Don't seek to be a person of Importance.
Seek to be a person of Value.
Ned Coten AM has stood on a court in an Australian singlet and sat at the head of a boardroom table. The lessons were the same in both places: prepare properly, back your team and tell people the truth.
He has spent more than three decades leading organisations. He has founded businesses, raised capital and served on more than 20 boards, including four years as Chair of Basketball Australia. Today he is Executive Chair of EngageRM, which works with sports organisations across Australia, the US and the UK.
He still laces up and competes internationally. Masters basketball keeps him honest, because the scoreboard doesn't care about your title.
In June 2026 Ned was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the King's Birthday Honours, for services to the administration of sport, and to basketball.
EngageRM
Basketball Australia
FIBA
World Masters Games 2029
Confederation of Australian Sport
Three groups. One easy first step.
If one of these sounds like you, the first step is a conversation, not a contract.
MASTERS ATHLETES AND FOUNDERS
You've built something. What's next?
You've done the hard yards on the court or in business, and the title is about to change. Ned has made that move himself, and he still competes. He'll talk with you about your health, your identity and what you want the second half to look like.
Talk to Ned about what's nextSPORTING ORGANISATIONS
Build a sport for life
People don't stop loving the game when they stop playing at the top. Ned chairs the Confederation of Australian Sport, which delivers the Australian Masters Games, and sits on FIBA's Masters Sport Commission. He helps organisations grow Masters participation without adding to their team's workload.
Explore a Masters pilot with NedBOARDS AND FOUNDERS SEEKING A CHAIR
A chair, not a logo
If you want a name on a letterhead, Ned isn't your person. If you want a chair who will back you and hold you to account, he is. He has led capital raises, taken a business into the US and UK, and helped turn around a national sporting body. He is open about his current roles and the time he has.
Talk to Ned about your boardWhere Ned spends his time
The organisations Ned chairs, leads and invests in.
ENGAGERM
Executive Chair and President
engagerm.com
An automation, CRM and data analytics platform for sport and entertainment, with clients across Australia, the US and the UK.
Visit EngageRMCONFEDERATION OF AUSTRALIAN SPORT
Chair
sportforall.com.au
The industry body for Australia's national sporting federations. It delivers the Australian Masters Games and advocates for sport at all three levels of government.
Visit CASWORLD MASTERS GAMES 2029
Director
Perth, Western Australia
A global event bringing 30,000 participants to Perth for a program of sport and social engagement.
Read about itFIBA
Masters Sport Commission
fiba.basketball
The global advisory commission that drives the Masters basketball calendar year-round, including the FIBA Basketball World Masters Cup.
Visit FIBASUNSHINE SELF STORAGE
Owner and Managing Director
secure-self-storage.com
Drive-up shipping container storage in Albion, Melbourne. Open 5am to 9pm, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
Visit SunshineCOTEN INVESTMENTS
Director
Since 2002
Investments in aged care, travel, science and technology, and advice to organisations across multiple industries.
Get in touchLessons from the court and the boardroom
Ned speaks to boards, leadership teams, sporting bodies and conferences, drawing on more than three decades in sport and business. Themes include:
• Boards and governance: chairing well, governance reform and aligning an organisation around agreed goals
• Sport as a business: commercial strategy, revenue growth and capital raising
• Data, CRM and AI in sport: how sport and entertainment organisations put technology to work
• From athlete to executive: building a career and a life after playing
• Masters sport: lifelong activity and participation
Ned also mentors sports and business leaders, executives, directors and chairs.
Book Ned to speakNed's book
Game Plan Marketing
Ned's practical guide to branding and marketing in sport, published in 2013. Why there's never been a better time to grow your sports organisation, and what to do to make it happen.
Get the book on Amazon