Shape careers with impact: 6 tips for future changemakers

From leading Indigenous advancement at a financial regulator to founding a global kelp conservation alliance, three changemakers share how they built careers with impact and six tips for how you can do the same.

Social impact may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about working at a financial regulator. Or a superannuation firm. But government and corporate sectors offer countless opportunities for meaningful work that aligns with your values.

“So many students assume they need to work for a charity or an environmental organisation to have an impact,” says Dr. Carly Vickers, Founding Director, UNSW Innovation Hub. “But they can create systemic and behavioural change when they’ve got a large company structure behind them.”

Dr Vickers was joined by changemakers at UNSW Employability’s 2026 Careers with Impact event to help students align their values with their careers. Through a practical employability session, insightful panel discussion and employers showcase, students learned how impact leaders across sectors have turned their values into action – and connected with 28 organisations.

Creating careers with impact across sectors

As one of Australia’s largest profit-for-members super funds, Aware Super “really values corporate sustainability,” says Amanda Barker, Head of Corporate Sustainability and Social Impact at Aware Super. That’s why she has been working at the fund for nearly a decade.

“The expectation is that yes, we're going to do our job, but what else are we doing to help communities and the environment,” she says. “So, we invest in community infrastructure like hospitals and fire stations – things you wouldn’t think a superannuation company would invest in.”

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) is helping to create tangible outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Yet And that’s exactly what Aaron Collins is doing as the as the Indigenous Advancement Lead at ASIC.

“I’m in a very fortunate position and I want to create fortunate positions for others,” Collins says. “In the corporate world we tend to get stuck on the words on paper. I come from that community; I can speak to people who still live there and get direct insight. I like to keep the people I’m involved with honest, and that’s how I’m trying to drive impact and influence.”

When Dr Aaron Eger, founder of the Kelp Forest Alliance realised expertise in a single discipline wouldn’t be enough to protect the environment, he created his own role.

“In my application for my UNSW PhD project, I said the job I want doesn’t exist but I would like to create it,” he says. “And it’s what happened. At the Kelp Forest Alliance, we bring together science, policy, economics, education, storytelling, local community and Indigenous leadership to achieve a larger environmental outcome.”

These journeys to impact follow very different paths, and that’s okay, says Collins. “The way you get there doesn't have to be direct, but there's never losses. There's only lessons."

Here are six lessons these changemakers learned along the way.

1. Find your values

When Collins thinks about the influences that shaped who he is and what he stands for, his upbringing springs immediately to mind.

“At every point in my life I had someone who supported and believed in me. I want to do that for others.”

Being clear about the impact he wants to make helped guide Collins throughout his life. So while you may feel the pressure to have your career mapped out, it’s often uncovering your values that will set you up for long-term success.

“One thing I'm learning is that our priorities change, but our passion and values don't,” Collins says. “We just lean into them a little bit more or we don't really. Now that I'm into a well-establish career, I think about them more.”

And, according to Dr Eger, university is the perfect time to discover what you deeply care about.

“Take that time to reflect, find what your values are. Find that passion and start leaning into it. There's so much opportunity to carve out a career that not only provides stability but speaks to your passion,” he says.

2. Find the gap

Once you find what drives you intrinsically, Dr Eger recommends doing your research to find where you can add the most value.

“Very few people want to play with spreadsheets, organise emails, do budgets, think of how we're going to pay for this. That's my job, it can be a bit boring, but it makes a difference," he says.

He suggests being strategic and deliberate in what you're going to do, how you're going to do it and where you can make the most impact.

“Try to find out where other people aren't, go where you're needed and see what you can do that other people aren't doing.”

3. Keep an open mind

Collins found his calling by “walking through the doors that opened” to him, trusting his gut and the people who guided him along his journey. One unexpected door he walked through was university.

“Tertiary education just wasn't on my radar,” Collins recalls. “I thought I was going to be a barber. But getting an introduction through some of the high school programs at Nura Gili gave me the taste. And that's when that self-belief started. I started to meet people and things started changing when I started investing in myself.”

Career paths can be linear or winding. Barker says that just because an opportunity isn’t exactly where you thought you’d go next, it doesn’t mean it’s the wrong step.

“Be open to the fact that your career will diverge. There will be forks going off in the road, but you're building your toolbox of knowledge and experience."

4. Be prepared to empathise and adapt

When Barker became the only female and only black executive at an iconic AFL club, she faced a significant challenge of breaking the cycle of white male-dominated thinking. Rather than focusing on the change that mattered to her, Barker had to find the narrative that spoke to the people she was trying to take on the journey.

“I had to think money, because they think money. I had to get smart and do the maths. Not every stakeholder's going to go, 'Yeah, I'm in.' It's your job to help them understand.”

Building your empathy and developing negotiation, people management and communication skills are important for driving your agenda.

“You need to have a certain level of empathy and understanding for different values or ways of thinking and to be able to shepherd different people and groups towards the same direction. You need to hear where they're coming from and find that kind of common path forward."

5. Be curious and ruthless

Finding a role that aligns with your values starts with being curious about the organisations you’re speaking with. Barker recommends finding out what they stand for and asking them for proof.

“Ask them for the evidence, “Can you direct me to, or can you give me an example of…” and then find the source of truth for yourself," she says. “Keep learning, keep asking. Don’t be concerned with time passing, the universe will direct you.”

And when it comes to creating opportunities for yourself, Barker’s advice is: don’t hold back.

“I would be ruthless in a very professional way. Network with people you would never think of because you think they wouldn't have time for you. Ask them. They can only say no."

You never know when your next opportunity will come from.

6. Be kind – to yourself and others

Whether it’s your parents or society’s expectations, the pressure to decide what to do with your life can weigh on you. Collins says setting yourself up for a long and healthy career starts with being kind to yourself.

“You can't control external pressures, but you can control the pressure you apply to yourself internally. I would take these years to be super kind to yourself. You're going to make right decisions and you're going to make wrong decisions. It's all part of learning."

Remembering to extend that same grace to others is also important to lasting work relationships, says Dr Eger.

“Be kind to others. We're all in this together and we're all a bit lost, floundering in the dark trying to find our purpose and our meaning. It is much easier if we figure it out together.”

Want to start shaping a career with impact?

Whether you want to protect the environment, create a more equitable world, or find your own way to make a positive impact, UNSW Employability can help you get ready for the future you want.

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This article was brought to you by UNSW Employability.