will continue to do so in any future role. I am happy to be contacted through LinkedIn to support my recomnmendation if necessary. Richard Breden”

“Ian was a terrific resource for advice and direction when required. He was always available for open and closed door discussions and provided an impartial business perspective for the topic at hand. I always felt confindent that the advice given or direction suggested would serve me well and set me up for success.”

“Ian was a great classmate during my MBA. He was very diligent in preparing for lectures, gave his best efforts for our syndicate assignments, and could be relied on to deliver on time. Ian was also very easy to work with, and demonstrated the necessary leadership to enable us to get an otherwise difficult syndicate group to perform.”

“Ian and I studied at MGSM together throughout 2006 / 2007. I found him to be the most reliable and conscientous of class mates during a number of projects we worked on together. Outside MGSM, Ian has offered his helping hand with other ventures which I have been grateful for. All in all, Ian is a quality individual that excels at any challenge put in front of him.”

“Whilst studying toward an MBA with Ian I found him to be a supportive peer, a genuine team player and an astute business manager. Ian has a strong understanding of financial management and the importance of financial and operational performance. Ian always contributed to group work, was prepared to put in the hard yards and was uncompromising in his pursuit of excellence. Ian is a driven and focussed professional who demonstrated an outstanding knowledge of HRM disciplines and recognised the importance of staff engagement and the flow on benefits in terms of retention, absenteeism and performance, experience that strengthened our group projects. I enjoyed working with Ian and continue to value his professional experience and friendship.”

“In the role of HR Manager of Pumpkin Patch Australia Ian earned the respect of his coworkers. His passion for developing people to reach their full potential was a natural attribute. Ian has a high level of professionalism in all interactions and is entirely trustworthy. Ian was solution oriented in facing problems, took initiative and was always willing to listen. In the ever changing world of retail Ian was always willing to extend himself to complete his workload. Personally I have gained professional development from Ian as a coach and mentor. I highly recommend Ian. If you’d like any additional information please call. Sincerely, Peter Unka”

“I worked with Ian for just over a year at AMF and found him to be a "can do" person whose role was to develop modern HR policies and training modules for a very mature business that employeed over 1000 staff spread across more than 40 bowling centres in Australia . I found Ian to be very motivated and thoroughly professional in all aspects of his role and I enjoyed my time working with him. Since leaving AMF I understand Ian has completed his masters, had a few children and move to sunny Queensland. I recommend Ian to any employer who is looking for a person to monitor,manage and develop any company's most valuable resource, their employees.”

“I worked directly with Ian for over 3 years while he was the Human Resources Manager of Australia for Pumpkin Patch. During the time that I worked with Ian he encouraged a working environment that enabled our team to achieve its goals and he challenged me to be the best I can be. Ian earned himself the title of "The Voice of Reason" and he was just that, not just for me but for every member of the Retail Management team. Ian was a role model in the Retail Management Team and is someone you can always rely on and is someone that I will always look up to. Ian did not only have an amazing understanding of Human Resources but he had a vast understanding of business in general. He was involved in our business from a strategic point of view offering experience in marketing, store operations and market position. His input was valid, informed and well respected.”

“Ian is the "voice of reason". During his time at the "Patch" he got on with what he had to do. Was an an exceptional HR Manager. He was respected with integrity & always gave support to the 1500+ staff members predominately female . A mean feat for any HR Manager let alone a male. Trish Watt”

“Ian and I collaborated at MGSM as part of our MBA studies in a syndicate group. Ian was impressive for his intellect, positivity, focus and sense of humour. I wish him the best for the future and thank him for his hard work.”