First Nations leadership pathways: Ian Hamm MAICD

The AICD recently hosted an evening session alongside the Company Directors Course in Melbourne for Scholars on the First Nations Director Scholarship exclusively for First Nations attendees. Ian Hamm MAICD, a board member at AICD and chair of the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation, shared with course participants advice from his long career on pathways to leadership in Australia and how to make a success of their board journeys.

Ian Hamm is not your typical board member or policy strategist. With more than three decades of experience in government and community sectors, Hamm, a Yorta Yorta man, has built a career strongly defined by purpose.

His passion? Transforming governance and leadership for the public good—especially through better representation of First Nations people in positions of influence, such as boards.

Pathways to senior positions can be achieved in different ways, but authentic leadership is the key, he told Company Directors Course attendees at the Melbourne Business School. “My greatest asset in the boardroom? I’m Aboriginal,” he says. “I see the world differently, and that’s what I bring.” It’s this unique perspective that adds value to the boardroom and helps push organisations toward more inclusive and meaningful outcomes.

It's a world view which is different from the mainstream, he believes. “What’s the point of being the richest person in the room if everyone else is poor?” he asks.

Instead, he advocates for a collective-driven economic philosophy aligned with First Nations values. "Aboriginal economics is about lifting communities, not just individuals. It’s about shared benefit—something that’s often missing from modern policy."

Today, at the Indigenous Land and Sea Corporation, Hamm ensures that proposals go beyond financials. “We ask: how will this benefit the community? Tell us the story. Don’t let us dictate it to you.” It’s a powerful reversal of top-down governance—one that prioritises agency and impact.

Hamm’s economic and policy views are not abstract. He recounts a haunting memory from the early 1990s, when First Nations cooperatives failed under the weight of misguided government programs. “Somebody rang me crying because their organisation had collapsed under debt,” he remembers. That moment left a permanent mark and shaped Hamm’s approach to governance: always consider the community impact, never reduce people to figures on a spreadsheet.

Advice for emerging leaders

For those aspiring to board roles, Hamm offers pragmatic yet profound advice. “Don’t do it just to say you’re on a board. Be committed to the organisation’s purpose. Know your role. And above all, be authentic.”

He warns against leadership for its own sake: “Leadership, in and of itself, is an empty vessel. What fills it is your purpose.”

Even though he joined his first board in 2000, Hamm didn’t study the Company Directors Course till 2019. “The first question people ask is, ‘Have you done the AICD course?’ So I went and did the course, which was excellent because it introduced me to the right people in the room.”

Whether mentoring others or championing diversity, Hamm returns to a single point: real leadership is grounded in who you are and why you do what you do. "People know when you’re the real deal. If you’re driven by what you hold in here,” he says, pointing to his heart, “they will find you”.

He believes the conventional model of governance—largely procedural and technical—has outlived its utility. In its place, he calls for a broader, more adaptive approach. "Improving governance means taking your capacity beyond the technical," he says. “You don’t need a Master’s degree in finance to be on a board, but you do need the vision to understand where the world is heading and what your organisation’s place is in it.”

He embodies a new model of leadership—one that bridges tradition and innovation, personal identity and public service, vision and pragmatism. His career challenges Australia to rethink governance not as a checklist, but as a mission - to elevate communities, ensure equity and create a better collective future. In a time marked by short-term politics and individual gain, he calls for more visionary rather than transactional thinking.

Leadership, Hamm adds, is not just about oversight—it’s about responsibility. “If you’re on a board, you’re not just doing a job; you are in a leadership role.”

Leading with purpose and pride

Despite starting out as a self-confessed "high school dropout", Hamm now has a deep knowledge of economics. His own journey into leadership was gradual yet impactful, beginning at the lowest rung of the Commonwealth Public Service ladder, and eventually becoming a senior executive. His first executive role in 2000 coincided with his first board appointment—president of the Western Region Football League in Melbourne. “That league needed dragging into the 21st century,” Hamm recalls. It was a transformative experience, both for the league and for Hamm himself.

That dual exposure—government executive and board president—was pivotal. When his public service career ended after three decades, Hamm made a bold decision to pursue board work full-time. “Do I go back to something I’m not really enthused about, or do I leap off a cliff and see where this takes me?” He leapt—and found himself in demand for board roles.

Did the decision work out? “I'm having the best part of my working life now,” he says. “I really like being on boards. It's really good. It's doing something that's doing public good.”

More about the Company Directors Course

If you have your sights set on a future seat at the table, you need a reputable governance education focused on strategic leadership—a course built especially for the boardroom. Deepen your understanding of organisational governance with Australia’s most renowned course for current, first-time or aspiring directors, senior executives, business leaders and board advisors. Learn more here about the Company Directors Course.

First Nations scholarships

The third (and final) round of our First Nations Director Scholarship opens for applications in July 2025, with courses anticipated to take place in early 2026. Be notified when the next round opens by registering onto our notification list, see our website for details.

Applications are open until June 1 for the AICD’s Board Governance Prescribed Body Corporate and Indigenous Community Organisation Scholarship Program 2025. In partnership with BHP, this program will provide governance education for up to 250 First Nations executives and aspiring board directors. Find out more here.