Ventia's Telecommunications Program Manager, Angela Harrison
As a Team Leader she supervises a team of 18 engineers, 8 project coordinators, with a subcontractor base of over 50. Their work is essentially responsible for developing parts of the nbn® network, building residential and business fibre links and commercial works through civils, hauling and splicing.
The team delivers on average over 500 projects per month.
“I have a great team,” says Angela.
It’s a competitive industry so it took a lot of hard work to build the right team.
"What I enjoy most about the work and this project in particular, is that it’s always changing with great challenges every day”.
An average day for Angela
Angela’s day usually starts just before dawn.
On her 10-acre hobby farm in Baxter, on the Mornington Peninsula, there are many chores to do and many mouths to feed. Her morning routine involves taking care of her cows, sheep, goats, chickens, two dogs, cat and six brand-new baby lambs.
“My husband grew up on a pig farm in Strathmerton, near Shepparton” she says. “He always wanted to go back to the farm, so here we are!”
Together with their two daughters, aged 11 and 18, life can get quite busy.
But Angela is not afraid of hard work. “I work hard on and off the farm” she admits.
Resident cows on Angela's 10-acre hobby farm in Baxter, on the Mornington Peninsula.
Infinite mindset
Angela knows what it’s like to work her way up.
An 18-year telecommunications veteran, she started on the switchboard for the Department of Health & Ageing in Canberra. She worked her way through the ranks to Assistant Operations Manager and moved to Melbourne in 2011, where she worked for Telstra as their Workforce Manager for four years.
Her Ventia career stared in 2016 as a Design Scheduler, assisting the Design Manager with scheduling of design tasks, before quickly moving into the role of ODM Program Manager.
“There have been lots of changes since then”, she says.
But rather than fear change, Angela admits she relishes it. In the words of business author and inspirational speaker Simon Sinek, hers is an infinite mindset based on constant improvement; rather than resist change, Angela embraces uncertainty by seeing opportunity.
She particularly enjoys supporting the team through changes and helping them adapt by being transparent and open. People and processes are her main strengths and focus areas.
But for Angela, it’s not just about working harder.
The work on parts of the nbn program for example, requires implementing innovative ways of working smarter and using resources more efficiently to deliver evolving KPIs. Angela has spearheaded the alignment of previously segregated programs by integrating teams of field managers, engineers and subcontractors according to a pod process model, making the mobilisation and allocation of work and reporting more efficient.
Women Leading
Sinek also says that the real job of a leader is not about being in charge, but about taking care of those in their charge.
I’m interested in helping to develop future leaders
“I took a Ventia Training and Development Course this year called ‘Women Leading’ and it really opened my eyes," says Angela. " I definitely recommend that program. It’s an avenue for women to get advice, develop strengths and move into leadership roles. It’s also a great opportunity to be involved in career mapping, networking and workshops with other women and key stakeholders across the organisation.”
Angela with her fellow ‘Women Leading’ course attendees