In this episode of Hearts & Mines, David is joined by co-host Stuart Chandler to speak with Brendan Tritton, MD and CEO of Valiant Gold. A country kid from WA turned mining engineer, Brendan has moved from underground crews to the private sector and now into the public arena, leading the restart of the Comet and Reedy gold operations spun out of Westgold.

This is a candid, wide-ranging conversation about what genuine leadership looks like at the helm of a newly listed junior, why connecting with people as humans comes before strategy, and how to manage complexity and uncertainty when you are building systems and culture from scratch. Brendan shares the "prove you wrong" moment that shaped his drive, the value of vulnerability and servant leadership, and why 80% is sometimes good enough to keep momentum. A genuinely warm and insightful conversation from one of WA's emerging mining leaders.

David Beilby 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidbeilby/

Alana Bray-White 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/alana-bray-white-8b4478219/

ivy & gecko 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/ivy-gecko

 

Timecodes:

(00:00) Cold open: proving them wrong and connecting as humans

(01:55) Welcome to Brendan Tritton and co-host Stuart Chandler

(02:25) A WA country upbringing and the "prove you wrong" moment

(07:00) Falling in love with mining and underground camaraderie

(09:20) What leadership means: leader-leader over leader-follower

(11:05) Empathy, humility and exposing vulnerability

(14:05) The navigation exercise: ego, pausing and adjusting

(17:25) Managing the restart of Comet and Reedy

(18:55) ASX listing and the path back to production

(23:20) Pitching the value proposition of a new junior

(29:55) Listening well and hiring for authenticity over the CV

(35:25) The biggest challenge: attracting young people into mining

(38:20) Approvals processes and WA slipping down the rankings

(40:10) AI at Valiant: building without legacy systems

(42:35) Rapid fire: hope, highlights, advice and a warm wrap

 

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Recorded and produced by Podwave Studios:https://podwavestudios.au/

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in 'Hearts & Mines' are those of the podcast participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of ivy & gecko or any other agency, organisation, employer, or company associated with the podcast. Content provided is for informational purposes only.

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