About Us - People
The team Bengalla Agribusiness possesses a unique diversity of skills and attributes. Moreover this team has demonstrated first hand a track record ensuring agricultural assets perform at peak operational and financial levels while ensuring the sustainability of the business and the environment.
Bengalla Agribusiness was co founded by the three senior principals of the business, Jono Craven, Brett Prosser and Simon Winston Smith. Each partner brings to the business a unique set of skills and a diversity of experience spanning agribusiness banking, finance, investment banking, financial analysis and large scale private and corporate farm management.
Jono Craven
Executive Director & Head of Operations
Jono is a founding principal of Bengalla Agribusiness. He has more than twenty years of experience in agriculture. His experience spans grazing, cropping, irrigation & horticulture and includes more than fifteen years in management positions, eleven of these years in large corporate agricultural enterprises.
Jono is passionate about sustainable agricultural management practices that balance production, environment and economics while building soil and animal health and fertility through balanced nutritional and biological programs and has researched trialled and implemented these practices into a variety of operations with significant success. Some of Jono's work was featured on the ABC's Landline program in 2005.
Jono's experience in managing large corporate operations has provided extensive skills in people management, human resources and occupational health and safety systems, asset management and maintenance, implementation of financial management and reporting systems and management of government land and water reform issues.
Jono holds a Diploma of Applied Science (Rural Management) from the University of Melbourne. He is an auditor of ISO 9001 and HACCP quality assurance systems. Jono has extensive training in business management, grazing management, soil science, biological farming practices, human resources and OH&S.
He is married to Marji and together they have two children Millie and Poppy. Areas of interest outside agriculture include travel, fishing, diving, sport (in general) and walking.
Brett Prosser
Executive Director & Chief Executive
Brett is a founding principal of Bengalla Agribusiness and a co founder of Bengalla Pastoral Holdings, the latter established with Simon Winston Smith in January 2003.
Brett sits on the board of Beef Australia Ltd a not-for-profit member based association established to direct and manage the planning and development of Australia's national beef cattle expositions.
Brett was born and raised on his family's property on the Darling Downs, was educated at Anglican Church Grammar School, Brisbane and attended the University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba.
Brett has enjoyed a long and successful career in agribusiness banking in Queensland and New South Wales most recently as State Manager of Agribusiness Lending for Suncorp. Brett's banking career encompasses a diverse cross section of industries and producers.
Brett began his agribusiness career servicing a large client base of grain and beef producers on the Darling Downs before moving to western Queensland where he was based in Charleville. He was promoted within the ranks of Suncorp to lead an experienced team of Agribusiness Managers in the Central Queensland area from Mackay (Australia's Beef Capital) before moving to New South Wales to lead the interstate expansion of agribusiness lending for Suncorp.
In mid 2005 Brett left Suncorp to seek out new challenges and has since been engaged full time as Managing Director of Bengalla Pastoral Holdings, the owner and operator of "Bengalla Station" a beef back grounding and grain production property on the Dumaresq River east of Goondiwindi.
In addition to his managerial responsibilities with Bengalla Agribusiness Brett is focused on research into Australian agriculture, its ownership structures and operating systems. This research is directed at continuing to expand premium beef and cereal grain production in a corporate environment balancing the demands of economic profitability and environmental sustainability.
Brett has extensive training in finance, credit analysis and strategic management including qualifications from the Macquarie School of Management.
Brett is married to Phillipa and together they have two children, Jack and Eve. His interests include rugby, skiing, fishing and travel.
Simon Winston-Smith
Executive Director & Chairman
Simon is a founding principal of Bengalla Agribusiness and a co founder of Bengalla Pastoral Holdings, the latter established with Brett Prosser in January 2003.
Over a period of fifteen years Simon has enjoyed a distinguished career in investment banking. His experience has been with pre-eminent investment houses in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney. Most recently he was Chief Operating Officer and Head of Capital Markets at Greenway Capital a real estate finance specialist he co-founded in 2004, and was previously Managing Director and Co Head of Japanese Equities at JP Morgan Chase in Japan. Prior to joining JP Morgan, Simon spent nearly ten years with Goldman Sachs & Co.
Simon established and led the Australian Equities business for Goldman Sachs in 2000, and with his team, built a top ten position in the Australian equities market within eighteen months. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs Simon held portfolio management and analytical responsibilities with Rothschild Asset Management Asia Pacific in both Tokyo and Hong Kong.
He holds a Bachelor of Commerce; Bachelor of Arts (Japanese, Economics) from the University of Queensland and is a Chartered Financial Analyst with the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts.
Simon lives in Sydney with his wife Bronwyn and their two children Xavier and Jessica. His interests include rugby, flying, skiing and travel.