Denita Wawn

MASTER OF HER DOMAIN

A Leadership Journey and Lessons Learned

LAINI BENNETT

When Master Builders Australia CEO Denita Wawn was in her mid-20s, she was National Industrial Relations Director for the Australian Hotel Association (AHA). Her role required her to represent the AHA at the Industrial Relations Commission, so it was disconcerting when peer advocates weren’t keen to work with her — both because she was a woman, and due to a perceived lack of experience.

Wanting to be accepted, Wawn toned down her bubbly personality and brightly coloured clothes, investing in conservative black and navy 90s power suits. But increasingly, she felt out of sorts. “I didn’t feel comfortable because it just wasn’t me,” she says. So, one weekend she went out and bought “every pastel suit known to mankind” and the next time she was at the Commission, rocked up wearing her selfdescribed “girly girly” clothes.

Finally feeling like her true self, her confidence bloomed, and it showed in the way she walked, talked, and in her passionate advocacy. From then on, she embraced her femininity.

The face of an industry

Wawn is the face of the Master Builders Australia (MBA) and the organisation’s first female CEO in its 130-year history. She ensures its 32,000 members are spoken for at the highest level.

Wawn says that even though she has always worked in male-dominated industries, she has received strong support from men, in particular senior leaders such as board members. However, for some of her appointments there have been naysayers, with colleagues asking her outright whether she could manage juggling her job and her family.

Asked whether she is ever intimidated by some of the big personalities that she encounters in her role, Wawn says she is not, and acknowledges that she, too, is a strong personality. “My fundamental view is that, regardless of who someone is, you have to respect them as a person and to respect their role,” she says.

Knowing when to walk away

Showing respect includes learning to walk away when a situation becomes heated, such as during negotiations over key policy, rather than risking saying something she’ll later regret.

It was widely reported in 2020 when Wawn did just that; shaking with anger, she walked out of an IR reform working group meeting after being blindsided by a deal the then Attorney General had struck with the Business Council of Australia (BCA) and the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) to process preference union agreements.

“I knew if I stayed in that room, I’d have lost it, and I was gonna lose the respect of other people — quite rightly,” she says. “So I took my own advice to my children: walk away, calm down.

“When I came back in, I was very strong and strident in my delivery of my message, but it was done in a way that was respectful to them.”

Finding common ground

Wawn says the most challenging aspect of her role as MBA CEO is also the most gratifying. That is, ensuring all the MBA member organisations have been appropriately consulted and have reached agreement on key policy and tactics, before she can act publicly.

“Bringing together strong personalities for a common goal and a common purpose is much harder, actually, than the execution of that strategy from an external perspective,” she says.

By means of example, she cites the delivery of a series of contentious MBA political advertisements in the lead up to the 2019 Federal election, campaigning against an Australian Labor Party housing tax proposal. The proposed ads were hard hitting, and it was critical that all MBA member bodies understood and agreed upon the approach first.

Wawn says achieving this agreement was one of the most gratifying points in her career at the MBA to date, probably even more so than implementing the successful campaign.

While achieving consensus at work can at times be challenging, on the home front, Wawn and her husband are on the same page: their family is their priority.

Wawn credits the support of her parents and husband, Mike, for making her career possible. “My husband is extraordinary. He’s my rock, he keeps me grounded,” she says. They share household duties, with her husband often stepping up to take on additional responsibility when her work hours demand it.

Changing expectations

While it’s common for women to have careers today, Wawn believes there is still a cultural expectation that women should be the primary carer in a family. “Children have two parents — it doesn’t automatically have to be the woman,” she says.

She recommends that women have a robust conversation with their life partner about what the future will look like with children in it, to ensure they’re on the same page about caring responsibilities.

“Women also need to be kind to themselves,” Wawn says. “It’s taken me some time to learn that I can be a leader, and I can be a mum, but I can’t be a good leader or a good mum unless I am looking after myself. And that’s both mentally and physically,” she says.

