Chris Fozard
General Management | Financial & Operational Leadership | Board Governance | Company Secretary
Senior executive with three decades of experience across defence, hospitality, education, and national business operations, with a consistent record of performing above role boundaries and delivering results in genuinely difficult circumstances.
I bring a grounded, practical approach to senior leadership, one built on real accountability across P&L management, board governance, organisational turnaround, and commercial diversification.
My career has consistently involved taking on complex, high-pressure situations and finding ways to make them work, across industries, across roles, and above the expectations of the positions I've held.
About Chris
A career built across industries. A mindset built on growth
The photo behind me is HMAS Success, the ship I served on in the Royal Australian Navy. It's a reminder of where the foundations were built, and a fair summary of the approach I've carried into everything since: know your role, back your team, and hold the line when it matters.
My professional journey has never followed a straight line, and that's something I've come to see as a strength.
It began in the Royal Australian Navy, where six years as a Communications Specialist instilled the discipline, adaptability, and team-first values that have underpinned everything since. From there, more than a decade in operational leadership across hotels, accommodation, restaurants, and licensed venues gave me a hands-on understanding of customer experience, people management, and what it actually takes to run a business under pressure.
A move into vocational education broadened my perspective further. Working with disengaged and at-risk young people, helping them find confidence, direction, and pathways forward, reinforced something I already believed: that communication and genuine human connection sit at the heart of effective leadership.
Since 2016, I have served as Operations Manager and Company Secretary for Budget Motels Australia, a national network representing independent accommodation operators across the country. Over nine years the role has expanded significantly in scope, absorbing five former functional positions while headcount reduced from eight to three. During that period I led the organisation through a full financial turnaround, retiring approximately $1M in debt, stabilising membership, and overseeing its first commercial property acquisition and software asset divestment.
Alongside this, I am currently completing a Master of Business Administration at Swinburne University of Technology, with a focus on leadership, strategy, customer experience, and organisational performance. The MBA has sharpened my thinking and reinforced my commitment to evidence-based, forward-looking decision making.
Whether working with a Board, supporting business owners across the country, or navigating complex operational challenges, my approach remains consistent: listen well, think clearly, and deliver.
Professional Experience
Professional Journey
Operations Manager & Company Secretary
Budget Motels Australia
2016 - Present
I joined Budget Motels in 2016 to help strengthen and grow a national accommodation network representing independent motel operators across Australia. What started as an Operations Manager role has expanded considerably over nine years, and today I oversee financial management, governance, compliance, marketing, membership, technology, and Board reporting across the organisation and its associated entities.
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Built and maintained a financially sustainable operating base through disciplined budget management, cost control, and strategic planning across multiple business entities.
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Restructured the organisation's operational model, consolidating multiple roles into a leaner, more efficient team while maintaining full operational output.
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Served as the organisation's national media spokesperson, appearing in numerous publications and playing a central role in the "Book Direct" movement to protect independent operators against OTA commission pressure.
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Oversaw the acquisition of the organisation's first motel property and the divestment of a proprietary software platform, diversifying revenue beyond the traditional membership model.
VCAL & VET Facilitator
Advance Community College
2010 - 2016
I spent six and a half years working with disengaged and at-risk young people across three campuses on the Mornington Peninsula, delivering VCAL and VET programs. VCAL facilitation has an average burnout rate of two to two and a half years, and staying for six and a half was a deliberate choice, driven by the genuine rewards of watching students find their footing and move forward.
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Supported students from disengagement through to apprenticeships, employment, further education, and return to mainstream schooling.
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Collaborated on integrated curriculum development to address a broader range of Learning Outcomes and improve engagement for at-risk learners.
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Delivered across three distinct cohorts simultaneously, including at-risk youth, adult VET learners, and community business participants through Peninsula Business Network IT training.
Hospitality Leadership
Food & Beverage Manager, Duty Manager, Co-Manager
1998 - 2010
More than a decade in operational and management roles across hotels, accommodation venues, restaurants, and golf resorts gave me a hands-on grounding in customer experience, team leadership, financial controls, and commercial relationship building. I progressed steadily into management roles, often through direct approaches from employers who had seen the work.
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As F&B Manager at Moonah Links Golf Resort, supervised the Australian Legal Convention, a major national gathering of judges, legal professionals, and academics.
