Marina Vit: CEO & NED talks building communities, being on a mission, spotting road blocks, following your dreams and exploring new things.
Marina Vit is the former CEO of the Queensland division of the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA). UDIA is the peak body representing the property development industry nation wide, and is a membership based organisation which assists the industry build quality and liveable communities through knowledge based events, research, professional development and advocacy. Marina is also the Director of Seqwater and has previously been the Deputy Chair of the Queensland Museum Board, the CEO of Young Care and the Board Director of Jupiters Casino Community Benefit Fund. She earned a Bachelor of Business in Communications with Distinction from Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and later studied a Strategic Perspectives of Non Profit Management at Harvard Business School.
Marina grew up in Brisbane the youngest of two children to Italian migrant parents who relocated to Australia after World War Two. From a young age, Marina was challenged by her parents to think differently and she credits her mother’s decision to secure her a part-time job as soon as she was legally old enough to work as the beginning of her independence and her longterm career success.
“Mum and Dad always told me I could do whatever I wanted to do — to never limit my decisions, to think outside the box.”
Growing up in a family who shared robust and “purposeful” discussion around the dinner table about politics and current affairs was central to Marina’s decision to become a journalist and upon finishing university she moved to Cairns in North Queensland to work for a radio station. Marina, however, is a self-confessed opportunist who has never made solid career plans and she soon found herself back in Brisbane working for the Australian Labor Party (ALP), which marked the beginning of a young Marina’s journey into leadership roles.
“You need to be brave. You have to back yourself in your decisions, you have to confident in being able to do that and that’s hard at times.”
Quick Links:
If you enjoyed this podcast please share it with your friends. We would also love you to subscribe to the Arete Podcast on I-tunes or Stitcher to stay abreast of our latest discussions with leading CEO’s and Non Executive Directors and post your comments. Follow Arete Executive on LinkedIn
