Women in STEM

As part of our continued commitment to provide an inclusive, flexible and diverse workforce, we are encouraging females in the region to consider a career in science, technology, engineering or maths (STEM).

The following profiles have been adapted for classroom use.

SUGGESTED QUESTIONS

Ask students to locate the following information in the profiles:

• Name and Job Title

• University Qualification

• Is this their first job? What have they done in the past? What do they like about their role?

• What attracted them to the role?

• What advice do they share for people interested in STEM careers?

FURTHER INFORMATION

Graduate Program | Vacation Program | Education Program

Christine, Water and Sewer Planning Manager

BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING

Meet Christine. She’s our Water and Sewer Planning Manager here at Coliban Water. She never imagined getting into this field after starting out as a social worker.

“I was never quite settled with social work. I wasn’t great at it. Some people laughed when I told them that I was thinking of doing engineering. But my first maths class was like coming home. It just felt right,” Christine said. “I started in environmental engineering and then got into the water industry. I’ve always been a strong advocate of following your passion.”

She jokes that it’s about as far away from social work as you can get. “I had all of the personality traits that an engineer should – a good sense of judgment, knowledge-based evaluation and a somewhat extroverted personality. Engineers need to be good at articulating their reasoning for making a decision.”

“The other great thing is that, as a mother, I’ve really appreciated the flexibility offered in an engineering role. I’ve found there is a really strong supportive environment for women with children in the water industry,” she said.

Lisa, Environmental Specialist

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (ZOOLOGY)

Considering a career as an environmental specialist? There are so many job possibilities in this field – including in the water industry.

Our environmental specialist Lisa gets to work on some pretty amazing projects, like finding out about the endangered Growling Grass Frog, which has been recorded in promising numbers at the Bendigo Water Reclamation Plant. She also gets to work on vegetation surveys, learn about threatened species, interpret native vegetation regulations in regards to biodiversity and undertake environmental audits.

She’s supportive of anyone considering a career in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) and reckons this vital industry is helping us find solutions to global problems.

“I never had a set career plan. After my science degree I became a science teacher, then did a TAFE course in Conservation and Land Management and taught at TAFE before I came to Coliban Water. I had no idea I’d end up doing the job I have now. I didn’t know jobs like this existed. My role is essentially applying native vegetation and biodiversity regulations to our projects. An environmental science degree is the pathway to what I do (it didn’t actually exist when I started!).

“I love it because I’m always dealing with something new.”

“We need to keep the flow of ‘thinkers’ moving into STEM careers,” she said.

Jenny, Manager of Strategic Opportunities and Initiatives

BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING

Meet Jenny – she’s our Manager Strategic Opportunities and Initiatives here at Coliban Water.

Her 20-plus years with the business means that she’s able to apply her understanding of the organisation to help with an outward focus on innovation and industry insights.

Jenny grew up in Warragul, Gippsland and studied at Monash University in Melbourne, before later making the move to Bendigo.

“I loved applied maths and physics, and the career advice I got was ‘You’d probably love engineering!”

“I studied civil engineering thinking I’d become a structural engineer, however I discovered ‘water’ engineering and had an inspiring hydraulics lecturer at uni. I ended up getting a scholarship and later employment with the Rural Water Commission, which meant I got experience across the state.

“I’ve been able to move around and work across the planning, design, construction and operational areas. I’ve enjoyed the urban water industry because of its broad scope,” Jenny said.

“It’s very dynamic and there are new challenges all the time. Nothing is stagnant in the water industry!”

Amanda, General Manager Information, Digital and Cyber and Chief Information Officer

MASTER OF TECHNOLOGY

Singer, songwriter, editor, publisher, and now cross-fit fanatic and Chief Information Officer. Amanda’s role has evolved over time along with her career. Amanda is an advocate of females in STEM-related fields, and feels the barriers to entry are slowly being overcome.

“The number of jobs that require technology is exponentially growing,” Amanda said. “And there are so many ‘on-ramps’ these days to a career – you should be able to get in at any point, not just from an entry level or as a school-leaver,” she said. “No time is a bad time to make the switch. Opportunities these days are limitless and there are so many variations of a career pathway.”

“Unfortunately the concept of STEM has suffered for women because these jobs are sometimes seen as solitary, serious, hardcore and technical. But this is a myth, and more and more we’re working in teams, roles are evolving and so many people along the way are willing to help newcomers,” she said.

Amanda suggested finding a mentor could be a great step for those considering a move into a STEM career.

“The role has shifted and transformed over the years. It used to be very tech-focused but now any good CIO will be focused on the business and the people. The technology is not the be-all and end-all. It’s much more about business processes and digital transformation, to enable the business to do what it needs to do,” she said.

