What do Olympic sailing, quantum computing, European bureaucracy, and AI-powered supply chains have in common? Claudine Ogilvie.
Spend five minutes in conversation with Ogilvie and you’ll quickly realise she’s not just riding the tech wave; she’s helping shape it. With a career that’s spanned continents, boardrooms, and bold pivots, she’s now taking the leap into startup land with HivePix, her new venture set to launch in July.
In this Close-Up, Ogilvie shares what it means to lead with purpose, stay curious, and build resilience in a world defined by rapid change. We talk about failure (and why it’s essential), culture (and why it’s underrated), and what gives her hope as a woman in a male-dominated field.
Startup life may be tough, but Ogilvie’s got wind in her sails – and she’s bringing the ecosystem with her.
Where did you grow up and how has your background shaped your worldview?
I was born in Seoul, South Korea. My father was an Australian diplomat, so we moved often. I’ve always felt like I had one foot in Asia/Australia and another in Europe. We moved to France when I was 11; my mother was born in Belgium and we had plenty of family in France, so it quickly felt like home.
After returning to Australia, I went back to France a few years later for university and worked out of Paris for a para-pharmaceuticals company before deciding that I loathe European bureaucracy (does anyone love it?!). I moved to Melbourne to work for BP, met my husband not too long after that, and I’ve remained in Australia, now in Sydney.
That was really the first time I felt I’d put down real roots, but my childhood deeply shaped a global view of the world: the natural importance of adaptability and diversity of all kinds, the deep knowledge and wisdom of people from all walks of life, backgrounds and cultures; if you’re willing to listen and embrace their stories. And never assuming you know anything. The more you learn, the more you realise you don’t know.
What guiding principles have shaped your career journey?
I’ve taken this approach with me in life and business: ‘Test. Learn. Listen. Pivot.’ I had little idea of what I wanted to do out of school or even university, other than that it should be business related. A business degree allowed me to try different subjects and explore various areas, which eventually led me to product management and marketing roles.
Have you always known what career path you wanted to pursue?
Not at all. I thought a marketing leadership role would be my dream job, but when I landed what I thought was the perfect role at KPMG — at least on paper — I quickly realised I was bored with it (test and learn!). Luckily, KPMG liked my work and thought I was worth investing in, so I moved into a market leadership role in Consumer and later also Industrial Markets.
That’s where I thrived and discovered the critical role of technology in strategy and competitiveness. I became obsessed. That led me to several CIO roles and even a technical deep dive into Quantum Computing with MIT, largely driven by insatiable curiosity.
Who or what has influenced your growth the most?
I’ve had incredible mentors and coaches along the way. Each role brought different learning and growth. To this day, I continue to proactively seek that in every step of my career, which is how I recently co-founded HivePix — more on that exciting chapter later!
Rapid growth and learning is uncomfortable; if you’re comfortable, you’re probably not learning at pace.
Can you share a formative experience that taught you about resilience?
Not all learning came from the corporate arena. My time with the AIS Australian Olympic Development Women’s 470 Sailing Team taught me that failure is only failure if you don’t learn from it — methodically and with discipline — then jump right back into the fray. Resilience and leadership is a team sport, and that includes how you look after yourself. If you have no wind in your sails, it doesn’t matter what direction you’re pointed in.
What was it like stepping into the CIO role at Jetstar?
I didn’t know aviation before taking on the Jetstar CIO role. The learning curve was steep, but incredibly rewarding. That’s where I saw the impact of powerful culture in action. Jane Hrdlicka was CEO at the time; she was polarising but a force of nature.
Jetstar was an organisation that knew how to harness the passion of its people and ground it in purpose to drive performance. Many organisations strive for this kind of momentum, but being part of how it played out — through tactics, leadership alignment, tensions, and hard decisions — showed me what’s possible.
What drew you to board roles?
I became aware of the importance of governance in empowering leadership and creating the right frameworks for success, whether in risk, culture, or strategy. That led me to seek my first Non-Executive Director role with Youi Insurance, where I felt I could bring valuable experience in technology, strategy and risk to a dynamic organisation.
Since then, I’ve joined the boards of Cuscal (ASX-listed, financial services payments infrastructure) and Scyne Advisory (government and for-purpose advisory). Each has brought unique and humbling experiences, from the Financial Services Royal Commission (Youi), to Cuscal’s ASX listing, to rebuilding governance structures at Scyne Advisory.
What motivated you to become an entrepreneur?
It’s difficult to describe. Five years ago, if you’d asked, I would’ve said it wasn’t in my risk appetite.
At Compass Group, my APAC role focused on commercial growth through technology — driving P&L, not just enabling it. I loved it. Maybe that’s when I realised I couldn’t return to a traditional CIO role.
When you’re purpose-driven, find the right people (my co-founder Melissa Hayes and the HivePix team), and have the right support network — mentors, coaches, investors — the decision becomes easier. It’s still tough and confronting, but knowing we have each other’s back makes all the difference. Big things are rarely easy, and they’re almost always accomplished together.
What is HivePix and what problem are you solving?
For me, being purpose-driven means win-win collaboration (2+2 = 5), community (the rising tide lifts all ships), and commitment to outcomes (walk the talk and make the hard decisions). That philosophy is baked into HivePix.
In a world of AI-driven value (which requires good data) and supply chain volatility (geopolitics, tariffs, cost pressures), we built HivePix to democratise access to good product data across supply chain partners, no matter their size or maturity. It’s your ecosystem.
We’re helping companies build resilience through transparency and agility, and drive competitiveness with AI-powered automation and cost reduction.
What’s your view on diversity in tech and entrepreneurship?
Since stepping into the world of entrepreneurs, I’ve been struck by how few female founders there are. Sadly, as a woman in tech, it’s not unfamiliar territory. The barriers — unconscious bias, lack of support infrastructure, limited visibility — won’t surprise many people.
But there are powerful groups and leaders doing the work. They understand that diversity is a strategic imperative. Each step — each initiative — moves the dial.
Change can be slow (and frustrating), but I’m hopeful. With persistent effort and support from both male and female leaders, we’ll get there. And we need to because more diverse and representative businesses perform better.
What excites you most about the future?
We need serious agility and performance to meet what’s coming. AI is moving fast. Quantum is next. And if you think things are changing now, you know that what got you here won’t get you there in a post-AI, post-Quantum world.
Adaptability is no longer optional — it’s table stakes. And doing it at the expense of your ecosystem — whether that’s people, planet, or partners — is not sustainable.
Final thought – what gives you hope?
Ironically, as we automate more and more, and intelligence becomes ubiquitous, the truly human becomes even more valuable: connection, collaboration, community.
How that unfolds is both daunting and exhilarating because we still get to define it. Not the machines.