The university-led WATTLE Women Attaining Leadership program - designed to empower women to share, learn, lead and achieve - is back for a second year following a successful inaugural program in 2018.
The program's aim is to address the severe underrepresentation of women in senior levels of leadership in the university sector, both within academic and professional roles.
Based on NZWiL (New Zealand Women in Leadership) - a highly successful program for women employed at universities who are aspiring to leadership roles - WATTLE brings together women identified as potential leaders across the university sector to provide an intensive leadership and networking program. The program is designed, and run, by female professional and academic staff in the sector. An alumnae group is formed which then meets regularly.
The five-day program for professional women starts today, Monday 3 June and runs until 7 June at Waurn Ponds Estate, Victoria.
Women from eight participating universities - La Trobe, Swinburne, Griffith, RMIT, Deakin, Curtin, ANU and Murdoch - will hear from senior university executives such as La Trobe Vice-Chancellor and Male Champion of Change, Professor John Dewar; Ms Naomi Dempsey, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Students) Victoria University; Mr Kean Selway, Chief Operating Officer at Deakin University, and Professor Sarah Russell, Group Leader, Cell Biology Laboratory, Faculty of Science, Health, Engineering and Technology at Swinburne.
Participants will also hear from industry and government executives, including: Amanda Flouch, Partner, Consulting at Deloitte; Tracey Slatter, Managing Director, Barwon Water; Tasneem Chopra, cross-cultural consultant and anti-racism Champion for the Australian Human Rights Commission, and Jessie Mitchell, Manager, South and Southeast Asia, International Engagement, Department of Premier and Cabinet, Victorian Government.
Topics will range from leadership development, personal branding, sponsorship and managing change, to inclusive leadership, mindfulness in the workplace and navigating organisational politics.
WATTLE is funded and owned by the participating universities.
The four founders, Professor Rosemary Stockdale (Griffith, and NZWiL alumna), Professor Virginia Kilborn, Professor Helana Scheepers (both Swinburne) and Professor Birgit Loch (La Trobe) have collaborated closely with NZWiL to bring the program to Australia.
The program for academic women will run again in November this year.
