Scentre Group recognised with global HR award for investment in leadership development and capability

Scentre Group, owner and operator of Westfield destinations in Australia and New Zealand, is amongst a cohort of global companies to be recognised for people and leadership practices that place capability at the centre of business transformation.

The inaugural HR Pacesetter Award, awarded by global human resources and advisory firm The Josh Bersin Company, has recognised Scentre Group’s investment in leadership development through its bespoke Innovative Enterprise Leadership Program delivered in partnership with the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business Executive Education.

The program was designed to build enterprise leadership, strategic thinking, curiosity, and the capability to lead change across the organisation. It combined academic frameworks, simulations and outside-in learning to help leaders transition from functional expertise to broader enterprise leadership and apply that thinking to live business challenges. The program saw 17 leaders complete an immersive on-campus experience at USC Marshall Executive Education, while tailored modules were delivered to a further 200 leaders from across the business in Australia.

Scentre Group Chief Executive Officer Elliott Rusanow said: “We are proud to receive this global recognition, which reflects the strength of our people and the deliberate investment we are making in leadership capability.

“Our business continues to grow. Our Westfield destinations attracted 540 million customer visits in 2025, in line with our ambition to attract more people, more often and for longer to our destinations.

“Delivering on our strategy in the long-term requires us to attract, develop and retain the best talent and capability. As our business evolves, we are investing in leaders that can consider the whole of enterprise, apply commercial judgement and bring an outside-in perspective to decisions that create value for our customers, business partners, communities and securityholders.

“Our partnership with USC Marshall Executive Education has enabled us to achieve this in a way that is meaningful to our strategy, our culture and future growth. We have continued to integrate these approaches into our enterprise capability framework.”

The judges recognised the strength of the business challenge addressed, the cross-functional nature of the program, its focus on future-oriented capabilities and the clear link between leadership development and measurable business outcomes.

Scentre Group Director Human Resources Maria Stamoulis said: “This recognition reflects the strength of the partnership we have built with USC Marshall Executive Education and the deliberate way we have designed leadership development to support our strategy and culture.

“This was not an off-the-shelf program. We worked closely with USC Marshall Executive Education to create a tailored experience that helps our leaders apply enterprise thinking to real business challenges and strengthen the capabilities that will matter most for the future.

“The recognition from The Josh Bersin Company provides strong external validation of our people strategy and the role leadership development plays in building capability, performance and long-term business impact.”

The award was announced at The Josh Bersin Company’s fifth annual Irresistible Conference in Los Angeles and places Scentre Group among organisations delivering creative, data-informed people solutions with measurable business impact.