Episode #225 of The High Flyers Podcast features Andrew Penn, Recent CEO of Telstra (2015–2022) and Group CEO of AXA Asia Pacific. Today, he chairs Visit Victoria, sits on the Coles board, and advises Government on cybersecurity and national security.

In this conversation, Andy reflects on dropping out of high school and working two jobs before studying nights and weekends to complete his MBA, moving to Australia with AXA and learning empathy through global cultures, leading Telstra’s $30B transformation and 5G rollout, and building calm leadership under public scrutiny while balancing family life. He shares crucible moments, lessons from Kafka, his rituals for performance reviews and carrying bad news, and life today with art, painting, Spanish lessons and a home in Mexico.

+++

To support this podcast, check out our some of our sponsors & get discounts:

→ $1,000 off Vanta: Your compliance superpower — vanta.com/high

→ Get up to 6 months of Notion’s Business plan for free with Notion AI included (worth $12K): Go to - https://ntn.so/highflyers & click “Apply Now”

If you're keen to discuss sponsorship and partnering with us or recommend future guests, email us at contact@curiositycentre.com today!

Join our stable of commercial partners including the Australian Government, Google, KPMG, University of Melbourne and more.

***

CLICK HERE to read show notes from this conversation. Please enjoy!

***

Follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter

Get in touch with our Founder and Host, Vidit Agarwal directly here

Contact us via our website to discuss sponsorship opportunities, recommend future guests or share feedback, we love hearing how to improve!

Thank you for rating / reviewing this podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, it helps others find us and convince guests to come on the show!

***

The High Flyers Podcast is described as a "meticulously researched biography" that uncovers the untold stories of remarkable people and companies -- redefining the "high flyer". Launched in 2020, we have ranked in the global top ten podcasts for past two years, with listeners in 27 countries and over 200 episodes released. Excerpts of the podcast have been featured in Forbes, AFR, Daily Telegraph, and showcased at SXSW.

200+ guests have joined host, Vidit Agarwal on the show from 15+ countries, including The CEO's of multi-billion dollar companies like Telstra, Bunnings, Australia Post, Woolworths, Airwallex, Eucalyptus, Tennis Australia etc; Board Members at Macquarie Bank, ANZ, Reserve Bank etc; Former Prime Minister of Australia; Globally renowned Tech CEO's from Google, Microsoft, Xero etc, Successful Venture Capital and Family Office Investors; CIO's at the world's biggest superannuation funds; Leading Entertainers; Olympic Gold Medal Winning Athletes and interesting minds you wouldn't have heard of that are changing the world.

Our parent company, Curiosity Centre is your on-demand intelligence hub for knowledge, connections and growth to achieve your potential, everyday. Join 200,000+ Investors, Founders, Functional Leaders, CEOs and Emerging Leaders. Learn with the world's best and be 1% better everyday at https://curiositycentre.com

***

#225 Andrew Penn: The Untold Story of Telstra’s CEO — High School Dropout, Art, Scorecards and Calm Leadership

The High Flyers Podcast with Vidit Agarwal

#225 Andrew Penn: The Untold Story of Telstra’s CEO — High School Dropout, Art, Scorecards and Calm Leadership