Wiley author, 25‑year global CEO and keynote speaker on disciplined leadership
Dane Hudson is a seasoned international leader, having been a CEO for over 25 years in five different industries, a testament to his belief that effective leadership transcends industry boundaries. His most recent role saw him at the helm of a workforce of over 200,000 employees across the Asia Pacific region.
With a career marked by transformative leadership and a dedication to empowering others, Dane Hudson is an inspirational figure in the world of leadership and business. His Impactful Leadership framework and extensive experience make him a sought-after speaker and mentor, endeavouring to leave a lasting impact on individuals and organizations alike.
The framework
Combining six years in strategy consulting, eight years as a CFO, more than twenty-five years as a CEO and over 150 CEO mentoring engagements, Dane has developed one of the most practical leadership frameworks available today.
In 2020, he introduced Impactful Leadership, a model that revolves around three pivotal pillars essential for leaders to master: being disciplined, driving change, and hands-on practicality. Dane's comprehensive methodology goes beyond theory, offering practical frameworks and templates that empower leaders to authentically express their unique leadership styles and make a profound impact. As a result of his expertise, Dane has become the preferred coach for top Venture Capital and Private Equity funds in Asia, sought after to nurture and develop their founders and CEOs.
Dane Hudson is a seasoned international leader who provides coaching, mentoring and advisory services to CEOs, founders and C-level leaders through his company, Impactful Leadership. Since 2020, he has mentored and advised over 150 founders and CEOs of start-ups and SMEs in Asia, Australia, New Zealand and India, and CEOs of significant businesses with revenues between US$150 million and US$3 billion. Over 900 C-level and high-potential leaders have also trained in Impactful Leadership content. The companies supported span a wide range of industries, including deep technology solutions, quick service restaurants, facilities, resources, health and wellness, renewable energy, agriculture and aquaculture, fintech and mental health.
In 2022, Dane expanded his reach by embarking on a journey as a keynote speaker, leveraging his extensive experience and the impactful leadership content he has meticulously crafted.
The career
Prior to starting Impactful Leadership, Dane demonstrated breadth, agility and diverse skill, having driven major strategic shifts, operational turnarounds and leadership team restructuring, and led mergers, acquisitions and divestments. He has also experienced and led teams through a comprehensive range of crises that occur in international business.
In his career, Dane has held a range of key executive roles, including Senior Vice President and Chief of Finance and Development for Yum Restaurants International (NYSE-listed owner of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut), CEO of ASX-listed Australian Vintage (one of Australia's largest wine companies), and Regional CEO of ISS Asia Pacific (one of the world's largest facility services providers), with responsibility for over 200,000 employees across Asia.
The education
Dane holds a Bachelor of Engineering from Sydney University and an MBA from Columbia Business School. He has completed the Executive Management Program at Stanford Business School, is a certified director from the Australian Institute of Directors (GAICD), is a certified Professional Management Consultant (PMC) in Singapore, and is a certified Everything DiSC Facilitator. He holds a postgraduate diploma, is an accredited executive coach from the Hult Ashridge executive education school in the UK, and in October 2022 was recognised by the global coaching organisation EMCC as a Senior Practitioner, one of the highest coaching levels achievable. Dane is a graduate of the Hoffman Process and a 20-plus year member of the global CEO organisation, YPO.
Away from work
Dane has been married for almost forty years and has three daughters, well progressed in building successful careers of their own while maintaining balanced lives.
Bio, at three lengths
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Dane Hudson is a Wiley author, keynote speaker and former global CEO. Over twenty-five years he led businesses across five industries, most recently as Regional CEO of ISS Asia Pacific with responsibility for more than 200,000 employees. He has since mentored over 150 CEOs and founders.
Dane Hudson is a Wiley author, keynote speaker and former global CEO. Combining six years in strategy consulting, eight years as a CFO and more than twenty-five years as a CEO across five industries, he has developed one of the most practical leadership frameworks available today. His most recent executive role was Regional CEO of ISS Asia Pacific, with responsibility for over 200,000 employees across Asia. Earlier roles included Senior Vice President and Chief of Finance and Development for Yum Restaurants International, and CEO of ASX-listed Australian Vintage. In 2020 he introduced Impactful Leadership, and has since mentored more than 150 founders and CEOs and trained over 900 leaders. His book, Discipline Beats Vision, was published by Wiley in 2026. He speaks internationally on the disciplined behaviours that turn ambition into achievement.
