THE WORLD EXPO '88 AUTHORITY
The World Expo 88 Authority was the
co-ordinating executive for the Exposition.
Operating under the direction of the
Chairman and the General Manager, there were eight
staff divisions, each headed by a director with extensive experience in the
field, overseeing directly some 1,300 Authority staff.
A total of more than 30, 000 persons
were accredited for work at the Expo during the
Exposition.
CHAIRMAN - The Hon. Sir Llewellyn
Edwards, AC
Sir Llewellyn Edwards was appointed
Chairman of the authority in February 1984.
Previously he held the Queensland
Parliamentary seat of Ipswich for the Liberal Party
from 1972 to 1983. He served as State Health Minister, and later as Deputy
Premier and Treasurer.
Sir Llewellyn has a wide variety of
qualifications, in electrical engineering, and in
medicine and surgery. In the 1984 New Year's Honours List, he was awarded a Knight
Bachelor, for services to Queensland as a Minister and
MP.
GENERAL MANAGER - Bob Minnikin
Bob Minnikin was appointed General
Manager in March 1984, but his consultancy work began
in January 1983.
Minnikin's engineering background has
taken him into varying fields of business, including
construction and project management.
For three years he served as Deputy
General Manager of the XII Commonwealth Games
Foundation and was awarded an MBE in January 1983 for his service to the
Commonwealth Games project.
DIRECTOR - COMMUNICATIONS Jane
Brumfield (now Lady Jane Edwards)
Jane Brumfield was appointed in June
1987. She first joined the Expo authority in January
1985 as Public Relations Manager, and was appointed Deputy Director of
the newly created Communications Division in March
1986.
Brumfield previously worked for both
the print and electronic media, including the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation in Canberra and Brisbane, and The Australian
newspaper in the Canberra Press Gallery.
The division was responsible for
creating national and international awareness of Expo
through the media, special events and community programs.
DIRECTOR - ENTERTAINMENT Ric Birch
Ric Birch was appointed in January
1985 after extensive experience in the production of
major celebrations, and a long association with film, television and
entertainment.
He was the Production Director of the
opening and closing ceremonies at the 1984 Los Angeles
Olympic Games and at the XII Commonwealth Games in Brisbane in
1982.
Birch's company, SPECTAK, was formed
after the Olympics to provide production expertise for
major celebrations. The division created the dazzling and diverse
program of daily entertainment at the Expo.
DIRECTOR - FINANCE AND
ADMINISTRATION Tony Phillips
Tony Phillips has brought his broad
knowledge of corporate treasury, finance, accounting
and planning to Expo. He was appointed in October 1984.
He previously held various treasury
and financial planning positions with corporations in
New Zealand, Canada and England, including that of chief accountant for
Fletcher Challenge Ltd.
He also has a background in computers.
His division was responsible for head office
administration, financial accounting, land
acquisition, financial planning and funding.
DIRECTOR - INTERNATIONAL
PARTICIPATION Richard John
Richard John joined the World Expo 88
Authority after a 3 year posting in Athens with the
Australian Department of Foreign Affairs.
Appointed in March 1987, he had served
as Deputy Director since June 1986. Before joining
Foreign Affairs in Canberra, John worked in tertiary textbook publishing,
and as a primary school teacher in England and a
secondary school teacher in Australia.
The division was responsible for
recruiting, securing and supporting the participation
of the international governments in Expo.
DIRECTOR - MARKETING Graham
Currie
Graham Currie and his division
attracted and coordinated Expo's substantial corporate
sector investment. He was appointed Director in September 1985 with extensive
marketing credentials.
His previous position was as Marketing
Consultant and Accounts Director of the advertising
firm USP Needham. He has won two marketing awards — the
International Sports Marketing Award in 1985, and
Advertising Man of the Year in 1983 — and two
merchandising awards.
DIRECTOR - OPERATIONS Ross Given
Ross Given was a practising solicitor
in Brisbane before his appointment in May 1985.
Given was involved in general practice
in his own firm, including property development work.
He oversaw the day-to-day running of
Expo and was responsible for security, staffing,
visitor and VIP facilities on site.
DIRECTOR - SITE DEVELOPMENT Peter
Goldston
Peter Goldston, a civil engineer with
extensive site management experience, was appointed in
July 1985.
Before joining Expo he coordinated
the construction of the Wivenhoe Dam project in
Queensland, and has also worked on major projects in Cambodia, Thailand, the
Philippines and Bangladesh.
Goldston is responsible for the
financial and quality control of the development of
the Expo site. He also has advised on the use of the
site and its buildings after Expo.
DIRECTOR - TECHNOLOGY Ken Pope
Ken Pope's career in computers has
spanned more than 30 years. He joined Expo as a
consultant in November 1985.
Pope's achievements include the
direction of the design and installation of the
Queensland Computer Centre. Before joining Expo he was
Public Service Commissioner for the
Northern Territory.
At Expo his role was twofold —
advising participants and the authority on ways to use
technology to interpret the theme, and on computer use in administration and on
site.