Bill Richards
HR – Manager (Asia Pacific),
Bio-Rad Laboratories Pty. Ltd.

Bill is a business professional with over 30 years of broad based business, consulting and HR experience in a variety of industries including manufacturing, FMCG, automotive, public utilities, defence sector, transport and logistics, engineering and construction and biotechnology

Following a successful twenty year military career where he served in Vietnam, Kashmir (India and Pakistan), Singapore and Malaysia, Bill joined Kellogg (Aust) Pty Ltd as the Training and Development Manager. Other appointments at Kellogg included Employee Relations Manager, Organisational Development Manager and finally Human Resources Director. Significant achievements during this time include the design, development and successful implementation of the Kellogg Leadership in Management and Team Building Courses, as well as the Asia Competitive Strategic Plan, aimed at getting the manufacturing facility and it’s people focused on delivering quality products to Asia. Significant changes occurred in the relation between the unions, employees and management to the extent that Australia went from last position out of fifteen manufacturing plants throughout the world, to second place. This was a fantastic achievement for both managers and employees.

After eight years at Kellogg and a six month post-merger integration contracting role, Bill joined Finemore Holdings Ltd, a transport and Logistics organisation based in Wagga Wagga, a city some five hours south west of Sydney, as General Manager Human Resources. In terms of change management, this was one of the toughest assignments he has had. Key Change programs included Leadership Development, Team Building with the single biggest achievement of reducing the Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) from 65+ (Industry Average 20) to the Industry Best Practice of 15. Communication, education and awareness were the key factors. Also key was the implementation of the Performance Management System.

Following his departure from Finemores, Bill started his own management consultancy business, which he still has. The areas of focus for his business are:

  • Strategic Business Planning, Development and Implementation
  • Sales and Marketing Strategies
  • Performance Measurement and Management (the Balanced Scorecard)
  • Change Management
  • Post-Merger Integration (M&As)
  • Strategic Human Resource Management incl:
    • Leadership, Leadership Assessment, and Team Building
    • Organisational Development and Effectiveness
    • Workforce Planning and Development
    • Change Management
    • Human Capital Development
    • Employee/Industrial Relations
    • Remuneration Management
    • Recruitment and Selection
    • OH&S Planning and Improvement

He has consulted to a number of well know Australian companies including Kellogg (Aust) Pty Ltd, Ford Australia, Berri Ltd (Post merger integration coordinator for merger with National Foods Juices), Australian Water Technologies, University of New South Wales, Kendall Airlines, Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance (Promina), among others.

In August 2000, he was asked to join Svedala Australia Pty Ltd. An engineering and construction company which manufactured crushers, screens and grinding mills for the mining and mineral processing industry. Achievements included creating an effective monthly business review process using the Balanced Scorecard. This resulted in the best twelve months, in terms of sales and profit, the company had seen. Other achievements include being a member of the global post merger integration team to manage the merger of the two (Svedala and Metso Minerals) organisations while maintaining continuity of the business and retaining key staff.

After Metso Minerals, Bill joined Bio-Rad Laboratories Pty Ltd as the Asia Pacific Human Resources Manager, which he currently holds. This was a new role whereby the HR function had to be not only built, but also sold to the thirteen Country Managers throughout Asia Pacific. The challenge of change was the order of the day. Achievements include the successful implementation of a Performance Management Program across the region, the introduction of salesforce, sales management, distributor management and leadership training, along with a successful nine month period as acting Country Manager of Australia/New Zealand. Team building and strategic business planning programs have been successfully implemented. The change process continues in a very full and fulfilling role.

Bill has a Executive Masters in Business Administration from Australian Graduate School of Management of the University of NSW.

Bill is also a Fellow of the Australian Human Resource Institute and an Associate Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management

Bill has been married to his wife Mary for 33 years and has two children, Benjamin (31) and Rebecca (30). He enjoys sport, but particularly, playing golf along with a glass of good red wine.