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As announced in September, Glad Group has entered a joint venture partnership with Glad Indigenous to deliver cleaning, security, and traffic management services across Australia.
Glad Indigenous is proud to welcome Scott Franks as CEO of this exciting venture. Scott is committed to building a partnership to deliver opportunity, education, and development for Indigenous communities across Australia.
As we wanted to introduce Scott to the Glad Family, we caught up with him to find out more about him.
Who is Scott Franks?
Scott is a Wonnarua person from the Hunter Valley NSW, their people are the traditional owners of the area around Maitland, Singleton Scone area of the Hunter and upper Hunter Valley.
Scott was born in Singleton and raised on his family property, a farming and beef cattle station. At the age of 17, Scott joined the Royal Australian Army and was attached to the RAAC (Royal Australian Armor Corps).
After a long career with the defence service, Scott established Tocomwall, an Aboriginal archaeological firm about 15 years ago. Scott was also the chairperson of Wanaruah Local Aboriginal Land Council (WLALC) for 2 years before moving to Sydney after taking on Heritage contracts.
Cultural history
Scott is a Wonnarua person and one of the appointed Native title claimants and applicants for these First Nations people. In that role, he and the other Claimant have been authorised to deal with and represent the Wonnarua people about Native title claims – heritage assessment – and contract opportunities within the claimed area. Whilst being a native title claimant is extremely important it also represents the trust and confidence the Wonnarua people have in Scott to do the right thing for their people today and to ensure that future generations have inter-generational benefits available to them.
The importance of Glad Indigenous
From a company perspective, Glad Indigenous offers great opportunities to First Nations people wherever it operates. The benefits for training and long-term employment for the community are outstanding. Glad Indigenous has a core basic function with the management team and board members which ensures local people are employed and trained where those contracts are awarded. Glad Indigenous will also be ensuring First Nations people are in a position for further training and promotion, providing career pathways.
Glad Indigenous will service contracts across remote Australia and seek to deliver opportunity to local Aboriginal communities. As a First Nations person, Scott first-hand knows what Indigenous communities deal with when it comes to employment and broader economic opportunity and as such he is committed to working to bridge the gap through learning, employment and meaningful engagement.
Scott Franks’ experience will support Glad Indigenous in becoming a competitive player for cleaning, security, and traffic control services
Over the years Scott has chaired Local Aboriginal land councils, been appointed on state government advisory panels, and worked with several communities across Australia. Understanding the APIC policy and having close working relationships with several tiers 1, mining companies, and government departments, have given Scott the insight to know that experience is only ever as good as your relationships and network. Scott’s experience will help take Glad Indigenous to the next level and will ensure First Nations people get the best opportunities and support to succeed.
Supporting Indigenous communities at the core of Glad Indigenous’ purpose
Scott and the rest of the team have taken the time to base the establishment of Glad Indigenous on solid advice from Glad Group’s senior management team and other corporate advisors to ensure the company is built for success.
This places Glad Indigenous in a unique position, with the tools needed to deliver opportunity and learn from the stories, wisdom, and cultural heritage of the First Nations people we connect with, regardless of what mob those communities come from.
Welcome Scott Franks CEO
If you’re interested in Glad Indigenous services or opportunities, follow us on LinkedIn and don’t hesitate to reach out!
Scott Franks (CEO) is a Wonnarua man from the Hunter Valley region.