While Wawn says she is a work in progress, she clearly understands what works for her, in the office and at home. She leads by example, showing it is possible to be both a formidable and feminine leader, who has mastered her domain.

Laini Bennett writes a Women in Leadership blog, called Birds of a Feather. Visit: lainibennett.com to read more interviews with inspiring women.

ABOVE: Master Builders Australia CEO Denita Wawn.

FIRST LADY OF ENGINEERING

LAINI BENNETT

Dr Bronwyn Evans has been appointed as the first female CEO of not one, but two respected institutions. Her achievements in her male-dominated profession of engineering are equally impressive.

Currently, she is CEO of peak industry body Engineers Australia which, with 100,000 members, is the fourth largest industry group in Australia. Since only 15% of engineers are women, Dr Evans’ appointment as their first female CEO is all the more auspicious.

Previously, she spent over five years as the first female CEO of Standards Australia, which develops safety and technical standards for hundreds of industries. She also has a PhD in Engineering and is an experienced board member, among other achievements.

Where it all began

Dr Evans didn’t wake up one day and decide she wanted to be a CEO. Her career goals were more pragmatic than that. One of seven children, money was usually tight, so from a young age her goal was financial independence — and keeping up with her siblings.

“Was I ambitious? Absolutely. I come from near the bottom end of a large family, and let me tell you, from a very young age I’ve been saying: ‘Wait for me!’” Dr Evans says.

Left to right: Nick Flemming, EA Chair and National President, Mark Bailey, with Dr Evans.

Urged on by her mother and encouraged by her high school mathematics teachers, Dr Evans knew she didn’t want a traditional female role.

However, she didn’t consider it for her career until her then future husband suggested it. A mechanical engineer, he persuaded her to study electrical engineering, noting her strengths in physics, chemistry and mathematics.

“It was the perfect choice,” she says. “It’s a bit like when you don’t know what good looks like, but when you see it, you realise ‘ah, that fits really well’.”

One of the boys

In her electrical engineering classes at the University of Wollongong, Dr Evans was usually the only woman. This never troubled her, nor did it bother her male classmates, who treated her as one of the gang.

“The gender divide didn’t seem to be a major issue. If anything, it was more about the different tribes of engineers. So, we electrical people stuck together!” she says.

Similarly, on her first job as an engineering cadet, Dr Evans was often the only woman on her team, but never encountered any overt discrimination or harassment. Rather, she found a willing mentor in the senior engineer, who helped her gain valuable experience by placing her on interesting projects.

Investing in herself

Several years later, as a member of the Cochlear executive team, Dr Evans made a conscious decision to further invest in her communication skills. Her role required her to speak publicly, and it was important to her that she project the same credibility she’d observed in her peers and Cochlear’s CEO. So she undertook singing lessons to learn how to use her voice, and a National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) executive communication course.

“I found that if I could use my voice well and sound credible, it gave me the confidence to feel credible. And ultimately, if I can be so bold, to be credible,” Dr Evans says. “It was a really good tool to build confidence in myself.”

As her career progressed, Dr Evans also employed the help of professional mentors. Working with them, and through her own observation, she identified three key areas that career women need to develop to position themselves for leadership opportunities.

Performance

The first is job performance; an ability to not only do your job, but to do it well. “You need to make sure your performance is credible. That’s the minimum bar,” Dr Evans says.

Presence

Communicating with confidence

Dr Evans’ first major leadership role was in Singapore, where she ran GE Healthcare’s Asian operations for Ultrasound Service. She loved the conglomeration of cultures, and admired her multilingual colleagues, especially when her Australian accent proved difficult for people to follow.

“I’d say something, then all heads would turn to Lince, my Head of Finance from Indonesia, who would repeat it in her own accented-English, which they could understand!” she laughs.

The experience taught her how to be a good communicator. She learned not only to speak slowly and clearly, but to find more succinct ways of delivering her message, tailored to her audience.

