Fiona Balfour is an Australian business executive in the field of information technology. She has been named Chief Information Officer of the Year in Australia four times: 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006. In 2006 she was awarded the

Pearcey Award The Pearcey Awards are a set of prizes presented annually since 1998 by the Pearcey Foundation for achievement in the Australian ICT industry. Pearcey Award Categories Each year, the Pearcey Foundation presents 3 categories of award: ;Pearcey ...

for distinguished lifetime achievement and contribution to the development and growth of Australian IT professions, research and industry. In 2017 she was appointed to the board of the Western Sydney Airport Corporation by Urban Infrastructure Minister Paul Fletcher. In May 2021 she was appointed to the board of the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

by communications minister Paul Fletcher against the recommendations of an independent panel.

Life

Balfour was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia, and completed a bachelor of arts degree in English and history at

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...

in 1979. She initially worked in the public sector, in the Victorian State Public Service followed by the Commonwealth Government, in roles related to project management and project leadership. From 1985 to 1991 she worked in management consulting and continued her studies with a Graduate Diploma in Information Management from the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensive ...

and an MBA from

RMIT University RMIT University, officially the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology,, section 4(b) is a public research university in Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city ...

. In 1992, Balfour joined

Qantas Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founded ...

and held a variety of positions before being appointed Chief Information Officer and a member of the Qantas Executive Committee in 2001. In 2003 her roles was expanded to include IT, procurement, property, financial services, and human resources services. In 2006 she was appointed Chief Information Officer at

Telstra Telstra Group Limited is an Australian telecommunications company that builds and operates telecommunications networks and markets voice, mobile, internet access, pay television and other products and services. It is a member of the S&P/ASX 20 ...

, a position she held for ten months. Balfour went on to hold a number of non-executive director positions and to teach at the University of New South Wales Business School. Balfour joined ABC board in 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balfour, Fiona Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Australian women business executives Australian business executives Monash University alumni University of New South Wales alumni University of New South Wales faculty RMIT University alumni Businesspeople from Melbourne 20th-century Australian women 21st-century Australian women 21st-century Australian people