2021 New Years Honorary Degrees List

One of the joys of leading a dynamic team of entrepreneurially-minded faculty members at The MBA School Of MBA Credentials, is to be able to strap onto their enthusiasm and drive when new ideas surface.

One such concept has been the conferring of honorary degrees upon notable people in our community, worthy of the mantel of holding a degree from the home of A Lunchtime MBA.

It takes cognitive plasticity to embrace our concept of a deliciously accelerated Masters Degree over a business lunch, but this is the very spirit from which back-of-the-envelope moonshots launch.

With that said, it gives me great pleasure to announce our list of 30 awardees, whittled down from our initial list of 103 during quite passionate debate held in camera inside the Treasury 1860 wine cellar, which is on the ground floor of our campus building.

We hope to see these newest members of our alumni, along with friends, family members, and associates, at our Adelaide Fringe season of A Lunchtime MBA being held each weekday during the 2021 Fringe.

The 2021 New Years Honorary Degrees List

Here is our list of Honorary MBA Degree recipients, listed by name, specialisation, and the rationale behind their selection. Hard copies will be posted to recipients next week.

Mark Aiston, Media Trainer, Broadcaster
MBA (Strategic Life Transparency)
Mark has lived his life under public scrutiny and while others might have shied away from the spotlight during tough times, he has embraced it and brought awareness to many issues including drug addiction and mental health.

Rebecca Baker, Senior Journalist Sunday Mail / Advertiser
MBA (Sunday Narrative Management)
Rebecca has an astute news sense, considered by many to have “old school” sensibilities by managing to uncover interesting stories that might otherwise get rushed past in the time pressure, under-resourced environment of modern newsrooms.

Becky Blake, Piano Chick, Tutor, and star of Chunky Custard
MBA (Strategic Entertainment Management)
Becky is a superb performer who brings warmth, cheek, and cheer, to her public performances. Always keen to push new boundaries, she has crafted a talent for connected everybody in the room and lifting their moods.

Claire Boan, Mayor of Port Adelaide Enfield
MBA (Traditional Role Rejuvenation)
As one of South Australia’s youngest mayors who moved to Port Adelaide because she loved the area, (rather than moving to a location to pursue a political career), Claire has breathed new life and energy into the role of Mayor, who takes her work personally and is likely to inspire other patriotic locals to seek office to further their communities.

John Chapman, SA Small Business Commissioner and former ABC journalist
MBA (Strategic Media Management)
With a long history of roles in the limelight, John has carved out an endearing figure as Small Business Commissioner, drawing upon his background in industry while using his past media connections to great advantage on behalf of small businesses.

Andrew Cosi Costello, Media identity, South Aussie with Cosi
MBA (Strategic Appearance Management)
It seems one can hardly open an envelope in South Australia without Cosi turning up to film it and reveal it to his hordes of followers. Indeed, nobody in SA has mastered the art of “appearing” to the degree that Cosi has. It’s surprising we haven’t seen him on campus yet, but hope to during the Adelaide Fringe season.

Heather Croall, Adelaide Fringe Director and CEO
MBA (Eccentric Talent Management)
At the helm of the Adelaide Fringe, South Australia’s epicentre of unbridled self-expression, it would be easy for a CEO to be outshone. Not so, Heather Croall. Heather not only manages to maintain a vivid presence but also is able to flood the spotlight on others.

Simone Douglas, Publican of Duke Of Brunswick and Serial Business Networker through BNI
MBA (Creative Community Management)
Simone opens doors and sets tables to bring community groups and business people into her establishment so they can meet and find new audiences, while also helping her establishment thrive and provide employment in the challenging hospitality environment.

Brad Eckermann, GM of Eckermann Conveyancers
MBA (Strategic Personality Conveyance)
Conveyancers are thought of by many to be quiet and even “boring” professionals, more at home in detail than in gregarious social engagement. However, Brad not only manages to charm socially, he has found a way to blog creatively about Moiety Titles and dominate google search rankings as a result.

Tim Ginever, Group sales manager Nova & FIVEaa, and Port Adelaide legend
MBA (Time On Career Development)
Many sports people have stellar careers and then fade away to nurse their injured bodies and aching egos but not Tim. He has rebounded with an extended Time On period, building a dynamic career in media and sales, while also being a sought after MC and speaker.

Emma Hack, Diverse Multimedia Artist and Skin Illustrator
MBA (Strategic Vegetation Placement)
Emma’s work has challenged prudish sectors of the community with her Skin Illustration, also known as Body Painting, but she has always managed to maintain the artistic purity of her work through the strategic placement of petals, bush, and other garden accoutrements on her nude models.

Martin Haese, CEO of Business SA
MBA (Post Mayoral Endeavour)
When elected as Lord Mayor of Adelaide, Martin Haese was able to draw upon his business background to advocate for people promoting economic development in the city. Nowadays, in his role at Business SA, he is drawing upon his political background to advocate for businesses on a statewide scale, thus building upon his time in “the robes”.

Hans, International superstar and Sex Symbol
MBA (Strategic International Relations)
When it comes to performing in all corners of the globe, few can hold a glitterball up to the efforts of Hans. This “Berlin Boy Wonder” puts everything into his job and has helped audiences in Europe, the USA, and Australia all come together, while keeping his persona at all times on top.

June Ingham, NCVER, No Frills National Conference
MBA (Strategic Podcast Management)
At the National Centre For Vocational Education Research, June has taken on the unenviable task of producing a podcast about vocational education for an audience of highly educated practitioners and stakeholders who are deeply invested in every nuance of the topic. This brave endeavour is not only continuing, but growing.