“Even if English is everyone’s first language, not everyone in your audience has the level of detail on a particular topic. Learning how to respond to an audience is a skill that I’ve just found universally very useful,” she says. The second is building a professional presence, both intellectually and physically. Dr Evans suggests reading widely on world economics and geopolitics, in order to engage with confidence on a range of topics. Physically, learning how to speak in public is important, but so is dressing for the role.

Profile

Finally, aspiring leaders should build a public profile. “It doesn’t matter how well you perform or present if no one knows about you,” she says. Dr Evans suggests building a profile by doing such things as speaking at events, writing a blog, or taking on projects.

“Rounding out your leadership with these three elements means that you can position yourself well for a role if it comes up,” she says.

Laini Bennett writes a Women in Leadership blog, called Birds of a Feather. Visit: lainibennett.com

BUILDING A DREAM LIFE

When speaking with SQ Projects foreman Maryrose Burrow, you can’t help but feel inspired

CARMEN MILLER

Possessing an unflinching drive to succeed and passion for her profession, you instantly get the impression she does nothing by half measure.

A year on from completing her apprenticeship and Maryrose built a Master Builders Award-winning home, a second MBA nominated home and today is running multimillion dollar, high-end projects.

And while these achievements are nothing short of impressive, it was her incredible tenacity to roll the dice on a carpentry apprenticeship at 29 years of age and leave behind the stability of her previous career which truly speaks to her character.

“There wasn’t one, real lightbulb or Oprah ‘Aha’ moment of inspiration for my career change, it was a slow burning process,” Maryrose said.

“A combination of gradual dissatisfaction in my previous work environment, and shift in interest away from my higher education studies saw me searching for more.

“I was working as a registrar for the largest art storage facility for public and private collections in Australia, handling artworks of every medium and cultural artefacts from every corner of the globe that no-one else would ever see.

“It had its days, but there was nothing creative or tactile about it, and the screen time was becoming mundane.”

Possessing a “festering obsession” with design, construction and sustainable living, Maryrose found her happy place in anything and everything that needed to be built, fixed or maintained around the home.

“My dad schooled me on the tools from an early age and so it all came so naturally,” she said.

“I was going down so many rabbit holes in earth building and sustainable living and carbon reducing construction options, but to be able to leave any kind of green mark on building, the first step was to build a house the traditional way and learn the skills of the trade.”

Thanks to this incredible pragmatism and the palpable energy of inspiration, Maryrose threw caution to the wind and got set to roll up her sleeves for what would be a challenging, yet immensely rewarding change of career.

“Whichever way I was going to take my future of building and growing interest, I recognised I had to leave behind my ego, halve my salary and go back to school and start from the bottom.

“I was inspired, and supported by friends, my partner and my family.

“Not once did I think, ‘I can’t do this because I am female or 29’.”

After relentlessly trawling the results pages from the Master Builders Awards, Maryrose highlighted the companies she wanted to work for, basing her choices on those she felt were forward-thinking and passionate.

“To my surprise, each offered me a place as an apprentice, which tells me the good ones are the open-minded ones,” she said.

“My initial meeting with the director of SQ Projects uplifted me and made me feel 100% like I was moving in the right direction.

“He was completely supportive of my interests and behind me all the way; we shared the same goals for my success.”

And while Maryrose admits people outside of the industry often comment that her role must be challenging for her, the attitude from those on site has been overwhelmingly supportive from day one, with teamwork at the heart of everything they do, irrespective of gender.

“No one was perturbed by a female on site, they were excited, and they could see it was good for business. It’s a point of difference and the clients like it.

“All of our subcontractors and trades have treated me with complete respect and I wouldn’t have envisioned it any other way. This is 2021, the guys are smart and thoughtful.

“They’re husbands, brothers, and sons; some of them have become my closest and best of friends. “People (outside of the industry) always comment that my job must be hard physically…I hate that.

“This perception may be the reason some girls and women are put off the idea of a trade, but I would say if you are of relative physical fitness, male or female, and don’t mind getting a little dirty, then don’t let that be the reason.

“Sitting in a chair and staring at a screen all day is definitely not good for you either!”

Now a highly regarded foreman, Maryrose’s desire for success is burning stronger than ever.

