Member Spotlight - Natasha Miliotis
Tell us about your current role and the organisation you work for!
SHINE SA supports young people to improve their sexual health so they can enjoy their relationships with safety, pleasure and respect. Services at SHINE SA include counselling, STI testing and management, vaccinations, contraception services, pregnancy testing and referral. SHINE SA provides training and support to doctors, nurses, midwives, teachers, Aboriginal health workers and other community workers. We also deliver health promotion and information services to the community.
I am proud to be a part of the SHINE SA team as CEO, as we strive for our vision of sexual health and relationship wellbeing for all. At SHINE SA we believe all people have the right to:
explore and express their gender and sexuality
have relationships based on consent, respect and safety
learn lessons from life’s experience, with support where required
control decisions which affect their sexual health and relationships.
What is your greatest career achievement?
It would be easy to choose a career achievement which highlights organisational growth, business transformation or lobbying success. However, these are not the achievements I am most proud of. Instead I think about individuals and their success stories, I will share a couple of examples.
I remember a client I met 21 years ago when I was a psychiatric social worker. He had a diagnosis laden with stigma, little hope left and even less tying him to this earth. Together we worked on his mental health and life goals for about a year, before I moved into my first CEO role. Every year or so after, for more than a decade, he would find me to share his achievements. He brought me his graduation certificate, news of his first career job, introductions to his partner and photos of his children. The unspoken honoring of the lifesaving work we were a part of together is one of my treasured achievements.
A couple of decades later and I reflect on SHINE SA transgender team members who regularly confront abuse and discrimination just getting to work each morning. I see their relief when they make it safely into our workplace where they are affirmed, respected and where their talents and skills are valued and highly sought after. While we must strive for an inclusive society, I also feel incredibly proud of the welcoming, validating, engaging, respectful and inclusive organisational culture we create and sustain together at SHINE SA.
I am constantly inspired by the resilience of the human spirit and the potential for growth and development in us all. My passion is development of an inclusive community that respects human rights and responds with shared humanity. That is why these individuals and their amazing successes are also, humbly, my greatest career achievements.
Can you tell us about a challenge you have faced and how you overcame this?
In 2004 I accepted the challenges and the joys of leadership without the usual preparation of studies in management, nor of scaling a career ladder; I was a social worker who had never been a senior, nor a Team Leader or a Manager… I am a CEO.
I hit the ground running and didn’t have time to google leadership, let alone health service management, organisational change or system reform. Instead I started with the premise that if I worked with staff to develop a fun and engaging organisation, where staff arrived each day excited about their work, the rest would follow. Participants would seek out programs, funders would fund, partners would collaborate. Years later, the only thing that has changed is that I’m not ashamed to admit this is one of the foundations of my leadership style.
I feel humbled that I have the privilege to lead such important work and to be a part of such fantastic teams. I continue to be honest in my appraisal of my skills and limitations, the areas I am working on and developing, and I encourage others to do the same. I share my emotions including both joys and frustrations and everything in between! I work hard to ensure that everyone feels included in the work, in the successes and also in an understanding of the challenges and expectations.
All along my leadership journey I have been taught, guided and encouraged by a great team: participants, Board, volunteers, members, my executive coach, volunteers... and also those who have challenged me in various ways, the detractors, serial complainants, challengers, some of whom have been the most effective teachers!
What is the one key reason you continue to be involved with behind closed doors?
I ask you – where else can you sit around a table with such excellence and talent? The knowledge, expertise, experiences and skills of the women in my BCD group are phenomenal. It is entirely possible to grow your network to include leaders from across all sectors. However, it is something completely inspirational to bring all of those perspectives around a table at the same time. In a fierce and yet safe, challenging and yet supportive space, we meet to discuss issues and challenges collectively. We support and grow together. That is the one key reason I continue to be involved – the calibre and comradery of such exception women!