Rachael Robertson
To Inspire, educate and equip people with leadership tools they can use as soon as they get back to their desk.
International conference and event speaker Best selling author of “Leading on the Edge – Extraordinary stories from the most extreme workplace on the planet” Antarctic expedition leader Youngest ever Chief Ranger at 32 (Victorian National Parks) MBA (Melbourne Business School, University of Melbourne)
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Rachael Robertson's videos
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- English
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Rachael Robertson's 2025 biography
RACHAEL ROBERTSON: AUTHENTIC, INSPIRATIONAL – THIS IS REAL LEADERSHIP
Rachael’s work is in response to a massively growing demand in the business world to get real, practical tools backed up by solid theory from someone who has actually led, and led successfully.
“After 15 years leading diverse and remote teams and business units, I took the jump and lead the 58th annual expedition to Antarctica. It was a tough, gruelling and exhausting year, but ultimately extremely rewarding and fruitful. The intensity of this leadership role, where the leader is on-duty all day, every day, for 12 months with no respite, gave me the opportunity to road test my leadership ideas the hard way – without the luxury of peers, a desk or any way out! It was a ‘leadership laboratory’ in the most extreme, hostile environment on Earth.”
LACONIC, DOWN-TO-EARTH, ENGAGING
Because Rachael speaks from experience, she connects deeply with audiences, relating her own challenges to the challenges of every workplace. She needs no props, no “rah-rah” moments or no forced audience participation to reach people at a deep level. This is a seasoned leader telling it how it is in her own approachable style. Your people will leave inspired and motivated to make their own lives extraordinary.
PRAISE FROM BUSINESS LEADERS
“Rachael was simply wonderful – the evaluations gave her an enormous rating – 4.8 out of 5!!!” – Dept of Education and Training NSW
“Excellent, everyone loved her. Rachael delivered her experiences in such an unassuming way but with a touch of humour and visual appeal. And she struck just the right chord on the leadership messages. An absolute winner” – Trilby Misso Lawyers
QUICK FACTS:
Rachael Robertson CSP, MBA
• Rachael is the most booked female speaker in the Asia-Pacifc region
• Prior to leading an expedition to Antarctica she had 15 years corporate leadership experience
• She was just the 2nd Female Antarctic expedition leader to Davis Station
• At 32, she was Victoria’s youngest ever Chief Ranger
• Rachael has worked with more than 500 organisations around the globe
Rachael Robertson's 2025 talks & topics
Future. Woman. Leader.: How women can get to the top and stay there
Rachael offers the practical, confidence-building advice women need to advance their careers and lead. Whether addressing a corporate women’s group, a business school or an international conference, her approach is forward-thinking and creative, equipping women with tools they can use immediately.
The last twenty years have seen seismic shifts in women’s participation in the workforce. And yet, as a group, women still struggle to reach and maintain the top seats. What’s getting in the way then? It’s a nice idea that women can “lean in” but Rachael knows success requires more than that, particularly in male dominated industries. Women must forge their career, push open doors and sell their success. Success is an active pursuit not a passive experience. In this keynote Rachael speaks to both women and men to provide the insights and tools to create a powerful career.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Rachael provides audiences with the why and, most importantly the how to:
- Regret what you did, not what you didn’t do – this is the most powerful enabling motto you can have.
- Get senior male sponsors – women’s groups are essential but Rachael will show you how to find and maintain senior executive male sponsors who believe and will further your career.
- 80% is good enough – not fully equipped for the next role? Don’t worry about it, dive in!
- Sideways is just as good as up – expertise and competence gained through lateral moves will make you trusted and indispensable.
- Higher duties are critical – create your next promotion by putting your hand up for acting roles.
365 Shades of White: Life, love & leadership in Antarctica
If you’re looking for an opening/closing keynote; a lively and unique session within a conference program; or an after-dinner speaker that will inspire, challenge and entertain your audience – this is it.
