Vice-Chancellor Professor Scott Bowman has accepted the Central Queensland Medal for Management Excellence at this year's Management Excellence Awards Rockhampton Region Finals, held at Kershaw House on Friday October 8.

Meanwhile, long-serving Rockhampton Campus academic Dr Leone Hinton was announced as the Professional Manager of the Year, with professional staff member Jo Miller also among the finalists for this Australian Institute of Management awards category.

Professor Scott Bowman and Dr Leone Hinton at the MEA finals

MEA Categories, Finalists and Winners 

Central Queensland Medal for Leadership in Management.  This medal was introduced in 2004 to highlight the significance of leadership in management (both current and in the future) to the ongoing prosperity of the Central Queensland region.  This medal celebrates the contribution of dynamic, pivotal and senior leaders in our private, public, corporate or voluntary sector organisations - individuals whose names are now synonymous with leadership in management.

Leadership in management is not necessarily about holding a position at the highest level or in the largest organisation.  Instead, it is about the running of private, public, corporate and voluntary organisations in a dynamic and successful fashion.  It is about the setting of organisational goals and achieving them with flair.

This year's recipient of the Central Queensland Medal for Management Excellence is

Professor Scott Bowman from CQUniversity.

Australia Post Outstanding Business Leader award.

Entrepreneurs and business owners have been responsible for creating many of Australia's most dynamic and successful companies. At the heart of the entrepreneurial process is the recognition that it's not enough to do something everyone else does. Small businesses become big ones by standing apart, and serving the marketplace with a truly unique offering.

As masters of their own destiny the Owner Manager of the Year finalists might share a willingness to suffer doubt and potential failure but have a special genius for recognising an unmet need in the market and a knack for hiring people who have the same sense of mission.

The 2010 Recipient of the Australia Post Outstanding Business Leader award is

 Steve McCosker from DC Motors

Rural Remote Manager of the Year.

This category seeks remotely based business owners, and professional managers in local business, community organisations, rural tourism or primary industries.

These managers will lead an organisation or major business unit in a professional capacity or own and operate their own business that employs more than five people.

AIM defines a Rural / Remote Manager as a manager who lives and works 75 kilometres or more outside of their nearest AIM network or provincial city.

The Rural / Remote Manager Category is sponsored by Telstra and finalists were

• § Sandra Hobbs, CHDC
• § Stephen Hooper, Custom Fluidpower
• § Troy Scudds, Wesfarmers Currough

Winner was Troy Scudds

Young Manager of the Year category.

In previous years this category has recognised some of Queensland most successful young entrepreneurs and business leaders up to the age of 35.

In 2009, for the first time, AIM lowered the age limit to 30 resulting in a field of promising young managers who are just starting to make their mark - they are Rockhampton's "high potentials". It's part of AIM's commitment to educating and developing Generation Y who have been in the workplace for 5 to 8 years and many of whom turn 30 this year.

The Young Manager Category is sponsored by RACQ and finalists were

• Kellie Anderson, Rockhampton Regional Council
• Alisha Dunnett, DC Motors
• Lindsay Hull, Emmaus College

Winner was Alisha Dunnett from DC Motors

Professional Manager of the Year

This category celebrates the innovation, strategic thinking and visionary leadership of executive and C-Suite leaders from the public and private sector.

Finalists have had an extraordinary impact on their organisation's financial success, forward-thinking strategies and create cultures of entrepreneurship, develop best practices and carve out powerful and sustainable models of business in the Australian and global economy.

The Professional Manager Category is sponsored by the Commonwealth Bank and the finalists were

• § Dale Grounds, Rock Building Society
• § Dr Leone Hinton, CQUniversity
• § Jo Miller, CQUniversity
• § Len Sanders. Rock Building Society

Winner was Dr Leone Hinton* from CQUniversity

Dr Leone Hinton* Director, Office of Corporate Strategy and Planning, CQUniversity: Leone is a respected leader and operator within her organisation, having held eight internal positions and tasked with significant planning, strategy and restructure projects. The judges found Leone to be a skilled manager with a diverse professional background who oversees significant budgets and quality assurance responsibilities within her large and complex organisation. Her commitment to staff development in a learning organisation is outstanding.  The judges noted the way in which Leone ‘leads from behind' and lets her staff and stakeholders come forward and be acknowledged for their contribution.