This CEO selected the wrong project partner. It was a brutal lesson

Early in his career, Beach Energy chief Brett Woods learnt the hard way to choose your business associates wisely and run a full risk matrix first.

Brett Woods was turned off the taste of coffee when he was a young boy and accidentally chose a coffee-flavoured chocolate instead of his favourite – Turkish Delight. Louie Douvis

Sally Patten and Lap Phan

Apr 8, 2025 – 5.00am

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Earlier in his career, Brett Woods, now chief executive of Adelaide-based oil and gas explorer Beach Energy, was working in Africa where he was trying to secure a licence.

He needed a local company to help secure the licence, and that’s where the trouble started.

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Sally PattenBOSS editorSally Patten edits BOSS, and writes about workplace issues. She was the financial services editor and personal finance editor of the AFR, The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald. She edited business news for The Times of London.