Mio Dart, Head of Technical Partnerships at Allume Energy, was selected as one of the 2022 recipients of the Chloe Munro Transformational Leadership Scholarship. This initiative, offered by the Clean Energy Council and Women & Leadership Australia, aims to equip women with practical leadership skills and self-confidence to increase the representation of female leaders in the fields of clean energy, energy management and carbon abatement. Find out more about this industry partnership here.

Mio selected the Leading Edge Program because it aligned perfectly with her leadership goals and current skill level.

“The Leading Edge Program came at a really useful time, because I was transitioning from being a peer to more of somebody in leadership within that team and also starting to manage my first full time person.”

 “I wanted to be a better people manager. I’d had so little experience in it when I started the course and so I wanted to make sure that I was doing right by the person, and hopefully people, in the future that will be reporting to me.”

We spoke with Mio about her experience in the Leading Edge program and how it has helped her develop as a leader. Read more of her story below.

What stage were you at in your career then when you applied for the program?

Mio: “Early stage management, I’d been earmarked within Allume Energy for a potential leadership position with managerial duties.

The Leading Edge Program came at a really useful time, because I was transitioning from being a peer to more of somebody in leadership within that team and also starting to manage my first full time person.

At the time that I got the scholarship, we were looking to hire a person who would work under me and then I’d take on a ‘Head of’ role as opposed to an Engineering Manager sort of role.

Additionally, like all companies, we were facing various workplace communication challenges, including with personnel and customers.”

What specific goals or outcomes were you aiming to achieve through the program?

Mio: “I wanted to be a better people manager. I’d had so little experience in it when I started the course and so I wanted to make sure that I was doing right by the person, and hopefully people, in the future that will be reporting to me.

I’ve been really fortunate to have very supportive managers throughout my career and so I really felt like giving back in that kind of way would be really good.”

There was also one coworker that I was really struggling to communicate with. I could tell that we were just butting heads and I knew I could only do 50% of the work to get us to a point where we were in a good working relationship. [Through the Leading Edge Program] I learnt how to frame things and how to tackle certain issues, that’s been very helpful.”

What learnings or modules did you find the most valuable?

“Definitely the ones on difficult conversations. I found it helpful to learn how to approach conversations differently depending on whether I was speaking to someone I managed, a peer, or my own manager, especially given the workplace challenges I was facing.

There was also a module on leadership through change that was very helpful. I learned how to guide the person I was managing through that change and trying to make them feel comfortable to reduce anxiety around the change, how to word things, how to frame things so that the important information got through.

The peer coaching was also really helpful. I was in a group of three, and all of us were at a very similar stage in our careers. One of the other ladies was also an engineer, so we all gained a lot from the experience.”

It wasn’t really an aim at the start, but what I also got out of the course is just listening to the stories that a lot of the other women doing the course had. It was quite pertinent to me because at that point my husband and I were thinking about starting a family and I’d been thinking, ‘How am I going to fit a child into this as well? I don’t even know how this is going to work.’
It was really inspiring to hear those stories of the other mums who were doing the course who had gone through similar things.”

Have you noticed any changes in yourself since participating in the program?

 “We took a personality test to identify our strengths and weaknesses. Because I’ve been doing engineering type work, I always thought I was an Analytical type, but it turns out I’m more empathetic. I never realised that about myself before! Once I realised that I was saying things to please others rather than being direct, I was able to change my communication style. Now, I’m more open and honest about my thoughts and feelings.”

How will you take what you learnt to help guide others in the future?

“I’ve been really fortunate to have really supportive managers, but I would call some of the mentors probably more than managers because I still speak to quite a number of them. [As a result] I really derive a lot of value from that, providing guidance and help to others.

At Allume, we have women in positions of management, but we’ve also hired junior female engineers, admin, sales and other roles in the organisation as well.

One of our engineers she’s new to the industry, recently graduated from university, and I could see a lot of myself 10 years ago in her.

Knowing that she is a competent person and a really helpful part of the team I wanted to try to bolster her confidence after coming out of the course.

I remember one particular thing that the facilitator said: ‘In larger meetings, the quieter people, who are often women, will not say anything because they’re not very confident. All it takes is for someone to ask, ‘What do you think?,’  and you actually get something really insightful out of it. I’ve tried to put this into practice with her and a few others as well.”

I was so fortunate to go through this training that if I could pass on anything to anyone else, in the organisation then that would be super helpful.”

What advice would you give to others considering a leadership development program?

“Absolutely go for it. Yes, it is an investment of time, and when you’re in the nitty gritty of a nine-to-five job taking that amount of time out of your day can be quite challenging. But for the value that you get from it, it’s definitely worth the investment of time.

You’ll learn things that you’ll be using for the rest of your career. [So my advice] instead of thinking, ‘I have to take an hour and a half out of today to do this,’ think, ‘I’m investing an hour and a half today to improve my career for the next three decades.’

That’s certainly what I got out of it.”

Mio’s key takeaways:

• Self-awareness: Understanding her personality to inform effective leadership.
• Developing Leadership and People Management Skills: Mio developed essential management skills to support her transition from peer to leader.
• Confidence in Communication and Empathy: Mio learned to adjust her communication style and strengthened her ability to manage team dynamics.
• The power of Mentorship and Peer Support: Mio gained confidence and reinforced her commitment to mentoring and supporting junior staff, especially women.

Mio Dart’s journey through the Leading Edge Program highlights the profound impact that leadership development can have, not only on career progression but also on personal growth. Through the program, she gained essential skills in people management, communication, and self-awareness, allowing her to navigate workplace challenges with greater confidence and empathy. The support of her mentors, peer coaching, and the insights shared by other women in the program deepened her commitment to mentoring and uplifting others, especially women in her industry.

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