INTHEBLACK August 2025 - Magazine - Page 31
Her current role as COO has given
her exposure to the back end of a business
and how it operates across finance, risk
management, legal and procurement, ICT,
people and culture, strategy and insights.
“A lot of it you just learn on the job.
I can’t emphasise that enough. Being a
CPA obviously gives you the foundation,
but learning on the job over the years has
just been so invaluable,” Rozokos says.
“There are areas I didn’t specifically study,
but because I have 15 years’ experience
in the human resources space, for example,
I now know it very well.”
The variety of tasks and responsibilities
is why Rozokos is still at the SATC 15 years
later. From dealing with staff performance
issues and industrial relations matters,
budget cost pressures and legal matters,
to reviewing multimillion dollar contracts,
dealing with data breaches or potential
cybersecurity attacks — she says no day
is the same.
“I joke about it and say, ‘That’s why
I’m still here’. You are constantly challenged
and never bored in this role and this industry.
And that’s why I love it.”
RESILIENCE AND REINVENTION
This attitude has helped her when things
have occured that cannot be learnt in
any course. As a senior leader in the tourism
industry, Rozokos was front and centre when
COVID-19 caused mass disruption.
The tourism industry, already vulnerable
to external factors such as economic shifts,
natural disasters and geopolitical tensions,
was hit especially hard by the pandemic.
“COVID-19 basically shut down the
travel industry and we had to be resilient.
It forced us to quickly adapt and come
up with innovative solutions to keep our
industry afloat,” she says.
With international borders closed, local
businesses, attractions and services had
to find new ways to stay relevant and survive.
“The industry really had to reinvent itself,
relying heavily on local tourism and new
safety protocols. One of our most successful
programs was the Great State Voucher
program, which successfully stimulated
the industry and got people moving around
the state again.”
It was a race against time, Rozokos says.
“We had about five weeks to make
it happen — I’m talking about the whole
system and the technology behind it. After
a few teething issues, we ended up running
eight rounds. By the end of it, we had
learned so much, and we continue to learn.”
Since then, the SATC has worked hard
to get the level of tourism in South Australia
back to pre-pandemic levels.
“In 2024, we cracked the A$9.9 billion
mark as an industry, which is a huge
economic return for the state,” she says.
“That creates so many jobs, and
considering we dropped to A$4.4 billion
during COVID-19, to have recovered
in this way is such a great effort.”
Part of the focus to maintain those levels
is to increase the way technology is used
in the industry.
“It’s absolutely critical that we not only
keep up with technological advancements,
especially artificial intelligence (AI), but
also recognise that if we don’t stay current,
we’ll be left behind,” she says.
As well as exploring AI across a variety
of areas — from text generation and image
creation to trend analysis in data and
sentiment analysis — there is huge potential
in using AI for customer feedback, tracking
sentiment, and automating customer
enquiries and bookings.
“From a data and business-intelligence
perspective, AI can allow us to leverage
tourism data in real time, providing
valuable insights to drive decision-making.
The opportunities are endless, especially
in areas like accessibility and inclusivity,
where automated translation can
enhance the experience for global visitors,”
she says.
“It’s our job as industry leaders to take
that responsibility on and work with our
partners to keep tourism growing. It’s part
of what makes this job so interesting.” ■
READ
an article about
the growth of
sustainable travel
LISTEN
to a podcast
episode about
how to integrate
AI in organisations
UPSKILL
with CPA Australia’s
range of career
development
courses
intheblack.cpaaustralia.com.au 31
