Kelly Ryan

Growing up in Strathmerton, country Victoria, a young Kelly Ryan was incredibly inspired and captivated by the cleverness of Target advertisements she saw on television, so much so that she went on to study marketing at RMIT after completing her secondary schooling in the city at boarding school.

Kelly’s working career started in radio where she drove cars and did the street giveaways, a rite of passage for anyone first entering the radio industry. This only lasted 6 weeks before she was offered a full-time role and then went on to be part of the foundation team for Nova 100. Stints with Foxtel and Arena TV in Sydney followed; however, they didn’t quell an underlying interest Kelly had to work in sport.

A love of sport borne from growing up in a small country town where your whole life and community revolves around the weekday and weekend trainings and games. Country sports clubs are the essence of community and a magnet that brings everyone together and it was this sense of togetherness that became ingrained in Kelly and built a desire to work in that space in a professional setting.

Having identified she wanted to work for the AFL, persistence was the key, with Kelly leaving countless phone messages for the HR Manager at the Western Bulldogs before she was finally granted a meeting and subsequently offered a role in the events, marketing, and sponsorship space.

A 16-year career in the Australian sporting industry followed, most recently as CEO of Netball Australia where she transformed the sport commercially and navigated a number of complex issues. Prior to that Kelly worked in the AFL in various roles, including as a foundation Executive member of the Gold Coast Suns, an executive member of the Western Bulldogs during the 2016 Premiership triumph and the formation of the club’s AFLW team, and as part of the AFL team overseeing the recent redevelopment of Marvel Stadium.

Never one to seek out leadership, Kelly believes it follows you to an extent, however nothing has ever landed in her lap, every opportunity has been a result of her persistence and diligence to reach set goals and take calculated risks. Identifying 12 years ago that she wanted to be a CEO, Kelly systematically mapped out what would be needed to achieve that and set about taking on roles and honing the skills and experience she needed to build a career that progressed towards fulfilling that goal. She derives great job and personal satisfaction in building and driving the culture of an organisation and its people and seeing that flow through to all parts of the business.

Kelly believes having resilience is a key to being a woman in both business and sport, as is staying true to your values. She found it important to understand there is a difference between pleasing everybody and sticking to your own values and integrity in decision making. Through her experiences she also understands the importance of identifying and understanding your value within, and purpose of, your work and how that aligns to an organisation.

Leadership isn't just about management; it's about inspiring others to reach their full potential. Kelly’s keynote presentations instill a sense of purpose, motivating your leaders to cultivate a culture of excellence, collaboration, and innovation all backed by real life experiences.