The Global Entrepreneurship Network Australia (GEN Australia) has appointed Craig Josic (“CJ”) as its Managing Director. CJ takes on the role at a pivotal point for GEN Australia. The organization was formally established in 2022 to connect Australia's innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem with the global network and host the GEC in Melbourne in 2023 – which brought together over 2,400 founders, investors, policymakers and ecosystem builders from 125 countries.
In this role, CJ will lead three immediate priorities: building Australia's delegation to the GEC in Doha, Qatar from 21–24 September 2026; coordinating Australia's first national participation in Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) from 16–22 November 2026; and strengthening connections across the national ecosystem to link founders, investors, researchers, government, and the organizations that support them.
CJ participated in GEC Melbourne in 2023, where he supported a Queensland delegation and saw first-hand what happens when local ecosystem builders connect with global counterparts.
“Australia has a strong innovation ecosystem, but too much of it operates in silos – by state, by sector, by stage,” said CJ. “The GEC isn't just a conference. It's where founders, investors, policymakers, and ecosystem builders from around the world come together to solve shared problems. My focus is to make sure Australia is in that room and contributing, not just observing.”
Chair's statement
Dr. Chad Renando, Chair of GEN Australia, said the appointment reflects the organization's readiness for its next chapter.
“GEN Australia was deeply informed by the work we did preparing for the 2023 GEC through over 500 conversations with ecosystem leaders across the country, mapping challenges and opportunities across sectors, regions, and roles. What we heard consistently was that Australia's innovation ecosystem has real depth, but the connective tissue can be lacking to turn that depth into collective impact.
“That’s the gap GEN Australia exists to fill. Not to duplicate what others are doing, but to connect it nationally and globally. CJ understands that. He’s built ecosystems from the ground up, he knows how to align people around shared purpose, and he gets that the real work happens between the events, not just at them.
“His immediate focus will be on the GEC delegation and building out Australia’s contribution to Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW). But the bigger picture is building the infrastructure for ongoing collaboration.”
About CJ
Craig Josic, also known as CJ is an entrepreneur, ecosystem builder, and a passionate advocate for innovation and entrepreneurship across Australia.
CJ’s entrepreneurial journey began in Newcastle, NSW, delivering newspapers as a young paperboy, where he developed the grit, curiosity, and appreciation for connecting people that continue to shape his work today. Since then, CJ has built and contributed to ventures and businesses across a diverse range of sectors, including health, media, building, and education.
Following the Sunshine Coast’s recognition by Google as an eTown in 2013, CJ became an original co-founder of Silicon Coast, helping build one of Australia’s most collaborative regional innovation communities. Over the past decade, he has helped drive hundreds of ecosystem initiatives, founder programs, partnerships, and events that have connected startups, investors, universities, government, and industry leaders across Queensland and beyond.
In 2018, CJ helped facilitate collaboration around Queensland’s international submarine cable project a transformational piece of infrastructure that strengthened the state’s global digital connectivity and innovation capability. He also played a key role in 2022 evolving Innovation Week into FWD Fest brand, now recognised nationally as one of Australia’s leading innovation and entrepreneurship festivals.
Today, CJ serves as Co-Director of the Queensland AI Hub Sunshine Coast, Co-Founder of Innovation Powerhouse, and Managing Director of GEN Australia, where he also represents Australia as Ambassador to the Global Entrepreneurship Congress and Global Entrepreneurship Week.
Through his work locally and globally, CJ continues to champion a simple but powerful belief that extraordinary things happen when people, ideas, and communities come together with trust, vision, and a shared purpose.
About GEN
The Global Entrepreneurship Network operates in 200 countries with a mission to make it easier for anyone, anywhere, to start and scale a business. By fostering deeper cross-border collaboration between founders, investors, policymakers, ecosystem leaders and others, GEN fuels healthier and more efficient local and national entrepreneurship ecosystems.
In the past year, GEN has supported 2.24 million entrepreneurs, mobilized $4M+ in funding for entrepreneurs, partnered with 1,000+ entrepreneurial support organizations and engaged more than 300 policymakersworldwide in efforts to advance policies and programs to help businesses start and scale.
Get involved
We invite entrepreneurs, investors, universities, government leaders, and ecosystem partners across Australia to join the Australian delegation to GEC Doha 2026 or participate in Australia's first national Global Entrepreneurship Week campaign in November 2026.