Major General Elizabeth Cosson AM, CSC

Ep. 89    Maj. General Elizabeth Cosson AM, CSC<br/><br/>Liz Cosson was the first woman to be promoted to the rank of Major General in the Australian Army. <br/><br/>She enlisted in the Army in 1979. She was selected with 32 other women for the first male-equivalent officer training course. Throughout her distinguished military career, she held significant logistics and administrative positions. She received a commendation for her work in Cambodia. In 1999 she was responsible for logistics planning for the East Timor operation, and she was subsequently appointed as Chief of Staff of the Peace monitoring group in Bougainville for which she was awarded the Conspicuous Service Cross in 2001. <br/><br/>In 2007, she was the first woman to be promoted to the rank of Major General in the Australian Army. Following this remarkable career, she retired from full time military service in November 2010 and joined the Australian Public Service where she eventually reached her current role as Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs.<br/><br/>But it hasn't all been without its obstacles. We discuss a career threatening issue that Liz had to overcome. How she did that can be taken as a valuable lesson. As is our discussion on the value of values in becoming a worthy leader - in any field.