Podcast: What I Learned in Business (that didn’t kill me!)

What happens when one of the UK’s largest companies collapses—and takes trust in the entire UK audit profession with it?

In this episode, I sit down with Mark Raddan, CEO of Interpath Advisory and former KPMG UK Senior Partner and Board member, to unpack the fallout from the Carillion collapse and how it fundamentally reshaped the UK turnaround and restructuring profession.

Carillion employed more than 40,000 people and delivered critical public infrastructure across the UK. But in 2018, it collapsed under the weight of debt, aggressive accounting, and failing contracts—triggering parliamentary inquiries, regulatory backlash, and record fines for KPMG.

What followed wasn’t just the failure of a company—it was a structural reset of the entire profession in the UK. Regulators moved to address conflicts of interest within the Big Four, ultimately forcing KPMG to sell its restructuring business.

What is customer loyalty — really?

Is it points? Discounts? Retention metrics? Or is it something deeper?

In this episode of What I Learned in Business (That Didn’t Kill Me!), I sit down with Adam Posner, founder of The Point of Loyalty, host of the What’s the Point of Loyalty? podcast, and author of For Love or Money™ — one of Australia’s longest-running loyalty research studies, spanning nearly two decades and 18 editions.

Everyone talks about sustainable retail products and saving the planet, but who really cares? Retailers? Customers? Government?

The global retail sourcing & supply chain is invisible to most consumers, yet it is one of the most complex, highly integrated and culturally nuanced business ecosystems in the world.

James H Stewart sits down with Anne-Laure Descours, one of the world’s most senior and respected leaders in global sourcing and sustainable manufacturing in the footwear and apparel industry.

Ian Robson isone of the most experienced and battle-tested sports administrators in Australia.

At just 32 years old, with no prior CEO experience, Ian was appointed Chief Executive of the New Zealand Warriors, building the club ahead of its entry into top-tier rugby league.

From there, his career spans:

• CEO of Hawthorn Football Club during its rebuild and 2008 premiership

• CEO of Essendon Football Club during the supplements saga

• CEO of Melbourne Victory during A-League success

• CEO of Rowing Australia, navigating Olympic sport, funding pressures and global competition

• Leadership roles in UK sport, including CEO of Sport Scotland

Today, Ian is CEO of the iconic Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club, long associated with the Australian Open.

In this episode, I sit down with chef, MasterChef finalist, television host and entrepreneur Simon Toohey.

Many Australians know Simon from MasterChef Australia (Season 11 and “Back to Win”) or from his SBS series Freshly Picked. But behind the television profile is a far more layered story — one that spans cocktail bars in London, a Masters in Gastronomy in Edinburgh, plant-forward food innovation, pop-up smokehouses, consulting internationally, and now launching the fast-growing Geelong City Market, attracting thousands of visitors every Saturday.

In this episode, James H Stewart sits down with Andrew J Love, one of Australia’s most experienced former restructuring advisers and non-executive directors, for a deep dive on the collapse of Rothwells Bank and the beginning of the end for WA Inc in the late 1980's.

Christo Van Egmond — Inside the Business of Live Music

What does it really take to bring the world’s biggest artists to Australia?

In this episode of What I Learned in Business (That Didn’t Kill Me!), James Stewart explores one of the most important and misunderstood challenges facing leaders, employers, marketers and boards today: how to understand and engage the next generations of consumers and workers—Gen Z and Gen Alpha.

In this episode of What I Learned in Business (That Didn’t Kill Me!), James Stewart sits down with Andrew Yates, CEO of KPMG Australia, to explore what it really takes to lead one of the country’s largest and most scrutinised professional-services firms.

In this episode of What I Learned in Business (That Didn’t Kill Me!), James H Stewart sits down with Jim Sarantinos, CEO of the Parramatta Eels, one of the most passionately supported and closely scrutinised rugby league clubs in Australian sport.

From surviving a devastating car accident in Ukraine to becoming one of Australia’s most influential thinkers in customer loyalty and digital strategy — this is the extraordinary journey of Anna Samkova.

From escaping civil war in Sri Lanka at just six years old, to building one of the most successful automation start-ups in Australia and New Zealand, Nishan Wijemanne has lived a business journey defined by resilience, reinvention and relentless curiosity.

In this episode, James sits down with Bruce Carter AO, one of Australia’s most respected commercial advisors and arguably South Australia’s “Mr Fix-It”. Over more than three decades, Bruce has become the person governments, boards and business leaders call when the stakes are high and commercial pragmatism is in demand.

When Iain Nairn walks into a room, he brings over 40 years of global retail experience — and a lifetime of lessons in leadership, resilience, and reinvention.

From a kitchen table in Brisbane to a global online fashion movement — this is the story of Black Milk Clothing.

John King's global experience in retail and wholesale brands is unique. He led three major retailers—Matalan, House of Fraser, and Myer—through wildly different market cycles, against major headwinds and each with their own unique set of challenges.

In this episode, James H. Stewart sits down with Frank Cancelloni, Group CEO of Jim Thompson — Thailand’s most iconic names in silk design, craftsmanship, and culture.

Private-equity veteran Patrick Elliott (Founding Partner, Next Capital; ex-Macquarie PE; former Chair of JB Hi-Fi) joins James H Stewart to unpack career pivots, equity investing and what they teach us about risk, governance, and value creation.

In this episode, James H Stewart sits down with Di Gillett — a fashion-design student, turned retailer, turned headhunter, turned podcaster — whose life and career are a study in resilience and reinvention.

In this episode of What I Learned in Business, James H Stewart sits down with Evan Thornley — entrepreneur, investor, reformer, and one of Australia’s most original thinkers on business and social change.

In this episode of What I Learned in Business (That Didn’t Kill Me!), host James H Stewart sits down with Paul Howes — one of Australia’s most recognisable public figures and a leader whose career has spanned the union movement, politics, and corporate life.

Born out of the ashes of Enron and the collapse of global Big 5 firm Arthur Andersen, Korda Mentha has become a powerhouse advisory firm in Australia/Asia fuelled by winning some of the biggest and most high profile mandates in the country.

For 40 years I was a corporate undertaker. I buried businesses that failed and helped save those where there was still a pulse.