When Caitlyn Pengelly returned to work after parental leave, she was clear about what mattered.
“I advocated for a four day week,” she says. “I balance life as a mum to two young boys, navigating childcare and school drop offs and pick ups, and being present through their growth.”
That decision did not slow her career. It sharpened it.
Now Acting Manager Major Works at CleanCo Queensland, Caitlyn is leading complex projects that shape the state’s clean energy future.
In just two years, she has moved from Project Manager to stepping into a senior leadership role. Not by chance. Not by accident. But because she works in an environment where opportunity is real and allyship is active.
A career built on resilience
Caitlyn’s career has not followed a straight line. After graduating in Engineering, she worked for a contractor in site engineering roles. She loved problem solving and seeing theory come to life.
Then the market shifted. She was made redundant.
“It gave me an opportunity to assess where I wanted to be headed,” she reflects.
She began a Masters of Project Management, worked across local government and federal client side project management, and later joined a state government authority. She stepped away for family. And in 2024, she returned to the workforce as a Project Manager at CleanCo.
Many women worry that time out will stall their momentum. Caitlyn’s story shows what can happen when an employer looks at capability, not gaps.
Doors that open and leaders who notice
From the moment she joined CleanCo, Caitlyn was given visibility.
“I was exposed to a wide variety of stakeholders and various leaders,” she says.
In early 2025, she was asked to act in the Manager Major Works role for a month. Later that year, she was offered the opportunity again for a longer period.
That progression did not happen in isolation. It happened because leaders were willing to trust her, and because she was willing to step forward.
“The support offered to me as I navigate new learnings, conversations and experiences has been invaluable.”
This is what allyship looks like in practice. Leaders across genders recognising potential. Backing it. Making space for it.
CleanCo is helping reshape the energy sector by empowering women at the highest levels, with women representing 57% of their governing body over the past year.
Check out their employer profile to learn moreabout how they’re supporting women in leadership
Learning that changes how you lead
Progression is not only about job titles. It is about growth.
Caitlyn attended the Women in Energy and Renewables Summit in 2025. Hearing other women share their leadership journeys left a mark.
“It was a fantastic opportunity to listen to other women’s stories relating to leadership and similar challenges faced within the industry. I left with a motivation to advocate for progression for myself and other women in my workplace.”
That advocacy matters in an industry still reshaping its gender balance.
She also attended a Cultural Agility workshop focused on Australia’s First Nations Peoples.
“Stories were shared relating to how we can better advocate for healing, opportunity and growth moving forward.”
Both experiences have changed how she engages with stakeholders and leads her team.
CleanCo’s values of being Genuine, Courageous, Collaborative and Curious are not words on a wall. They are reflected in the spaces created for learning, reflection and growth.
Motherhood as a leadership strength
Caitlyn is clear that becoming a mother has strengthened her leadership.
“The lessons I have learned through becoming a mum have helped enormously in the workplace, especially in understanding diversity, different ways of thinking and learning styles.”
It has also grounded her purpose.
“My guiding light will continue to be how these opportunities best support my family.”
At CleanCo, flexible work is not treated as a concession. It is part of how talented people are retained and supported. By continuing her four day arrangement while stepping into a senior acting role, Caitlyn is demonstrating that ambition and balance can coexist.
That visibility matters for other women watching.
Redefining failure and backing yourself
Recently, Caitlyn heard a podcast guest say;
“…Failing is not being bad at something, but rather not trying in the first place.”
She has taken that to heart.
“My hopes for the future is that I continue to walk through the doors that are opened to me, knock on those that are of interest, and continue to be open minded with how those experiences eventuate.”
There is courage and trust in that. Trust that her workplace will continue to open doors. Trust that her voice belongs in the room.
When she learned that CleanCo had partnered with WORK180, it strengthened that belief.
“It provided me with hope and assurance that we will continue to advocate for and support women.”
Progress that lifts more than one person
Caitlyn’s story is about career progression. It is also about culture.
It is about a workplace where redundancy does not define you, parental leave does not sideline you, and leadership is not reserved for a narrow few.
For women in energy and beyond, it is a reminder that the right environment changes what feels possible.
And for leaders, it is a call to action. Notice potential. Back it. Create pathways that do not require people to choose between family and ambition.
