CEO
Fairbrother Pty Ltd
*Lifetime AA Commitment Award winner.
Biography
Royce was the inspiration behind the birth of Fairbrother Pty Ltd. He left Devonport High School at the age of 15 to commence an apprenticeship as a Joiner with a small Devonport company. After completing 7 years in the Joinery trade he worked as a carpenter for a further 3 years before commencing business in partnership with his wife Thea.
Initially Royce was responsible for all estimating and project management while at the same time working on site. As the Company grew he undertook the various roles necessary to facilitate that growth and over the past 35 years has provided the leadership and vision that has enabled the Company to become an industry leader in Tasmania.
Royce has extensive experience in Project Management and Development. He possesses advanced people management and motivational skills, and has been at the forefront of the development of Fairbrother’s Project Management, Quality Assurance, Health & Safety and Leadership Development systems and programs. He has no formal education but claims to have graduated from the ‘University of Hard Knocks’ with honours. Royce has spent many hours studying the requirements for successful business management, is an avid reader and is often sought to speak on the subject. Royce says, “The most valuable lesson my Mother and Father taught me was the need to work hard for what you want. The most valuable lesson that life has taught me is the need to be honest with yourself and the people you deal with.” Fairbrother has been built on these principles.
After leading the company as Managing Director for 30 years, in 2003 Royce embraced a new challenge as company Chairman. As Fairbrother has grown and expanded, in this role Royce is now responsible for providing leadership, strategic direction and vision for the entire Fairbrother Group of companies, which includes Fairbrother Construction & Joinery, Fairbrother Developments, Fairbrother Facilities Maintenance & Management, Tasmania’s leading mechanical services and refrigeration company Degree C, and Fairbrother’s regional Victorian based construction arm Morey & Hurford.
In 2008, Royce received National recognition for his long-standing commitment to Australian apprentices when he became the inaugural winner of the Minister’s Award for Commitment to Australian Apprentices. Royce has provided support and career opportunities for hundreds of apprentices and continues to advocate tirelessly for their key role in the industry and our nation’s futures.
Outside the office Royce is an avid sports person with a strong personal focus on health and wellbeing. Having represented Australia four times at the Triathlon World Championships, Royce has also ridden a number of the mountain passes that feature in the Tour de France and can be regularly found cycling through Tasmania’s picturesque countryside. As Chairman of the Premier’s Physical Activity Council, he is a leading advocate for healthy lifestyles with a particular focus on workplace health and wellbeing programs. He is also a strong supporter of the National Heart Foundation and the Cancer Council Tasmania.
Royce also has a strong and vocal passion for his community and the youth of Tasmania. Seeing a need to address issues such as suicide prevention, depression and mental illness in the Tasmanian construction industry and in particular amongst apprentices, Royce worked tirelessly to bring the OzHelp Foundation to Tasmania. OzHelp, of which Royce is now Tasmanian Chairman, addresses these critical issues via a range of training programs and support services. Royce’s passion for his home region is evident in his work as a Director on the Cradle Coast Authority Board, and he is working to improve the schools system as Chair of the Tasmanian North West Schools Improvement Board. Together with wife Thea, Royce is further giving back to his home State via the Fairbrother Foundation, a not for profit organisation the couple have established to provide charitable assistance and support to targeted worthy causes and recipients.
Royce was also the 2006 Gold Medal Award Winner as the Tasmanian Director of the Year awarded by the Tasmanian Division of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. The award is presented to a person acknowledged as having contributed service to the community in a number of spheres – including business, charitable works and employment creation. It’s awarded to a person who upholds high ethical standards in their personal and public life. The award is made in recognition of outstanding effort as a company director and citizen of Tasmania.