Martine Harkin
I contacted one of my old teachers 12 years ago when I saw Leading Teams featured in The Age and he was in the photo. He was one of the founders of the company and was facilitating the program at Geelong FC.
It was not long after that I was asked to join the business as the only full-time female facilitator and the first without an elite sporting background. I left a successful teaching career at the school I used to attend and where I first met the teacher who would not only inspire me to follow down the teaching path, but then also provide me with my next opportunity at Leading Teams, where I am now a Director.
How would you like to be described by your family, friends, and clients?
I would like to be described as:
Genuine – showing a great balance of care, empathy, and challenge
Generous – sharing of myself – knowledge included – without expectation
Grounded – acceptance that I am enough and constantly learning
Grace- lead by example in seeking feedback and modelling what courage and vulnerability look like
What is your favourite piece of leadership advice, or quote?
“I am who I am today because of the choices I made yesterday” – Eleanor Roosevelt
What does success look like with a client?
Success for a client ultimately is a higher performing team and that will look different for each team, depending on where they’re starting from and where they choose to take it. For teams, this will generally be a greater weight of numbers pulling in one direction for a common purpose. It means the right behaviours will consistently be rewarded and the less desirable ones will be challenged. Through stronger relationships and adherence to an agreed framework, the group will feel safer in having the genuine conversations and in turn their performance will improve. Everyone in the team will also have their own journey of improvement and that is the rewarding aspect of this program – harder to measure but it brings great joy and reward.
Tell us about your culture and leadership experience?
Joining Leading Teams has given me the greatest opportunity to improve as a leader and as a human. We live our model so are constantly applying what we do to our day to day lives. We don’t always get it right, so I feel immensely proud that we can share those experiences with our clients and also that I am – no doubt – a better person for being a part of our team. I am proud to have been voted in by my peers as a leader at Leading Teams for the last few years.
Martine has been trusted by
“In my opinion, Martine is brilliant! If you’re wanting to go on a true journey of transformation as an individual or a group, digging deep, confronting your truths, she’s your person. I’d describe her as a ‘no-bullshit’ type of coach, however super human with her approach with a brilliant read on people and behaviours.”
Head of People and Culture
Melbourne Real Estate