Terrance Fitzsimmons

Dr Terry Fitzsimmons is an Associate Professor in Leadership with the University of Queensland Business School. He is also a Chartered Accountant with over 35 years of practice. He is the Managing Director of the Australian Gender Equality Council (AGEC), a body whose members currently comprise 24 peak national bodies representing over 400,000 women across industry sectors in Australia. He also sits on the advisory board of Women and Leadership Australia and the board of the Abbey Museum.of Art and Archeology.

His PhD in Leadership examined successful attributes of CEOs and differing pathways to CEO roles for men and women. In June 2015 Dr Fitzsimmons and Professor Callan released ‘Filling the Pool’ a major report into gender inequality in Western Australia and what government, organisations and individuals can do to address the issue. Dr Fitzsimmons makes extensive use of the work of Pierre Bourdieu and his framework for the examination of persistent intergenerational societal disparity. The concepts of field, capital, habitus and symbolic violence feature heavily in the studies into gender inequality conducted to date. In 2019, working with the Alliance of Girls Schools Australasia, Dr Fitzsimmons with Dr Yates and Professor Callan, released the 'Hands Up for Gender Equality' report examining gender stereotypes, confidence, leadership and career preferences for 10,000 students in the highest matriculating schools in Queensland.

In 2020, in partnership with the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, Dr Fitzsimmons with Dr Yates and Professor Callan, released the 'Employer of Choice for Gender Equality' report detailing leading practices for driving workplace gender equality based upon detailed examination of 5 years longitudinal data provided by the 120 WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality citation holders. The report is written as a best practice guide for employers who wish to improve the retention and progression of women in their workplace.

In 2021, in partnership with the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Australian Gender Equality Council, Dr Fitzsimmons with Dr Yates and Professor Callan, released 'Towards Board Gender Parity: Lessons form the past: Directions for the future.' The report explores how, despite significant gender inequality in Australian workplaces, Australia has become one of only three countries in the world to reach 30%+ women on its top 200 listed public company boards.

Dr Fitzsimmons has worked with many of Australia’s largest firms on their diversity programs and speaks regularly in Australia and overseas in the area of gender equality and inclusion. He has served as national and state presidents of not for profit bodies as well as having been a being a director on boards of Listed Public Companies in Australia and overseas.

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