Rick Mitchell

Rick Mitchell is a Director with Hines Management Consultants, an Executive Search and Selection practice that has operated in Brisbane since 1983.

He commenced his career with Dulux Australia Ltd, where he worked as a research chemist while studying chemistry part time. He left to pursue sporting interests with considerable success, winning Olympic silver and Commonwealth gold medals in track and field (400 metres).

Rick was twice chosen as Olympic track and field captain and was the Australian flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the 1982 Commonwealth Games.

Upon retirement from sport, he moved to Tasmania where he would spend the next 5 years as the inaugural Director of the Tasmanian Institute of Sport. A desire to broaden his private sector experience saw Rick join MLC Life and relocate to Victoria where he work for the next three prior to joining the Western Australian Turf Club as CEO. In this role, he implemented significant change, developing the WATC to the point where it was the only metropolitan race club to enjoy increased attendances outside of major racing carnivals and created an integrated marketing campaign that was recognised with a gold medal at the New York Advertising Awards.

Rick also held senior management roles with prominent businesses in the telecommunications and home lending sectors and consulted to a number of organisations including AMP through the Sydney Olympic Games.

For the past eight years he has specialised in the recruitment of senior executives for some of the most prominent companies in Australia. Rick is a member of the Foundation Board of the State Library of Queensland, an active writer and regular contributor to national newspapers and frequently contributes to major network radio and television programmes.