About Professor Paul Makeham

Paul is the Director of Corporate Education (Creative Industries Faculty). In this role, he leads the Faculty’s work in Corporate and Executive Education at QUT. Prior to taking up this role in 2017, Paul was Head of the School of Media, Entertainment and Creative Arts (2012-16). From 2007-11, he was Portfolio Director (Drama, Film & TV, Creative Writing). From 2002-06, he was Foundation Course Coordinator of QUT’s Bachelor of Creative Industries, the world’s first Bachelor program of its type. His PhD study of discourses of landscape in Australian drama was completed at the University of Newcastle in 1996. From 2012-15, he was Chair of the Board of La Boite Theatre Company. Paul is also a past President of ADSA, the Australasian Association for Theatre, Drama and Performance Studies. He was a Chief Investigator on the ARC-funded AusStage project for eight years (2004-11). Paul has an extensive record of achievement as a producer, writer, presenter and performer. He leads a range of commercial consultancies which incorporate Applied Theatre techniques. This work has a training and professional development focus, and commonly incorporates an original Applied Theatre model termed a ‘Prophetical’. Complementing this work, Paul has been engaged by the Queensland Department of Health’s Patient Safety Centre as Chief Investigator on an ‘Open Disclosure Training’ research consultancy. With colleague Dr Mark Radvan, Paul wrote the ‘Planning OD Simulations’ component of an Open Disclosure Training Program Handbook published by the Queensland Department of Health.

Intuitive Leadership: Drawing from the well of unconscious intelligence

Posted by Professor Paul Makeham on 6 April, 2018

Intuition vs reasoning

Intuition is the supra-logic that cuts out all the routine processes of thought and leaps straight from the problem to the answer. – Robert Graves

Trust your hunches. They’re usually based on facts filed away just below the conscious level. – Joyce Brothers

Much of the published commentary on leadership in recent decades has wrestled with the contentious concept of intuition. Theories and perspectives abound. Most commentators agree, however, that in an age of information overload, the best leaders draw from a deep well of unconscious intelligence at least as much as they rely on conscious, rational, evidence-based decision making.

Gaining the Creative Edge in Critical Situations

Posted by Professor Paul Makeham on 14 July, 2017

How Arts-based Learning Strengthens Agility in Professional Environments

Adapted from an original article by Grace Kirk.

Paramedics handle high-intensity situations on a daily basis. Traditionally, their training is technical and process-driven, so that ambulance officers can work together to save a life. For paramedic team leaders, a new set of challenges awaits them when they arrive back at the station. In an office, being reactive and action-oriented – traits usually respected in their field – can be detrimental to effective leadership.

In response to this tension, a team of QUT EX Creative Leadership experts is collaborating with the Queensland Ambulance Service to design and deliver the Classified Officers’ Development Program (CODP). Read more