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Independently identified and secured delayed flight overflow business at Airport Motel & Convention Centre, which led to a direct approach from Holiday Inn Tullamarine to join as Duty Manager and replicate that success.
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Co-managed the bistro at Marine Hotel Brighton alongside front bar operations, building early leadership experience in a high-volume licensed venue environment.
Communications Specialist
Royal Australian Navy
1992 - 1998
Six years in the Navy as a Communications Specialist gave me the foundations that have shaped everything since, including discipline, accountability, adaptability, and the ability to perform under pressure in environments where getting it wrong isn't an option. I participated in multinational exercises, regional deployments across South East Asia and the Pacific, and peacekeeping operations.
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Selected to serve as Acting Leading Seaman during RIMPAC 96, one of the world's largest international naval exercises, performing above my substantive rank when it counted.
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Became the first Able Seaman within the Communications Branch invited to complete the Radio Frequency Tactical Management Course, a qualification restricted to Leading Seamen, finishing second out of 18 candidates with a 96% average.
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My performance on that course directly influenced a change in Navy promotion policy, with the course subsequently made mandatory for Able Seamen seeking promotion to Leading Seaman.
Qualifications
Academic Background
Currently Study
Master of Business Administration (MBA):
Swinburne University of Technology (In Progress)
Currently completing a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a focus on leadership, strategy, customer experience, governance, organisational performance, and business growth.
Formal Qualifications
Certificate IV: Training & Assessment (TAE with LLN update)
Certificate IV: Work Health & Safety (WHS)
Certificate III: Business Administration
Certificate III: Hospitality
Certificate III: Information Technology
Royal Australian Navy Communications Specialist Training
Professional Certifications
Various Microsoft Office & Office365 Courses
Xero Advisor Certificate
Professional Philosophy
"I believe learning should never stop. Throughout my career I have continued to invest in professional development across leadership, governance, business operations, technology, customer experience, and organisational performance".
Career Highlights
Professional Milestones
Building a sustainable national organisation
Since joining Budget Motels Australia in 2016, I have helped transform the organisation into a leaner, more diversified, and more sustainably governed business. What began as a single operational role has grown to encompass governance, financial management, marketing, technology, compliance, and Board reporting, absorbing the functions of multiple former positions while maintaining full operational output with a significantly smaller team.
Diversifying beyond the founding model
One of the more significant strategic shifts during my time at Budget Motels has been moving the organisation beyond its traditional membership model. Overseeing the acquisition of the organisation's first motel property and the divestment of a proprietary software platform were meaningful steps toward a more resilient and commercially diversified business.
A voice for independent accommodation operators
I have served as the national media spokesperson for Budget Motels Australia, representing the interests of independent accommodation operators across Australia through industry publications, media interviews, and stakeholder engagement. Playing a central role in the "Book Direct" movement has been particularly meaningful, helping operators understand and push back against the commission pressure imposed by online travel agencies.
Six and a half years with students others had given up on
Working with disengaged and at-risk young people at Advance Community College for six and a half years was one of the most personally rewarding chapters of my career. VCAL facilitation has a well-recognised average burnout rate of two to two and a half years. Staying well beyond that, and watching students move from disengagement into apprenticeships, employment, and further education, reinforced something I have always believed: that patience, consistency, and genuine human connection are leadership skills too.
Performing above rank in the Royal Australian Navy
During RIMPAC 96, one of the world's largest international naval exercises, I was selected to serve as Acting Leading Seaman, above my substantive rank. That performance led to an invitation with no precedent in the Navy at the time, becoming the first Able Seaman within the Communications Branch invited to complete the Radio Frequency Tactical Management Course, a qualification previously restricted to Leading Seamen preparing for promotion to Petty Officer. I finished second out of 18 candidates with a 96% average, and my performance directly influenced a subsequent change in Navy promotion policy.
A career built on being approached, not just applying
A thread I have noticed across my career is that some of its most significant moves came through direct approaches rather than applications. Holiday Inn approached me because of commercial relationships I had built independently at Airport Motel. Budget Motels approached me for a role that has since grown far beyond its original scope. I take that as evidence that doing the work well, and building genuine relationships along the way, tends to open doors that job boards don't.