As Mr David McCulloch steps down from his role as international business manager at the WA Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation, the MBA graduate reflects on the foundations UWA provided many years earlier.
A first-class honours arts degree majoring in history put Mr McCulloch on the road to a lifetime career working in international markets. Regularly moving between the public and private sector, he invariably found himself working across the spectrum of trade, investment, industry development and international business. These included roles with law firm Corrs, precious metal producer Gold Corporation and the ‘liquid gold’ that the Wine Industry Association of WA (as CEO) represented.
More recently, the class of 1978 graduate has represented the Government of Western Australia as Commissioner for India based in Mumbai during 2016, and Commissioner for Japan based in Tokyo from October 2018 to December 2020, although the last nine months was as ‘Commissioner-in-exile’ during the pandemic period. In recent months, that role has been extended to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates.
Second from right in back row: David McCulloch in Kobe, Japan, with WA Premier Mark McGowan and Governor Ido of Hyōgo Prefecture, meeting in regard to the Sister State relationship
An arts degree provided Mr McCulloch with the foundations to operate in a variety of markets, giving him social, cultural and economic skills to work with business people from many nations. A subsequent MBA reinforced many of the business skills he had acquired assisting WA companies and industries in markets from the UK and EU, North America, Middle East, India, Southeast Asia to North Asia.
“As many business people have learnt, particularly across Asia, achieving successful commercial outcomes are often predicated on developing personal relationships with their counterparts in the target market. This is no more evident than in the two markets where I spent some time – Japan and India,” Mr McCulloch.
Mr McCulloch married his partner Lee in the University’s Sunken Gardens back in 1988. So not only did the University equip him to pursue a long career in international business, but also provided the starting point for a marriage that remains strong 33 years later.
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