In this talk at the 2016 Human Synergistics Australian Conference, Michael Combs, Founder and CEO of CareerTrackers, talks about the three principals he had when starting the business; being tested on those principles; tapping into the pool of talent otherwise locked out of professional careers as well as his own challenges as a leader particularly knowing when to get out of the way.
Michael is a graduate of the University of Northern Colorado where he earned a degree in Business Administration with a major in finance, marketing and a minor in legal studies. As a participant in the INROADS internship program for ethnic minorities in the United States, Michael was awarded an internship with Hewlett-Packard for five consecutive summers. He later utilised this experience to establish the CareerTrackers Indigenous Internship Program in 2009. Over the past 7 years, that program has supported 1,138 Indigenous university students into professional careers.
In 2000 Michael was named a Gates Millennium Scholar, in 2003 was awarded the United States Congressional Medal of Service for community outreach and development. In 2013 he was recognised in the inaugural Westpac Community Leaders Award for Social Entrepreneurship and in 2015 was named a True Leader by the Financial Review.