Tara James
2025 Alumni Award Winner for Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Creativity recipient, Tara James is taking Australian ingenuity and innovation to the world, finding possibility where others see complexity and solving problems before they arise.
Tara is Founder and Managing Director of Small and Mighty Group, a sought-after global collective of expert consultants spanning marketing, business development, leadership and organisational psychology. Since 2017, the company has helped Australian biomedical, medtech, greentech and manufacturing companies grow, scale and reach global markets.
“I love translating complex technology into simple, obvious solutions, then taking those innovations from concept to viable business to global impact,” Tara says. “Where others said it couldn’t be done, I did it anyway. I’ve never followed the conventional blueprint for success – and I don’t plan to start now.”
Always one to break the mould, Tara was the first in her rural farming family to pursue higher education and was among the early adopters of digital and social media marketing. She went against the grain to establish Small and Mighty as a fully remote company long before remote work became mainstream.
“Back then, people saw working remotely, engaging contractors instead of employees and using digital tools for business and growth as an inferior approach,” she says. “Strategic clarity and excellence in delivery matter far more than where your team sits. There are many businesses I completed with at that time that didn’t last beyond two years, while we’re still growing and flourishing.”
Among the many clients to benefit from Tara’s entrepreneurial insight is biotech company TekCyte, so impressed it appointed her its CEO. She now leads the international commercialisation of its world-first drug-free coatings for medical devices and implants, including BIOINVISIBLE and Nanovita.
“These innovative coatings reduce the risk of infection, implant rejection, re-surgery and blood clots, with potential to save countless lives and millions of dollars every year,” she says. “Drug-resistant infections alone claim at least 700,000 lives each year, and antimicrobial resistance is projected to cost the global economy up to US$100 trillion by 2050. Implant-related infections contribute significantly to this burden, which is why bringing products like these to market is so important.”
Tara’s curiosity, confidence and strategic mindset were truly ignited through her Bachelor of Business at Charles Sturt, setting the stage for her extraordinary entrepreneurial journey.
“If I had been told upon graduating that I would be CEO of an innovative Australian biotech company in 20 years, I would have thought: ‘if I believe I can, it’s possible’.”
