What's your job about?
The WA Asset Projects team at BHP study and deliver investments >$20M to support our Iron Ore and Nickel assets achieve their social value, safety, production and culture plans.
The best thing about my current role is that no day is the same. One day I could be developing our department’s Social Value Plan, looking at ways we could better embed environment and community impacts in the way we make decisions and then another, I could be coordinating our budget planning process ensuring that we can deliver to our customer’s needs in a cost and schedule efficient way.
My job is always changing, sometimes in the most unpredictable way but that’s what I thrive on! It gives me the autonomy and ‘seat at the table’ to drive solutions to our tactical and strategic problems across all areas of how we work, so we can get better every day. Some of the more recent and interesting work I have been able to do is:
Run our strategic planning process - having a holistic view of how our +AUD$10B portfolio contributes to BHP’s iron ore and nickel assets goals and working with people across the Business to optimise how we deliver this.
Significantly uplift our department’s (+250 people!) - understanding and appreciation of Indigenous culture and history to contribute to creating an inclusive workplace for my fellow Indigenous employees.
What's your background?
I grew up with my extended family in Yawuru Country in Rubibi, or as many would know it Broome, Western Australia. Growing up in a place that is best described as a multicultural melting pot instilled the importance of diversity and inclusion in me from the get-go. I think that experience and viewpoint shaped the very core of who I am – it’s important that we embrace our differences, everyone deserves the opportunity to be part of something great!
I was privileged to go to boarding school in Perth. Living in the ‘big city’ gave me the confidence to apply and attend university, where I chose to study commerce because it has no limits and offers enormous versatility.
I applied for the BHP Graduate Program initially in Finance but was offered a role in Human Resources. Accepting this role taught me to be comfortable with the uncomfortable and embrace an opportunity even if it wasn’t something I initially planned for. Being onsite and in HR accelerated my personal and professional growth. 21 and providing advice to senior operational management on how they should run their teams was undeniably surreal and invaluable to how I approach everything at work.
I transitioned to the Finance team after rolling off the Graduate Program and I found myself once again vulnerable but ready to learn a completely different skill set.
I left BHP for a few years to work for an Australian start-up consulting firm based in the United States, optimising international clients’ supply chains. After that, I took a career break in Amsterdam for a year before heading back to Australia and re-joining BHP!
In the past five years, I have worked in two different departments and different types of roles. There are very few companies that can offer and support the type of career diversity I have been so lucky to have.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Of course. I am a strong believer that by embracing our differences we can only be stronger. If someone has a strong work ethic, is willing to learn, can embrace and see opportunities in change and works as part of a team – I think they can do anything! For my role specifically, having strong communication skills is also important and being able to meaningfully visualise, persuasively verbalise and succinctly write goes a long way.
What's the coolest thing about your job?
The ‘coolest’ thing about my job is what I am a part of - we directly maintain and improve our iron ore and nickel businesses in a tangible way, which s so enormously unique.
The BEST part of my job is that I get to act as a sounding board for (really) experienced people and offer my thoughts on their ideas, plans, and dreams, whilst also contributing my own. I love seeing the team challenge their usual way of thinking and having conversations they may have not had before.
What are the limitations of your job?
Every job has benefits and limitations. I sit on our department’s leadership team, directly supporting our Head of Department, so there’s an inherent responsibility to ensure that I am across a lot of information and ensure I provide the right advice and consider the right things in the situation.
With that responsibility and the hugely dynamic environment, it can mean that I work late or work on weekends. I manage that by keeping balance in front of my mind, accepting that my work is cyclical and I need to work the highs but ensure I ride the lows as well. BHP is extremely flexible when it comes to the way we work and being honest and upfront with your manager is so important to find an arrangement that works best for you and your role.
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