This presentation provides a compelling insight into the highs and lows of 18 strangers living in complete isolation in the most remote place on the planet, for an entire year. With awe-inspiring images of Antarctica, plenty of humour and using real-life stories, Rachael takes the audience on an emotional journey revealing the truth behind life in this most fascinating and isolated environment.
Rachael has a treasure-trove of funny, inspiring and moving stories for this keynote presentation. She will work with you to ensure that, no matter the theme of the event, your audience will be challenged and delighted.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
As a sample, your audience could hear:
- Love on the Ice – what happens when 18 men and women are stuck inside for nine months!
- Bacon Wars – how a dispute over how to cook the bacon nearly derailed a $30M science program!
- Plane Crash – rescuing 4 people, 500km away, in a blizzard.
- Antarctic Winter – every family, workplace and team has one. How to inspire each other during the long dark times
- Emperors – lessons from Emperor penguins about looking after each other
The Future of Teamwork: How to quickly create an innovative, collaborative & high performing team
Today’s and future teams are very different from what they once were. Now we’re mobile, flexible, real-time and connected. We’re expected to deliver results immediately. The ability to harness diversity to create high performance is critical. Rachael shaped a highly successful expedition team in Antarctica and now shares the critical tools she uses to quickly create innovation, collaboration and high performance in teams.
Few of us get to choose our teams or have the luxury of a year or so to achieve peak performance. Technology and changing attitudes have enabled rapid mobilisation but can also exacerbate the “people challenge”.
Because, fundamentally, teams are about people. We need new ways to create the environment where fresh teams can build a collaborative culture and deliver results quickly.
In this keynote Rachael identifies the most powerful techniques that teams can use to drive innovation, collaboration and high performance.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Bacon Wars – why it’s critical to major in the minor things
- Respect Trumps Harmony – you don’t have to always see eye-to-eye, but without respect your team will fail
- No Triangles – the practice of direct conversations, go straight to the source
- Antarctic Winter – every workplace has one, keep teams inspired and motivated during the long dark times
- Emperor Penguins – why it’s critical to protect the tribe so the individual thrives
- Lead without a title – leadership is a behaviour; build collaboration and teamwork
Remote & Dangerous: Practical tools for increased safety leadership
Every workplace presents unique challenges to people and their employers. Teams must have a culture of safety and respect. Safety Management Systems alone are not enough. Each individual in the team must have the ability to influence and persuade those they work with and show safety leadership. Rachael Robertson successfully shaped a resilient, safe and successful team in the most remote and dangerous workplace in the world, Antarctica.
Antarctica is an isolated and inherently dangerous environment. Strangers are thrown together 24×7 and live in complete isolation, with nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. Mental and physical safety is paramount, but so is the requirement to meet targets, be productive and efficient.
Rachael Robertson faced these challenges head-on with the team she was given. She created a culture characterised by respect and safety and now delivers her unique stories and tools to organisations that know personal resilience and an open culture are key factors for staff health and safety.
Her presentation is memorable, full of hilarious stories and unique insights.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Bacon Wars – why every organisation has a coffee cup sign in the kitchen and what it means about safety
- Plane Crash – how to bounce-back from setbacks
- Lead from where you are – how people can show great leadership even if they aren’t formally a “leader”
- No Triangles – communication tools that build respect
- Antarctic Winter – how to maintain a safety focus for the long haul
- Respect Trumps Harmony – why a nice culture is dangerous
Leading on the Edge: Extraordinary leadership stories & insights from the most extreme workplace on the planet
The challenges leaders face are practically the same in every workplace. Leaders must acknowledge and navigate through the perpetual scrutiny, the frequent isolation, and the need to keep going when you feel you have nothing more to give. And through all this, must be authentic, resilient, innovative and adaptable!
Leading on the Edge resonates with audiences seeking inspiration and tools to build their leadership capability.
Whether you’re leading a team in an isolated, remote workplace or arm-wrestling spreadsheets in a busy corporate office, the same rules apply. Great leaders embrace the technical, political and personal domains. They know how to get the most out of their teams, even when it feels like they are navigating in the dark without a compass.
