Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Hey guys, it's Agla from Precision. I'm so excited to bring you our new podcast, Her Heads in the Cloud. I've been doing events with Her Heads in the Cloud over the last couple of years, but this is the first podcast of the series. We've got Hannah joining us today from Aussie Broadband. Very grateful for her to tune in from Melbourne. I won't say much more than that, but I'll let you do an intro to yourself, Hannah, and let us know what made you get into this space.
[00:00:29] Speaker B: Cool. So yeah, I'm Hannah. I am architecture manager at Aussie Broadband in the cloud space.
I don't know how far you want to go back. I studied engineering and computer science at uni and yeah, I just sort of fumbled my way from there. I started in telecommunications because, you know, I was applying for Graduate Worlds and that one sounded interesting and I just sort of jumped onto different opportunities as they came through. And as the technology evolved in that space, I sort of gradually made the move from less of a voice telco technology into virtualization and cloud and I've had a few different roles in that space from architecture and pre sales and all sorts of things. And yeah, I joined Aussie about six months ago as the architecture manager and really enjoying it.
[00:01:29] Speaker A: Awesome.
[00:01:30] Speaker C: Hey, it's Agla from Precision Sourcing and welcome to Her Heads in the Cloud, the podcast where we dive into everything happening in the world of DevOps cloud and site reliability engineering. With over six years in the industry, I've built a successful DevOps practice from scratch, helping companies connect with the top tier talent they need to build diverse high performing teams. Each episode, I'll be bringing you insights from some of the brightest minds in tech, engineers, leaders and industry experts. Whether you're here to learn practical tips or hear inspiring stories, you're in the right place. Let's get into it.
[00:02:08] Speaker A: So Hannah, I'll let you kick it off with starting with your journey with Aussie Broadband and how it began there and where it is now. I know it's pretty interesting. I was quite taken aback the first time I heard it.
[00:02:20] Speaker B: Sure, sure. So as I mentioned, I've been at Aussie about six months now. Yeah, works really interesting and varied. People are the best people you could ask for. It's such a good place to work.
I was attracted to Aussie Broadband initially because it's the kind of company that has well published values and sort of a reputation for living those values. It's also got a really, you know, I've been in the telco industry for 12 years, maybe now. And Aussie Broadband has a reputation within the industry for having cool technology and doing things differently. And, you know, that. That really appealed to me as well. It's a technology leader and an innovator. That's, you know, that's where you want to be if technology is your thing.
[00:03:03] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:03:04] Speaker B: I started looking for a role because, you know, my previous company was bought. I didn't like the direction that that one was going in. And this role came up and it was so aligned to a lot of the skills that I had already, but it was also giving me the opportunity to step into a leadership position and sort of take the pieces that I'd done before to a new level.
But as you sort of alluded to earlier, I think the thing that makes my journey with Aussie so special is that I actually, the same week I got the job offer from Aussie Broadband, I found out that I was pregnant.
And that, I guess, could have derailed things. I've certainly spoken to other people in the industry or had other conversations where that news has not been met very happily. Whereas I think. I think the HR manager at Aussie found out that I was pregnant probably even before my parents.
I wanted to be super upfront and I. Yeah, so I mentioned it to them. I was like, I don't know if that impacts my ability to accept the role. And they were 100% on board and supportive. They said, nat Wheat, we have a new brilliant parental leave policy. I'll send it through to you. Let me know if you have any questions. I know your hiring manager very well. I know he will be totally on board with you starting.
You've got six months. You can certainly bring value in six months before going on any kind of parental leave.
I like to think I have, I hope I have.
But, yeah, it's. It's been a really good place to work. I have a week and a half before I head out and life is drastically different for the next six months or so.
[00:04:44] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, I've managed to get you here just on time before you shoot.
But honestly, it really is so amazing to hear because you were honest and upfront as to where you were with your pregnancy process with Ozzy, and they still decided to take. Take you on board and they celebrated it with you, you know, whereas a lot of companies would have a complete different outlook on things. So, honestly, it just shows how they support people in that space, which is amazing to see in the industry.
I guess that also kind of alludes to my next question, but what Makes the cloud team at Aussie Broadband special.
[00:05:24] Speaker B: The people 100% the people I am. I said Aussie really lives its values and one of them here is be good to people. And that's absolutely, I guess, lived and breathed. Everyone has a really kind and helpful and can do attitude. It's a company that's grown really quickly, so we don't always have the structure or the bureaucracy that you might expect in a company of this size. But the attitudes of the people are so like, let's just get in and solve it and make it better for next time. Yeah.
There's always, always people that are willing to help. Always people to turn to.
