Dean’s Leaders Forum: CEO of Tennis Australia Craig Tiley
Navigating Leadership, Strategy, and Innovation in Global Sports
Join us for an exclusive Dean’s Leaders Forum featuring Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley, who will share his insights into leadership, innovation, and navigating the complexities of global sports management.
Mr Tiley has been instrumental in shaping the Australian Open into one of the world's premier sporting events, driving strategic growth, innovation, and resilience in an evolving landscape. In this session, he will discuss:
- Leading through Complexity: Managing large-scale global events and responding to industry disruptions.
- Innovation and Strategy: How Tennis Australia stays ahead through cutting-edge technology, fan engagement, and operational excellence.
- Building High-Performance Teams: Lessons in leadership, talent development, and stakeholder management.
Craig Tiley, CEO of Tennis Australia and Director, Australian Open
Mr Tiley is recognised as one of Australia’s most innovative and forward-thinking chief executives. His charismatic and passionate nature, and his business acumen, have leveraged him to the forefront of sports administration and made him the leader behind Australia’s largest and most successful international sporting event.
He has been the driving force behind the growth of the Australian Open (AO) tournament into a truly global brand and one of the biggest sporting events in the world. Mr Tiley’s incredible relationship with the players has long been a key to the Australian Open’s success, from when he was appointed Tournament Director for his very first AO event in 2006. He was later appointed CEO of Tennis Australia in 2013.
In that time, he has led unprecedented growth in the event’s global awareness and audience, revenue, player compensation, facilities and on-site activities for fans.
As a result, the AO has continually broken attendance records with the 2025 event attracting more than 1.2 million people across three weeks. The 2024 event delivered record economic benefits to Victoria, injecting $533.2 million into the state’s economy – cementing its position as the largest economic generator in sport in Australia with a global audience of more than 2.1 billion viewers.
As Tennis Australia CEO, Mr Tiley has led the introduction of successful initiatives to shift the historical decline in tennis participation including the rollout of digital platforms, which has increased access to courts by over 350%. He has led the diversification of Tennis Australia with the creation of a global production unit, development of music and food partnerships, the launch of a venture capital fund and a successful incubator partnership.
He also serves as the Chair of the Coalition of Major Professional and Participation Sports (COMPPS) in Australia and is on the Board of Safety Culture and Rising (Melbourne’s International Arts Festival).
Registrations
Kindy note the event date has changed from Thursday 22 May 2025 to the new date of Tuesday 10 June 2025
Registrations close Monday 2 June 2025.
Moderator
Professor Alex Christou, Director, Corporate Education & Professor of Practice, Monash Business School, Monash University
An experienced and intrapreneurial leader with a 20-year career in Business Schools, Prof Christou has dedicated his career in supporting individuals and organisations to realise their full potential.
In addition to leading the Executive and Corporate Education arm at Monash Business School, he is a Program Director for our corporate custom programs and a trainer and facilitator of our corporate wellbeing and human-centric workplace solutions that drive high performance cultures internationally.
Prof Christou is an active supporter of diversity and inclusion. His efforts include adding his voice to supporting talented women and underprivileged international students to obtain ongoing world class education opportunities by reducing the financial barriers that prevent them from further studies.
He is a board member of the Hellenic Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has served on the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia – Women in Leadership Committee and has also served as a committee member for the International University Consortium for Executive Education (UNICON)
He holds a Master in Marketing from Monash University, and is a Certified Practicing Marketer and Fellow of the Australian Marketing Institute.
Host
Professor Richard Hall, Senior Director, Monash Global Leadership Development Program (Secondment), Monash Business School
Prof Hall has extensive experience in the design and delivery of leadership development programs for managers, professionals and senior leaders. He has published widely in the areas of management and organisation studies, including leadership, technology, organisational change, transformation and development and the future of work. He has designed, managed and delivered MBA programs at a number of universities and currently teaches Executive Leadership Mindsets in the Global Executive MBA at Monash University. He has deep experience working with major corporations, and organisations in the business, government, community and not-for-profit sectors.
Prof Hall has held previous appointments at the Universities of Queensland, Melbourne and Sydney. He has been visiting professor at the University of Strathclyde, Imperial College London, and Harvard University.
