Nominations open for this year’s 40 Under 40 Awards
South Australia’s 40 Under 40 Awards recognises the state’s young entrepreneurs and leaders. Nominations and self-nominations open today.
The search is on for South Australia’s high achieving young business leaders and entrepreneurs, with nominations now open for InDaily 40 Under 40 Awards program.
The prestigious awards have become a valuable platform for showcasing the state’s talent since their inception almost a decade ago.
InDaily editorial director Jim Plouffe, who oversees the nomination process, said he has witnessed a shift in the state’s business landscape during the program’s tenure, with the transformation reflecting broader changes in how local enterprises approach growth and opportunity.
“We started 40 Under 40 almost a decade ago because we saw that the SA economy needed a nudge,” Plouffe said.
“In that time, it has been amazing to see companies and individuals thrive in the state.”
In the next few years, South Australians could expect to see this underpin further change in local business culture, he said.
“I see a total refocus by local businesses; from the old SA mindset of trying to beat the competitor down the street to looking nationally and globally for opportunities that can be run from Adelaide,” he said.
“Our business culture is tied to our lifestyle. Why live in some rat race when you can thrive from here?”
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Reflecting this change in mindset, the alumni represent a multitude of industries, from social services to mining, entertainment to energy, with many of them leveraging IT and AI to innovate.
The 40 Under 40 Awards success in identifying and promoting young leaders across all industries has helped challenge long-held perceptions about the state’s capacity to nurture and retain the brightest minds.
Plouffe said in the first year of the program there were discussions as to whether the talent pool could eventually run dry.
“This is exactly the question we asked when we started 40 Under 40, and most of the panel back then was pessimistic that we would find fresh talent two years down the track,” he said.
“That has not happened – year after year, the pool just gets more talented.”
“Speaking with young leaders in Adelaide, I hear the same thing over and over: ‘Why would we leave? Adelaide is amazing’. The old SA trope of the brain drain is truly dead.”
The group of alumni now numbers 280, with another 40 set to join them when the award winners and alumni are announced in June.
The selection process considers not just business success, but broader contributions to the community, and Plouffe looks beyond professional achievements to identify true leadership potential.
“Personally, I flip to the community section of the application. We are looking for leaders – not just great managers – and in my opinion leaders can’t help but help,” he said.
“They’re the ones running the community groups, sports clubs, charities. Not necessarily their respective industry group – that’s simply career development – but truly giving back to society.
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“And of course they need to have accomplished something, built something, discovered something.”
The alumni of the 2024 40 Under 40 Awards. Photograph: Morgan Sette
Last year’s program saw veterinarian Catherine Harper named First Among Equals, continuing the awards’ tradition of recognising diverse talent across multiple sectors.
While celebrating individual achievement, the awards have also fostered valuable connections within the local business community and facilitated collaborations between alumni.
Plouffe said there was a need for greater diversity in the state’s business leadership, particularly in reflecting Adelaide’s multicultural character.
“While we don’t have a massive ‘brain drain’ anymore, frankly, Adelaide isn’t the most welcoming place for ‘outsiders’ to start or thrive in business. We must change this,” he said.
“Through programs like 40 Under 40 we can broaden local young leaders’ horizons beyond their high school friend group.
“To thrive, South Australia must attract the best and the brightest from around the world and then keep them here because it’s just too great a place to leave.”
He also noted that Adelaide’s culture of collaboration can be a double-edged sword.
“While tall poppy syndrome is a thing of the past, we are sometimes more modest about individual achievements and ascribe them to a ‘group effort’, so we can appear to lack individual leaders in industries,” he said.
“The entire premise of 40 Under 40 is to celebrate individuals and their leadership in fields important to South Australia.
“What has happened through the program is our alumni have met others who can help them and some great collaborations have unfolded.
“Collaboration is what sets our business culture apart from other places in the world.
“Grabbing a bunch of diverse businesses and bringing them together to create a new product or achieve a different aim is something fairly unique to Australia and we should celebrate that.
“But it will always take a leader to drive an idea and we award these individuals through 40 Under 40.”
Nominations for the 40 Under 40 Awards close on Monday, 17 March 2025.