Prior to becoming a CIO: “I sat back and thought ‘Can I see myself as an editor for another 20 years?’ and then I thought ‘What can I do that’s varied, portable and allows me to solve problems?’

“This role has been great, there are so many opportunities to think laterally and problem solve. This role is actually conducive to creative thinking too – which many people may not guess,” Amanda said.

Nathalie, Graduate Engineer

BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING

If you’ve ever wondered about a career in engineering, our Graduate Engineer Nathalie has shared her thoughts. She studied at the University of New South Wales and is originally from Columbia.

She’s spent time working in health and safety for the Hunter Valley’s coal mining industry and also worked in Sydney for a short period, before securing a job at Coliban Water.

“I’ve really enjoyed the move into civil engineering. It’s a very specific field and I’ve been able to utilise my knowledge from university. I knew I wanted to get into a field that was related to numbers and a more analytical area. I knew maths was my strong point,” Nathalie said.

As part of Coliban Water’s graduate rotation program, Nathalie started in our Networks Team before moving to her current role within the Treatment Team, where she is able to visit the water treatment plants, focus on operational works and consider ongoing process improvements.

“My advice to other females considering a career in STEM is not to be afraid. Sometimes we get scared that it’s going to be too difficult. We look at a career, it’s male-dominated and we can be afraid that we won’t fit in. But I’ve come across so many men who are supportive of females in these roles. We don’t need to be afraid. You need to persevere – it’s do-able.”

Megan, Manager of Business Innovation and Sustainability

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE, MASTER OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT & BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

When Megan was 12 years old, she wrote a letter to CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) to tell them she wanted to be a scientist.

Megan recalls they wrote back to provide information about what they do there. She said she was very excited to get a reply “in those days of snail mail”.

She followed her passion and went on to study science at university. Megan started out as a microbiologist but soon discovered she wanted to broader her horizons. She has since worked in Tasmania, Queensland, Northern Territory and ACT before completing not one Masters qualification but two – in environmental management and business administration.

Today, Megan has been working with Coliban Water for eight years as our Manager of Business Innovation and Sustainability.

“My focus is mainly on renewable energy, energy efficiency and the innovation side of things. I help turn ideas into projects. Most of my jobs have been newly-created roles and I’ve had the freedom to make it my own,” she said.

“It’s all about how best to save our customers money through our business spending less on operational costs. It’s also about reducing our carbon footprint.”

Bronwyn, Control Systems Engineer

BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING

When you think about technology in ‘smart homes’ that makes blinds go up and down, or turns lights on and off automatically – that’s a similar kind of technology that Bronwyn works with every day.

She’s a Control Systems Engineer here at Coliban Water and works closely with PLCs – or Programmable Logic Controllers. It’s like a computer, has its own language and is used across our business to help control many of our water treatment plants and other assets.

“I really got into it by luck. I switched engineering streams twice during university and found my niche following an inspiring lecturer who introduced me to control systems. We worked on microprocessors – which are an electronic controller that is installed in many devices including computers.”

“One of my first jobs after university was working on a project that automated an irrigation system for a town with many parks. They were water conscious so the sprinkler systems all worked automatically according to a timed schedule which could be adjusted from a central office.”

Bronwyn said her role is quite diverse – and that’s what she loves about it.

“I never thought engineering was where I’d end up. In my third year of university I thought about dropping out, but I had a family member encourage me to persevere – and I’m glad I did. It’s been great. It’s been one of those jobs that’s let me travel all over the place.”

Carmel, Water Quality Risk Management Coordinator

DIPLOMAS IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND MANAGEMENT

Our Water Quality Risk Management Coordinator Carmel has some great advice for those looking for a job or planning a mid-career move in 2019.

She says when considering job advertisements, it always helps if you can talk to someone about the role, rather than discounting a job based on a written advertisement which may not fully reflect the job.

Carmel is one of our advocates for women in STEM-related fields – being science, technology, engineering or maths. Coliban Water has a continued focus on gender equity, with females in the Coliban workforce increasing in the last year from 38 per cent to 41 per cent.

Carmel’s role is heavily involved with the administrative component of risk in regards to water quality – primarily related to drinking water. She’s also worked as a rural modernisation officer and was based in our contact centre for a period of time too!

“People should be confident that they can give things a go. Sometimes you can’t get into a field directly – sometimes you get there in a roundabout way. You might think, ‘I wouldn’t be interested in that’. When considering jobs – it always helps if you can talk to someone in the role, rather than discounting it based on the job advertisement.”