Event Details
- Date:
- 10 June 2025 at 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm
- Venue:
- RACV City Club, 501 Bourke Street, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000
- Categories:
- Alumni; General
Description
Navigating Leadership, Strategy, and Innovation in Global Sports
Join us for an exclusive Dean’s Leaders Forum featuring Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley, who will share his insights into leadership, innovation, and navigating the complexities of global sports management.
Mr Tiley has been instrumental in shaping the Australian Open into one of the world's premier sporting events, driving strategic growth, innovation, and resilience in an evolving landscape. In this session, he will discuss:
- Leading through Complexity: Managing large-scale global events and responding to industry disruptions.
- Innovation and Strategy: How Tennis Australia stays ahead through cutting-edge technology, fan engagement, and operational excellence.
- Building High-Performance Teams: Lessons in leadership, talent development, and stakeholder management.
Craig Tiley, CEO of Tennis Australia and Director, Australian Open
Mr Tiley is recognised as one of Australia’s most innovative and forward-thinking chief executives. His charismatic and passionate nature, and his business acumen, have leveraged him to the forefront of sports administration and made him the leader behind Australia’s largest and most successful international sporting event.
He has been the driving force behind the growth of the Australian Open (AO) tournament into a truly global brand and one of the biggest sporting events in the world. Mr Tiley’s incredible relationship with the players has long been a key to the Australian Open’s success, from when he was appointed Tournament Director for his very first AO event in 2006. He was later appointed CEO of Tennis Australia in 2013.
In that time, he has led unprecedented growth in the event’s global awareness and audience, revenue, player compensation, facilities and on-site activities for fans.
As a result, the AO has continually broken attendance records with the 2025 event attracting more than 1.2 million people across three weeks. The 2024 event delivered record economic benefits to Victoria, injecting $533.2 million into the state’s economy – cementing its position as the largest economic generator in sport in Australia with a global audience of more than 2.1 billion viewers.
As Tennis Australia CEO, Mr Tiley has led the introduction of successful initiatives to shift the historical decline in tennis participation including the rollout of digital platforms, which has increased access to courts by over 350%. He has led the diversification of Tennis Australia with the creation of a global production unit, development of music and food partnerships, the launch of a venture capital fund and a successful incubator partnership.
He also serves as the Chair of the Coalition of Major Professional and Participation Sports (COMPPS) in Australia and is on the Board of Safety Culture and Rising (Melbourne’s International Arts Festival).
Registrations
Kindy note the event date has changed from Thursday 22 May 2025 to the new date of Tuesday 10 June 2025
Registrations close Monday 2 June 2025.
Moderator
Professor Alex Christou, Director, Corporate Education & Professor of Practice, Monash Business School, Monash University
An experienced and intrapreneurial leader with a 20-year career in Business Schools, Prof Christou has dedicated his career in supporting individuals and organisations to realise their full potential.
In addition to leading the Executive and Corporate Education arm at Monash Business School, he is a Program Director for our corporate custom programs and a trainer and facilitator of our corporate wellbeing and human-centric workplace solutions that drive high performance cultures internationally.
Prof Christou is an active supporter of diversity and inclusion. His efforts include adding his voice to supporting talented women and underprivileged international students to obtain ongoing world class education opportunities by reducing the financial barriers that prevent them from further studies.
He is a board member of the Hellenic Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has served on the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia – Women in Leadership Committee and has also served as a committee member for the International University Consortium for Executive Education (UNICON)
He holds a Master in Marketing from Monash University, and is a Certified Practicing Marketer and Fellow of the Australian Marketing Institute.
Host
Professor Richard Hall, Senior Director, Monash Global Leadership Development Program (Secondment), Monash Business School
Prof Hall has extensive experience in the design and delivery of leadership development programs for managers, professionals and senior leaders. He has published widely in the areas of management and organisation studies, including leadership, technology, organisational change, transformation and development and the future of work. He has designed, managed and delivered MBA programs at a number of universities and currently teaches Executive Leadership Mindsets in the Global Executive MBA at Monash University. He has deep experience working with major corporations, and organisations in the business, government, community and not-for-profit sectors.
Prof Hall has held previous appointments at the Universities of Queensland, Melbourne and Sydney. He has been visiting professor at the University of Strathclyde, Imperial College London, and Harvard University.