[00:06:05] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:06:06] Speaker B: And because, because of that you feel like the work you're doing is making a real difference and that's really rewarding and exciting and makes you want to keep doing it.
[00:06:16] Speaker A: Yeah. It's a huge part of their retention. And honestly, I can vouch every time I speak to anyone at Aussie, regardless as to what team they come from, it's always a pleasant conversation and I'm just like, gosh, you guys really do have an awesome team. And Hannah, what role do you think diversity plays in the field of cloud architecture and how can the industry improve in this area?
[00:06:41] Speaker B: I think there's so many, I guess, prongs ways to answer that question, but I think it's pretty well known there's a whole lot of information and studies out there that diversity is good for any company's bottom line.
You need your workforce to look like your customers, otherwise you're going to misunderstand your customers needs or you're going to miss things.
There's stories about female train drivers being injured because their PPE wasn't designed to suit them. It's endemic everywhere. Obviously the examples are less tangible in a cloud world where you're a business selling to another business, but absolutely it follows that same path and makes the same sense. The other aspect that I always think about too is that the more diverse a team is, the more respectful the team tends to be because people understand each other's differences and they're aware that differences exist. So they are respectful within their team, but also respectful of the world in general because they understand that differences exist and they're not better or worse, they're just different.
And when you have that culture of respect and acceptance, people can bring them whole selves to work. If you follow that kind of.
There's got to be a less cheesy way to say that. But if people are confident to be themselves and to put their hand up and question things or bring their best ideas, then the output of your team is going to be better because people are comfortable in who they are and what they're doing.
I don't think that that is different in cloud architecture or anywhere than anywhere else. But I guess what is different or especially relevant in the cloud space is that it's our job to understand business requirements and how they can be met using technology. And there's never just one way to solve a problem. So the more diverse thought you have in an architecture team, the more ideas you're going to have around how to solve a problem using technology or people or process or whatever it might be.
And so you're generating a better outcome for your business.
When you have more diversity in your architecture team, I think to the point you mentioned, around industry improvements, it's a really hard problem to solve because there's a pipeline of challenges.
You've got to have enough girls coming out of school into engineering and then you've got to have retention once they get into the workforce.
I think a lot of the broader diversity programs that companies like Aussie have in place are furthering that somewhat.
But yes, it's a societal problem. I wish there was an easy answer.
[00:09:32] Speaker A: Right. 100%. And it's. Sometimes it's difficult because getting your voice heard and voicing your opinions or your thoughts within discussions, I know sometimes it can be overwhelming, especially if you're the only, say, female in the room or something. So how did you, when you were starting off in your career, is that something that you struggled with to be able to voice your opinion or did it kind of come naturally to you?
[00:10:00] Speaker B: It. I guess I, I still struggle somewhat with that in that I, I always tend to wait for a pause or a gap in a conversation. I don't like to interrupt people.
[00:10:11] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:10:12] Speaker B: So, yes, absolutely.
I guess the only. It's. It's something, I guess you just. You need to be aware of yourself and your traits and actively find ways, whether that is to approach someone in advance or after a discussion, whether it is just to actively kind of steel yourself to interrupt when you have to make your point made.
But it's also about building the respect, finding the people that you trust that can help you advocate.
You don't have to do everything alone. If you can bring people on board with your ideas and then they will also shout for your ideas, I think that's another way of getting to the outcome.
[00:10:59] Speaker A: Yeah. And I guess it's also one of those things when you get out of Your comfort zone and you bring your idea to the table. Especially as the world is changing now, more often than not, people will actually want to hear your idea and it will be very much valued and appreciated, certainly at Aussie Broadband.
[00:11:16] Speaker B: And I think the more you step out of the comfort zone, then the more success you have with it, the more you are able to do it again.
[00:11:26] Speaker A: Yeah, 100%. 100%. And what practices, what practices or strategies do you think organizations should adopt to create a more inclusive environment for women in cloud architecture? Not an easy one. I know.
[00:11:45] Speaker B: I think it is broader. I think it, you know, some. We have some really great programs here around neurodiversity and lgb, LGBT inclusion and all of those.
Like diversity is not just about bringing more women. But having said that, as a woman, if I see that a company is. Has all of those other programs in place and is not just giving out cupcakes on International Women's Day and saying, yay, women, I know that it's going to be an acceptable and accepting place to work when, you know, when people can bring their wholesales to work.
I've worked in companies with more or less women and sometimes there are companies that have more women, but still more of a chauvinistic or a blokey culture. And there are more women there, but they're perhaps less comfortable being themselves or feeling like they have to fit a mold. Whereas a more open culture, I think, will naturally encourage women to join, but also, as I said, from that broader perspective will bring people from all walks of life, which is only a good thing.
