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Madi Burke

from Supermarket Deli Assistant to Maintenance Supervisor
I supervise tradespeople who are responsible for making sure our equipment is well looked after
Industry
Energy, gas and oil
Company
Shell QGC
Job Level
Mid

Ask me about

  • Living 2 weeks of the month in a camp
  • If high school (or even university) me pictured this job in my future
  • Studying engineering but not working as an engineer

About me

  • Regional Background

In school, I assumed my career path would be in engineering because I liked maths. In Year 11, I attended an “Aspiring Women in Science” conference, which inspired me to study chemical engineering at uni, aiming for the food and beverage manufacturing industry. During my 3rd year, I realised job opportunities in that field were limited, so I interned in the energy industry and fell in love with it. After another internship in a more day-to-day operational / less project-focused role, I realised that’s what I loved even more. After uni, I secured a graduate position with Shell QGC in production operations. Since then, I’ve held various engineering roles but then realised I wanted to do a bit more with people and looked for a role as a frontline leader, getting me to where I am today.

About my role

  • Analytical
  • Confident
  • Curious
  • Intuitive
  • Logical

The Maintenance Supervisor oversees scheduled preventative and corrective maintenance for QGC upstream operations, including pipelines, well sites, and field compression stations. This role involves leading a team of multidisciplinary field maintenance technicians to ensure safe, efficient, and high-quality maintenance services, aligning with safety goals and initiatives. In order to achieve this, key responsibilities include:

  • Reviewing and executing planned and break-in maintenance services
  • Verifying resources are being used efficiently (both labour and materials)
  • Coordinating with Operations and Maintenance Coordinators for quality schedules ensuring team is up to date with training and compliance with maintenance processes
  • Coaching team members

Education

  • High school certificate
  • Bachelor of chemical engineering (Honours Class I)
  • Bachelor of Commerce

Subjects

  • Chemistry
  • English
  • Industrial Technology
  • Mathematical Methods (Maths B)
  • Physics
  • Specialist Mathematics (Maths C)

Hobbies

  • Hiking
  • Pilates
  • Reading
  • Seeing family and friends
  • Travel

15 year old me!!

“You learn from everything you do so when you think you regret something, think about what you’ll take away from instead.”

My career journey

Curious to know how I got here? Here’s a snapshot of my career pathway.
  1. Decided to study Chemical Engineering
  2. Completed an engineering internship
  3. Completed a more operational internship
  4. Landed a Production Operations graduate role
  5. Moved into Frontline Leadership

My typical day

My employer

Shell has operated in Australia since 1901. From operating Australia’s first oil refinery, which was central to meeting Australia’s fuel needs, to fuelling the first Qantas commercial flight in the 1920s, to playing a foundation role in building some of Australia’s largest and most innovative natural resource developments. In nearly 125 years, the needs of our customers and the nation have changed and we have continued to evolve our business to meet these needs. Today, Shell is a leading natural gas producer and is playing a part in the transition to a lower carbon future.