There are big plans on the horizon for where she’d like to take her career long term however, for now, she’s more than content soaking up the fact that she’s living her dream; a dream she brought to life through sheer grit, determination and bucket loads of self-belief.

“I’m catching sunrises every day, working with my Billy dog, my friends, great clients and innovative architects, challenging myself mentally every day, enjoying job security and endless possibilities in a constantly growing and rewarding industry…and those 4pm afternoon swims! Why would I consider anything else at this point?”

THE GATEKEEPER

Introducing Joanne Papageorge, the voice behind the Master Builders Association of NSW for over 44 years

AMANDA KELLY

My name is Joanne Papageorge I was born in Sydney in 1947. My parents migrated to Australia and made Sydney their home in the early 1930s. I come from a very strong ethnic background with my father bringing strong Greek Cypriot traditions.

We had a wonderful upbringing with lots of love, laughter and fun, but our father insisted that we abide by the customs of Australia and ensured that under his roof, we followed his rules.

I always wanted to be a dress designer, but unfortunately this was not to be as I was not allowed to go to TAFE or college. Instead, my mum organised a job for me at a bakery factory. My brother also worked here which is why my parents wanted me to work there. That way my brother could keep an eye on me. I was very outspoken and opinionated then, some may say I still am. While it took a few months, I did everything I could to get fired, until eventually it worked. On the outside I appeared sad, but on the inside, I was doing a happy dance.

With no job, my parents decided that I would stay home and learn how to be a good Greek wife and wait for them to pick me a husband. As you can imagine, this did not sit well with me, so I negotiated with my mum that if I could not find a job within one day, I would accept my good Greek wife fate.

The next day, I had my first real interview with Grace Bros removals as a clerk. Thankfully they hired me straight away. I enjoyed working at Grace Bros and spent the time taking on new roles and learning as much as possible. It was here I learnt to operate a Sylvester switchboard. This was the switchboard that was comprised of long cords. Each cord has

a grey end and a red end. You answered with the grey end and connected with the red end which sounds simple but was anything but. Unfortunately, the business had to relocate to Parramatta, and in my fathers’ eyes, this was equivalent to moving to another state, so I had to hand in my notice. But I had acquired some office skills and could apply for receptionist/telephonist jobs.

My next job was with a toy company as a receptionist. While my switchboard skills were basic they still hired me, saying my personality and my ability to deal with customers would be more important and they would train me. Then, you guessed it, eight years later the business relocated to Penrith. My mother had passed away by now and my dad wasn’t happy about me traveling to Penrith. To him, Penrith wasn’t just another State but another country. I once more had to hand in my notice.

Not long after leaving my father passed away. I decided to travel overseas with some relatives for my first holiday. I was away for three months and in this period had an amazing and exciting time. Unfortunately, when the holiday was over, the reality of having to find a job materialised.

I went for an interview as a receptionist with the Master Builders Association (MBA) in October 1973. At this stage the MBA Office was in a very small, old building in King Street, Newtown. I knew absolutely nothing about the MBA or the building industry. I was interviewed by a Mrs Phyllis Churchill who went through what the job included. Once she was finished, she asked if I had any questions. I thought I better ask something. Still trying to live up to my father’s standards and beliefs, my only question was “would I have to join a union?” Mrs Churchill looked at me trying to figure out if I was serious or not. When she realised I was serious, she said “no you do not and you’re hired”.

So, my introduction to the building industry commenced and what an education for this naive Greek girl.

The Construction Workers Union at the time was called the “Builders Labourers Federation” (BLF) with Jack Mundy in the lead. This is where my real education of the industry began! I heard many colourful words that I had never heard before. I actually looked many of these up or asked other staff what they meant, which was always an interesting conversation.

Over time I started recognising the voices of people who rang. I especially loved it when Union representatives rang abusing staff members anonymously. I loved saying thank you Mr so and so, I will pass your regards onto that staff member.

