The Career Secrets Women Learn Too Late: with 7-Eleven's CEO, UniSuper's CPO & EY's AI Enablement Lead

There are career lessons that change everything. And most women don't learn them until it's too late.

You've worked hard. You've stayed loyal. You've done everything right. But somewhere along the way, the rules changed. And nobody told you.

This episode is the live recording from Fearless & Future Ready, our Sisterhood Social event featuring three of Australia's most influential women in business and AI.

One of them has never had a set career plan. One spent 26 years at Telstra before becoming a CEO. One is driving AI adoption across 10,000 people. And all three sat in a room and told the truth.

This is the conversation most women don't get access to until it's too late.

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🟣 Want to Work With Me?

The 60 Day Bold Move Career Accelerator: https://www.georgiehubbard.com/bold-moves

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✨ Grab the Book

📚 The Bold Move: https://www.theboldmovebook.com

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Connect with Georgie:

🔵 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgiehubbard/

🟪 Instagram: http://instagram.com/georgielhubbard

♦️ Website: https://www.georgiehubbard.com

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Connect with Pam Caldwell:

🔵 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/loucompagnone/

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Connect with our Panelists:

🔵 Fiona Hayes — CEO, 7-Eleven Australia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fiona-hayes-a80718b/

🔵 Julie Watkins — CPO, UniSuper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-watkins/

🔵 Erin Ashton — AI Enablement Leader, EY: https://www.linkedin.com/in/efogg/

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What You'll Discover:

🟣 None of them felt ready when they got the role. They said yes anyway, and what made the difference wasn't confidence. It was the support network around them.

🟣 The real answer to the question every ambitious woman is afraid to ask, do you have to sacrifice everything to reach the top? Three C-suite women answered it honestly in the room.

🟣 How women stand out during uncertainty, and why the professionals who get noticed aren't always the hardest working, they're the most visible and the most willing to own a problem.

🟣 How these women created roles that didn't exist by making themselves known, speaking up, solving problems nobody asked them to solve, and taking ownership before they were given permission.

🟣 Julie Watkins has never had a set career plan. What she has instead — and why it's worked better than any plan ever could.

🟣 Fiona Hayes spent 26 years at Telstra, including 12 on the executive team, before becoming CEO of 7-Eleven in 2024. What she learned about making yourself impossible to overlook.

🟣 Erin Ashton is driving AI adoption across 10,000 people at EY. What she's seeing inside Australia's biggest organisations right now — and what it means for your career.

🟣 How Australia's biggest companies are thinking about AI — and what it actually means for the women inside those organisations.

🟣 Why your support network is not a nice to have. It is the career decision that changes everything.

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Meet the Panellists:

Fiona Hayes — CEO & Managing Director, 7-Eleven Australia 26 years at Telstra including 12 on the executive team. Appointed CEO of 7-Eleven in 2024. A leader who built her career by showing up, solving problems and making herself impossible to overlook.

Julie Watkins — Chief People Officer, UniSuper Senior executive across sectors, geographies and boards. Has never had a set career plan. Passionate about the role executive women play in shaping the future of work.

Erin Ashton — AI Enablement Leader, EY Oceania Driving AI adoption across 10,000 people at EY. Helping organisations move from talking about AI to actually using it with confidence and impact.

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If this episode resonated, share it with one woman in your life who needs to hear it right now.

The future belongs to the women who are ready for it. Let's make sure that's you.

Georgie 💜