Meet Geoff Williams, General Manager of Spatial Services
Geoff has been with Spatial Vision for nine years and during his time here, led a passionate team of geospatial analysts making complex challenges simple for our clients.
Describe your career to date
I began my career in hospitality, gaining valuable experience working in hotels and fine dining restaurants initially in Australia before moving to London, UK. This early exposure to high-pressure environments taught me strong customer service and organisational skills, which I carried forward when I transitioned into the retail sector. After completing my undergraduate degree, I became a Cartographer at an Urban Design firm based in Hong Kong. There, I worked on major urban planning projects in the UAE and China, where I contributed to large-scale, signature developments. This experience laid the groundwork for my role as a Senior Spatial Analyst at AECOM Australia. In that position, I collaborated with multidisciplinary teams on complex infrastructure projects, including the Metro Rail tunnel and the Level Crossing Removal Program, where I utilised my expertise in spatial data analysis to support urban planning and large-scale infrastructure developments. Now at Spatial Vision, in my role as General Manager of Spatial Services and Products, I’m focused on providing leadership and strategic direction, business development, team management and capability development.
“I enjoy finding opportunities for our team and partners to work with clients, on projects that challenge my team to solve complex spatial problems”.
What attracted you to the geospatial industry?
My love of maps. The power of storytelling through cartographic and spatial information.
What are your main responsibilities at Spatial Vision?
I work closely with new and existing customers to understand their challenges, and demonstrate how we can apply our capabilities to help make complex simple for them. Empathy and communication are essential to ensure successful outcomes for everyone. A key focus and an element I greatly enjoy, is developing and mentoring the next generation of spatial analyst and cartographers so they can deliver exceptional outcomes for our customers. I help develop their skills through continuous training and mentorship, ensuring we meet the evolving needs and complex challenges faced by society today. Additionally, there’s resource juggling, allocating team member skills across multiple competing projects to ensure efficient and effective project delivery.
What has been the most interesting project you’ve worked on so far?
The Emergency Management Mapping program has been one of the most rewarding projects I’ve worked on. This initiative involves close collaboration with Victoria’s Emergency Services organisations to deliver mapping products in various formats, including both printed and digital, tailored to meet their operational needs. The team is passionate about the work we do, and it’s incredibly satisfying to work closely with our clients, understanding their requirements, and delivering high-quality products that meet their specifications and deadlines.
Where do you see opportunities for Spatial Vision over the next few years?
As the spatial industry becomes a key driver of data and information, Spatial Vision will be at the forefront. Working with our customers and partners to continue solving complex data problems through custom, and easy to use spatial solutions.
What does ‘paving the way for positive change’ mean for you? How will you bring that to life for your team and customers?
For me it means focusing on empowering our next generation of spatial scientists, nurturing their passions, ideas and enthusiasm. And as a team, we aim to make the complex simple for our clients.