Yellowknife, Canada – Angela Bigg made history late last year when Rio Tinto appointed her president and chief operating officer of the Diavik diamond mine in Canada.The decision made Bigg the first woman to lead the mine and its 1,100 employees.
She is one of the few women in the world to run a major diamond mine. Her appointment comes at a time when companies are recognising the benefits of increasing diversity and equality in the workplace, particularly at the highest levels, and the difficulties women and minorities often face in their careers – including those highlighted in a recent report published by Rio Tinto – are being brought to light.
Bigg joined Rio Tinto in 2005 and has worked in her native Australia, Mozambique, South Africa and now Canada.
In an email Q&A, Bigg describes a day in her life as the head of Diavik and shares her perspective on being the first woman to hold the position.
National Jeweler: Tell us a little bit about yourself outside of your career at Rio Tinto.
Angela Bigg: I grew up and did all my schooling in Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territories in Australia.
The outdoor lifestyle in the Northern Territory is surprisingly similar to the Northwest Territories in Canada, apart from the extreme temperature differences.
My first real job was delivering junk mail or advertising leaflets with my brother around the suburb where we lived when I was at primary school.
NJ: Moving on to your career, you joined Rio Tinto in 2005. Had you worked in mining before?
AB: Prior to 2005, I had worked in Australia in the financial services industry and for the government.
I had to take some time off due to complications from surgery and returned to live with my parents in Darwin for about a year.
When I was able to return to work, I moved to Brisbane in Queensland, Australia, where there was a good facial rehabilitation programme and I could be close to my uncle and grandfather for family support.
NJ: So why did you choose a career in mining?
AB: In financial services and securities trading, there is a direct trade-off between someone who “wins” in a transaction and someone who “loses” an equivalent amount.
I wanted to work in an industry where it was possible for multiple stakeholders to benefit from the activities.
When I applied for jobs in Brisbane, I targeted three industries: airlines, technology companies (in the early days of the internet) and mining.
Rio Tinto was the first to offer me a job.
NJ: What does a typical day look like for you? Take us from the start of your day to when you pack up and go home.
AB: I work both in Yellowknife, where I live, and at the mine site, which is about 300 kilometres away and can only be reached by plane most of the year.
When I’m at the mine, I’m in my office no later than 6 a.m. The mine is a 24/7 operation, so there’s always a lot to catch up on when I arrive in the morning.
I spend a lot of my time checking in with the teams and talking to the staff. COVID-19 has been tough on our people, as it has been for everyone. They are working away from their families for three weeks at a time and that can take its toll.
Fortunately, we’ve been able to stay open and provide stable employment throughout the pandemic, while taking precautions to keep transmission low.
I try to get out into the field most days and visit different parts of the mine. We have both surface and underground operations and some really exciting projects, so I always enjoy getting out and talking to the teams.
Most people in the mine work 12-hour days. My days tend to be a little longer sometimes, but I try to get out of the office by 8pm to give myself a break and get some proper rest.
It’s a bit easier to end my day at a reasonable hour when I’m in Yellowknife, but I still tend to work a bit in the evenings.
NJ: What does the President and Chief Operating Officer of a mine do? What are your responsibilities?
AB: My main responsibility is the health and safety of the team and looking after the people I work with.
Diavik employs about 1,100 people and it’s my responsibility to make sure they can do their jobs safely and go home to their families.
Of course, making sure the mine is running smoothly and that we continue to have a real dialogue with our First Nations and government partners is also an important part of my role.
NJ: You’re the first woman to run the mine. What has that experience been like?
AB: Working for Rio Tinto, I have had some great opportunities to work in a number of different roles in many places around the world.
Being given the privilege to lead Diavik is certainly a highlight and not something I ever thought I would be given.
I have been fortunate to have had a number of female leaders who have had confidence in me and also challenged the boundaries I have set for myself in my career.
It can be hard to believe in your own ability to succeed, which is why having a supportive leader and being part of a team can make such a difference.
The mining industry, and the North as a whole, benefits from strong female representation in key positions.
From the Premier and the Minister to the Deputy Minister of ITI (the Industry, Tourism and Investment Department of the Government of the Northwest Territories) and community stakeholders, it’s a very welcoming place to be the first female leader of one of the diamond mines.
NJ: You worked in Mozambique, South Africa and Australia before joining the Diavik team in Canada in 2017. What would you say has been the highlight of your career so far?
AB: The safety culture in mining is critical to most operations and at Rio Tinto it comes from a genuine care for people. I’ve been really proud to see people embracing the safety culture at the sites I’ve worked at.
At one site, a new safety process was implemented and safety issues were taken so seriously that if a supervisor didn’t fill out the required form to track their safety hazards, they were kicked out of the work area by someone who reported to them.
NJ: What is your favourite part of the job?
AB: My favourite part is working with the team at Diavik and seeing people develop and grow. While Diavik is an infrastructure marvel in the subarctic, it is the people that make Diavik an amazing place to work.
NJ: If you couldn’t be in this field, what would you be doing?
AB: I think I’d be a librarian. Literacy is an important skill and the facilities that libraries can provide can be life changing.
They provide a place in the community that is free and open for everyone to use and benefit from. It’s not just the books, but the educational programmes and social opportunities that make them so important.
NJ: If you could give one piece of advice to those aspiring to work in the mining industry, what would it be?
AB: Absolutely do it. The opportunities are only limited by the limits you set yourself.
