What can Brett do?
Give a quick overview of your work experience (jobs, internships, volunteering)?
Project Management and Contracts Administration in Hotel & F&B Venue refurbishments, Manufacturing and Logistics Coordination from suppliers in China and communicating completely in Mandarin, start-up experience in E-commerce for retail and inventory control of online/2x physical stores in Melbourne, Asset Management for high net worth family office, Camera Operator for live streaming NPL soccer in Melbourne.
Do you have a track record of delivering measurable outcomes or KPIs?
Created a custom inventory control and warehousing system to maintain 98% accuracy across 20,000 items, $4M savings achieved in pricing hotel delivery project in Sydney of 300+ keys, and delivery of 419 $55M key complete refurbishment project in Melbourne. Document control, RFI, Variation and Progress Claim processing with zero gaps across projects.
What technical or industry-specific skills do you bring?
Project Management, Contracts Administration, Professional Mandarin Fluency, Subcontract preparation and administration, Logistical Coordination and Scheduling, Document Control, Estimating and Take-Offs, Inventory Control, Single-Cam Live Stream set up, Club and Stakeholder Liaison
What tools/platforms/software are they proficient in?
MS Project, MS Office Suite, Procore, Aconex, DRIBL, Final Cut Pro (basic), XERO, Share drive, Dropbox, WeChat
What qualifications, certifications, or degrees do you hold?
Bachelor of Arts (Teaching Chinese as a Second Language), Diploma in Project Management, Diploma in Commerce
I am someone who will back themselves, work hard, and bring a perspective to this industry that is different from most people in the room. That is worth a punt.
Because I am not coming into the sport looking for a job. I am coming in with a reason.
I have lived the immigrant experience, found belonging through football, competed at an elite level, fought through four years of injuries trying to get back, and spent the last decade building real skills in coordination, procurement, contracts, and stakeholder management. Most people applying for roles like this have the passion or the professional skills. I have both.
I also bring things that are genuinely rare in this space. Bilingual English and Mandarin, an understanding of how to engage culturally diverse communities from the inside, commercial and legal literacy from a decade in project delivery, and current hands-on involvement in the NPL ecosystem every week through Sportscast.
I am not the finished product in sport administration. But I am someone who will back themselves, work hard, and bring a perspective to this industry that is different from most people in the room. That is worth a punt.
This initial taste of involvement in the sports industry, coupled with the guidance that I believe I will get from SportGrad, has only strengthened my belief that this is the right move. I am not walking away from a stable career on a whim. I can always return to construction and procurement. I am doing this because I choose to, because I believe in it, and because nothing will stop me from giving it everything I have.
What steps has Brett taken to break into the sports industry?
I started working as a freelance camera operator for SportsCast this season for NPL Men's and Women's and the Dockerty Cup in Melbourne. I saw a chance and finally took it. Initially, I thought of trying commentary, but this shifted to broadcasting.
This has led to introductions to some of the local clubs for access, media personalities and broadcasting companies across Australia.
I am a Certified Personal Trainer, and I work part-time. I love fitness and helping general population clients get stronger and live better quality of lives.
Brett’s interest in sport all started from discovering football as a universal leveller as an 11-year-old
This is a long winded answer, but it’s personal to me. I believe in the power of sport to unite people. Regardless of where you come from or what language you speak, sport is pure and quantifiable. If you run faster, jump higher, or outscore me, you win. That simplicity is what makes it a universal leveller, and I experienced that firsthand, arriving in Australia as an eleven-year-old.
But it's honestly not all about winning. At its core, sport is about hope. The hope of what you might achieve, and what you might become.
Sport is also a genuinely powerful vehicle in commerce, entertainment, and community, and its role in the world keeps evolving. I no longer want to be on the fringes of something I care so deeply about. I have spent years building real skills in coordination, administration, and working with people, and I want to put them somewhere that actually means something to me. I chose what I thought was the safer route for a long time. It didn't get me where I wanted to be. So why not go for something true to me?
Since then, Brett has gone on to work in project management and contracts administration, achieving things like
Achievement 1 | Achievement 2 | Achievement 3 |
|---|---|---|
Designed and implemented a custom inventory control and warehousing system that maintained 98% accuracy across 20,000 items. | Managed document control, RFIs, variations, and progress claims with zero gaps across every project he worked on. | Delivered $4M in cost savings on a 300+ key hotel refurbishment project in Sydney. |
Where does Brett want to go?
Next 6 - 12 months | Next 5 - 10 years |
|---|---|
My primary goal over the next six to twelve months is to make a genuine shift into a career in sport, using my story and the transferable skills I have built across project management, coordination, communication, and personal training. Having come close to making it as an elite athlete myself, I understand the daily grind and sacrifice that goes into competing. I want to work in sport for the development of the game, but mainly I want to do it for the athletes. I want to get hands on with competition administration and understand how organisations like Football Victoria and Rugby Australia operate from the inside. I want to build real relationships within the sporting and business communities, and I am actively growing my network through SportsGrad and beyond, connecting with people who are on the same journey or have already made the leap. My goal is to add 100 genuine connections by the end of the year. On the field side, I am continuing my camera work with Sportscast and aiming to be part of the next Australian Championship season later this year. But honestly, the most important goal is personal. I want to prove to myself that this is not just a dream. That it is something real, something I can pursue and excel at. I have given myself permission to go after it, and now I want to back that up with results. The longer term goal, if I am being honest, is to be involved in some capacity in the 2027 Rugby World Cup here in Australia. Rugby is a minority sport in Melbourne and I want to use my background, my love for the game, and my understanding of what athletes need to help deliver a world class event on home soil. | I want to be a genuine operator in the Australian sports industry, someone who knows the clubs, the people, and the landscape well enough to make things happen. More specifically, 11-year-oldI see myself moving across a few different areas over time. The first is competition and program development, designing and delivering competitions, touring logistics, and athlete and team operations at a high level. Having that behind the scenes understanding of what it takes to move a touring side, manage equipment, and coordinate personnel is something I find genuinely fascinating. The second is broadcast and media. I want to grow my camera work into involvement at high profile events, whether that is in the field or in the media room, both domestically and internationally. Documentary and Special Event production also interests me. I want to see where I can take this. The third is commercial. I want to understand how sport sustains itself financially, and be involved in delivering commercial agreements between businesses and sporting organisations. Sport needs to be financially healthy and well governed to thrive, and I want to be part of making that happen. Ultimately I want to be someone who has genuine relationships across the sports I am involved in, understands what clubs and athletes need, and has the skills and experience to deliver at the highest level. The 2026 Australian Championship and 2027 Rugby World Cup is the first milestone on that road. |
What sporting problem keeps Brett up at night, and how would you solve it?
