Pathfinder Early-Stage Growth Workshop 2 – Growth Driver Prioritisation

The second Early‑Stage Growth workshop focuses on prioritising key growth drivers, with an industry leader sharing practical growth decision

The 2026 BEDA Pathfinder Early-Stage Growth Workshop series is a structured immersion of 4 x one hour workshops designed to help early-stage businesses strengthen their strategic foundations, prioritise growth opportunities, and build the capability needed to scale with confidence.

This new workshop series features inspiring local industry business leaders whose role is to share real examples of how they have navigated strategic approaches and challenges.

The second of these new Early-Stage Growth one hour workshops centres on Growth Driver Prioritisation. Our highly successful industry leader featuring as keynote speaker will be sharing their growth story, with a focus on defining growth choices and prioritisation.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

This workshop involves:

· Participants defining a clear 12–18 month growth vision

· Using diagnostic insights to prioritise the most impactful growth drivers.

This workshop is ideal for:

Participants who are owners/MDs of businesses with $500k-$1.5M revenue and 5-20 staff across sectors including manufacturing, professional services, retail, hospitality, and tech. They are past the survival stage but hitting growth ceilings. These businesses need strategic frameworks, not startup advice.

PRESENTERS:

This workshop will be facilitated by Dr Sam Bucolo (Spark Consultants), with our industry leader keynote speaker Cecily "Cec" McCuckin, nationally recognised leader and CEO of Queensland Steel & Sheet Pty Ltd .

About Facilitator Dr Sam Bucolo (Spark Consultants):

Dr Sam Bucolo is an experienced business advisor and innovation leader with over 30 years supporting SMEs to strengthen competitiveness, unlock growth opportunities, and build the capability needed to scale. His career spans senior roles across industry, government, academia, and the not-for-profit sector, giving him a unique ability to translate strategy into practical execution. Sam has held Professorial and University Leadership roles at UTS and QUT, establishing major research centres and cross-industry innovation programs. As Chair of the Australian Design Council, he leads national efforts to embed design-led innovation across business and government.

Key Note Speaker Cecily McGuckin - CEO and Managing Director of Queensland Sheet and Steel

Cecily McGuckin is an Australian business leader and the CEO and Managing Director of Queensland Steel & Sheet (QSS), one of Australia’s longest‑running, family‑owned steel distribution companies. Based in Brisbane, she is widely recognised as the only female CEO leading a steel distribution company in Australia, a distinction that has positioned her as a pioneer in a traditionally male‑dominated industry. Under her leadership, QSS has evolved from its modest beginnings in 1985 into a modern, customer‑centric operation supplying a broad range of steel products nationwide.

After initially pursuing a career outside the family business, including roles in finance and construction management, Cecily later joined QSS and identified the need for significant modernisation. She led large‑scale operational, cultural, and technological transformation, investing heavily in digital systems, enterprise resource planning, and process efficiency while preserving the company’s strong family values. Her leadership style is defined by emotional intelligence, transparency, and a strong people‑first philosophy, which she credits as central to building trust, performance, and long‑term sustainability within the organisation.

Cecily’s impact has been recognised through numerous accolades, including being named CEO of the Year at LeadershipHQ’s Outstanding Leadership Awards (2020) and being shortlisted as a finalist in The CEO Magazine’s 2025 Executive of the Year Awards. Beyond business performance, she is a passionate advocate for diversity, women in leadership, and community impact, using her platform to challenge industry norms and mentor future leaders. Through her work, Cecily McGuckin continues to reshape perceptions of leadership in Australian manufacturing while setting a benchmark for inclusive, values‑driven executive leadership.

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