Residents of the Sunshine Coast will know her as council’s chief executive officer, but Emma Thomas has an impressive background that many might not be aware of.
As celebrations ramp up today for International Women’s Day, Ms Thomas is reflecting on being a woman in the workforce and the many changes she’s experienced over her career, as well as leading one of the nation’s biggest councils.
“International Women’s Day provides an opportunity to reflect on that one day a year, to keep shifting the dial – meaning we’ll continue to move towards equity and get there as fast as we can,” she said.
“Having women in the workplace – or diversity of any kind – allows us all to explore and understand differences a lot better.
“You want to get the best out of your workforce by seeing difference as an asset not a hindrance.”
Ms Thomas says she inherited her love of space from her father and an interest in joining the RAAF from her grandfather.
“There were a lot of space shuttle launches in the 1980s and they would all get televised,” she said.
“I would sit on the loungeroom floor watching all the launches with my dad – we shared a curiosity about all things ‘space’.
“I didn’t really know my grandfather that well but he was a Spitfire pilot during World War II.”
Her first RAAF posting was at Tindal, south of Katherine in the Northern Territory. She worked on the then very new F/A-18 Hornets and loved every moment.
Keen to be part of the small local community, the former WA state gymnast updated her accreditations and spent many hours coaching at the local YMCA.
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She considers gymnastics a great confidence and character builder because it teaches you ‘to get back up’ when things don’t turn out as well as hoped.
She left the RAAF to join Boeing Australia and then held a range of senior leadership roles with the South Australia and Queensland governments.
She was also director-general of Transport Canberra and City Services in the Australian Capital Territory – an organisation of nearly 2000 staff.
With 10 of the 11 Sunshine Coast councillors being men, the CEO acknowledges there’s still work to be done to encourage diversity in local government representation.
“Councillors face a challenging job and it is difficult to get people to put their hands up,” she said.
“Our councillors work really, really hard and are very passionate about their communities.
“But I think for us, as council officers, making sure that they’re well supported in the job, that they can work for council in a way that’s very professional, is a big incentive for more women to also give it a try.”
Ms Thomas shared that her No.1 quality for any leader is to care about people.
“For anyone who’s thinking about being a leader, being a compassionate and caring and kind person is at the core of all leadership endeavours,” she said.
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