MBA student profile: Anna Remond

I have always been interested in human behaviour, and what motivates and impacts the way we think, feel and act. I decided to study Clinical Psychology because I grew up in country NSW and wanted to understand and help break the cycle of intergenerational trauma, mental ill-health and adverse social, economic and health outcomes. For the last eight years I've worked in mental health across several sectors including public health, Not-For-Profit, foreign aid, and in private practice. I have primarily focussed on disadvantaged children, teenagers and families, and more recently the use of creative, outdoor and peer-based interventions.

My hope is that the MBA will help broaden the scope of my career by providing me with the skills and support to move into senior leadership. I am excited to excel my knowledge in leadership, data analytics, financial management, strategy and innovation, and believe the integration of these learnings and networks with my clinical background will help me to effectively build teams, and lead services that support disadvantaged families.

When I was considering studying an MBA, I was drawn to the University of Sydney Business School because of its top-ranking reputation, and the experiential learning aspect of the program.  Being the fortunate recipient of the Future Leaders MBA Scholarship is essentially my ‘Golden Ticket’ to making a real difference within the Australian mental health space.  I would love to see greater representation of mental health consumers and clinicians in leadership positions, particularly given the mental ill-health pandemic and the role that workplaces hold in supporting wellbeing.

Having now completed my first MBA subject, I have been able to experience first-hand the importance of having a diverse cohort and how this positively impacts the learning environment. From perspectives and ethnicities to representation of women, industries and levels of experience, I have found it refreshing to be surrounded by so many high-achieving emerging leaders, who offer insights I’d never considered, and challenged so many of my assumptions.

A challenge that I didn’t see on the horizon was studying the MBA virtually due to COVID-19. Although the classes have transitioned to zoom for the time being, I’ve been able to adapt to the new ways of learning and working. The academics, independent coaches and guest speakers have been amazing, leaning into the challenges of COVID-19 and leading by way of example.  They have been able to maintain the experiential components of the program with break-out groups, role plays, simulations, quizzes and polls, regular check-in’s, Q&A’s, and online social catch up’s to name a few.

I have no doubts that the MBA and the Future Leaders MBA Scholarship are providing me with the platform I have been searching for to make a difference in the mental health space.