This is Rachael’s most popular keynote full of practical and proven tools, hilarious stories and stunning photos and videos. It is suitable for every event from small group to a conference extravaganza.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Bacon Wars – why it’s critical to major in the minor things (and why every organisation has a coffee cup sign in the kitchen)
- No Triangles – how to build a culture of respect through direct conversations
- Plane Crash – tools to support leaders through emergency, turmoil and adversity
- Resilience – tools to look after yourself and develop your ability to stick at the tough stuff and endure the bumps
- Respect Trumps Harmony – how to avoid falling into the “harmony” trap and unlock results & innovation
- Sunday Breakfast – understand the scrutiny of leadership, manage the spotlight
Change is the new Business as Usual: How to make your organisation change-ready
It’s a truism, but change is the new constant. It can be unsettling, energising and create extreme fatigue. In this keynote Rachael provides the tools to navigate this world of “flux” that dominates business today and build teams that anticipate, prepare and lead themselves through change.
Change readiness is the ability to continuously initiate and respond to change in ways that create advantage, minimize risk, and sustain performance. A major lesson from those who have created a change-ready culture is that there is no end point. One change may be addressed, but others are always emerging.
In this keynote Rachael identifies the four most powerful techniques to build an organisational culture that thrives on change.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Trust is the Glue – pay attention to the small moments, the everyday interactions that build or destroy trust
- Respect Trumps Harmony – we won’t all see eye-to-eye, but you can build respect through direct conversations
- Never Waste a Good Crisis – crises are tough but they create an opportunity to lead, and seen to be leading
- Celebrate the Small Achievements – no matter how small, stop and celebrate each forward step
- No Triangles – build respect and resilience in your team with direct conversations
Respect trumps Harmony: How to build resilience and respect in your team
The highest performing teams are those that let go of harmony and focus on respect, diversity of opinions and difficult conversations – all in the service of creating resilience and results.
Collaboration requires the ability to raise issues and ideas, in a professional, timely and respectful manner. To build a resilient, adaptable and high-performing team that maximizes the benefits of personal difference requires a rock solid foundation of respect.
We all agree that diversity is great, and the evidence is unequivocal that it has an impact on the bottom line. But as our teams get more and more diverse we won’t always see eye-to-eye, we won’t always agree on things.
So how do we create a culture where that’s OK? How do we encourage debate and robust discussion? How do we address issues directly and professionally?
3 TOOLS THAT WORK
These tools are the 3 pillars that hold up the respect trumps harmony culture.
- No Triangles – a tool to stop gossip, improve accountability, improve quality of feedback and drive innovation.
- Bacon Wars – a gentle circuit breaker for calling out dysfunctional behaviour.
- Lead without a title – how to develop personal leadership in your team, so that responsibility and initiative is shared.
RESEARCH
Over 15 years Rachael has delivered presentations around the world offering her insights from Antarctica and outlining the 3 tools she used to build respect in the expedition team. These tools work and now we have the research to back it up!
Rachael and her team surveyed almost 200 teams across various sectors and industries, who had implemented these tools already, and conducted follow-up interviews to gather further insights. She wanted to know what worked for them? What didn’t? And what changed as a result of implementing the tools?
RESULTS
Of the 200 teams surveyed:
> 100% said the tools improved morale, built accountability and encouraged collaboration and innovation.
> 89% said a culture of No Triangles improved productivity freeing up time and energy.
> 38% said it freed up to 1 hour a day – imagine an extra hour in the day!
As the results show, implementing these tools has an immediate and positive impact on teams.
When a team strives for only harmony 3 things happen:
- poor behaviour continues – it just goes underground as people don’t report it because they don’t want to rock the harmony boat
- innovation is stifled as people won’t offer a different option, experience or counter view
- people turn a blind eye to safety, risk and mental health concerns – they don’t want to get involved. If the focus is only on harmony in the team, people are reluctant to say “actually I’m not so wonderful right now”