Creating System Changes Through Effective Interventions

Coaches: Stacey Marinkovich (Diamonds Head Coach), Stacey Peters (Women & Girls Pathway Manager, Golf Australia), Lauren Arnell (Port Adelaide Football Club, AFLW Head Coach)

Other speakers: Tony Meyer, High Performance Director, Golf Australia

00:02 Lauren Arnell

I think, you know, there are barriers without family barriers for women in coaching

so, I think about women who are already in the high -performance space who want to

explore having a family and postpone that or women who have a family and aren't

sure, whether this is the right space for them. It is certainly very challenging but

to have some policies in place which support that I think is so important.

00:22 Stacey Marinkovich

I had incredible support when I had Matthew. I was head coach of the West Coast Fever at the time and then I also took on a dual role being the Diamonds head coach. For me it was being able to still stay around the court.

I didn't take the parental leave that was there, but we had a really good structure that enabled me to be able to continue to be around the team because it was in the lead -in to seasons so a really important time of bringing the girls together

00:50 Stacey Marinkovich

…..really through the management through my high performance team we were able to find a really good balance that enabled me to still thrive as a coach but also find my feet as a new mum.

01:03 Lauren Arnell

I think parental leave policies similar to this are so important in high performance sport because we know there are so many barriers to women coaching in high performance level particularly in Australia and so to break down one of those key barriers is crucial and to have some policies in place which support that I think is so important.

01:20 Tony Meyer

I think you know everyone needs different things to do their job well. Some people need a computer, some people need a vehicle, whereas for often for those returning to work, caring for young children need to be able to have flexible working arrangements, the ability to be able to sometimes take their children with them on the road or have the ability to have a carer travel with them and that was something that we identified to be really important and to be able to keep our best female staff but also to attract the best female staff we saw that as a really important thing to do.

01:57 Stacey Marinkovich

I think the thing that probably my experience influenced in terms of having a family was that the high performance environment was no longer closed off to being just this professional environment that no one could infiltrate. And I think that also gave way to say to players that you can be a mum and you can return to the sport and that our environment can make it one that your family can be involved, but you can also be professional at the same time. And it was just setting those boundaries that worked. So it's about building the plan that works for the families, but also that maximises the performance for the group that you're with.

02:36 Stacey Peters

Yeah, I think I've been very fortunate with working at Golf Australia, the flexibility that they have given me throughout going on maternity leave, returning to work and the juggle of the mum and work life, I guess. They've given me the flexibility on how can we make this work for you Stace, your family and us as well.

02:56 Stacey Peters

Like, I know that within high performance there has to be some give and take. It's not the general nine to five job, which makes it difficult when we're talking daycare, hours, things like that. But I think the flexibility that work have given me, you know, I need to understand that, that it's gotta come from my end too. I need to be prepared to drop things at last minute. My husband's very supportive.

03:19 Tony Meyer

You know, they always say you can't do what you don't see and I think so it's critical to have both male and female leaders that our young people can aspire and and look up to I know Since we've had the addition of more female support staff more of our ex -athletes are coming forward and saying You know, I want to be involved and how can I be involved? And I think that's largely because They're seeing more female staff that are traveling with our athletes and supporting our athletes and they're like, hey, I'd love to do that. So that is going to be critical.

03:53 Stacey Peters

Yeah, I've been very fortunate to have a good friend in Lauren Arnell going through, I guess, a similar thing at Port Adelaide Football Club. And I think it's just been great to have somebody on the phone to share what you're going through. She knows exactly what I feel like I'm going through both in you know high -performance sport so I've been able just to lean on her for some advice on how she's you know managing the juggle at work but and at home too you know sometimes I feel like you're you're treading water at times as a working mum.

04:26 Stacey PetersI returned to work first and so then she was leaning on me for you know even how did you have conversations with your workplace even just throwing those ideas I think I think even gives you that little bit more confidence to go to your workplace and to ask for maybe it seems like extra things but this is what I need to be able to do my job and do my job the best that I can.

04:48 Lauren Arnell

Again I think the really simple conversations that sit outside of policy were the most important and to sit down with my boss and for him to say there will come a time when you may not want to be talking baby to your baby and there may be a time when you want to talk football that's when you need to pick up the phone to me.

05:00 Lauren Arnell

Like that's true flexibility right and so to have that meant that I may have wanted to talk football sooner than maybe I would have otherwise.