Sixteen professional women have successfully completed the Business Coalition for Women’s six-month course in certificate IV leadership and management.
The women are from Digicel PNG, TE PNG, Black Swan International and Australia Awards sponsored women from the Works Department, Morobe Provincial Health Authority, the National Agriculture and Quarantine Inspection Authority and the Papua New Guinea University of Technology.
Fourteen of them celebrated their achievement with their colleagues at the Lae Yacht Club while two graduated in absentia.
Carolyne Yallen, who is attached with NAQIA, thanked Australia Awards for the opportunity to learn new skills and values, and her agency for the support.
“Normally my colleagues from the corporate section, the office ladies, they attend workshops and trainings. For scientists, I’m the first one so I’m proud of that,” she shared. “Personally and professionally, I’ve come this far.
“I was really shy but after this (course), I’ve come out of my shell, I’ve become confident and I can accept feedback without getting cross.
“My communication has improved, including teamwork. Normally we go out to the field to do work and I’ve become a major team player and I’ve also built my network where I can now call the Digicel ladies and say, ‘I need help with this’, or the Works ladies. That’s after the six months at the workshop that I’ve gone through.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to learn.”
Digicel’s general manager for Kokopo, Manus and Kavieng, Belinda Kanau, encouraged her cohorts to appreciate themselves.
“Celebrate yourselves, celebrate the wins and let’s move on from being self-critical and also from judging others,” she stated.
“I’ve seen a lot of things developed especially and as Carol had said, she grew out of that shell that she was in. I’m very proud of her as well as all the other ladies.”
Kanau shared that self-reflection and appreciation were the main values she took away from the training, adding the course has added great value to them professionally, encouraging them to be better versions of themselves.
Other principles that she learnt include educating both women and men about developing their growth mindset, creating sustainable networks to support the development of team members and rather than focusing on why a woman is not able to become a leader, we should focus on what that leadership role’s expected outcome should be, and celebrate that.
The 8th graduation coincided with International Women’s Day celebrations.