[00:12:58] Speaker A: Yeah, 100%. Are there any specific initiatives or anything that Aussie broadband is doing? I guess as well. You've joined there, so. And you have, you know, you're heavy on the cultural side of things and people side of things. So is there anything that had struck out for you in particular?
[00:13:17] Speaker B: Yeah, I have to admit I have. I have not actively joined the diversity committee myself as yet, but there are so many. I probably should. It's something that I'm passionate about.
There are so many initiatives. So we've got working groups for gender diversity, the Reconciliation Action program, neurodiversity, many different facets of diversity.
There's some really great programs implemented in terms of being able to give back to our communities in ways that are important to us. So there's. The name is going to be on the tip of my tongue, but escape me right now. Passion projects where any Aussie broadband employee can nominate a charity or an organization or an initiative in their community. That is valuable to them that we sponsor. So we've recently sponsored, I think a queer community theatre in Ballarat.
[00:14:24] Speaker A: Oh, wow.
[00:14:24] Speaker B: Awesome. We have a community. We also, again, as part of our.
So I don't know if you're aware, but Aussie Broadband is a B Corp or B Corp certified, which means that it has to comply to be certified as a B Corp. There's a bunch of things you need to comply to about being good for the world. I'm sure there's a more corporate way to explain that, but. But yeah. So as part of that, we pledge 1% of EBITDA to initiatives that help our customers. We donate Internet services to low income students to ensure that they're able to get the education they need. Right.
And we have volunteering leave that can be put towards are those sorts of community impact initiatives as well.
[00:15:23] Speaker A: I actually, there's no idea that there's. That I had no idea there's so many. I knew of some of them, but there's like something for everyone and I guess to be a part of like you say the OZ Corporation or something, you need to tick a lot of those boxes. So it's impressive to say that you're working for a company that is able to do all of those things.
[00:15:43] Speaker B: It really is. It's.
It's nice to.
Every company needs to make money, but it's nice to work for a company that is committed to trying to make that money in an ethical, sustainable way.
[00:16:00] Speaker A: Yep, 100% sounds good. And what advice would you give to women starting their careers in cloud architecture to help them navigate an advance in the industry?
[00:16:16] Speaker B: And that's another hard question.
I think it's about kind of seeking those opportunities, not being afraid to put your hand up for a new challenge.
You won't get everything you put your hand up for, but showing that initiative will still impress people or put you front of mind for another opportunity.
Find people that you trust, keep in touch with those people, even when you change organizations. I've been really lucky to have had a number of people, male, female, probably mostly male because most of my colleagues have been male traditionally. But that have taken me under their wing and given me that advice that's helped me grow my career and recommended me for new positions or promotions or things over time.
So, you know, yeah, seek those opportunities. And I guess back to the values thing that I said before is to me, I want to work for a company that I kind of believe in their direction. For me that's important.
I always look up a company's values on their website and I ask about them in an interview. You find out pretty quickly if they are just words on a wall or if they're actually lived by. And I think finding a company that you know is willing to support women or diverse candidates of any variety says a lot about that company and says a lot about your ability to succeed in that company as well.
[00:17:48] Speaker A: Absolutely. And what are your thoughts on, for example, upskilling with skill certifications and that kind of thing? Because sometimes when you're trying to get your first role in the industry, it can be challenging because companies, you know, they say they want two years experience. How do I get that two years experience? Someone's got to take the leap of faith. So what would you recommend in those instances?
[00:18:12] Speaker B: I am a relative believer in sort of those technical certifications, whether it's an AWS cloud certification or an ITIL process certification.
Not partly because the way my brain works, exams and those sorts of things come relatively easily to me. I know that's not true for everybody.
It's got to, you know, it's got to work. You've got to.
You've got to improve your resume in ways that work for you. So for other people, that might be tinkering in a lab and building something that you can show to people, but I find having those certifications on a resume, it helps you get through that first stage without having too many questions. If you have done that exam, you can show that you tick a box and you understand something to a certain level, it's going to get you to that interview stage where you can prove that you actually know something.
[00:19:14] Speaker A: Yeah. And I guess it also shows someone's drive and attitude that they've gone out of their way a little bit to complete something on the side. So it shows their trait of character as well.
Yeah, absolutely.
Awesome. Well, I guess on that note, it's time for us to wrap it up. Thank you so much for joining me, Hannah. It's been an absolute pleasure for you to share your insights and your journey to hand. And for all the podcast listeners, watch this space for the next one.
[00:19:46] Speaker B: Thanks for having me.
