S5:E46 | Georgeina Whelan AM CSC and Bar

Pebble in the Pond

Georgeina was not prepared for the inequality found in the Defence Force in the mid eighties when she enrolled in the armed forces. However she persevered, finished basic training and was allocated to the army psychology core. After officer training she was selected for a officer exchange in New Zealand, and applied to the Australian Army Medical Core as a health administrator. Thirty years later, ended up the Director of Army Health.

Through her long and varied career, Georgeina was awarded a Conspicuous Service Cross (CSC) in 2004 and was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 2006 and awarded a Bar to her Conspicuous Service Cross in the 2016.  

She was named ACT Telstra Businesswoman of the year in 2015 and awarded the ACT Public Service Award for Leadership in 2019. 

In this episode we discuss Georgeina’s career, including her important pivot points, observations and challenges she’s found and her super power. “My super power is making the best use of everything that is available to me and I work very hard to collaborate.”