During Melbourne’s November Breakfast with the Bunch, hosted at Studley Grounds and proudly supported by Webex by Cisco, the International Cycling Executives community was treated to a candid and fascinating conversation between Olympic gold medallist Scott McGrory OAM and Noor van de Kraats, Partnership Manager for Team Picnic PostNL.

From the outside, professional cycling is all about watts, wins, and wheel-to-wheel drama. But Noor offered a rare look behind the curtain – where the work happens in spreadsheets, contracts, innovation labs, and late-night WhatsApps with nutritionists.

A Business Built on Belief and Balance

As one of the UCI’s 18 WorldTour teams, Team Picnic PostNL is a large and complex organisation with over 70 commercial partnerships from headline sponsors like PostNL and collaboration partners like Webex by Cisco, to technical suppliers, bike manufacturers, and nutrition brands.

Noor’s role is to manage and activate these partnerships, ensuring value flows both ways. As she put it, “It’s not just about visibility. It’s about innovation, mutual benefit, and being part of something that helps people perform at their best.”

That performance focus includes the development of their own sports nutrition line and an in-house app to guide rider fuelling – highlighting how granular pro teams get in pursuit of marginal gains. Noor shared that riders felt fresher after three weeks of the Tour de France thanks to their refined approach to supplements and recovery.

Development Is Not Just a Team, It’s a Philosophy

One of the most striking parts of the discussion was the emphasis on youth development. Team Picnic PostNL runs a full men’s and women’s WorldTour team, but also a men’s development team designed to help riders aged 18–22 transition into pro sport and adulthood.

“Learning to take care of yourself is just as important as hitting power numbers,” Noor said. Riders receive tailored support in training, nutrition, and lifestyle, with dedicated staff helping them make the leap, especially those moving away from home for the first time.

And that support pays off: many riders on the elite roster today came through the team’s own development ranks.

Women’s Cycling on the Rise

The conversation also turned to the rapid rise of women’s cycling. With the Tour de France Femmes and other marquee races gaining traction, Noor spoke about how the team’s structure deliberately integrates men’s and women’s programmes. “You’re either all in, or you’re not,” she said of their sponsors – highlighting how the team seeks full commitment across all squads.

This inclusive approach has already delivered results, with high-profile wins generating huge national pride, particularly in the Netherlands, where cycling is deeply woven into the culture.

Partnerships with Purpose

As Noor and Scott wrapped up, a recurring theme emerged: cycling is not just a sport – it’s a platform for connection, innovation, and shared ambition.

Whether through data-driven fuelling strategies or deeply personal development journeys, Team Picnic PostNL is helping redefine what it means to run a modern pro cycling team, and why smart partnerships are at the heart of sustainable success.

 

With thanks to our 2025 Programme Partners: Webex | Cprime | Elabor8 | Brennan | SISU Solutions | Polestar | IRIS by Argon & Co | CIOVITA

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Breakfast with the Bunch: One Year On From Gold in Paris!

We gathered on a perfect Melbourne winter’s morning for our June Breakfast with the Bunch thanks to Cprime Elabor8, and this time the conversation took a thrilling spin as our group dove into how modern pro cycling tactics can mirror high-stakes business strategy.

Crash Zones & Feed Zones: The Domino Effect
Our discussion kicked off with how innovations in feeding protocols, allowing riders to sustain higher performance levels, have unexpectedly stirred chaos. Riders are now fighting their way to the front of the peloton to catch food, and more crashes are happening as a result. UCI regulations are being tweaked to re-establish safer “feed zones” a classic case of how one well-meaning change sends ripples right through the system.

Chaos + Calm = Success
We heard first hand how riders must instantly adapt: if a teammate crashes out, the Directeur Sportif (DS) in the team car needs to make split-second decisions – keeping cool, issuing remote instructions, and guiding the team back into the race. As our MC, Olympic gold medallist Scott McGrory, reminded us, those DSs often run up the road to support riders physically, then jump back in the car, heart pounding, and re-enter the chaos – yet remain absolutely calm. That level-headedness under pressure is what makes a winning team.

Data in the Driver’s Seat
Next up: how Team Visma-LAB brings tech to the forefront. Instead of relying on isolated data streams, they’ve consolidated full real-time race data, nutritional intake, heart rate, position and even race radio chatter into one “control room.” This gives them total situational awareness and strategic clarity. It isn’t just about fancy screens: its ensuring decisions are proactive, not reactive.

What This Means for Business
The parallels? In business, many teams are drowning in lagging data and fragmented systems, leaving leadership reacting too late. Instead, if you adopt a “single view of work” layering strategy, transparency, risk, delivery, and financials in real-time, you can steer with confidence, not guesswork. It means faster pivots, less waste, more informed choices and all without chaos.

Rider Theatre vs Real-Time Tactics
One standout moment was Scott reminiscing about milder tactical games of the past – feigning fatigue to lull rivals then striking. Now? Teams rely on constant communication from the car, leaving little room for that kind of drama. Maybe there’s room for both approaches, but high-performance organizations lean heavily on data and calm decision-making to deliver results.

