Claudette Fricot

6.30 AM

I get up, get ready and put on my clothes for the gym, then leave 15 minutes later. It's only a 5-minute drive, so it's perfect for a quick trip when I'm in a hurry. I spend about an hour there doing strength training and I have a killer techno and rap playlist to help me get through it. Going to the gym first thing in the morning is my favourite way to start the day when I work from home!

8.00 AM

When I get home, I shower and change into my best outfit of the day for a comfy work/life balance.  Before logging on, I like to check the news, social media and reply to any messages on my phone. I usually drink my protein shake while doing so, then I make a cup of coffee to drink at my desk.

8.30 AM

It's time to check my Nova emails and see what's on for the day. I have a team chat with the other Melbourne grads where we have a bit of banter every day, so it's good to check in and see what's happening. On a typical day in my project, I have a couple of meetings scheduled, which might range from a half-hour stand-up with the project team to a full day working group with the ILS team.

9.00 AM

It's time to start the working group with the ILS team. Today, we'll go through the ILS specifics for each selected tenderer inside the project. Tenderers must meet a minimum number of Commonwealth requirements, known as Data Item Descriptions (DIDs) during submissions, which are evaluated in these working groups. Since I'm a recent graduate and new to the project, I simply sit in for the day, listening to what the team is talking about and asking questions as needed.

10.45 AM

It's time for a 10-minute break to grab another cup of coffee and something to eat. To help me get to lunchtime, I’ve opted for a protein yoghurt, muesli bar and a banana. I also go over the documents briefly to make sure I understand what we're talking about, so I'm sure I'll have some questions by now. The ILS team enjoys hearing these questions when discussing ILS issues, since it allows for the beginning of talks that assess team ideas.

12.30 PM

It's time for lunch! I'm not hungry yet so I’m going to skip lunch and meet my sister to go for a walk. Today we’re walking around The Tan and Southbank, stopping for a coffee at one of the local cafés along the way.

1.30 PM

Let's get back to work!  I jump online after lunch and continue working in the ILS working group. In this session, we'll continue to discuss the ILS risks from each tenderer and how to mitigate them in the project. I also go over any emails I've received to see if there's anything I need to respond to.

2.15 PM

I've just been asked to look up the location of an item at one of the defence warehouses around Australia. MILIS (Military Integrated Logistics Information System) is what I use to check this. It's comparable to SAP, but it's Defence's version of it; although, Defence will shortly phase-out MILIS to introduce SAP.

3.00 PM

Time for another 10-minute break. I'm going to quickly make a sandwich because I haven't eaten since this morning! I also get a drink and check my phone, going through social media and responding to any messages.

4.30 PM

Although the ILS working group has now concluded, the day is far from over! If there are any project materials that I need to read, I do so after the working group and I also check my emails once more. Working on this project has taught me that because the lead time is so long, there are a lot of moving parts. Therefore, these working groups are critical for getting the required information organised and sent off for approval.

5.00 PM

I use this extra half-hour to continue with one of my Defence courses. Coming into Defence is a steep learning curve, so spending spare time while working on this project to take some courses to better understand the Commonwealth is a huge plus.

5.30 PM

It's time to wrap things up. I fill out my timesheet with everything I did today, respond to any final messages on teams and check my emails one last time before signing off.

5.40 PM

Work is done for the day! It's time to fire up the PlayStation!