For Kylie Porter, thinking the unthinkable is not optional. “It’s a big hairy topic that must not be avoided. It’s what we do all the time.” Kylie is a CEO in Australia. She stood out when TTU’s Nik Gowing spoke to a leadership conference in Sydney that focused on handling the enormity of future challenges.
Kylie “did not need persuading.” She heads up the Greater Whitsunday Alliance (GW3), based in Mackay, a fast-growing regional hub in a mining-dependent economy near the Great Barrier Reef.
She describes how a few years ago, there was “real resistance” to thinking the unthinkable and confronting what lay ahead, especially on the future of mining..
“No one likes change… there was strong resistance to talking about topics which actually make many people deeply uncomfortable.”
That has shifted. “They’re far more open and willing to accept that what’s ahead… is going to be very different to what they’ve always known.”
“It’s like flying a plane while building it.” The unthinkable challenge in Mackay is long-term and structural. “We’re talking about that over a time frame which is a generation.”
Kylie did not follow a template. There was none. “There are very few regions in the world which I can just copy and paste.” Instead, the focus has been constant adaptation. “We research the living daylights out of everything… to make sure that our regional context is appropriate.”
That requires a different culture. “The work that we’re doing is incredibly vital for the long-term sustainability of regions and communities like ours.”
But in the short term, “it is not life or death.” That creates space to be bold. “There is a certain amount of safety in being innovative and being super brave about thinking differently.”
At its core is mindset. “You have to have curiosity… I want to unpack that and unpick it because I think therein lies some of the answers.” But the wider issue is societal. Too often, difficult conversations are avoided. At GW3 they have them every day.
In general “we’ve lost our ability to have these tough conversations… we’re so scared of getting it wrong.”
Yet avoiding them carries greater risk. “If we don’t give our communities a chance to consider the unthinkable things, how are they going to be prepared for what’s ahead?”
Kylie is clear about what leaders must accept. “We can only manage risk… we can’t eliminate it.” What is required instead is simple. “A good, big dose of bravery.” Because the unthinkable is no longer hypothetical. “The idea that Australia is an island… and we are immune… that era has gone.” It is already happening.
The sudden Iran conflict has had a scary and immediate impact. “Our fuel prices have almost doubled… this impact will have wide and far reaching impacts.”
Like so many issues these days it was, she says, “an unthinkable.” Now it is a new and sinister reality she and her fifteen colleagues must confront.
Kylie Porter
Kylie Porter is a strategist and advisor focused on leadership, organisational transformation, and navigating complex risk. She works closely with senior executives to help them confront uncertainty, build resilience, and adapt to fast-moving global challenges.
With a background spanning corporate strategy, stakeholder engagement, and systems thinking, Porter is known for her ability to translate complex ideas into practical action. Her work centres on equipping leaders to respond decisively in moments of disruption while maintaining long-term strategic clarity.
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