RMIA x Battleground Disaster Reduction Week Podcast

33 minute video

Live Podcast | Battleground Chats | When Crisis Hits Home: Lessons in Leadership from Waverley Council

8.00am – 8.30am AEDT

Battleground Chats is a risk and resilience podcast hosted by Craig Goldberg, CEO and Founder of Battleground, a company that offers resilience solutions. The podcast features conversations with industry experts who share their experiences and insights on managing and mitigating risks.

To launch RMIA Disaster Reduction Week, Craig Goldberg, CEO & Founder of Battleground, is joined by Ben Thompson, Director Community, Culture and Customer Experience at Waverley Council, and Jane Whiter, RMIA President, for a candid conversation about leading through major community incidents.

Drawing on Waverley Council’s experience responding to events affecting the Bondi precinct and Westfield, the discussion will explore what leaders need to understand when a crisis moves quickly from an unfolding incident to a community-wide concern. The conversation will consider early situational awareness, coordination across agencies and services, public communication, support for affected people, recovery, and the lessons that reshape future readiness.

This is not a retrospective about perfect plans. It is a practical conversation about the human, operational and leadership realities of protecting communities when disruption is felt first at home.

Battleground is proud to partner with the RMIA for Disaster Reduction Week, an initiative grounded in our shared commitment to focus on the decisions, systems and leadership that protect people where disruption is felt first: in homes, communities and frontline services. Together, we’ll use executive forums, case studies and live crisis simulations to show how integrated resilience technology, risk‑informed investment and practical leadership can turn understanding into action.

For Battleground, supporting this week is about delivering practical tools and actionable insights that truly make a difference in how organisations prepare for and respond to crisis. We recognise the urgency in raising public awareness about resilience and the pivotal role risk leaders play in safeguarding Australia’s future.

Battleground is committed to setting new benchmarks for excellence and helping risk professionals grow in their careers. By collaborating on this comprehensive series, from a live podcast and interactive webinars to real-time simulations, we aim to spark vital conversations, showcase cutting-edge solutions, and inspire leadership throughout the community.