Managing Director, Avantia Corporate Services Pty Ltd, Brisbane

Paul Nielsen is a graduate of Loyola University’s School of Business Administration and Harvard University’s Office of the Vice Provost for Advancement in Learning gaining accreditation as a Certified Mergers and Acquisitions Advisor (CM&AA) and Certified Cyber Security Risk Advisor (CCSRA) through those institutions. He is a Certified Practicing Business Broker (CPBB), a Certified Machinery & Equipment Appraiser (CMEA), Licensed Real Estate Agent (LREA), and Justice of the Peace (Qual). Paul is a Fellow of both the Australian Institute of Business Brokers (FAIBB) and the International Institute of Directors & Managers (FIIDM) and is an Accredited Senior Business Analyst (SBA) with the International Society of Business Analysts.

He has served as a Director and 3 term Chair of the Council Of Small Businesses Organisations Of Australia (COSBOA), the peak industry body in Australia, whose membership includes 38 Small Business Industry Associations with a direct reach to over 600,000 SME’s and is the architect of COSBOA’s Cyber Security Management Program being appointed COSBOA's Cyber Security Ambassador in 2018. COSBOA represents the interests of some 3.2m SME’s in Australia on Policy matters to the Federal Government and Key Federal Government Departments including the ATO, ASIC, ACCC, and others. For three successive terms, Paul was the elected National President of the Australian Institute of Business Brokers Ltd and was a past Vice President. The AIBB’s members facilitate the transfer of AUS $2 - $3 billion* in completed Business Sales annually throughout Australia.

In 2009 Paul completed the Australian Institute of Company Directors Corporate Governance course and in 2011 he gained accreditation as a Sponsor with the Australian Small Scale Offerings Board (ASSOB) and is accredited by ASIC to raise up to A$5 million in Capital on the ASSOB Board. He is an experienced line Manager and has held Senior Management roles (CEO & Managing Director) in local and International Companies over the past 38 years. Industry affiliations include membership of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and since 2007, Membership of the Chicago based Alliance of Mergers and Acquisitions Advisors which has over 900 affiliated offices worldwide to facilitate International Transactions and cross border investments (both Buy & Sell-side).

On the public service front, Paul has been an adviser the Australian Tax Office (ATO) Red Tape Reduction Steering Committee, the ATO’s Goods & Services Tax (GST) Advisory Committee, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) Small Business and Franchising Consultative Committee and has been involved in guidance to the Federal Government’s Productivity Commission, the National Parliament’s House of Representatives Standing Committee on Tax and Revenue and has been a strong supporter and former Member of the AustralianDefence Force Reserves Support National Council (DRSC).

In 2017 Paul created a specialist division of Avantia Corporate Services to provide Certified Risk Mitigation Advice for organisations from Cyber Attack/Data Breach. In 2018 he graduated from a strategic response course in Cyber Security convened by the Office of the Vice Provost General for Advanced Learning at Harvard University in the USA achieving an aggregate learning achievement score of 96.2% on graduation and participated in the Prime Ministers 'round table' in relation to Cyber Security for SME's.

In addition Paul provides his clients with specialised Business and Equipment Valuations to Federal Circuit & Family Court Standards, manages Entity Re Structures, Business Commercialisation and Development, recruits CEO/Board members and provides Strategic Advice for Companies and NFP’s to meet their Operational and Cyber Security objectives whilst project managing the process with Succession Planning advice and execution.