Jim Manning, Chair WOW FM
MBA (Strategic Connection Management)
There are few people in the Western suburbs, baseball community, or many other walks of life who have not had doors opened for them or connections made for them by Jim Manning. The entrepreneur, broadcaster, and community advocate-at-large, knows how to judge who to connect to whom and does so with aplomb.

Kelly Noble, Founder of Glam Adelaide
MBA (Social Appearance Management)
Kelly has built her Glam media empire from the ground up by investing bubbles, sweat, and tears, traversing from one opening to another, from one media opportunity to another, and all the while living her life in the glare of social media lights. Despite the business prowess behind the scenes, there is no doubt her management of social appearances has been the catalyst for success.

Alison Oborn, Adelaide Haunted Horizons
MBA (Strategic Spiritual Observation)
Alison has won countless tourism awards for her business, Adelaide Haunted Horizons, and part of her success is her manner in which tours and conducted. She stipulates that rational explanations must always be sought before other-worldly ones when touring dark, spooky locations, thus enthralling believers and skeptics alike.

Ben Owen, Head of Retail Banking, Westpac and BankSA
MBA (Traditional Sector Humanisation)
Ben has returned to South Australia and put down roots, working for Westpac and BankSA in a manner that has put a human face to the banking sector. From rolling sleeves up to work with staff to sleeping in the rain to raise money for the homeless, Ben is an ambassador for banking so it’s only fitting that an Adelaide Fringe show gives due deference to a major sponsor of this community-enriching event.

Richard Pascoe, Adelaide Tech Guy
MBA (Confused User Management)
Richard is heard on radio every day, explaining the latest changes and challenges of dealing with computers and the internet. During callers on talkback radio or to his business number, he has withstood the option of replacing his personal concern for people with a recording that says, ‘have you tried turning it off and on again?’

Wendy Perry, Switch Start Scale
MBA (Multifarious Event Management)
There is not a 5-minute stretch in social media content anywhere in South Australia, Bhutan, and many other places around the world, that doesn’t contain an update from Wendy Perry. Her tireless work in promoting and encouraging entrepreneurs is only matched by her tireless social schedule of in-person appearances.

Kym Purling, International Pianist
MBA (Fastidious Arrangement Management)
Vietnamese-born, Adelaide-raised, international pianist, Kym Purling, makes the difficult look simple whenever he performs because nothing is ever left to chance. Kym not only writes arrangements for his own performance, but for that of all other musicians and singers who share the stage with him. This is the stuff “overnight” success is made of.

Charlie-Helen Robinson, Clinpath PR
MBA (Strategic Podcast Management)
Charlie has a varied background in communication, promotion, and social media marketing, and in her current role of PR for Clinpath Pathology, she has dared to create a podcast in the very specialist and exacting field of pathology. Not only has she harnessed a team able to tackle such detail, she has set her sights on enticing interest from one of the most time poor audiences available, GPs. This is a strategic challenge like few others.

Kari Seeley, CEO of No Strings Attached, PhD Candidate, and Audio Describer
MBA (Multifarious Hat Management)
One only has to note the two varied roles next to Kari’s name to realise there will likely be many other “hats” being worn. And, indeed, there are. Kari has studied double degrees and earned many qualifications, worked in broadcast media (radio and TV), and is an advocate for many community causes. She might be associated with No Strings Attached but she could equally own the title No Flies On Me, for the dynamic pace with which she lives her life.

Andrew Shields, Operations Manager at the Real Estate Institute of South Australia (REISA)
MBA (Strategic Realtor Superintendence)
Real Estate agents are not known for being sedate or mild-mannered, in fact, they are often highly charged and active, which is why Andrew’s role as interim General Manager and Operations Manager of the Real Estate Institute of SA is not to be envied. And yet, he has honoured the title and his record thus far is warmly open to inspection.

Michael Smyth, Australian journalist and broadcaster
MBA (Enduring Profile Management)
When Michael was unceremoniously axed from his award-winning shift at ABC Adelaide in 2015, many thought they’d seen the last of him. They were wrong. After a sabbatical interstate, Michael returned and has since used Twitter as a medium for his sharp wit and keen observations of life in South Australia. It’s like he never left.

Sputnik, Author, Business Strategist, and Creative
MBA (Strategic Provocative Discourse)
Sputnik is his own PR machine, always somewhere between the centre and the outer reaches of public discourse. He seemingly spends 10% of his time crafting insightful and incite-full content on social media and 90% of his time responding to commentary and reflecting on people’s reactions, only to repeat the process with newfound “learnings”. He employs bird photography as his palate cleanser between bouts.

Steve Testar, CEO of Showcase SA
MBA (Strategic Relationship Management)
Steve has stepped confidently into the role of CEO at Showcase SA, hosting events in fine suits and with an eager demeanour. He is also husband to Kelly Noble whose Glam Adelaide enterprise has grown and drawn him into her world. He’s managed this change with charm and poise.

Tim White, President, Law Society SA and partner at Tindal Gask Bently Lawyers
MBA (Strategic Lawyer Superintendence)
If anybody could manage a gaggle of lawyers, it would be a class action lawyer with Royal Australian Air Force experience like Tim. He has a background that has exposed him to rugged, challenging, and varied elements of conflict, and uses that experience to bring focus and drive to Law Society SA leadership.

Anne Wills, Australian TV legend
MBA (Strategic Logie Management)
Anne has won 19 Most Popular State Personality Logies, and one as producer of Clapperboard, and amid her countless earrings, which have their own room at her residence, she also manages to curate her collection of TV Week statues, accounting for the presence of each and every one at any moment of the day.

Stephen Yarwood, Urban Futurist
MBA (Post Mayoral Endeavour)
When Stephen was Lord Mayor of Adelaide he made use of his background in and passion for city planning while wearing the robes of office. Since leaving that role, he has created a following as an Urban Futurist, travelling the world to bring order to streets and cityscapes everywhere.