Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, February 2026 – Declan Coady has started a new role as Chief People Officer at Fitness Cartel Australia & New Zealand, joining the executive leadership team as the organization advances its ambitious growth plans across Australia and New Zealand.
In his new role, Declan will lead the People & Culture agenda, supporting Fitness Cartel’s vision to expand to 60 health clubs and deliver 20 million annual visits by 2029. He will focus on building strong culture, capability, leadership depth, and scalable people practices aligned with the company’s core values of Family, Community, and Ambition.
Prior to this appointment, Declan served as People Experience Business Partner (contract) at WorkCover Queensland, partnering primarily with Digital & Technology and Finance teams. Before that, he took a planned career break for full-time parenting following the birth of his son, relocating to Brisbane before returning to the workforce.
Earlier, Declan was HR Director – ANZ at Obela ANZ (a PepsiCo company), where he partnered with the ANZ CEO and leadership team to design and implement the People & Culture strategy. During this period, he also led IT (interim) and ESG functions regionally. Prior to Obela, he held multiple transformation-focused roles at Lion, including HR Transformation Lead, where he led implementation of SAP SuccessFactors and drove enterprise-wide people experience simplification initiatives.
His executive leadership journey includes serving as Chief People Officer at Guardian Childcare & Education, where he led the People & Culture strategy for a private equity-backed high-growth organization. He also spent over a decade with Weight Watchers, including as Director, HR – International, leading HR across multiple countries, and Director, HR – Australia/New Zealand, where he drove engagement, transformation, and digital HR initiatives.
Earlier in his career, Declan held HR leadership roles at Griffith University, building strong foundations in HR strategy and policy development.
About Fitness Cartel Australia & New Zealand
Fitness Cartel Australia & New Zealand is an Australian-owned and operated health club group offering 24/7 full-service clubs, Fitness Cartel Apparel, Nutrition Cartel supplements, and wellness services through Merse Wellness Spa. With a target of 60 health clubs across Australia and New Zealand by November 2029, the organization is driven by its purpose of “Inspiring a healthier you!”—for both members and team alike.
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