Rachael Robertson

Rachael Robertson returned to Australia after 12 months in the Antarctic, where she successfully led the 58th Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition to Davis Station. She is only the second female to ever lead a team at the Station and one of the youngest ever leaders.

This leadership role is a truly unique experience. Antarctica in winter is totally inaccessible which means once the last ship leaves at the end of February, no one can leave the base under any circumstance (not even if you are dying) until the ship returns in November. It’s a 24 hour a day, every day of the year, leadership role.
Rachael Robertson was responsible for all aspects of life on the Station, from the safety and welfare of over 80 expeditioners in Summer, to the delivery of the Australian Government’s $20mn science program. In any circumstance, this would be a tough role, but for a female in a male dominated environment, it was also a very challenging one!
Prior to this Rachael held senior operational management roles for 16 years in a range of complex and challenging environments and now works in the field of leadership development sharing her experiences.
Since returning to Australia, Rachael has completed her MBA and is now working in the field of leadership development.
She is a keynote speaker at many national and international conferences with over 150 clients including NAB, AXA, Westpac, BHP Billiton, IBM, Minter Ellison, Crown Casino, CPA Australia, Wesfarmers, BP, Choice Hotels and Melbourne Water.

Speaker Topics Include:

Leading through adversity and change
Building a safety culture
Learning to lead and being authentic
Building a resilient and successful team
Creating & harnessing diversity
Leading in isolated environments
Managing difficult people
Looking after yourself.