Samantha Wilson

Griffith Business School alumnus Samantha Wilson has travelled across the globe, turning her passion for people and culture into a successful international career.

After graduating from her double degree, Samantha landed an incredible opportunity to move to the United Arab Emirates to work at Expo 2020 Dubai as a workforce operations manager.

She later returned to Australia and now works in a unique rotational role as a people and culture graduate at Optus.

It’s a position she credits to hard work, commitment and the global opportunities she had access to, thanks to studying a double degree in business and international tourism at Griffith University.

“Griffith University has given me access to a huge network across the globe and a stronger idea of who I am and how I can utilise my knowledge and skills to make real and sustainable impact,” Samantha said.

“I had wonderful mentors who challenged me to step up into leadership roles and to think about my place in the world,” she added.

“I’m a firm believer that we are all global citizens who have the power to create meaningful and lasting change, so studying an internationally-focused degree was a great pathway into learning about different perspectives, processes and people.”

While studying, Samantha seized every opportunity to hone her skills and make the most of her university experience.

She undertook internships, participated in multiple extracurricular programs and studied abroad in several countries. Most notably, she worked with the Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong and Tourism Australia in Singapore.

“Throughout my time at Griffith, I had the opportunity to study and work abroad in Hong Kong, Singapore, China and Cambodia, which truly equipped me with the practical knowledge required for a career in human resources,” Samantha said.

“Each of these experiences have strengthened my global perspective and prepared me with a wealth of knowledge and skills to grow my career with confidence. It helped increase my public speaking skills, leadership capability and ignited my passion for working with diverse teams and cultures.”

Samantha said studying at Griffith was incredibly eye-opening, interactive and allowed her to upskill for the future of business.

“I’m driven by curiosity and have an interest in learning about different cultures, so choosing a double degree in international tourism and business was the perfect blend of how I could turn my interest and passion into a career,” she said.

Samantha’s role at Optus involves a combination of case management, consulting and project work. On a daily basis, she advises and coaches leaders from all different management levels and business units across the Optus brand.

“A career in the technology and telecommunications industry promises to be an exciting one—full of innovation, change, growth and opportunity,” she said.

“This is what I love most about my job. I love being able to work on new challenges and ideas, and have the flexibility to create and deliver value to employees across Australia.”