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.