26 September 2023

Power boost: Leadership grant for women in energy

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Blake Matich* says the Clean Energy Council and Monash Business School have combined forces to provide a scholarship for women in renewable energy.


The Clean Energy Council (CEC) and Monash Business School have combined forces to close the gender gap in senior leadership positions across Australia’s renewable energy industry.

The partnership has developed a grant to give women in leadership roles a career boost.

The grant, Your Leadership Voice: Women in Focus, will provide a one week, fully funded Executive Education program where the leadership professional can advance her skills in negotiation and public speaking.

It has been suggested that enculturated diffidence means that many female professionals don’t negotiate with the gumption of their male counterparts, a contributing factor in the gender pay gap and the dearth of female presence in the upper echelons of leadership.

The program is designed to transform female leaders by addressing the leadership and communication challenges facing women in the workplace.

CEC Chief Executive, Kane Thornton said his organisation’s Women in Renewables initiative had been successful in building a network of female professionals across the industry to support each other and provide access to a range of opportunities.

“We are proud to support and promote the role of women at our events on the Clean Energy Council’s board and across the industry more generally,” said Thornton.

“We all benefit from having a diverse group of leaders which are all motivated to make a strong contribution to our shared success.”

Director of Executive Education at Monash Business School, Professor Michelle Russell said the program provides participants with the tools and techniques to support their leadership ascension.

“We are proud of our success in helping talented women leaders reach the next level of their career,” said Professor Russell.

“The professionals we see tend to have amazing business skills, and it is a pleasure to help them expand their range, increase their influence and identify new opportunities to develop.”

This is the second year the CEC and Monash Business School have teamed up to offer this grant.

Heidi Sick, the winner of last year’s inaugural grant, is now Client Director, Energy — Australia and New Zealand at engineering consultancy Aurecon.

The Your Leadership Voice: Women in Focus 2020 Grant is not the only educational scholarship offered by the CEC’s initiative.

The CEC also offers funding for the undertaking of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) Foundations of Directorship course.

Allison Hawke, the 2019 recipient of the AICD Scholarship, is the COO at ESCO Pacific where she has played a key role in developments such as the Ross River and Finley Solar Farms.

For more information about the Your Leadership Voice scholarship, or to apply, visit https://www.cleanenergycouncil.org.au/advocacy-initiatives/women-in-renewables/scholarship/your-leadership-voice-women-in-focus-grant.

* Blake Matich is a writer and journalist.

This article first appeared at www.pv-magazine-australia.com.

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