Pitching for flexible work

Pitching yourself for flexible work arrangements  

It took a phone call from a colleague to make me realise some possibilities in this space…

I was about 6 hours from catching a plane to Queensland for a family holiday. Those of you with children will know the military operation that is travelling with children: portacot, nappies times 50 in the suitcase and carry on, wipes, wipes, wipes, spare outfits, sleeping cloths, swimming clothes and clothes clothes. Sunscreen, nappy rash cream, baby toothpaste and toothbrushes. Pureed food, breast milk, formula, rusks, a blanket for the plane, pram, car seats….

Anyway. This friend of mine had seen a GM job advertised and she thought we should apply for it. I always thought that you got tapped on the shoulder for these types of roles and was not losing any sleep waiting on the tap. She thought we should apply. I didn’t really think about it at first. I simply wanted to get back to packing so I said, I’ve got nothing to lose but no time to think this through. How about you write a letter and send my cv. We’ll see what happens….

I went on holidays and forgot about it.

When I got back, I discovered that I had secured an interview. It was time to start thinking and preparing my convincing career business case.

All great partnerships come when you are greater than the sum of your parts. So I worked on a pitch that described that. For the price of one general manager, Rio Tinto was going to get:

• Over 40 years experience
• 2 MBA’s
• Degrees in economics and mining engineering

Experience in operations, studies, finance and approvals


Your experiences and opportunities will be different but my recommendations on writing your own career business case would go like this:


Be open with your strengths and interests. No one does a job well that bores them.

1. Don’t be afraid of a non-conforming bid. It may be just what your business needs.
2. Build your network and gather ideas from others to find out what has worked for them.
3. Be sure to put a win-win case together. The best outcomes for you and your organisation will be the ones that you are both happy with.

Good luck!

Diversity

What about workplace diversity? I have just read the recent Human Rights Commission recent report into treatment of Women in the Defence Force. I am sure that you have your own views on this from experiences that I have never had but this is my take:

I wholly agree with one of the Principles outlined for success: Diversity of leadership increases capability. I have seen this first hand. As a leader of improvement for one of the world’s largest mining companies I see diversity of thought building long lasting and stable improvements in all processes. This is not achieved by ticking a box though…

□ Female

□ Homosexual

□ Aboriginal

□ Old

□ Disabled….

It is about understanding and including different norms and values. While this range of thinking is theoretically possible with say ‘a group of with middle class 40 year old mining engineers’, your chances of diverse thinking are far greater with a mix.
So – do we need targets? 

I guess the perfect answer is no. Every organisation understands that it will perform at its best, with sound decisions and high performance by seeking out the widest possible range of thinkers to deliver for them. It’s very hard to do this though in organisations with strong traditions. The norms are so often built around a very narrow determination of merit. My belief is that some organisations at some times, will require targets if only to wedge in some individuals with different backgrounds and experiences to support the organisation while its traditions and norms change.

What about not being the best 'man' for the job?

So if an organisation has targets, the immediate concern to many individuals is that there will be preferential treatment, and a weakening of the fabric of the organisation. Let me be very clear that all promotions and appointment should be based on merit. The advice I give all women in my industry is that they must pitch their skills and attributes to the organisation well. Merit can have a broad definition and so it should. You need to ask yourself: are there any particular skills you bring to your organisation that others aren't quite as good at?

In my case, it is relationship building, collaboration and networking. I am great at finding common points of view, building strong teams and connecting the right people together to make change. So while I know I am not the best mining engineer based on a purely technical assessment, I know that I have been appointed based on merit.

Workplace flexibility

My concerns with workplace flexibility became most significant when I was pregnant with my first child. Although Rio had generous maternity leave provisions for the time, I assumed that my career would stall when kids came along. I thought that you applied for maternity leave, had a baby, came back after a year or so in some sort of part time position that was not quite as interesting as your pre-maternity role and did it all again in a year or two. It was talking to women who’d been there before me that opened my eyes to new possibilities. They told me about contract work from home while on maternity leave that could slowly build up as the baby got older. They told me about negotiating so that my bonuses and entitlements were not adversely affected. They gave me the confidence to pitch for the work I could do that would be interesting and add to my development. 

