Established in 1972 by four brothers with just four buses, Bus Queensland is one of the largest privately owned bus companies in Australia, operating a modern fleet of 414 buses in Queensland and Victoria. For over 40 years, it has provided school and urban transport services for the greater South-East Queensland area.
Vernon Alcantra is a business leader in the transport industry. He was appointed as CEO of Bus Queensland in April 2009 and is reputed for driving change management and achieving process improvement through various initiatives.
He started his career as a trainee accountant and went through the various stages of education, development, and growth before winding up in a senior position. He was working for a manufacturing factory and was responsible for reporting on performance rather than reporting on finance.
He realised he wanted something more and took on a very keen interest in the manufacturing, process control, and efficiency side of the business. When he was asked by his employer to travel to Japan to select a machine for the factory, it proved to be a watershed moment in his thinking.