Over the years we had a couple of bomb scares where we had to evacuate the office building. But my first major encounter with the union was when they marched on the front steps of the MBA. For our safety, we all had to go lock ourselves into the Executive Meeting Room. The police were called, and they instructed us to stay away from the windows. But of course, we couldn’t resist having a look and what we saw was frightening. The whole street was blocked by tradies and union

representatives. I had never seen anything like this before. The next time was even scarier though. They stormed our building breaking through the glass front door. The police had to escort us to our cars to ensure our safety.

In 1981, our then Executive Director, Ray Rocher secured a new home for the MBA family, and we all moved to Forest Lodge. I even got a new switchboard with buttons, not leads! I don’t like change, so this move was going to be interesting. However, the biggest change was where I was positioned. For the first time I had a proper reception area where I could welcome visitors into the building.

Our industry continued to change. While protests continued from time to time at the Forest Lodge premises, the building had security doors that couldn’t be penetrated. We could stand at the windows waving to them all. One time, two staff members, who will remain nameless as they both may still work at the MBA, even went onto the roof and were throwing water balloons at the protesters. The police were not impressed and ordered us to stop as we were causing a riot. In a way, I used to call these the good old days. The MBA family was an amazing family to be part of.

In the 90s I was diagnosed with cancer and had to have major surgery. I felt so blessed to have the support of my family and the MBA family around me to support me. It was about this time that I decided I was going to travel and see more of this world. I travelled to countries like USA, Asia, Europe, New Zealand and of course this amazing country.

Also, about this time, a very close friend of mine passed away which helped me to realise that I wanted to be alone, so I moved down to Gerroa in the South Coast. This made traveling to work at Forest Lodge quite interesting! My day started around 2.30am where I travelled to Kiama to catch the train to Central and then a bus to Forest Lodge. I can honestly say, I never missed a day of work because of my long travels. I would always take the earlier train which meant I got into work an hour early, just to make sure I wasn’t late. For the next 18 years, I travelled from Gerroa to Forest Lodge and back again every day. I made some great friends on the train travels from this time. I didn’t know at this stage, but these friendships would help with what was to follow.

In 2009, I received the devastating news that I had breast cancer. This is news no woman ever wants to hear. Again, I had major surgery twice as the specialist was not confident that he had removed all the cancer cells. I considered myself lucky though because I did not need chemotherapy, only radiotherapy. So for the next six weeks, everyday in my lunchtime I travelled to the hospital for treatment with the help of two lovely staff members (that still work at the MBA today). My family wanted me to stay in Sydney while I was going through radiotherapy but I wanted to do it my way, so I only stayed with family on weekends. This meant I continued travelling from Gerroa to Forest Lodge and back again each day. This is where the friendships I had made with my fellow train travellers

came into play. They all ensured I was looked after in my travels.

I spent the next few years working, holidaying overseas and travelling a lot between Gerroa and Sydney for family functions and celebrations of which there were many! I was on a couple of committees for the Cyprus Hellene Club even holding an executive position on the all-male board for a short period of time. As mentioned earlier, I am quite a strong-willed person who can be very verbal in my opinions. The all-male board members were having a hard time with my views, so I resigned but stayed on as part of the ladies committee.

One thing I am extremely proud of is the Breast Cancer breakfast that I organised to raise money for Breast Cancer research and the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse. When we first started organising these breakfasts, we had around 80 ladies attending but attendance soon increased to more than 200 each year. It got to the point we were having to turn people away.

In 2012, I decided I should start planning my retirement. I found the thought of retirement frightening. How could I start the next chapter of my life without the MBA? The MBA had been such a big part of my life for over 44 years. My retirement plan took me five years to put in place! In 2017 at the age of 70, I got the courage to resigned from the MBA.

The staff at the MBA were very close in the early years and when anyone left, we would ask, as a joke, “was there life after the MBA?”. Now some four years later I can now say, “Yes there is”.

I will always have fond memories of my time at the MBA with all the amazing Executive Directors, Presidents, Councillors, Life members, Members and of course, staff that I have got to know over my 44 years, but can I also say, I am loving retirement!