AmyRyan - Staff stories

Amy's story

ACU is recognised for its leading-practice workplace supports and family-friendly employment provisions that support gender equality.

Staff member Amy Ryan explains why she feels ACU’s environment supports both her career development and her work/life balance. Amy has previously undertaken management training while at ACU and has chosen to continue her studies in Leadership and Management.

eLAMP lights the way

ACU Manager of Exchange and Study Abroad, Amy Ryan, completed the Emerging Leaders and Managers Program (eLAMP) in 2016. She says the program sharpened her skills and gave her new techniques for improving engagement with her staff.

“I enjoyed doing eLAMP and found that there was a lot of practical information that can be incorporated into your day-to-day work," Amy said.

"It takes a holistic approach to learning, therefore giving you the big picture stuff along with a better understanding of how your role contributes to the organisation. Modules were interesting and explored topics like strategy development and the ways in which you implement strategy. It gives you an idea of what type of structure is really going to be most effective at the level you’re working at.”

Amy also participated in the pilot of a program called Leadership and Accountability of the Supervisor, which ACU developed in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Company Directors. She says the effort that ACU puts into designing professional development opportunities for staff is positive and makes for a very supportive work environment.

“In eLAMP we talked about governance and the structure of ACU, which is an area I found interesting and quite useful. My career plan is to be with this institution for as long as I can, moving forward in my professional development while being loyal to the one employer. I’m a part of ACU, and I like to know how the operations are run and structured, and to see what other areas of the University do. Knowing those little bits and pieces helps me better communicate my role and how I fit within the institution. I think it also helps to not feel like you’re working in silos and enables us to see how we all fit into the bigger picture.”

ACU enables work/life balance

Amy says ACU offered good support during her second pregnancy - better than what she experienced with a different employer during her first pregnancy.

Amy says ACU's culture made all the difference in handling maternity arrangements for her pregnancy.

“ACU is open, family-friendly, warm and welcoming. The news that you are adding to your family and doing these things is well received.”

“There can be a certain trepidation around announcing a pregnancy at work and fear about how it is going to be perceived - that people will think ‘oh it’s not going to be good for the job.’ In my experience at ACU, I didn’t feel like that was the case at all.”

“I don’t necessarily work 9-to-5 every day, some days I will come in earlier and leave earlier because of my home arrangements. In my role, I also travel overseas, so there were going to be some challenges around my leaving for extended periods of time and working that in with home commitments. ACU and my manager have been very supportive about how I can manage that, where it meets the needs of the operation and my needs at home. I feel enormous gratitude that because of the environment and the structures that have been put in place, I’m able to have a healthy work/life balance.”

“I love coming to work. You always want to find a job that you wake up and enjoy going to.”

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