Asialink Leaders Program

Foster a shared understanding of Asia and lead deeper dialogue around issues that are vital to our engagement with the region and future prosperity.

Curated to Asia’s rapidly evolving environment, some of the core themes explored throughout the Asialink Leaders Program include:

• Why Australia-Asia engagement matters: Understand the context for Australia’s strategic, foreign, economic and trade, industry and innovation agendas.
• Geostrategic shifts: Explore the changing geopolitics and geoeconomics in our region and uncover the implications for Australia’s engagement with Asia.
• Our evolving Identity, Image and Influence: Reflect on our collective and individual histories in order to build sustainable, trusted relationships throughout the region and strengthen our ability to connect, collaborate and influence.
• Inclusive and sustainable growth: Explore the role Australia can play in addressing the biggest challenges of our time, contributing towards the Green Economy shift and inclusive prosperity in the region, while ensuring Australia’s long-term competitiveness.
• Acceleration of digital Innovation: With Asia at the forefront of many of the new technologies that drive growth and enhance daily life, consider how Australia can engage with digital transformation in our region.

Delivered across nine-months, the program offers deep expertise, practical skills, and influential networks for engaging with Asia. The program is delivered in a hybrid format consisting of in-person and virtual modules. The learning journey includes:

• Three intensive multi-day core modules: As a national cohort, explore key themes and practical topics to help you navigate the complex and fast-changing Asia region.
• City hub intersessions/networking: Gather in city-based smaller groups, deep dive into key areas of Asia capability in applied sessions and expand your local network.
• Workplace Project: A practical, Asia-focused project on which you apply the skills and knowledge you gain in the program to achieve organisational or sector outcomes.
• Pod coaching sessions: Shape your Workplace Project together with a select group of fellow Leaders, via a facilitated process with input from peers, Asialink executives and alumni.
• Online learning platform: Offers exclusive access to program resources which includes a range of practical tools, video and reading materials, to maximise learning beyond the individual modules.

The Asialink Leaders Program Virtual Hub is a pathway for leaders based in Asia, or in regional or rural Australia, to join online, or upgrade for both online and in-person access.

The Virtual Hub offers access to select virtual-only components of the program through a facilitator-led, virtually delivered journey, designed to enable you to engage with expert content and to build deep connections. Numbers for the Virtual Hub are strictly limited to ensure diverse and intimate class sizes

Request our Asialink Leaders Program Virtual Hub brochure by contacting us here.

Watch and listen to what our Leaders Alumni Melita Grant and Brenton Garlick say about the Asialink Leaders Program.

CEO, QANTM Intellectual Property

Researcher/Curator, University of Western Australia

Senior Associate, Herbert Smith Freehills

International Relations Manager, Football Federation Australia

Head of Business Development & Partnerships, QAGOMA

Offshore & Alliance Partnerships Manager, BUPA

Head, Digital Operations, Australian Broadcasting Corporation

South Asia Regional Manager, Oxfam Australia

Director, Consulting, PwC

Regional Manager - Oceania, CPA Australia

Director, Asia Business Group, KPMG

Senior Export Adviser, NSW Trade & Investment

Director, Warrnambool Campus, Deakin University

Head of FX Investor Sales, Australia, NZ, ANZ

Applications for fellowship opportunities are now closed.

We were delighted to offer a number of other fellowship opportunities for outstanding individuals to be awarded a funded place in the 2024 Asialink Leaders Program:

• Sir Edward Weary Dunlop Asialink Fellowship for two Leaders in the not-for-profit sector.

• Susan Gin Asialink Leaders Fellowship for a Leader in rural/regional Australia.

• ​Asialink Leaders Arts Fellowship for one Leader in the Arts and Creative Industries.

• Asialink First Nations Fellowship for an Indigenous Leader based in Australia or Asia.
• William Buckland First Nations Fellowship for a Victoria-based Indigenous Leader.

• Asialink Virtual Hub Fellowship for a not-for-profit Leader based in Asia.

The aim of the fellowship program is to enable individuals from a diversity of backgrounds and sectors to join the Asialink Leaders Program; Australia’s flagship professional development program on Asia.

Continue to build your Asia capabilities, profile and connections with Asialink Leaders Program Alumni across Australia, the region and the world.

On completion of the Asialink Leaders Program become part of a vibrant global alumni network with more than 1,100 active alumni members who can provide ongoing advice, support and networking opportunities in Australia and the Asia region.

Some of the activities we organise for the Asialink Leaders Program alumni each year include:

• Access to keynote speaker sessions
• Exclusive invitations to our thought leadership launch events
• Showcasing of Leaders Alumni in our socials and e-newsletter Asialink Business 
• Exclusive alumni invitations to join components of the Asialink Leaders Program such as Foundation Week launch events and the Canberra Summit Alumni Program

Where is the program run?
The Asialink Leaders Program is run in major cities in Australia, such as Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane, as well as virtually. Each year brings together the cohort in different ways. Programs are run consecutively from March to November. All locations are subject to minimum numbers.

Locations to be determined based upon levels of interest, with delivery mode subject to impact of COVID-19 restrictions.

What happens after I submit an application?
An email will be sent to notify you of whether you have been successful in reaching the interview stage. If successful, an interview will be arranged. Following the interviews, successful applicants will be notified of their acceptance into the program by letter.

What does the program cost?

The cost of the Asialink Leaders Program in 2024 is: $11,900 + GST

We are also excited to offer a Virtual Hub for Leaders based in Asia, or in regional and rural Australia. The cost of the Virtual Hub (Virtual delivery) is: $7,900 + GST + optional in-person attendance at Canberra Summit $1,900 + GST.

The program fee covers all costs relating to the scheduled program, except where flights, accommodation and incidentals are concerned in relation to your program attendance as relevant.

What opportunities are there for me after the program?
Upon completion of the Asialink Leaders Program you become part of the Asialink network, and are invited to public events, conferences, and given other opportunities to participate in specialist events. In addition, you are welcomed into the Asialink Leaders Program alumni network. This is a diverse, strong and vibrant network of leaders working across the globe.

What type of people are accepted into the Asialink Leaders Program?
Successful applicants are outstanding leaders from a diverse range of sectors including corporate, education, community, media, environment, government, the arts, and many more. Participants generally hold a leadership position within their organisation. Participants come from a range of backgrounds, some with little Asia experience and some with extensive knowledge of the region.

How much time do I need to commit to the program?
Throughout the nine-month program, the in-person cohort meets for a total of 11 days in a mix of face-to-face and virtual sessions. The Virtual Hub meets for 7.5 days in total. Some time is also required outside these contact hours to complete your Workplace Project. 

Who facilitates this program?
As Australia’s National Centre for Asia Capability, supported by the University of Melbourne, Asialink Business is uniquely positioned to convene leading voices who address the challenges and opportunities of contemporary Asia. Asialink Leaders Program facilitators are Asia specialists, experts in cross-cultural communication and global leadership. In addition, Asialink brings in foreign policy, politics, business, arts, the media, and leaders from other sectors and organisations to bring invaluable insights to the Program.