Wavemaker Partners is a Singapore-headquartered Venture Capital firm investing in early-stage enterprise, deep technology and sustainability startups in Southeast Asia. Over the last ten years of operation, we have invested in over 160 startups. Dane Hudson was appointed Venture Advisor on 1 April 2021 and has been actively supporting over 50 portfolio companies through board directorship, leadership development and coaching, CEO mentoring and skills development. Dane provides Leadership Coaching and Mentoring services to our portfolio companies. Beyond Directorship and Leadership Coaching, He also facilitates Wavemaker Partner's Scaling Curriculum, a series of workshops for our entrepreneurs on topics around leadership, strategy, organisational design and organisational development. The impact that Dane has had on our entrepreneurs and their business is significant. I highly recommend Dane Hudson as a coach and advisor. His extensive global executive experience and his Impactful Leadership content makes him a significant contributor to any CEO, Founder or leader.
I am very grateful for Dane's guidance throughout one of the most challenging and transformative periods of my career and as new CEO of a large ASX-listed company. I valued the assistance in managing the diverse personalities and agendas within the board while giving me perspective and helping to establish a robust strategy. What made the engagement with Impactful Leadership so powerful was your flexibility to pivot and address leadership challenges as they emerged, always ready to chop and change your teachings depending on my specific needs in the moment. Your depth of experience allowed me to engage meaningfully with every opportunity and challenge I brought to the table (and there were many) while maintaining focus on the overall objectives. You gave me the confidence and clarity needed to lead effectively through this period of profound change. What began as a six-month engagement ultimately extended well beyond that because of the skills & support you provided to both me and the organisation.
Dane was my executive coach for the last 2 or so years since the beginning of Pluang and has been a great mentor, teacher and coach to improve my leadership skills. He has been a valuable resource in helping us through tough decisions and challenges, as well as in working with Richard and I on improving our leadership capabilities. We found the frameworks for things like HR and decision making particularly useful. Thanks so much Dane in helping us become better leaders! Still got a lot of work to do to get us there but very happy with the overall progress! They say it is lonely as a Founder and Dane helps make it a lot less so.
I initially went into coaching fairly skeptical. I wasn't convinced it would add much value and thought it might end up being a bit of a formality. I'm glad I was wrong. Working with Dane has helped me become a much more aware and intentional leader in a relatively short period of time. What has been most impactful is that the work hasn't been about big theories or frameworks, but about small behaviors that really matter. Things like listening more carefully, speaking last in discussions, being more conscious of how I show up, and building stronger trust and feedback loops with my team. Those small changes have had a real impact. I feel the difference in how I lead and several colleagues have mentioned that they've noticed a shift as well. Dane has a great ability to challenge you in a constructive way while keeping everything practical and grounded in real situations. I'm grateful for the impact he's had on my leadership and would strongly recommend him to anyone looking to grow as a leader.
Dane has supported me as a coach and mentor for close to a year. Although I am an experienced multi-national CEO running Australia's largest renewable energy company, his coaching and Impactful Leadership content has provided clear direction and initiatives for me to build increased trust with my team, while also maintaining discipline and accountability. I strongly encourage any CEO to speak with Dane, as I am sure he will be able to assist them on their leadership journey.
I have known Dane Hudson for over seven years. He is a very experienced executive and builds and develops diverse and strong teams. He has knowledge, skills and expertise of a variety of businesses and he has strong strategic and operational skills. In addition to his intellectual capabilities, he has significant emotional intelligence and great communication skills. He understands how to develop strong cultures and is uniquely experienced in both Asia and the West. Dane is also a good listener and is a very experienced mentor and coach. I would recommend him to anyone who wants a trusted confidant who can help develop their career and develop their leadership skills and how to get strong followership.
