“From reluctant feminist to industry trailblazer”: How Helen Gibson is rewriting what leadership looks like in mining

When Helen Gibson (MAusIMM) reflects on her career, she does so with a blend of humility, pragmatism, and the kind of grounded humour that makes her instantly relatable. There is no polished tale of a meticulously planned rise to executive leadership - just a series of opportunities embraced, challenges tackled, and a deep-seated belief that you don’t need to have it all figured out to build a remarkable career.

Today, Helen is the Vice President for Komatsu’s Underground Business in Australia, overseeing one of the largest underground regions in the world. She stands as the only woman in a senior regional VP role within Komatsu Underground and one of the few women globally to hold such a position. And while she has never sought to be labelled a feminist, self‑describing instead as “a reluctant feminist”, she recognises the responsibility she carries.

“In industries where there are fewer women, people do look up to you,” she says. “Whether I like that label or not, I’ve come to embrace being a role model.”

It’s a sentiment that runs through her story, not driven by ego or ambition, but by integrity, openness, and the desire to make the path clearer for the people following behind her.

Finding a career she never planned for

Helen’s career didn’t begin with a degree, a structured path or a set of rigid goals. In fact, she left university after just two weeks.

“I didn’t want a student loan for a degree when I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” she laughs. “Some people know they want to be doctors or vets but that wasn’t me.”

Instead, she took administrative roles, worked hard, and followed opportunities as they came. Her turning point arrived thanks to a boss she describes as a “real firecracker”, someone who looked her in the eye and said, “You can’t do this forever. What do you want to do? Finance? HR? Commercial?”

That conversation planted a seed. A restructure followed, and suddenly a role opened in HR for a small incubator business. Helen stepped in, took responsibility, and discovered her knack for people, culture, operations and leadership, all without a formal qualification.

“It seemed random at the time,” she says. “But every job led naturally to the next.”

Her story reinforces a message she emphasises often, particularly to younger employees:

“Stop worrying about the next five years. Do your job really well today, and the next step will come.”

Opportunities come to those who raise their hand

Helen’s career inside Komatsu is full of examples of what can happen when you volunteer, stretch, and say “yes”, even when you’re not sure where it will lead.

After joining as an HR Manager focused on learning and development, she was asked to coordinate technical training for a project in Norway. The work was complex but she stepped in enthusiastically. It later became a full‑time role, and through that, she began supporting Smart Services across multiple countries.

When a colleague could no longer travel, Helen put her hand up again.

“I said, ‘I’m already going to Poland, Russia and India… I’ll do it.’ And that became another expansion of my role.”

She is quick to point out that the opportunities didn’t arise because she was lucky, they arose because people had seen her energy, her capability and her work ethic. “You have to be visible,” she says. “People need to see you in action.”

That philosophy underpins how she now coaches emerging professionals. She encourages them to join networks, take on side projects and pursue visibility across the organisation, especially when their direct leaders may not naturally advocate for them.

“You should never attach your success to one leader,” she says. “You need a village of sponsors.”

A leap of faith: From India to Australia

Helen’s move into her Vice President role wasn’t a calculated next step, in fact it was a call she initially resisted.

At the time, she’d spent seven years building deep relationships in India, transforming a growing market of around 100 people. She loved the work and wasn’t looking to leave.

So when Komatsu leaders tapped her on the shoulder and suggested she consider leading Australia - a region nine times the size, with nearly 900 employees - her first response was, “I’m not sure I’m ready for a jump that big.”

But she agreed to “kick the tyres” and spent three days in Australia with the leader who is now her boss. Those three days changed everything.

“I realised I could make a difference,” she says simply. “That’s the only reason I took the job.”

Eight months in, she talks candidly about the steep learning curve adjusting to new customer groups, a new market, and the sheer scale of the region.

“The first week I was already in Brisbane meeting customers. Nothing helps more than just getting out there and talking to people.”

The experience reinforced a personal truth she now passes on to mentees:

“Things are never as scary as you think they’re going to be.”

Mentoring across the globe: Paying It forward

Helen mentors five people across China, India, the US, the UK and Australia, a diverse group she describes with pride. Most approached her; one she sought out after seeing potential.

She mentors because she never had a formal mentor herself. Instead, she learned from older, experienced leaders who backed her, challenged her, and gave her opportunities she didn’t know she was ready for.

“I think people assume I'm a good mentor because I worked in HR,” she says. “But it’s the other way around. I worked in HR because supporting people is my natural style of leadership.”

She speaks openly about the vulnerability she sees in the women she mentors, the self‑doubt that creeps in, especially in male‑dominated spaces.

Her approach is equal parts empathy and tough love:

“Don’t attach your mistakes to being a woman. You are valid. You’re capable. And you won’t fail because we won’t let you.”

Her only rule for mentoring? It’s not just a “chit‑chat.”

“We need to be working towards something. What does success look like for you in 12 months?”

Driving positive change: Purpose, planning and progress

When asked what Driving Positive Change Together means to her, Helen returns to a theme that has shaped her career: intentionality.

“It’s about planning, purpose and execution,” she says. “If you’re going to do something, do it with intent.”

She believes the mining sector has made significant progress, particularly in opening pathways for women, but acknowledges that biases still exist. Some of them are generational, others rooted in outdated perceptions.

She recounts moments when people have joked about “the women taking over,” and she challenges those assumptions directly:

“We don’t blink at an all-male leadership team and yet, people often seem surprised or even threatened if there’s more than one woman in the senior leadership or executive.”

Her vision for the future, and the path to a world where International Women’s Day might not even be needed, is refreshingly concrete:

• Put women into leadership positions.
• Take informed risks based on capability, not comfort zones.
• Bring more women into the organisation - early, mid‑career, and senior.
• Create multi‑perspective decision‑making.
• And above all: normalise equality rather than spotlighting it as an exception.

“I’m not a risk,” she says. “I’m a safe bet. There are many women who are.”

Changing perceptions outside the industry

Helen believes strongly that mining organisations have a responsibility to shift public misconceptions, and that industry bodies like AusIMM can amplify that movement.

She loves the sector, speaks about it passionately, and sees clearly how misunderstood it often is.

“People think mining is dirty work and that you go underground every day. But the variety of roles is enormous. It’s exciting. It’s dynamic. It puts food on tables. And women can do every single job in the supply chain.”

I love living in Newcastle. Whether it’s watching coal ships move through the harbour or cycling past the stockpiles - every day I’m reminded of the role our industry plays in supporting modern life and that brings meaning to our work. I couldn’t be more proud of what I do.”

The kind of leader who makes people believe they can

Spend even a few minutes speaking to Helen Gibson and you understand why people gravitate toward her. Her enthusiasm for mining is infectious. Her honesty is refreshing. Her expectations are high, but her belief in people is higher.

She is a leader who gives permission - permission to try, to stretch, to fail, to grow.

She is also a leader who challenges:

• Don’t wait for opportunities, go earn them.
• Don’t box yourself into a linear career, be open.
• Don’t underestimate your influence as someone is always watching your work.
• And don’t assume you’re not ready, very few people ever feel ready.

Her own career is proof of what can happen when you work hard, stay curious, raise your hand, and embrace the unexpected, again and again.

“I’ve never known what the next thing is. That’s what keeps it exciting.”