Grassroots and minority sports are commercially underserved. They lack the expertise to attract sponsors, structure deals, and present themselves professionally to businesses. My background in procurement and contracts means I understand how commercial agreements work, and I want to help smaller sports build the financial foundations they need to survive and grow.
Nobody thinks about the supply chain behind sport until something goes wrong. Equipment doesn't arrive, touring logistics fall apart, events scramble at the last minute. My background in international freight, procurement, and contract administration is applicable here, and it's a skillset I believe can be utilised in sport administration.
I cover both NPLM and NPLW with Sportscast, and the gap in production quality, broadcast reach, and commercial investment between the men's and women's game is visible from pitchside every week. Better coverage drives participation, sponsorship, and cultural change. It's a problem I see firsthand and one I want to be part of solving. I find that there seems to be a lack of supply in quality camera/broadcasters, which cannot meet the significant growth in demand.
The mental health of injured athletes is largely invisible inside sporting organisations. The uncertainty, the isolation from your team, the loss of identity. I spent four years in that space after my injuries. The structures to support athletes through that period are underdeveloped, and having lived it, I feel a genuine responsibility to help change that.
What is Brett like?
What kind of environment do you thrive in?
Communal, open, free and meeting different people.
When have you had to show resilience in your life or career?
The clearest example is my rugby career. At sixteen, I was diagnosed with glandular fever, which led to chronic fatigue that I battled hard until the age of twenty. Despite that, I continued to pursue my rugby ambitions and push toward an elite level.
Then, in December 2010, I suffered two ACL ruptures during play, followed by two further tears during rehabilitation and return to sport, along with multiple meniscus tears and two ankle surgeries. I did not let go of the ambition to return for nearly three years, exhausting every possible outlet and avenue before eventually retiring from the game at the start of 2014.
Throughout that entire period, I was still studying and working full-time in supply chain and operations, and my family was going through a difficult time as well. I kept moving forward across all of it.
Looking back, that experience shaped how I approach setbacks. When something does not go to plan, I do not walk away easily. I find another way. And while retiring from rugby was one of the hardest decisions I have made, it also left me with a sense of unfinished business with sport that has never gone away. This career move is partly my answer to that.
What about Brett's interests outside of work?
What are your interests outside of work?
I love live events and the energy found in musical festivals and football fan culture, where music/culture/food/songs all blend into one. I find the same crowd involvement and cohesion in Heavy Metal, Trance and Hardstyle as I do in football stadiums. I am drawn to those.
I have just started playing Pokémon TCG, and entered my first major tournament where the best players came to Melbourne. It was intimidating stepping into a completely foreign environment, and a gruelling 12-hour day, but worth the effort and I came away achieving my goal, taking 1 win and having fun.
Food and Coffee. I travel and seek out both. As I type this from Brisbane, I have scoped out places to visit.
What is your favourite sporting moment?
John Aloisi's penalty. This started it all for me. When I first truly felt Australian.
What’s your ideal holiday?
I already had it. Tiny home, remote Victoria, no phone reception, cooked for ourselves, played board and card games. Silence.
If you had 30 minutes to pick the brain of anyone, who would it be and why?
Sports Broadcast Producer David Hill, or Johnny Warren, sitting alongside Les Murray.
What’s one book or podcast that’s helped your career you recommend?
Never Split the Difference, The Alchemist, Courage to be Disliked.
Abroad in Japan Podcast
Additional details
Where in the world are you located, and where are you open to work?
Living in Melbourne, prefer to work in Melbourne but am willing to consider moving depending on the opportunity
What is the most important consideration for you in your next role?
Ability to pivot into the sporting industry, positive and trustworthy culture, ability to develop in my role and in the industry, and ability to make a solid living from a career in sports.
What others say about Brett
"Brett is one of the most personable and empathetic people I have worked with. He has a natural ability to make everyone feel heard, and his communication across clients, contractors, and suppliers is genuine. In an industry where relationships matter, that is a rare quality.”
“What sets Brett apart is his attention to detail. He would recall design elements, material selection, and specifications and we relied on that. His document control was meticulous, variations and progress claims were always accurate and on time."
What questions does Brett have for employers?
Why do you do what you do, and what drove you to a career in sport?
What does success look like in this role in the first six months?
How do you support people who are transitioning into the sports industry from other fields? Are there many real-life examples of individuals who have been successful in this organisation?
Where do people in this role typically go next within the organisation?
What are the biggest challenges facing the organisation right now, and how does this role contribute to addressing them?
What does good look like in this role, and how is performance typically measured?
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