That’s our latest blend of cycling and business wisdom. We hope the discussion sparks a few ideas for your own team. Looking forward to the next one – it’s shaping up to be a cracker!

 

With thanks to our 2025 Programme Partners: Webex | Cprime | Elabor8 | Brennan | SISU Solutions | Polestar | IRIS by Argon & Co | CIOVITA

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Breakfast with the Bunch: Turning VO₂ Max into a Blueprint for Living Better

International Cycling Executives is excited to announce the establishment of a new Australian community partnership for 2023.

Cycling Execs to partner with StepFWD IT and BYD Automotive to establish an unprecedented development pathway for young up and coming female cyclists aiming to compete in the Australian National Road Series.

The program will initially focus on the grassroots level of the sport, assisting with the professional development of it’s athletes both on and off the bike. The long-term goal however will be to have all of it’s athletes remaining involved and active in the Cycling Execs community during their careers, supporting their sporting ambitions, whilst preparing them for a career after cycling. An aspect of the sport that has been identified as severely lacking, particularly for female athletes.

“For us it is about personal and professional development, on and off the bike” – Cycling Execs Founder & CEO Ryan O’Neill said of the program.

“It is the countless stories of resilience from current and former athletes of the team, that don’t reach the pinnacle of the sport, that’s inspired me to explore how our Australian community can collectively collaborate, to evolve a platform that will not only produce more stars like Grace Brown, but leverages a shared passion and purpose to develop opportunities for mentorship and career pathways for all.” 

For Cycling Execs, collaborating with an existing and established team was a fundamental objective to the success of the program, and for StepFWD Cycling’s Partnerships Manager Mark Harland, it was an opportunity that aligned with the core goals and values of his team:

“For us our focus has always been on grassroots. Giving the athletes racing opportunities and developing the future stars. To have Cycling Execs and it’s community behind the team, it allows us to create a pathway for mentorships, not just the riders, but also the teams management, to take our race team to the next level and also have a hand in the professional development of our athletes for post career”

The team’s first race will be the Women’s Warrnambool Cycling Classic on Sunday February 5, 2023.

 

About International Cycling Executives

International Cycling Executives is a community of like-minded senior executives connecting over a shared passion for cycling. We help our members and partners form deep, lasting, real relationships both personally and professionally with programs in Australia & Singapore with active members across The US and Europe.

Contact: Ryan O’Neill – Founder & CEO

 

About StepFWDIT Cycling

Formed in 2010, the team was established with the purpose of identifying talented female cyclists and providing them with development opportunities and pathways through to the elite level of racing in Australia and overseas. They’ve seen great success in their mission over the last few years with Grace Brown (FDJ-SUEZ), Brodie Chapman (Trek-Segafredo) & Sarah Gigante (Movistar) all moving on the women’s WorldTour. The team has evolved over the past decade with the support of Chris Mannering from StepFWD IT to become one of the most powerful domestic cycling teams in Australia with a strong pedigree of developing riders into successful professional athletes.

Contact: Mark Harland – Partnerships Manager

 

About BYD

Established in 1995, BYD is a top high-tech company specialised in IT, automobile and new energy. BYD is the largest supplier of rechargeable batteries in the globe and has the largest market share for Nickel-cadmium batteries, handset Li-ion batteries, cell-phone chargers and keypads worldwide. It also has the second largest market share for cell-phone shells in the globe. BYD Auto has become the most innovative auto brand and leads the field of electric vehicles with unique technology. In the field of new energy, BYD has developed green products such as solar farm, battery energy storage station, electric vehicle, and LED, etc. It will continue to lead the new energy revolution in the world!

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Elabor8 returns for 2023

Want to see how we move extraordinary people forward?

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Sensational Saturday in Singapore

March marked the beginning of our commitment to celebrate the extraordinary in the Cycling Execs community, be it members, corporate partners or both! We were humbled and inspired to have the amazing individual and representative of our newest Corporate Partner Optus, Matt Formston share his incredible journey in life, sport and business with the Sydney and Melbourne communities recently at Coffee with The Bunch sessions.

Matt is a Paralympian, pro-surfer and lives his mantra of: “can’t is a point of view, not a fact”.  A truly extraordinary and inspiring individual. To know more about Matt: More about Matt.

 

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2017 Starts with Purpose!

February marked the start of the 2017 Cycling Execs member series with events held in Singapore, Melbourne and Sydney to capacity attendance. Cycling Execs Founder Ryan O’Neill shared the Cycling Execs Purpose Driven Horizon for members and special guests, outlining a commitment to focus on three core streams:

• Membership: Placing a firm ‘member first’ lens on all activities and interactions to become a membership organisation.
• Connecting: Providing a community platform through technology, events and experiences to accelerate member connections on a local, regional and international scale.
• Sharing: Establishing a culture of openly sharing knowledge and learnings across professional and personal profiles.

To see more: view Cycling Execs – The Active Network Video

Visit these links for more on Cycling Execs: Partnerships | Membership

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Sensational 2016 Start for Singapore

Friday February 12th welcomed the start of the 2016 Cycling Execs member series in beautiful Melbourne where we welcomed a number of new members and corporate partners to the community!

