WesTrac executive Danielle Bull named Women In Industry mentor of the year

I was raised in Papua New Guinea, where my mother is from and where my dad worked for over 30 years. Early career influencers were my parents. My mother was one of only two women who worked full time in the small mining town I grew up in, and my father worked in logistics, importing lots of Caterpillar equipment.

You began a bachelor of arts/law and then dropped out. What happened?

After leaving school I left for a gap year in Canada where 12 months turned into 20 and I lost my original university placement. I then completed a Communications degree at UTS, then immediately started Law at Sydney Uni. Two and half years into it I was offered my first full-time role in communications. People thought I was crazy to drop out, but I knew I didn't want to practice law and I felt like the comms role was the break I'd been waiting for. It was one of those moments when your head is saying one thing, but your gut is saying another. I'm glad I went with my gut, it started me on a trajectory that landed me where I am today.

What did you learn at your time with TNT?

I learnt from a brilliant CEO, Bob Black, who remains a close friend and mentor. He demonstrated how you can be a much loved leader who inspires loyalty in your people, whilst being fiercely disciplined and driving a high performance culture that delivers strong results.

What led you to WesTrac?

I was recruited by an old TNT colleague. I grew up around the Caterpillar brand and had experience with the dealership model, so I thought the fit was perfect.

Your role has moved from marketing, to transformation, product support and then operations. Was that organic or strategic?

Very organic. WesTrac has been an incredible business in the sense that it's given me opportunities I never would have dreamed of pursuing myself. I've enjoyed the transition from support functions to line leadership and would encourage more women to pursue P&L opportunities, we need to back ourselves to own and deliver business results, not just support them.

What role did mentors play for you in that progression, particularly in a male-dominated field?

Mentors and advocates have been absolutely critical to my career progression. I mentioned my first CEO earlier, but I also benefitted from the support of an incredible leader and mentor in my last CEO who recognised my potential well before I did. I also work with an all-male executive leadership team and a majority-male operations leadership team who have my back and provide me with nothing but support and encouragement. My current CEO is another big advocate and one of the hardest task masters I've come across. He constantly pushes me to be better.

You have been open about suffering imposter syndrome. How so?

I work in a very technical business. Rarely a day that goes by when I don't feel somewhat out of my depth on a topic or issue. It's always easy to feel like there's someone who might be better for the job, someone more experienced, with more appropriate skills. The only thing you can do is ignore the voice in your head, reflect on the things that got you the job and get on with it.

You also talk about the "glass cliff" phenomenon. Why?

Often women can get their big breaks by stepping into roles where they face big challenges or a high degree of risk and uncertainty. I certainly did, and whilst it was incredibly hard at the time, it gave me a platform to demonstrate what I'm capable of and opened a lot of doors for me. Stepping up can be scary and women often fall into the trap of feeling like they're not ready for an opportunity or promotion when it presents itself. I encourage them to take the leap, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

You have just been awarded the Women In Industry's Mentor of the Year award. Why is being a mentor important to you?

I'm so grateful for the support I've received from mentors throughout my career so it's important that I pay that forward. I also wish I had more access to female mentors as I was coming up through male dominated businesses, so I want to provide that support to other women.

You are an advocate for diversity and inclusion. Do you support a "pink quota" in the corporate sector?

I believe in equal representation and equal opportunity, but I don't believe in hard quotas. That is, I don't believe we should prioritise diversity above capability, but I do believe businesses need to push for quotas in their recruitment pipelines and prioritise development pathways for their females, particularly their high potential females. This is the kind of support that women need to help correct the gender imbalance. Don't give us the job because we're female, give us the job because you know we'll kill it.

What drives you?

The people I get to work with - bringing teams together to solve problems, develop strategy and deliver results. I also love the Cat product and the customers we support.

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