Tell us about your journey since graduating from LSE
I returned to my home in Melbourne, Australia in late January 2020 - about 8 weeks before COVID turned the world upside-down. When I left London, one of the commitments I made to myself was to find a role that kept me connected to other parts of the world because one of the things that I loved most at LSE was the global nature of the cohort and the different perspectives people were able to offer, based on their unique contexts and perspectives. So in March 2020, I joined the Centre for Public Impact, which already had established teams in Europe and the US, to build a presence in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.
How has studying in the Department of Government helped you since graduation?
Having a strong grounding in the theory of public policy and administration - in particular the tenets of New Public Management - has been very helpful in my current role.
What’s the main thing you gained from studying at LSE’s Department of Government?
I think the main thing that I gained from my Masters was the importance of critical thinking and the confidence to form my own views and arguments. I really appreciated how we were encouraged to not just understand, interpret and apply existing theory; but rather, to interrogate it, and form our own views and argue a position. This was quite different to my undergraduate study, and is a skill that feels invaluable in many different contexts.
What’s been the highlight of your career so far?/What is your greatest achievement to date?
The highlight of my career was receiving an email from a public servant letting me know that she had finally taken a leap and moved into the public service role she had always wanted (but had been too apprehensive to pursue) as a result of attending a series of webinars that we hosted with the Australia and New Zealand School of Government about “reimagining government.” It felt like such a tangible expression of the change we’re hoping to inspire in public servants across the world.
What is your fondest memory from LSE?
The wonderful friends I made.
What was your favourite course whilst studying at LSE?
Funnily enough, I really ended up enjoying statistics (after being completely terrified at the thought of it, having stopped all maths-related subjects in Year 10). But, without question, I learned most through my dissertation, which focused on social workers (street-level bureaucrats) who were working with AI tools to support their decision making about at-risk children. Through this research I was exposed to such challenging and complex debates and it was truly a privilege to have the time and space to explore a topic so deeply. The most amazing thing, too, was that a version of my dissertation was published in a journal, with the support and encouragement of my supervisor, Dr Dan Berliner.