With a warm morning, registration was buzzing with 65 members and 2 special guests fresh from the Herald Sun Tour, although BMW Melbourne’s fleet of impressively sharp support cars turned more than a few heads. Something BMW’s Geoff Briscoe and Cycling Execs are excited to be sharing more with the community throughout the series.

Rolling out from Mr Hobson on to iconic Beach Road, the morning’s route was always going to be a great way to start the day, as conversations in the bunches spun as easily as the wheels beneath.

On return from the ride, EYC3’s Kieran Earnshaw provided a unique overview of the Cyber Security landscape and how business’ are beginning to consider the serious implications of not prioritising this issue. Three take aways we wanted to share from the session were:

• Australia is the second most attacked country in the world.
• Most organisations are immature and reactive when it comes to having mechanisms to effectively combat a cyber security breach.
• Analytics help establish preventative measures against cyber attack.

Following breakfast, and in keeping with our commitment to showcasing upcoming cycling talent, Joe Cooper and Chris Hamilton shared their experiences from the recent Tour Down Under and Sun Tour. Joe’s life moto of “you miss 100% of chances you don’t take” was the perfect back drop to the story behind his sensational ride in last week’s race, that witnessed him toe-to-toe with the current Tour de France champion Chris Froome.

Once again, we thank all our partners for their continued support and vision. Together, we are committed to accelerating healthy connections to evolve your community!

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Cycling Execs Chef's Ride with Gordon Ramsay

2015 #DineWithUs was our way to celebrate the Road to Rio and a sensational year end for Cycling Execs Melbourne and Sydney members and guests at the fabulous Vue De Monde (Melbourne) and AMP CQ Private Level (Sydney). We say thanks to Bank of Melbourne Private as presenting partner for Melbourne’s Grand Tour Dinner and AMP as presenting partner for Sydney’s Grand Tour Dinner. Both were beautifully hosted by Olympians Kate Bates and Scott McGrory with special cycling celebrity guests: Michael Matthews, Jack Bobridge, Shane Perkins, Scott Sunderland, Alex Edmondson, Kevin Tabotta, Loren Rowney and Carlee Taylor.

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#DineWithUs sneak peak

Cycling Execs Australian members are eagerly awaiting October’s ACE + Bank of Melbourne Private Grand Tour Dinner (Melbourne) and November’s ACE + AMP Grand Tour Dinner (Sydney). Both dinners will celebrate the Australian dream for cycling Road to Rio style! The evening’s ACE hosts will be Olympian and World Champion – Katherine Bates and Gold Medalist – Scott McGrory OAM.

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Competitive edge with employee engagement

Monica Parker was guest key note speaker, courtesy of Corporate Partner Shape (formerly ISIS Group, at the recent Melbourne and Sydney Breakfasts with The Bunch. 70+ members connected over an early morning ride, followed by breakfast with Monica’s presentation – The Competitive Advantage of Engagement. Monica shared numerous insights on organisational engagement with the ‘intersection of people and space’ including:

• businesses that gave their teams greater control, grew 4 times faster
• loneliness is the ‘new smoking’, with isolation of workers a growing problem
• ‘worshipping at the alter of over-work’ is a killer on all fronts – a key reason why 71% of workers are not engaged
• 18% of dis-engaged employees actually seek to undermine their co-workers’ success
• 1 in 3 workers is looking for another job and 1 in 4 intend to jump ship within a year
• time for contemplation is fundamental to efficient operations and innovation in the workplace.

Monica Parker is founder of HATCH, TEDtalks presenter, Huffington Post blogger and an international workplace authority.

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Carol Cooke AM inspires Sydney members

The EYC3 + Strava Analytics Project in conjunction with Australian members (Australian Cycling Executives, ACE), delivered it’s results to 80+ members in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide Breakfast with The Bunch events, via a virtual race following sections of the Tour de France.

A range of results provided insights into the community’s riding (and cycling spending!) habits and analysis by industry and sector. For example, results showed that ACE members from retail trade were the fastest with government and transport the slowest!

The results are now heralded as the ACE Virtual National Championships and have led to collaboration projects with Australian Institute of Sport, Orcia GreenEdge, Velon and local government.

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Singapore and Annette Edmondson

Australian Melbourne members enjoyed an exclusive drinks evening with two cycling legends: Jens Voigt and Olympic gold medalist Scott McGrory. With great thanks to Trek Factory racing for indulging our members with the delightful Jens who patiently allowed photo after photo with members keen to meet the great man of cycling. Scott was our wonderful host and MC for the evening.

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Interconnectedness with Vodafone

Melbourne’s BWTB#2 was a super smooth rollout welcoming guest host: Shane Kelly OAM (AKA ‘The Minute Man’). 65 members and guests heartily engaged in Q&A time at Vodafone Global Enterprise’s presentation with special guest panelists: AGL’s Glenn Page & Drapak’s Jonathan Breekveldt. With VGE’s Mark Frerikson facilitating, we learnt that the ‘internet of things’ and ‘interconnectedness’ is reinventing the business world injecting industry growth from $400bn to $800bn over the next 5 years in the Asia Pacific alone.

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