When considering children, you don’t need to accept a career standstill – unless that’s what you want. We are lucky to be working in dynamic times; use your imagination to pitch your skills and limited availability at work that will stimulate you and add to your development. One of the women who had been there before me and gave me great advice was my good friend and the other half of the general manager business improvement at Rio Tinto iron ore, Fern Dyball. We were the first women to be promoted in a job share capacity at senior level in the organisation. Our great opportunity did not come by passively waiting to be anointed. We both demonstrated flexibility and determination to prove to Rio Tinto that job works at senior levels. Like all great partnerships, we work incredibly hard to have a consistent message and support the development of our team.

My experiences with workplace flexibility can be summarised as:

1. Use your network when considering a family and seek advice from those that have been there before you. 
2. Know that women have only been in mining  a relatively short time and our organisations are still learning – this provides you with an opportunity to shape new and exciting workplace flexibility.
3. Never accept … “You are the right person for the job… it’s just that we want full time…” when there are great examples out there supporting flexible work practices.

Let’s be honest though. Flexibility is the bit that best for you. If you want a promotion or great work arrangements, you have to think of it from the organisations point of view. What do they get?

In the case of job share: Through experience at doing this at a senior level, I know Rio Tinto got great value. Because of our diverse background, skills and interest, Fern and I were actually greater than the sum of our parts. We knew we would be and we pitched accordingly.

Jobs for girls...

Growing up on the farm and without brothers, it simply never occurred to me that some jobs just weren't for girls. I was clearly naive. While studying mining engineering at Wollongong in NSW, I was stunned when told that women were not welcome at the local underground coal mines. In fact, I did not believe it until my first excursion when I was told to wait outside the crib room while all of my peers went in for a lunch, lest I be offended by the pictures of nude women plastered all over the crib room walls. 

At the time I accepted this treatment as just part of the workplace. I didn't mind eating my sandwiches alone under my cap light. I didn't mind always having to wear ill-fitting men’s PPE because women’s PPE simply did not exist. I didn't mind the liberal use of the c word or the fact that I could not use a toilet until well outside the mine and into the sanctuary of the admin office. In fact, I thought it was all rather exciting and went along with it in good humour.

It’s only in recent years that I look back on this sexism and gratefully acknowledge how far the industry has come. I don’t consider myself a trail blazer – greater women and men than me effected these changes, but I have spent a lot of time talking to other women in the industry about their experiences and challenges. These conversations have shaped my career and the role I am in now.

Looking after each other

When a colleague has a rolled ankle or a head cold, we are really good at making them feel comfortable – here, would you like a chair, a glass of water, I’ve got some panadol in my bag… We are not so brilliant at spotting and caring for our friends, family and colleagues who have less visible signs of distress though. It’s incredibly hard to start a conversation like ‘you seem a bit unfocused  do you want to talk?”. It’s even harder to call your boss and say that you won’t be in because you just can’t drag yourself out of your bed and you don’t know why you feel so blue. It should not be this hard! One in 5 people will suffer from depression. It is common and it is treatable but the consequences of ignoring it can be catastrophic.
I have had two friends take their own lives and I get mad as hell when I think that it was so preventable. One of these friends was the most gorgeous, talented and gregarious mining engineers I had ever met. Her laugh would shake the roof tiles off. Despite all this she took her life.

For eleven years she has been gone and not a week goes by when I don’t wonder about what she knew about depression, its prevalence and treatment options. It was never something we discussed…

As a leader, peer, subordinate, relation or friend I don’t hesitate to now say “Are you ok?”

About me

I’m an engineer. I’m 39; I’m a mother of two, wife of one and, until recently, half of the general manager business improvement for Rio Tinto iron ore. I have driven haul trucks, detonated 100’s of thousands of tonnes of rock and worked on billion dollar feasibility studies.
I don’t have enough hours in the day. Work stresses me out at times. Sometimes it’s my boss, sometimes my peers and at times, the company I work for. I have fat days, anxious days and not enough holidays.

Why mining?

Growing up on a farm in north Queensland, I didn't wear shoes or dresses until going to boarding school at the age of 12. When career planning time came around at school, mining engineering seemed like a good idea. It looked to involve 3 fairly appealing motivators: action – explosives, rugged men, large trucks and danger; money; and no dresses.

What have I done?

As a graduate I wanted to experience it all. I operated heavy equipment, worked as a shot firer, mucked out spillage and built up the time and experience to get an unrestricted Quarry Managers ticket by 25. I then decided that an MBA would be a good idea but as a fairly grudging student I took the slow and steady approach of one subject per semester by correspondence. It took me 6 years.